Old Barn Guy

After reading the posts here on this thread, I thought it might be an appropriate place to post something I had added to a different thread a few days ago. After watching a lot of the Sioux hockey games this year, the glaring lack of "finishers" is always evident. For those fans who are continually bemoaning the lack of offense, I'm afraid it's not going to get much better this season. You must remember that this team lost it's two top offensive producers (Zach and Bo), plus Lundbohm. Now they are also playing without a very skilled and speedy Brady Murray. This weekend also sees the Sioux without a fairly strong two-way player (McMahon). The Sioux don't have depth in the goal-scoring department. They really don't have a lot of offensive firepower (finishers at the D-1 college level). The past month, they look like they are working hard, trying their best. Maybe we just have to "cut them all some slack." Get used to it. They aren't going to fill the net, even when they do create some excellent opportunities. Now, can they win and go on into the playoffs? Yes, I think they can. Don't expect it to be easy or pretty, but they could pull off a "2004 Denver" and surprise the heck out of a lot of hockey "experts." To do this, they WILL need some luck. Heaven knows that we haven't used up much of it so far in the regular season. Keep the faith. As long as the guys are working hard and playing together, you can't really expect some of the "role player" guys to magically turn into consistent big time goal scorers. It just isn't going to happen at the level at which they play. But some just may get the opportunity to produce and get the job done when it is needed the most. And to Hak........hang in there fella. First years are never easy and you have been challanged by many difficult circumstances beyond your control. You have a good staff to help you and you will do just fine. You are just "paying your dues" as a first year coach of a program that is always expected to win (not considering that most of the offense producers are no longer in the line up or even the program). You guys will find more recruits that will come in a bring the needed skills/traits to the team. I have faith in you guys and the program, and a lot of other hockey people do too.

My family's deepest sympathy to Dave and his family on the loss of his father.

Nelson went back to coach high school hockey at Grand Rapids, Mn. He has been retired from that for at least a dozen years, maybe longer. I think he was the AD for Grand Rapids after he retired from coaching, but I don't know what he is doing at present. I had the opportunity to work a week of summer Sioux hockey camp with him back in the early 80's. He's a good guy and smart hockey man.

Minot is the only undefeated team in North Dakota high school hockey play so far. They certainly have to be considered a contender. As ususal, if a team has strong goaltending in late February, they just might grab the championship. History is on the side of teams north of Buxton. It seems that this is the most evenly balanced hockey season in North Dakota high school hockey that I can remember (and that goes back to the early 60's!). Looking forward to an exciting end of a very balanced season of high school hockey. The loss of top high school players to junior hockey has certainly had a detrimental effect on the caliber of play in North Dakota, but the ones who leave miss out on experiences that they just can't get in junior hockey. Most are going to have to play another year of juniors, for physical growth, etc., so what's the hurry to get to juniors?

Go CANADA! Beat those Randy Moss wanabes! Here are some of my observations and comments about this Russian team: Punks! Crybabies, and jerks. They will get theirs, either collectively from the Canadians, or in the future from NHL or minor league guys who will not forget their ridiculous behavior in that semi-final game. Red mouthguards! Probably with blood capsules engineered into them (I'm not kidding about this, if they used steriods and other unethical methods in the past, what would keep them from doing that.) The fact that fans booed them when they were "really" hurt can be attributed to the usual theatrics that these guys have been using in their homeland to draw penalties on their opponents. Perfect example of the old "The boy that cried 'Wolf!' story. That Russian player who put his hand to his ear after scoring goals (he did it after scoring the penalty shot in opening game, and then again last night when he scored their 3rd goal) should be welcomed into North American professional hockey (if he's good enough to be brought over here) in the traditional "good old fashioned way," know what I mean. When the game was still 3-2 for Russia, the US had some good pressure going, a shot and a rebound, then a Russian defenseman purposely dislodged the net to halt play and avoid a serious US follow up. Shortly afte this, the Russians scored to go ahead 4-2, which is certainly more reflective of the way this game was played, rather than that 7-2 score. When Ovechkin sits on the Capitols' bench after his first period of his first game in DC (while the rest of his team goes in to the locker room), I hope he gets mugged, with no teammates around to come to his aid. High marks to Sandy for his players' self restraint, not going "bananas" in response to the Russians' usportsmanlike behavior. Has that referee ever heard of a penalty for unsportsmanlike behavior? I don't care if it was a USA player or Russian, they deserve to get at least 2 minutes, or maybe a 10 minute misconduct. The Russian person dressed in coat and tie on the bench, who made "kissing jestures" toward the US player on the bench, and then pointed to the scoreboard should be banned from the bench. I can't believe he was part of the coaching staff, he probably was a "waterboy" or something like that. Still, it was classless. I've always pulled for Canada in past tournaments, except when they played USA. I won't let a few knuckleheads from north of the border change how I feel about Canadians and their hockey. GO CANADA!

"Machine Head" by the band Bush is a great "stimulator to action." Myron Floran's version of "The Sabre Dance" is also another crowd pleaser.

If businesses want to have some sort of a comparison for what this tournament might bring to them, maybe they should refer back to the NCAA final four tournament held in GF in 1983 (Wisconsin won). I would think that this tournament might be even a better thing financially for the GF communitiy.

2000-Present: Jeff Panzer, Jason Blake, Travis Roche Pre-2000: Reggie Morelli, Al McLean, Don Ross, Tony Hrkac

Coaches who want to win, don't let a personality rift with a player determine who is going to play (unless there is insubordination, or something similar). Some people (especially parents or friends of players) always seem to want to find a sinister or "under cover" reason for a player not playing. They don't really want to face the reality that someone (the coach) might be right in his evaluation of the player's performance. I speak from many years of coaching experience, coaches who play favorites or hold grudges usually don't stick around very long. In Hak's case, he began the season as a new head coach. He had to try to evaluate talent and win games as best he could, in a very short amount of time. The short pre-season, loss of very talented offensive players through turning pro and injuries have made this a very challenging situation for any coach, experienced or otherwise. My opinion is that you, as a coach, must be true to yourself. Do what YOU think is the right thing to do, because if you don't, and things go wrong, guess who will be alone shouldering the blame? Hak is moving along and doing a great job. If you feel some players (in this particular case, Jake) aren't being given a fair shake, you better start attending the practices to get a better prospective of how a coach formulates decisions. Jake is experienced, but not with a successful end of the season performance. He could probalby still step in and do a credible job, in my opinion, but the coach feels that the other two guys are going to give the team a better chance to win. That's all that matters right now. If you try to coach with only your heart, you will only hurt the team and you will lose your credibiltiy with your players. Don't ever put an individual's welfare ahead of the team's. The players know who should be playing. The following is a quote that I heard from another coach a few years ago, and I really think that is says it about as well as it can be said (you can substitute "friends" for "parents" and get about the same effect here): "Parents see their child (player) in technicolor, while coaches see them in black and white."

Beaujourno, Jon Durno!

Some former D-men with offensive talent: Nick Naumenko, Ian Kidd, Russ Parent, James Patrick, Marc Chorney, Travis Roche, Curtis Murphy. Remember, the schedule has been a tough one, and the team hasn't been playing to their potential level (why, I don't know). I have confidence that the coaching staff will get things straightened out and the team will finish strong this season. We do need to have patience, even though I know we would like the Sioux to win every game they play. Remember that even the best teams we've ever had in GF have sometimes played below their expected level. This team seems to be still searching for it's identity. If they cut down on the needless penalties, they should do alright. No team can be successful playing 3 vs 5 for extended periods of a hockey game, and you don't have to be a genious to figure that out. I look for them to come out with fire in their eyes and fill the Huskies' net with pucks this weekend. This should be the start of a good run of consecutive wins for the Sioux!

This is a topic where having played the game will probably make a difference in the way you feel about the topic of fighting. I don't condone the fighting, but have to admit that I have been in a few hockey fights in my younger days. I have to say that none of them were pre-planned to fire up my teammates, although it may have had that result. The fights I was in were either spur of the moment reactions to a player (or the team) I was playing that particular day, or were the "last straw" to some unwanted attention I was receiving from an opponent throughout a game. I might add something to this discussion about fights. At least in hockey, the people involved in fights get some sort of consequence. I've seen quite a few NFL games where, after altercations have taken place between teams/players, the referee will signal off-setting penalties and then place the ball on the spot to begin the next play (just like nothing ever happened).

Thanks for the info/article PCM.

Is it any coincidence that aliens are usually described as being green, and the Sioux main uniform color is also green?

Thank goodness they didn't do a replay of the radio presentation of "War of the Worlds." I'm afraid some of our posters might have evacuated town and headed for who knows where to get away from the invading aliens.

Marty: Sarcasm and satire. Check them out. And, great job to the posters here! I hope you are all truly behind Hak and his crew. He'll be fine and so will the team. Just got to get through some "rocky" moments, like any program does with a coaching change.

After the Sioux series at Wisconsin (Nov. 11 & 12), I will be dropping my Direct TV satellite for about 5 months (until the college hockey season is over). I will be adding the local cable here, because it carries the Sioux home games and some playoffs, if they should not be at GF. I'll have the Satellite reconnected after the college hockey season, for a $25 reconnection fee, and in the meantime, pay a $5/month fee to have it ready for reconnection, rather than total "withdrawal" from the satellite program. This is information that I received yesterday in a conversation with a Direct TV representative. The cost of the cable is about $39/month, slightly more than my satellite cost. I also have the CSN so I was able to see the Maine games and will see the BC game tonight, but will drop it when I drop the regular Direct TV package after the afore mentioned Wisconsin series. The total extra cost of this manuevering will be about $50, after reconnecting the satellite next spring. Even if it were about $200, I'd still do it, since I'm not paying for NHL Center Ice. I figure I'll get at least 20 Sioux games on cable, so that seems like a very good deal to me.

I've seen a lot of Sioux-Gophers games in my many years of following Sioux hockey. I even lived in the TC a few years, and thought that I could at least pull for the Gophers (when they weren't playing the Sioux). I found that I could not ever pull for the Gophs (ok, when they played a team from the USSR, I did pull for the Gophs), mainly because of the fan atmosphere. The attitude of the TC people seemed to be one of elitism, like, "If you're not a Gopher, you're not squat." This seemed especially true regarding the other Minnesota University teams (Duluth, St. Cloud, and then Mankato). I now enjoy every game the Gophers lose to those "lesser-thans." I also know that when Woog was coacing, they were cheap and dirty, especially with their sticks. What can you expect from the former coach of the dirtiest junior hockey team to ever play in Minnesota (St. Paul Vulcans). I was witness to a lot of this in person. The cheapest Gopher I have seen in recent years was DiMarchi. Expert at running guys from behind, especially with a cross check. It is only by the grace of God that he didn't seriously injure a player in his days with Minnesota. I figured that when he began to play pro, he would either change his ways, or get the beatings of his life (maybe from some former college opponents that remember his operating procedures). I don't know how things have gone for him, but would appreciate any info that people might have about him. The recent series I witnessed between the Sioux and Gophers was not nearly as physical as some I can remember. The fight was, from what I could see, a "cleanly fought" situation that probably had a lot of things building up to it. Whatever, it's a hockey game and sometimes that happens. At least the opponents were facing each other and knew that the situation was happening, which was not the case in any of the DiMarchi incidents that I saw.

The problems of the team (at least against Minnesota, I didn't see the Mankato games) probably stems from the forwards not coming back and not having good defensive positioning in the first place (get between the opponent and your goal and the puck). The "new way" the rules are being enforced may have some bearing on how the players are playing without the puck right now, but they'd better start adjusting soon or they will find themselves in a season of playing "catch up" to the teams that do adjust. Here is what I stated a couple of days ago in a different thread: If your forwards are coming back hard in the neutral zone, your defensemen can "stand up" at their own blue line against oncoming puckcarriers. The gaps I saw between the Gophers puck carriers and the Sioux defensemen were about one half of a zone, way too much space. Once the Gophers got into our zone, the defensemen were at the tops of the faceoff circles by the net. too much time and space to give to anybody. This all breaks down from where the third Sioux forward is in the offensive zone. If he is high in the slot, he is not only in good position to receive a pass and take a shot on goal, but he is in excellent defensive postition to backcheck (and not on the puck carrier) to help out the D-men so they can "hold the line." Saturday's debacle was a team effort, although I find little fault with the goal tending, that were pretty much hung out to dry all night. Hey, remember, even the best teams have an "off night" once in a while. Hak and his staff know how to correct the problem of the team. Give them a chance to regroup and come out smoking vs BC on Friday. Remember, the team is 4-1-1. Not too shabby.

If your forwards are coming back hard in the neutral zone, your defensemen can "stand up" at their own blue line against oncoming puckcarriers. The gaps I saw between the Gophers puck carriers and the Sioux defensemen were about one half of a zone, way too much space. Once the Gophers got into our zone, the defensemen were at the tops of the faceoff circles by the net. too much time and space to give to anybody. This all breaks down from where the third Sioux forward is in the offensive zone. If he is high in the slot, he is not only in good position to receive a pass and take a shot on goal, but he is in excellent defensive postition to backcheck (and not on the puck carrier) to help out the D-men so they can "hold the line." Saturday's debacle was a team effort, although I find little fault with the goal tending, that were pretty much hung out to dry all night. Hey, remember, even the best teams have an "off night" once in a while. Hak and his staff know how to correct the problem of the team. Give them a chance to regroup and come out smoking vs BC on Friday. Remember, the team is 4-1-1. Not too shabby.

Chicago also has the Wolves. Some people may even classify the Blackhawks as minor league, but at least on paper they are NHL. (That really hurt to say that, but I'm afraid it is true.)

Excellent post Canuck. Regarding the need for standing at the game: Wouldn't the corner areas be most suitable for all involved? The people could stand the entire game if they so chose, and they wouldn't obscure anyone else's view of the action. At a hockey game, I'll jump up out of my seat on a goal or great play most of the time, but I wouldn't think of continuing to block the view of others who want to see the game too. I don't attend many games at the Ralph (about one per year) and I haven't been "blocked out" by any fans at the games I have attended, but the location of our seats (in the corner) may have had something to do with that. I have a question regarding the student tickets sold. A friend of mine told me that the most of the time, all of the student tickets are not sold out. Is that true? Just wondering.

How about playing AC/DC's "Back in Black" if the Sioux are wearing their black jerseys? Also, maybe the Stones' "Paint It Black."

If the Sioux are hungry, they should be impressive. Cut down on needless penalties and pounce on their pp opportunities. The biggest problem facing Hak is picking which goalie to play. That is always a tough coaching decision when you have multiple, good choices from which to choose! Looking forward to the games this weekend.

AZ, my son has lived in Phoenix for two years now. He has met other Sioux fans at a sports bar (I believe it is called "O'Sullivans") while watching the games on dish. You do know that former Sioux goalie (and Bemidji native) Steve Peters is the guy in charge of the video stuff for the Coyotes, don't you?