NORTH DAKOTA vs. Manitoba - Sunday GAMEDAY

[yababy8]

I definitely think Nick will be better than Rocco I simply am not awarding him that after one exhibition game. I mean, the kid was a first round draft pick. However, Rocco was our best player last year in almost every game, in almost every situation. Our best player tonight was Jordan and it was very apparent. However, Nick's vision and passing was ridiculous and it is evident why he was a first rounder. I hope he brings that game consistently. This season should be a blast, him and Cags need to stay together.

I also think Thompson needs to move up, he was noticeable. I also noticed Murphy and O'Donnell a bunch. Anyone else think Sanderson looked ok? I thought he looked pretty decent. I didn't notice Poganski all that much and MacMillan and Parks played pretty average. It's early.

As soon as Rocco found space he would invariably turn on his fast forward speed at least 10x, He did amazing things every time but the majority of the time it ended with a spinout. Nick, at least tonight, when he found space he slowed down his pace to fit his opening and successfully accomplished the task he was aiming for. Very fun to watch.

Another player that has a little of that "to-fast" gear when you don't need it is Johnson, he can learn from schmaltz a little.

As far as the McMillan-Parks chemistry I'm wondering if we've run that horse to long?

..Keep an eye on that one...

Remember when the big "past chemistry" line combo was the McMillan brothers? That was a costly fruitless investment.

Sometimes you have to move forward and let go. (Anyone who has played golf for 20-30 years has learned that lesson well).

I would put anyone who can take a sweet pass and make a good move to get an open look and shoot accuratly on the line with Nick. If it's Calligula then great but honestly he seems to best at driving low skating hard on his own. Hey if Murphy is the guy who can finish then put him on the line. I know we don't have Duncan or Bochenski anymore so whoever wants to be the finisher of nice feeds step up.

With regard to Poolman he looked a bit green. Definitely had the most struggles on the D side tonight. I think he might be the guy to sit for a bit. No harm in that. It worked very well for Thompson last year(I'm excited about his development. He looked very good tonight).

Mattson looked really good tonight to.

I said last year that our defensive unit was the best it has been since Green and Jones were linemates. I think it continues this year. If Poolson(haha get it?) has to sit for a bit I think he will be fine.

[nodak651]

What are your guy's thoughts on Chyzyk?  Maybe it's just me, but I thought he looked really quick tonight.  I'd like to see him in the lineup next week to see what he can do...

[OETKB]

What are your guy's thoughts on Chyzyk?  Maybe it's just me, but I thought he looked really quick tonight.  I'd like to see him in the lineup next week to see what he can do...

On the broadcast, they mentioned that Chyzk looked like his fitness/energy level was a step up from last year.  Bottom line, this team is very deep, with a number of weapons that have developed into better players now.

[Stms]

Does anyone else feel like that scarf just makes Katie look like:

 

A. she shrunk in the off-season

 

or

 

B. She is trying to cover a hickey up?

or

 

C. She was wearing it as a tribute to her great-grandmother, who passed away Friday.

[as15]

My thoughts on tonight, a lot of which have already been addressed:

• Nick Schmaltz is as advertised.  Schmaltz does what Grimaldi really struggled to do, make his linemates substantially better.
• If Jordan Schmaltz isn't an All-American this year, he will have underachieved.  He will be in the conversation as the best player in the country.
• Murphy looks much improved, he could be a regular in the lineup this year.
• Poolman didn't look as polished as I thought he would be, I expected more, but he doesn't really need to play a big role on this time this year.
• Keaton Thompson, wow, totally different player.  He might've leapfrogged LaDue as our second best defenseman, which is saying a lot.
• The senior forwards, besides O'Donnell (who would've thought that) were pretty invisible to me, slightly concerning.
• Zane, enough said.  Johnson looked calm in his limited work.

Here is my lineup for next week after what I saw tonight:

 

Caggiula-Schmaltz-Johnson

O'Donnell-MacMillan-Parks

Pattyn-Gaarder-Murphy

Chyzyk-St. Clair-Poganski

 

Schmaltz-Thompson

Mattson-LaDue

Stecher-Ausmus

 

McIntyre

Johnson

[as15]

.

On the broadcast, they mentioned that Chyzk looked like his fitness/energy level was a step up from last year.  Bottom line, this team is very deep, with a number of weapons that have developed into better players now.

 

 

Totally agree, he was flying out there.  Hopefully he can develop a little more offense to go with his hard work/energy.  He might force his way up in the lineup if he keeps improving.

[SiouxForever]

I think that some of you are missing the points when it comes to the line up. Trevor Olson, will be in the line up and Sanderson will not be. Olson, is a grinder foward with grit but unlike the million other grinders on our current team now, he can put the puck in the net. In additon, after assessing Pogs skill, once he develops more too, no way he sits out. He's a lot better than Sanderson will ever be. If Chyzk struggles he'll sit some games too, he's going to have to earn his time. I don't see St. Clair sitting unless he goes into a serious poor play slump. He'll be used for PK and he always hustles and goes hard and doesn't help or hurt the team on his shifts.

I think Olson sat due to his freshman slip up and the coaches sent hiim a message. This team has potential to do great things, they need to stay focused and if one guy wants to have fun, well, they don't have time for that, especially this year.

Asmus looked decent with his physcality. His feet work needs to continue to get better, but he looks like he has some confidence in his game. Poolman for his for college game looked a little rough, but looked better than most freshman d-men in quite sometime, he's only just a freshie. He'll be good. I like his size too. Long reach like Ladue, that's not a bad thing.

Wade Murphy, good for him to score a goal even though it was an exhibition game. Hopefullly, that feeling will bring back a lot of confidence. He didn't play too bad. Let's not get ahead of ourselves though, N. Scmaltz made an unreal pass!

OD looked better than Macmillan and Parks. Good for him. If OD can continue to play with confidence all year, this team has an extra scoroing threat. That would be nice.

Cam Johnson in net, he could be a real good goalie. I watched him in warm ups, his preferred style is stand up, he doesn't good down in the butterfly all the time. I love that! He seems pretty confident in his abilities.

Keaton Thompson. Wow! Can this kid fly and make the simple and nice breakout pass. He has unlimted potential. He just keeps getting better. He's going to be scary good come the end of the year.

Final statement - Better take notice of this d-core all year. It is the best in the nation and it's going to be a treat to watch all year. We have not had a d-unit like this in over 10+ years. The skill, speed and unique styles of each d-personality is what makes this group so special. We're going to look back at this d-squad and remember how spoiled we were with that makeup for this particular year.

[fightingsioux4life]

Final statement - Better take notice of this d-core all year. It is the best in the nation and it's going to be a treat to watch all year. We have not had a d-unit like this in over 10+ years. The skill, speed and unique styles of each d-personality is what makes this group so special. We're going to look back at this d-squad and remember how spoiled we were with that makeup for this particular year.

This group has the potential to shut down any team on any night.  Add the offense they will contribute and this could be one of our best groups of D-men ever.

[nodak651]

One other thought:  I really liked what N. Schmaltz was doing on the powerplay... taking a pass from the point and skating it to the middle.  I think this will be tough for pk units to handle and he will score a lot of goals from the top of the circles.

[yababy8]

Wade Murphy, good for him to score a goal even though it was an exhibition game. Hopefullly, that feeling will bring back a lot of confidence. He didn't play too bad. Let's not get ahead of ourselves though, N. Scmaltz made an unreal pass!

I just watched the goal starting at the faceoff right before it. Watched it three or four times. I think Murphy played a bigger part in that goal than you're giving him crrdit.

He made a couple of really nice passes and then skated around the the zone with great timing to put himself into a sweet passing lane to recieve that pass in perfect position for the good look.

[Oxbow6]

4 players IMO that are key to getting #8 moving forward:

1...Nick. 'Enuf said. He'll make people forget Rocco left by Christmas.

2...Thompson. Might have the best overall Dman skill set on the team.

3...Bryn. I think he has all the tools to produce some good #s.

4...OD. 3 years of very limited moments of "yup...he can play". That needs to be a full season

[I Ranger]

My thoughts on tonight, a lot of which have already been addressed:

• Nick Schmaltz is as advertised.  Schmaltz does what Grimaldi really struggled to do, make his linemates substantially better.
• If Jordan Schmaltz isn't an All-American this year, he will have underachieved.  He will be in the conversation as the best player in the country.
• Murphy looks much improved, he could be a regular in the lineup this year.
• Poolman didn't look as polished as I thought he would be, I expected more, but he doesn't really need to play a big role on this time this year.
• Keaton Thompson, wow, totally different player.  He might've leapfrogged LaDue as our second best defenseman, which is saying a lot.
• The senior forwards, besides O'Donnell (who would've thought that) were pretty invisible to me, slightly concerning.
• Zane, enough said.  Johnson looked calm in his limited work.

Here is my lineup for next week after what I saw tonight:

 

Caggiula-Schmaltz-Johnson

O'Donnell-MacMillan-Parks

Pattyn-Gaarder-Murphy

Chyzyk-St. Clair-Poganski

 

Schmaltz-Thompson

Mattson-LaDue

Stecher-Ausmus

 

McIntyre

Johnson

I agree with this lineup. I like St Clair as a 4th line center due to his aggressiveness and PK abilities. I agree with most that Poolman looked green last night and looked to have some troubles with his feet. He will no doubt get better but I think he is the odd man out at D after last night. I could see Olson sneaking in somewhere but it's hard for me to say since I have never seen the kid play. My guess would be with Pattyn and Gaarder. I don't see Sanderson staying in the lineup. I thought he seemed a step or two slow on most plays last night. There are just too many better options especially if it's between him and St. Clair.  

[I Ranger]

or

 

C. She was wearing it as a tribute to her great-grandmother, who passed away Friday.

Fixed your post.

[Oxbow6]

If Murphy can show he can stick in the lineup and score, I like him with Colton and Bryn as a very solid line that could score some goals and a line that would be a difficult match up for other team's bottom 2 lines.

[yababy8]

My prediction is we will see some very different forward lines two months from now.  As stated by others we have not even seen Olson yet.  Also, I think Poganski is going to get settled and over time show how physical he is and it sounds like when than happens he has a scoring niche too.  If that transpires it could really effect the shape of the lines.

 

 

Here is a line combo that has me a little jazzed after the Manitoba game:

 

O'Donnell - Schmaltz - Murphy

[siouxczech29]

My prediction is we will see some very different forward lines two months from now.  As stated by others we have not even seen Olson yet.  Also, I think Poganski is going to get settled and over time show how physical he is and it sounds like when than happens he has a scoring niche too.  If that transpires it could really effect the shape of the lines.

 

 

Here is a line combo that has me a little jazzed after the Manitoba game:

 

O'Donnell - Schmaltz - Murphy

 

I love this line!  Two shooters for Schmaltz to look for.

[Oxbow6]

My prediction is we will see some very different forward lines two months from now.  As stated by others we have not even seen Olson yet.  Also, I think Poganski is going to get settled and over time show how physical he is and it sounds like when than happens he has a scoring niche too.  If that transpires it could really effect the shape of the lines.

 

 

Here is a line combo that has me a little jazzed after the Manitoba game:

 

O'Donnell - Schmaltz - Murphy

 

No offense but OD has been extremely inconsistent thru his 3 years at UND and that is being kind and Murphy was basically a bust as a freshman last season.  With that being said you then want to stick them with arguably our most gifted freshman forward recruit since TJ and Johnny.  I don't see that line ever happening this season.  Nick with Drake and whoever else is what I see moving forward.

[yababy8]

No offense but OD has been extremely inconsistent thru his 3 years at UND and that is being kind and Murphy was basically a bust as a freshman last season.  With that being said you then want to stick them with arguably our most gifted freshman forward recruit since TJ and Johnny.  I don't see that line ever happening this season.  Nick with Drake and whoever else is what I see moving forward.

None taken, I know it's a stretch but I'm feelin it right now.

You have to admit we need a sniper and if Murphy can snipe he should get a chance with Schmaltz.. 

O'Donnell has been inconsistent, that is true.  But injuries were a part of that and he became more consistent the second half last year I think. 

Also, players like him often become very solid their senior year- a la Porter.

One more point regarding consistency; How would you rate McMillian and Parks in the consistency category?

[Oxbow6]

None taken, I know it's a stretch but I'm feelin it right now.

You have to admit we need a sniper and if Murphy can snipe he should get a chance with Schmaltz.. 

O'Donnell has been inconsistent, that is true.  But injuries were a part of that and he became more consistent the second half last year I think. 

Also, players like him often become very solid their senior year- a la Porter.

One more point regarding consistency; How would you rate McMillian and Parks in the consistency category?

To your last point and question...only slightly more consistent than OD...which again isn't saying much.  I'm not a big fan of that senior line staying together but I'm sure Hak will not move any of those 3 seniors off the top 6 depth chart so then where do you go?  I really like Drake with Nick, both will have huge seasons IMO...add OD to those 2 then Johnson skates with the 2 seniors?  Just thinking aloud here...my wife loves that about me!

[stoneySIOUX]

To your last point and question...only slightly more consistent than OD...which again isn't saying much.  I'm not a big fan of that senior line staying together but I'm sure Hak will not move any of those 3 seniors off the top 6 depth chart so then where do you go?  I really like Drake with Nick, both will have huge seasons IMO...add OD to those 2 then Johnson skates with the 2 seniors?  Just thinking aloud here...my wife loves that about me!

 

I like Caggiula-N Schmaltz-OD, Parks-MacMillian-Johnson. I think we HAVE to have N Schmaltz with Caggiula. Just so much skill there. Adding OD with the scoring touch (if he finds consistency) and size, we could have a very special trio.

 

I think we are all getting a bit ahead of ourselves with Murphy. Kid didn't score a goal last season. Sure, he looked great last night, but he's gotta prove it on an every night basis to be able to play Top 6 minutes.

[Emerald joker]

I dont care what Hak does, just dont split up N. Schmaltz and Cags. Those to looked awesome together last night. I dont remember seeing puck movement like that since the DOT line!

[burd]

Little Schmaltz looked as good as advertised, but when comparing him to Rocco, I hope he can contribute at both ends and PK and with the same intensity as Rocco. I think he will be better, but I guess I'm feeling some loyalty to Rocco's contribution as well.

[SiouxScore]

My prediction is we will see some very different forward lines two months from now.  As stated by others we have not even seen Olson yet.  Also, I think Poganski is going to get settled and over time show how physical he is and it sounds like when than happens he has a scoring niche too.  If that transpires it could really effect the shape of the lines.

 

 

Here is a line combo that has me a little jazzed after the Manitoba game:

 

O'Donnell - Schmaltz - Murphy

With the chemistry Caggiula and Schmaltz had last night I would be very surprised to see them split up and I like having the two most talented forwards on the team on the same line.

[Frozen4sioux]

I dont care what Hak does, just dont split up N. Schmaltz and Cags. Those to looked awesome together last night. I dont remember seeing puck movement like that since the DOT line!

This. Agree.

[The Sicatoka]

Sometimes you have to move forward and let go. 

 

Strange hearing you say that ...