2024-25 University of North Dakota Hockey Season

[cberkas]

This team could end up playing the first round of the NCHC Tournament on the road in St. Cloud, Western Michigan, or CC. 

[brianvf]

10 minutes ago, cberkas said:

This team could end up playing the first round of the NCHC Tournament on the road in St. Cloud, Western Michigan, or CC. 

I think this team plays first round at home.  DU is the class of the league.  Miami and UMD are at bottom.
We'll see how things stack up when we play SCSU, WMU, and CC...but from what I've watched of those teams, I think we can take points from them.

[siouxweet]

As of today this isn't a team it is a group of individuals with absolute zero chemistry.

[Kevin G]

It's almost like they're injury-riddled and missing some of their most crucial pieces. 

[SIOUXELEVENS]

14 minutes ago, siouxweet said:

As of today this isn't a team it is a group of individuals with absolute zero chemistry.

Hard to get chemistry when they swap lines every game

[brianvf]

32 minutes ago, SIOUXELEVENS said:

Hard to get chemistry when they swap lines every game

Hard to keep lines intact with players dropping like flies with injuries.
Regardless, this team still hasn't found its offensive flow.  We've seen it in bursts, need it to happen for a few games in a row.  We'll see if they can do that this season.  Jury is still out on that.

[SIOUXELEVENS]

Berg is the only hard one but he is on one line three other lines don’t need to change   

[90siouxfan]

Do other programs juggle lines as much as UND?

[fargosioux]

Hypothetical question. If/when the next coaching change happens, would UND ever hire from outside? Up to this point it's always been hiring from within the UND family. But is it time to rethink that strategy? I look at a guy like Eric Lang and what he did to build with a program with extremely little resources. Seems to me a guy like that could potentially do amazing things at a program like UND.

[cberkas]

4 minutes ago, fargosioux said:

Hypothetical question. If/when the next coaching change happens, would UND ever hire from outside? Up to this point it's always been hiring from within the UND family. But is it time to rethink that strategy? I look at a guy like Eric Lang and what he did to build with a program with extremely little resources. Seems to me a guy like that could potentially do amazing things at a program like UND.

It sounds like Lang wants to stay in that area because of a family member. 

[SIOUXELEVENS]

I think you hire the best candidate regardless 

[fightingsioux4life]

14 hours ago, brianvf said:

I think this team plays first round at home.  DU is the class of the league.  Miami and UMD are at bottom.
We'll see how things stack up when we play SCSU, WMU, and CC...but from what I've watched of those teams, I think we can take points from them.

So that's what we are reduced to? Waiting for weaker opponents so we can win games and grab some league points? That's a one way ticket to perennial mediocrity. This whole athletic department is trending that way.

[SIOUXELEVENS]

#culture, Berrys such a nice guy. 

[brianvf]

19 minutes ago, fightingsioux4life said:

So that's what we are reduced to? Waiting for weaker opponents so we can win games and grab some league points?

We’re not reduced to anything. I still think we finish top half…wouldn’t be surprised at finishing 2nd in the league. If we can get healthy…and stay healthy…2nd would be fine with me. It worked out for DU last year. 

[Godsmack]

8 minutes ago, brianvf said:

We’re not reduced to anything. I still think we finish top half…wouldn’t be surprised at finishing 2nd in the league. If we can get healthy…and stay healthy…2nd would be fine with me. It worked out for DU last year. 

I don’t know about 2nd, Western Michigan is looking pretty darn good right now. But I hope you’re right that we will finish in the top half. 

[SIOUXELEVENS]

Yes St. Cloud , cc and western could make it quite a contest for home ice. 

[siouxweet]

This is a group of individuals that lost to Augustana on home ice.  Let me repeat that lost to Augustana on home ice.  Finishing in the bottom half of the league would not be a surprising turn of events.

[fightingsioux4life]

49 minutes ago, brianvf said:

We’re not reduced to anything. I still think we finish top half…wouldn’t be surprised at finishing 2nd in the league. If we can get healthy…and stay healthy…2nd would be fine with me. It worked out for DU last year. 

I'm just very bearish on UND athletics right now. Too much mediocrity and too little concern for it.

[brianvf]

2 minutes ago, fightingsioux4life said:

I'm just very bearish on UND athletics right now. Too much mediocrity and too little concern for it.

For sure.  Hasn't been a good last couple months...years...certainly.

[.357]

26 minutes ago, brianvf said:

We’re not reduced to anything. I still think we finish top half…wouldn’t be surprised at finishing 2nd in the league. If we can get healthy…and stay healthy…2nd would be fine with me. It worked out for DU last year. 

They would first have to fix their massive inconsistency & play a sound, disciplined team-game to even get a sniff of 2nd place. Right now they look like a bunch of individuals without an identity. The team's predicament falls squarely in the lap of the coaching staff.

[SIOUXELEVENS]

Everything is fine, nothing to see here. Parity is all. 

[brianvf]

2 minutes ago, .357 said:

They would first have to fix their massive inconsistency & play a sound, disciplined team-game to even get a sniff of 2nd place. Right now they look like a bunch of individuals without an identity. The team's predicament falls squarely in the lap of the coaching staff.

Cutting down on the after the whistle crap would be great.  Taking too many penalties...an area that they improved on last year...need to go back to that.
And getting some of these players back from injuries. 

First step in gaining consistency would be being able to play a consistent lineup.  Right now they're losing players every week.  Even getting guys like Croal back, who showed some great potential & speed in his minutes, would be a boost.

[cberkas]

20 minutes ago, brianvf said:

Cutting down on the after the whistle crap would be great.  Taking too many penalties...an area that they improved on last year...need to go back to that.
And getting some of these players back from injuries. 

First step in gaining consistency would be being able to play a consistent lineup.  Right now they're losing players every week.  Even getting guys like Croal back, who showed some great potential & speed in his minutes, would be a boost.

This is way too easy to avoid but they keep falling for it. 

[BusinessSoot]

With the pile of injuries over last several years, maybe it is time to look for a new strength/conditioning coach? Are the injuries related to the training or lack of certain training? A fresh/new set of eyes on things might be good. Same eyes/mind been in place for a very long time. 
 

Just a thought.

[.357]

15 minutes ago, brianvf said:

Cutting down on the after the whistle crap would be great.  Taking too many penalties...an area that they improved on last year...need to go back to that.
And getting some of these players back from injuries. 

First step in gaining consistency would be being able to play a consistent lineup.  Right now they're losing players every week.  Even getting guys like Croal back, who showed some great potential & speed in his minutes, would be a boost.

Consistency is a state of mind rather than something that's dependent on how many healthy players a team has (Berg & Zmolek being out did not cause the d-men & forwards to miss basic assignments). UND had plenty of talent on the ice last night, but they were still making fundamental errors that should have been corrected a few games into the season, at most. Those mental mistakes are a sign that the team isn't learning its lessons, & much of that falls on the coaching staff for not getting their message through effectively.