UND @ Cornell - Top 10 Battle

[1972]

1 hour ago, InHeavenThereIsNoBeer said:

I’ll take that bet

I wasn't taking any bets, but at this point in the season, we are not a top 4 team in this league 

[brianvf]

1 hour ago, 1972 said:

I wasn't taking any bets, but at this point in the season, we are not a top 4 team in this league 

We’re the only team in the league that has played a ranked team every week thus far. Flip our schedule with Denver’s and I bet both our and DUs record looks a bit different. 

[Oxbow6]

2 minutes ago, brianvf said:

We’re the only team in the league that has played a ranked team every week thus far. Flip our schedule with Denver’s and I bet both our and DUs record looks a bit different. 

Based

[Blackheart]

3 hours ago, scpa0305 said:

Don’t worry about Denver?

Yeah, we should worry about Cornell.

[cowboys5xsbs]

40 minutes ago, brianvf said:

We’re the only team in the league that has played a ranked team every week thus far. Flip our schedule with Denver’s and I bet both our and DUs record looks a bit different. 

It's not about who we played it's about how we looked in those games.  

[siouxweet]

45 minutes ago, brianvf said:

We’re the only team in the league that has played a ranked team every week thus far. Flip our schedule with Denver’s and I bet both our and DUs record looks a bit different. 

Not so sure about that, this is a team that lost at home to Augustana.  

[SIOUXELEVENS]

2 hours ago, Big A HG said:

With Hak at the helm.  Have Berry's teams ever really gotten significantly better from first semester to second?

I call that the Berry swoon # culture 

[Blackheart]

I’m looking for a Friday night against BU type of effort tonight.

[Big A HG]

1 hour ago, brianvf said:

We’re the only team in the league that has played a ranked team every week thus far. Flip our schedule with Denver’s and I bet both our and DUs record looks a bit different. 

 

.500 hockey against ranked teams isn't going to get us very far in the tournament....like usual.  Not saying we need to win every single game against ranked opponents all season long to prove a point that we're ready for the tournament, but these consistently up-and-down performances don't bode well if things don't change.

[fightingsioux4life]

11 hours ago, Blackheart said:

I am not going to judge the season based on what happens in October and November. I learned that lesson a long time ago.

[burd]

7 minutes ago, fightingsioux4life said:

I am not going to judge the season based on what happens in October and November. I learned that lesson a long time ago.

Ironic that some here are eager to judge the season now yet claim they won't judge the season after the last conference game has been played, including conference playoffs.   The banner is the only real metric.    

[brianvf]

48 minutes ago, siouxweet said:

Not so sure about that, this is a team that lost at home to Augustana.  

I show no loss to Augustana on the schedule.   

[Big A HG]

3 minutes ago, brianvf said:

I show no loss to Augustana on the schedule.   

 

Since you're always so into semantics and fail to use any sort of figurative reasoning (despite everyone knowing that the game doesn't count, but that's not the point of bringing it up)...here ya go:

[brianvf]

56 minutes ago, cowboys5xsbs said:

It's not about who we played it's about how we looked in those games.  

8 minutes ago, Big A HG said:

 

.500 hockey against ranked teams isn't going to get us very far in the tournament....like usual.  Not saying we need to win every single game against ranked opponents all season long to prove a point that we're ready for the tournament, but these consistently up-and-down performances don't bode well if things don't change.

For sure on both.
My reasoning was just that if our record currently was 6-0 or 5-1 right now with a much easier schedule, it'd be sunshine and rainbows on here.
We've played some great hockey against some really good teams...and we've also played some dog%^!@ hockey against some really good teams.

If UND can enter the winter break at 13-6 (my guess looking at the schedule), then I think they set themselves up ok for both the PWR and the NCHC standings (not to win the league, but for sure home ice).

[Kevin G]

4 hours ago, scpa0305 said:

Overall tough game. The three goals on 4 shots to open the game was tough…but the fact we couldn’t muster any offense is the bigger concern. It’s early, but something looks off. The passing is atrocious. Throwing grenades all over the place, anyone see that first PP? We couldn’t make 10 ft routine passes.

The inability to connect routine passes is what mystifies me. There was a drop pass on a PP that went all the way back to our goalie. 

[brianvf]

4 minutes ago, Big A HG said:

Since you're always so into semantics and fail to use any sort of figurative reasoning (despite everyone knowing that the game doesn't count, but that's not the point of bringing it up)...here ya go:

Exactly.  The game doesn't count.
We could have played the Russian National Team and lost 15-1 or we could have played the Hazen JV HS team and won 22-0.
Either way, the game doesn't count.

[Big A HG]

2 minutes ago, brianvf said:

Exactly.  The game doesn't count.
We could have played the Russian National Team and lost 15-1 or we could have played the Hazen JV HS team and won 22-0.
Either way, the game doesn't count.

 

The point of people bringing it up is it sets a tone for where UND is at to start the year.  It doesn't count, but doesn't make it meaningless.  If it was completely meaningless for the program, don't play an exhibition game...ever.  What's the point?  Obviously Brad sees importance in it.  The loss is not going to change our PWR, but that's not the point.  You lack imagination to think outside of the box and see the bigger picture.  Again, the loss doesn't matter...it's how we lost, why we lost, and what it may or may not mean for the games that do count. 

[90siouxfan]

the record is the least of my concerns....   the malaise that leads to long stretches of uninspired, disappearing play that kills post season efforts....   but on the other hand, with the tournament qualifications the way they are, losses can be killers too.

The optimist that I chose to be wants an undefeated season where we outscore the opposition eleventy billion to 7....   but you know...  reality

[brianvf]

A split would sure make this weekend look a bit better.
4-3 sure feels a hell of a lot better than 3-4.
Get it done boys.  Guesses on lineup with all these injuries?

OMac - Wilkie - Kunz
James - Boisvert - Perron
Swanson - Schmaltz - Strinden
Andrew - Jammer - Littler

Livanavage - MacDonald
Jubenvill - Emery
Monty - Wiebe

Hobie

That's every available skater that made the trip.
The second line was our most effective last night, have to keep them together.
Does Andrew get his first playing time at UND?  I'd guess we'll be running three lines for most the night and that Jake/MacD/Emery/Wiebe get a boatload of ice time.

[brianvf]

2 minutes ago, Big A HG said:

The point of people bringing it up is it sets a tone for where UND is at to start the year.  It doesn't count, but doesn't make it meaningless.  If it was completely meaningless for the program, don't play an exhibition game...ever.  What's the point?  Obviously Brad sees importance in it.  The loss is not going to change our PWR, but that's not the point.  You lack imagination to think outside of the box and see the bigger picture.  Again, the loss doesn't matter...it's how we lost, why we lost, and what it may or may not mean for the games that do count. 

Exhibition games, especially preseason, are usually for testing out lines, getting D-pairings set, trying out PP and PK groups in live game action, getting skaters and goalies that might not see much ice time some game action, etc.  Which is exactly how Berry used it.
There's no imagination needed to see any bigger picture.  The team sure didn't look good against Augie, but there's no reason to dwell on a game that was played 4 days after the team's first official practice.

[Big A HG]

4 minutes ago, brianvf said:

Exhibition games, especially preseason, are usually for testing out lines, getting D-pairings set, trying out PP and PK groups in live game action, getting skaters and goalies that might not see much ice time some game action, etc.  Which is exactly how Berry used it.
There's no imagination needed to see any bigger picture.  The team sure didn't look good against Augie, but there's no reason to dwell on a game that was played 4 days after the team's first official practice.

 

All of that's fine and dandy, and of course it's a good opportunity to do some of that, but nothing is getting cemented in one exhibition game.  How well are you going to test out lines and d-pairings when you come out and skate with 20 pound lead skates anyways?  Where's the energy coming off a long off-season?  Where's the motivation to turn the game around after getting punched in the mouth?  I don't think UND learned anything in that game other than the level of work that was put in wouldn't be good enough to compete at a high level and that's what people are talking about when they make comments about the game.  There is not a single resource I can think of that UND is missing to properly prepare an elite roster of college hockey talent, yet somehow we're still talking about the things that those tools are designed to prevent.  Imagine how bad UND would be if they didn't have the resources they did. /s

[.357]

2 hours ago, brianvf said:

We’re the only team in the league that has played a ranked team every week thus far. Flip our schedule with Denver’s and I bet both our and DUs record looks a bit different. 

The game I saw for the first 30 minutes looked like a team in July that was playing their first organized hockey in 3 months. Awful passes, tentative, little chemistry...It was their 7th game for Pete's sake, not their exhibition opener against Augustana. Good teams shouldn't take 30 minutes to start moving their legs. Like others have said, it's not who we're playing, but how we're playing that's disconcerting. It's baffling how a team can be so wildly inconsistent at times. Some fans here are critical of this team's Jekyll & Hyde behavior & rightly so. Another p!ss poor effort again tonight & they'll get swept right out of Ithaca. 

[90siouxfan]

why do we seem to be so injury prone?

[hockeytherapy13]

34 minutes ago, brianvf said:

A split would sure make this weekend look a bit better.
4-3 sure feels a hell of a lot better than 3-4.
Get it done boys.  Guesses on lineup with all these injuries?

OMac - Wilkie - Kunz
James - Boisvert - Perron
Swanson - Schmaltz - Strinden
Andrew - Jammer - Littler

Livanavage - MacDonald
Jubenvill - Emery
Monty - Wiebe

Hobie

That's every available skater that made the trip.
The second line was our most effective last night, have to keep them together.
Does Andrew get his first playing time at UND?  I'd guess we'll be running three lines for most the night and that Jake/MacD/Emery/Wiebe get a boatload of ice time.

That first line badly needs to change tonight. That line should have been changed 5 mins into the second period when we went 15 mins without a SOG last night (around 7 mins left in first  period to 8 mins into the second). Most of the lines need a blender and Swanson really needs to be with a finisher.
 

I agree that you keep the 2nd line intact but blow up the other ones. Obviously Littler and Andrew will stay on the 4th line since Littler showed he’s not ready for D1 speed yet. Double shift Jammer and Schmaltz if needing to rotate onto 4th line if we need to keep Andrew’s shifts limited. 
 

Id like to see Swanson with Jammer tonight because Jammer has more offensive creativity than most guys right now.

[Kevin G]

26 minutes ago, brianvf said:

A split would sure make this weekend look a bit better.
4-3 sure feels a hell of a lot better than 3-4.
Get it done boys.  Guesses on lineup with all these injuries?

OMac - Wilkie - Kunz
James - Boisvert - Perron
Swanson - Schmaltz - Strinden
Andrew - Jammer - Littler

Livanavage - MacDonald
Jubenvill - Emery
Monty - Wiebe

Hobie

That's every available skater that made the trip.
The second line was our most effective last night, have to keep them together.
Does Andrew get his first playing time at UND?  I'd guess we'll be running three lines for most the night and that Jake/MacD/Emery/Wiebe get a boatload of ice time.

The roster got thin in a hurry.

I imagine Andrew plays. It would be cool if he potted one.