Where's JAKE?

[Smoggy]

Brandt was serving his one-game suspension then.

Ahhhhhh. Thank you for the info.

[tp033]

You guys are incredible. Let's look at just a few factor here:

#1- A team needs a consistent goaltender to rally around and be comfortable in net.

#2- At some point a goalie needs to know they are the #1 guy and get used to playing a majority of the games.

I have never been a huge Brandt fan, fairly inconsistent (amazing one game, terrible the next) and he does a few things that drives me crazy as a hockey fan--always goes down early, struggles to control the rebound, and after the first shot often times finds himself out of position giving up easy goals.

I do believe that JPar has his faults as well but he has accomplished huge tasks. He has beaten major contenders in Boston College, Minnesota, Duluth, and the list goes on. He losses have all been close games minus this last one. He was the one that stole the point from Denver. This last game was a prime example of great defensive breakdowns.

To make this short: we need a number one goaltender and as others have stated Brandt has had his chance. He has had his chance two years ago, he had his chance last year, and he was given his chance earlier this year. We need a number one goaltender and Blais is giving JPar a chance. A goalie that has kept them in every game he has played, started out to the best record a UND goaltender has had to start his career, and IMO does a better job of controling rebounds and plays a better position game. All things that tip the scales to him. Plus if it gets down to it the one that wants and deserves it the most you go with the guy who works hardest at practice and off the ice; and it just doesn't sound like Brandt is doing it. When it comes down to it I trust CB and his call; the one that watches every practice along with every game.

[tboneund]

When it comes down to it I trust CB and his call; the one that watches every practice along with every game.

Wish I could do the same, but Blais has never given Brandt the same chance as other goalies. Last year he had Simba and Brandt and neither was ever called a #1, however Jake was the go-to guy when the playoffs arrived and he rose to the challenge.

This year Jake hasn't gotten a whole lot of chances, certainly not as many as Parise has. I might think differently if Blais had given him the start Saturday against the Gophers after a strong game Friday, but in typical Blais fashion he rewared a good game by benching Brandt instead of giving him more starts.

Brandt is not perfect he made mistakes against Wisconsin, but the whole team played like crap that weekend...Parise hasn't proven to me that he is #1 material, certainly not after the Saturday CC game...especially if the Sioux want to go deep into the post-season.

[MinnesotaNorthStar]

Wish I could do the same, but Blais has never given Brandt the same chance as other goalies. Last year he had Simba and Brandt and neither was ever called a #1, however Jake was the go-to guy when the playoffs arrived and he rose to the challenge.

This year Jake hasn't gotten a whole lot of chances, certainly not as many as Parise has. I might think differently if Blais had given him the start Saturday against the Gophers after a strong game Friday, but in typical Blais fashion he rewared a good game by benching Brandt instead of giving him more starts.

Brandt is not perfect he made mistakes against Wisconsin, but the whole team played like crap that weekend...Parise hasn't proven to me that he is #1 material, certainly not after the Saturday CC game...especially if the Sioux want to go deep into the post-season.

Parise has only played 4 more games than Brandt has, one of which because Brandt was serving a game suspension. So to say he hasn't gotten a chance to prove himself is just wrong. They've both had some great outings and a few not so great ones. I still think Brandt is our go to guy right now, but neither has proven they are that much better than the other. Why Brandt didn't get a start against CC, only Blais knows. Maybe Jake looked shakey in practice, or he might be nursing an small injury we don't now about. I'd expect him to play against Mankato this weekend, but only Blais can make that decision.

[airmail]

Maybe Jake looked shakey in practice, or he might be nursing an small injury we don't now about.

Good point. With the new NCAA rules, we don't hear about injuries like we used to. Who knows?

[redwing77]

There are plenty of possibilities with this situation, some of them don't make sense to me, but it is a possibility.

One idea I came up with is that they are saving Brandt for the do-or-die games, such as the Wisco series, the UMD series, and the playoffs. That doesn't make much sense to me, but it is a possibility.

Another thing is that MNS is totally correct. JPar hasn't truly shown that he is a poor choice. He does have faults but there are some things I believe that JPar is superior to Brandt at like pokechecking and stickhandling. JPar is more aggressive than Brandt is, which is both a hinderance and an advantage for him.

Brandt does go down too quickly, but I really think Brandt has a tendency to be a better goalie at positioning than JPar.

Another thing: WHen Brandt is off his game, he's off his game for the entire game or nearly so. JPar has been off for a period or two in a game and then played spectacularly afterwards. This opinion matters little if the offense and defense aren't doing their jobs, but it is something I noticed.

JPar's outlet passing alone is spectacular folks. Especially when he's passing to younger brother. I still wish he stayed home more. I'm sure Brandt won't be wandering much after Wisconsin.

I'd say that next year we'll have 4 goalies. The question is, will Ziggy stick around if he isn't on scholarship? THat, to me, is the only thing that Ziggy faces this off season. It isn't bad since we'd only have 4 goalies for 1 season (unless Blais does something dumb and recruits a goalie for 2005).

[jnv]

There are plenty of possibilities with this situation, some of them don't make sense to me, but it is a possibility.

One idea I came up with is that they are saving Brandt for the do-or-die games, such as the Wisco series, the UMD series, and the playoffs. That doesn't make much sense to me, but it is a possibility.

Another thing is that MNS is totally correct. JPar hasn't truly shown that he is a poor choice. He does have faults but there are some things I believe that JPar is superior to Brandt at like pokechecking and stickhandling. JPar is more aggressive than Brandt is, which is both a hinderance and an advantage for him.

Brandt does go down too quickly, but I really think Brandt has a tendency to be a better goalie at positioning than JPar.

Another thing: WHen Brandt is off his game, he's off his game for the entire game or nearly so. JPar has been off for a period or two in a game and then played spectacularly afterwards. This opinion matters little if the offense and defense aren't doing their jobs, but it is something I noticed.

JPar's outlet passing alone is spectacular folks. Especially when he's passing to younger brother. I still wish he stayed home more. I'm sure Brandt won't be wandering much after Wisconsin.

I'd say that next year we'll have 4 goalies. The question is, will Ziggy stick around if he isn't on scholarship? THat, to me, is the only thing that Ziggy faces this off season. It isn't bad since we'd only have 4 goalies for 1 season (unless Blais does something dumb and recruits a goalie for 2005).

I don't think Brandt is hurt!

I would have to disagree with Parise making great outlet passes.....sure there are times when it looks "good", but I can recall several times when his passes go for icing, or the defenesman / forwards have no clue where the pass will be going, or if it is coming for that matter. Brandt found out the hard way on that one in the WI series!

Brand has played that poke check play for many years, I can remember back to his High school days......

Parise plays decent position hockey, but also tends to "go down" quite often. Did anyone notice how many CC shots were aimed "high"? a few sailed just over the crossbar....

Brandt plays just as aggressively as Parise.....however, he's gotten a lot better at staying in position than he was his freshman year.

[SiouxTupa]

Brandt starts Friday, unless JPar has a stellar week of practice. Blais said he will go with Brandt, when I asked him, but we'll see. However, just hearing this was encouraging.

We interviewed him about the Parise brothers (overplayed...zzzz, not my decision) and when asked if they would name a goalie for the stretch run (no surprise here) he said they wanted to stay away from naming one guy because both are capable. He gave equal attention to both Brandt and Parise, so this was a great sign.

On an unrelated side note worthy of its own thread: I watched as Pat Sweeny got drilled in the face with a puck during practice!

So if you see a big shiner on his eye during the five o'clock news, now you know why.

Poor Pat, take care buddy

[tboneund]

Jake might go down more often, but Parise stays down longer...

I really believe Jake does a better job of repositioning himself after the first save to make a second save if it is needed. With more experience Parise will get better at this too, but right now it is a weakness.

[tboneund]

Brandt starts Friday, unless JPar has a stellar week of practice. Blais said he will go with Brandt, when I asked him, but we'll see. However, just hearing this was encouraging.

Good to hear, but how often have we heard that Brandt didn't play well in practice?

Not to say that Blais is lying, but it seems that he really wants Parise to take the #1 job [iMO] so maybe he focues more on Jake's mistakes and overlooks Parise's mistakes.

How to see you(or I guess hear you, depending on TV coverage)play this week Jake, show 'em what you've got!

[MinnesotaNorthStar]

Poor Pat, take care buddy

That sucks...I've gotten hit with a puck on the top of the foot before (blocking a slap shot...I swore it was Al MacInnis that took the shot), thought I broke it. Needless to say, I couldn't put any pressure on it for almost a week.

both are capable

As I have been saying. But I think Brandt will be it down the stretch. It is nice to know that we have a solid backup in JPar though.