How would you beat this team?

[mikejm]

This year's Fighting Sioux team is quite different than any I've seen in the last several years. It is really a team that defies easy description or characterization.

Is it a speed and finesse team? Sure, but not completely. There is speed; and finesse. But I don't think that is the core.

How about a team of the big oak trees the way the Sioux were described in Matt Greene's time? Certainly they are not as big as that team, but this isn't one that can be described as "soft" by any stretch of the imagination. I'd wager that this team is tougher

[Big A HG]

Since the Sioux are having a tough time scoring, I'd do my best to put as much pressure as I could on their defense and try and score more than 2 goals somehow. The defense is way scarier than there offense right now.

[AZSIOUX]

i think this team is very balanced. the high scoring numbers are not there but overall i think blanced is a good way of describing the sioux. very good defensively with the d core and JPL. not sure how to beat this team and i think there are many coaches that sau the same thing, they havent lost in 17 games

seriously im not sure and am not that big of a hockey x's and o's guy to break that stuff down but the key is phil i think. he hasnt been broken in a while and when and if you can catch him on a off day thats your best chance. i dont see this team defensively giving up more than 2-3 goals per game like they have so not sure. are they a offensive machine? not at all but i would say defensively they are tops in the nation and thats a key to a national title. i understand we havent been scoring may goals lately but we also know this team is capable of scoring in bunches. the sioux block many shots and their PK is tops in the nation which is a nice combo to have. cant wait to see how this plays out. it was a fun regular season to see ths team improve through the year. lets start it out byu kicking tech around!

[HaksHomey]

you cant stop em you can only hope to contain em

[siouxweet]

I think the teams that have been the most successful against us have been able to push us to the perimiters as we enter the zone-which I think has been the case a lot lately. this has been our lack of scoring problem because once we get pushed to the outside the possession has essentially been over becasue we have a very hard time creating a lot of opportunities in the slot area.

[AussieSiouxFan]

I think the best way to stop the sioux at the moment is to try and frustrate them, causing dumb and desperate plays and then capitalise on their mistakes. If the defense on the opposition play more aggressive and pinch up and stop the play before the red line the sioux will get frustrated and feel pressure which will cause them to panic. This could work as the sioux have shown that if given room in the neutral zone they can usually gain the offensive zone and then command the play down low to create chances, wear down the defense and draw penalties.

I think playing an aggressive defensive system and pinching on the play is very risky as it can lead to odd man rushes but if executed well, it could work.

But don't tell the other teams this.....

[Fetch]

Bribe or extort the refs

[siouxweet]

Bribe or extort the refs

isn't that already being done?

[Pipewrench]

I think the best way to stop the sioux at the moment is to try and frustrate them, causing dumb and desperate plays and then capitalise on their mistakes. If the defense on the opposition play more aggressive and pinch up and stop the play before the red line the sioux will get frustrated and feel pressure which will cause them to panic. This could work as the sioux have shown that if given room in the neutral zone they can usually gain the offensive zone and then command the play down low to create chances, wear down the defense and draw penalties.

I think playing an aggressive defensive system and pinching on the play is very risky as it can lead to odd man rushes but if executed well, it could work.

But don't tell the other teams this.....

Have to disagree with this post, mainly because when you start pinching d men down, you create odd man rushes and this could cost you the game in the first period. I think maybe having a agressive forecheck to prevent the d from moving the puck out of the zone would spell doom for any team including the sioux (key you need fast aggressive forwards). Is tech the team with enough game to forecheck and create turnovers?? I don't think so, but their goalies are both excellent and could give them the confidence to win one night.

[siouxweet]

with all the injuries , sickness and scoring problems I sure as hell hope we aren't sitting here on sunday or monday talking about how the sioux ran into a hot goalie(s) this weekend and licking our wounds.

[jk]

I recall a few bad games or moments for the Sioux, and they included these factors:

Against UAA and MN (especially the first series), big opposing forwards were able to push around UND's relatively undersized defense. The Sioux are tough and gritty, but when the other guy has a bigger frame and knows how to use it, you're going to lose some battles for the puck. In that December seres against MN, there were long stretches where UND was just unable to get the puck because they couldn't win those battles. Ditto the Saturday UAA game.

UND's opponents this year get to see an odd-man rush most every game off an aggressive offensive play by a UND defenseman. A team with high-end skill guys (like, for instance, all the rest of the elite teams in the country) that can convert those rushes could absolutely play a rope-a-dope strategy: pack it in and keep the GA down, and wait for a glorious chance the other way. Different year, but I'm thinking of the first period of the BC game two years ago, when the Sioux did a lot of things right, generating many good chances, but BC converted their rushes to the tune of a 3-0 lead.

[MeanEgirl]

How would I beat this Sioux team?

Something along these lines...

[siouxweet]

I recall a few bad games or moments for the Sioux, and they included these factors:

Against UAA and MN (especially the first series), big opposing forwards were able to push around UND's relatively undersized defense. The Sioux are tough and gritty, but when the other guy has a bigger frame and knows how to use it, you're going to lose some battles for the puck. In that December seres against MN, there were long stretches where UND was just unable to get the puck because they couldn't win those battles. Ditto the Saturday UAA game.

UND's opponents this year get to see an odd-man rush most every game off an aggressive offensive play by a UND defenseman. A team with high-end skill guys (like, for instance, all the rest of the elite teams in the country) that can convert those rushes could absolutely play a rope-a-dope strategy: pack it in and keep the GA down, and wait for a glorious chance the other way. Different year, but I'm thinking of the first period of the BC game two years ago, when the Sioux did a lot of things right, generating many good chances, but BC converted their rushes to the tune of a 3-0 lead.

michigan, miami and cc all fall into this catagory.

[AussieSiouxFan]

Have to disagree with this post, mainly because when you start pinching d men down, you create odd man rushes.

Yes I have made note of this but I agree with an agressive forecheck to turn the puck over and keep the puck in und's end and keep pressure on them getting out of the zone and and gaining the red line.

[brianvf]

How would I beat this Sioux team?

Something along these lines...

MEggie...don't make me come over there...and make you beat me!

[Goon]

How would I beat this Sioux team?

Something along these lines...

Yeah now that Is what I am talking about.

[Goon]

michigan, miami and cc all fall into this catagory.

I would strike Miami from that list. They are a paper tiger.

[siouxweet]

I would strike Miami from that list. They are a paper tiger.

be careful what you wish for. they have some very good, big forwards that could give us trouble.

[Goon]

be careful what you wish for. they have some very good, big forwards that could give us trouble.

They don't scare me one bit, I have seen them picked apart in a manner UND would.

Over-rated is the word that comes to mind. Seriously, how many teams have they played from 10 ten?

[Superman0099]

They don't scare me one bit, I have seen them picked apart in a manner UND would.

Over-rated is the word that comes to mind. Seriously, how many teams have they played from 10 ten?

I have seen Miami play multiple times this year. They stand little to no chance against UND's forwards. Slower D than any of the top 5 WCHA teams, and maybe one line that could match up skill wise. Zatkoff is a pretty good goaltender but let's face it, he has not seen a group like UND, CC, St Cloud, would bring to the ice. I would be pleased to see them in UND's bracket to say the least, as they will be the weakest 1/2 seed of the bunch IMO.

[Sioux-per Villain]

If Genoway is out, force Chorney to rush the puck in a trapping nuetral zone. He will usually create an odd man rush the other way.....

[redwing77]

I have seen Miami play multiple times this year. They stand little to no chance against UND's forwards. Slower D than any of the top 5 WCHA teams, and maybe one line that could match up skill wise. Zatkoff is a pretty good goaltender but let's face it, he has not seen a group like UND, CC, St Cloud, would bring to the ice. I would be pleased to see them in UND's bracket to say the least, as they will be the weakest 1/2 seed of the bunch IMO.

Yup. Zatkoff is the only scary good person on Miami. If they do make any noise in the NCAAs, it will be because of the same reasons the NY Giants made it to the Super Bowl (and won). Every team they faced overlooked them and took Eli Manning for granted. Yes, he sucks, but he's not Rex Grossman. You can't always rely on Eli to throw to your DBs. Same thing with Miami. Sure, they are vastly overrated, but if we take them anything less than seriously, they'll beat us.

As for the true intent of this thread, let me break down what I'd try to do:

1. I'd try to take away the middle. That means clogging up the middle of my defensive zone against them and make them take whatever shots from the perimeter. In the neutral zone, I'd employ a neutral zone trap. Yes, that isn't fool proof, but if "my" team allows UND to employ a quick transition in the neutral zone, I'm in trouble.

2. I'd make garbage goals hard to come by. If you make UND "get cute" with the puck, they'll turn it over nearly EVERY...SINGLE...TIME. Since they are prone to this at times, this is probably the easiest thing to accomplish.

3. Clog the passing lanes. Again, not allowing fast transitions will help our team.

4. Stay out of the box. DUH! Sure, UND's PP is lackluster, but for how long? Constant PK shifts tires out the lines as well.

5. Dive. Yeah, this is a dirty thing to suggest, but seriously: IF there are WCHA officials, dive. 9 times out of 10 the worst thing that happens is they take one of UND's guys and my guy for unsportsmanlike. I've NEVER EVER seen a WCHA official call ANYONE for diving without calling a coincidental minor on the other team.

6. Pepper JPL and play the rebound game. JPL is a tough cookie to crack when he's on his game, so the best way to beat him is to force him to give up a rebound and get into position to take advantage of it. He does let in the occasional 5 hole goal (aka WEEEAAAKKKK), but we can't count on it.

7. Test the officials without being flagrant about it. Yeah, this is a lot like #5, but whatever we can get away with, get away with it. Hey, I'd even try to send my goon out to try to pick a fight with Finley or Kaip. Not Radke. Radke fighting won't benefit my team. Getting rid of Kaip eliminates a key leadership cog in UND and getting rid of Finley gets rid of a key defensive cog. Not that I'd endorse fighting. Hey, if I get those two to drop the gloves and throw a punch without my guy doing the same, great! I can deal with my players being called gutless hacks.

8. Since I'm coaching a team facing UND, I'd have my files on UND players, their on-ice habits, and the temperment of the WCHA officials. Depending upon the assigned WCHA official, I'd modify a list of "complaints" to levy to the official before the game even starts to ensure that they might "watch out for it." I would do no such thing during the game to prevent me from getting a "whiner" attitude with the officials.

Ok, 5-8 are all a JOKE people. Seriously, I don't know what I'd do. I AM NOT A COACH! I'm a critic

[Big A HG]

I agree with what you said about Miami in terms of them being able to beat us if we don't take them seriously. However, it isn't because of Zatkoff. He looks good because he plays against teams with little offensive fire power. Look what happened when he played one of the top teams in the country....he gave up 9 goals in a weekend. He's a good goalie, but isn't amazing and his defense in front of him is worse. Miami will win by oustcoring against a good team.

[NorthDakotaHockey]

I would try to goad Radke into a skirmish, and hope for a fighting DQ. It is not pure coincidence that this team's present tear largely coincides with Radke's return to the lineup on a regular basis during the January St. Cloud series. He has brought a huge spark to this team. He has his linemates go balls to the walls, in a smart way, every time that they are on the ice. As has been noted elsewhere and often, a team's ability to roll four lines effectively pays huge dividends and is integral to consistent success.

I also sense that Radke is a big team leader off the ice. He has brought much to this team's run. There were a fair number of folks crying for his head some time back, claiming that he did not deserve the ice time that he was getting. Yup, you'se folks were wrong. More proof that opinions are like arse holes. Everyone has one. Radke deserves, and has always deserved, nothing but the utmost respect out of my camp. A four-year lunch bucket guy who brings it. Night in, night out, all night long. You wanna beat this team? Take out Radke. Only problem is, he ain't going anywhere. He has eight or nine games left to play, and he will be playing 'em all.

[redwing77]

I agree with what you said about Miami in terms of them being able to beat us if we don't take them seriously. However, it isn't because of Zatkoff. He looks good because he plays against teams with little offensive fire power. Look what happened when he played one of the top teams in the country....he gave up 9 goals in a weekend. He's a good goalie, but isn't amazing and his defense in front of him is worse. Miami will win by oustcoring against a good team.

It's amazing how bad a goaltender can look if he has no Team D to back him up.

The 9 goal weekend was as much the Team D's fault as it was Zatkoff's. Trust me, take a team that has good Team D and a good offense and plug in Zatkoff. Sure, a great Team D and great offense would make it better, but seriously, Zatkoff has very little in front of him. The fact that Miami is highly ranked at all is split between two factors: Zatkoff and a very weak CCHA outside of MSU and UM... MAYBE Notre Dame.