I ONLY WISH THE BEST FOR RYAN P

[PCM]

Adding up old stats does nothing to make me feel better about the weekend(s), I'm truly dissapointed, just stating a fact that when the Sioux and Gophers played the Gophers have outplayed them nearly every time this season. I don't think anyone would disagree?

The last time the Gophers played the Sioux, the Sioux won at Minnesota. Two of the Gopher wins were by one goal during the one bad weekend that Jordan Parise had all year. And those games were played at a time in the season when the Sioux weren't playing nearly as well as they are now. I don't think anyone would disagree.

Unfortunately, we don't know how Minnesota stacks up against North Dakota at this point because A) the Gophers blew their chance to play the Sioux at the Final Five by losing 8-7 to SCSU (a team the Sioux then beat 5-3) and B) the Gophers blew their chance to play UND at the West Regional by losing to Holy Cross 4-3 (a team the Sioux then beat 5-2).

[Goon]

The last time the Gophers played the Sioux, the Sioux won at Minnesota. Two of the Gopher wins were by one goal during the one bad weekend that Jordan Parise had all year. And those games were played at a time in the season when the Sioux weren't playing nearly as well as they are now. I don't think anyone would diagree.

Unfortunately, we don't know how Minnesota stacks up against North Dakota at this point because A) the Gophers blew their chance to play the Sioux at the Final Five by losing 8-7 to SCSU (a team the Sioux then beat 5-3) and B) the Gophers blew their chance to play UND at the West Regional by losing to Holy Cross 4-3 (a team the Sioux then beat 5-2).

Now that was laid out pretty well PCM. I am just glad the Sioux are moving on and the Gophers well they went back to MPLS with their tails between their legs.

[yzerman19]

Only a Gopher fan would have the arrogance to make statements about the talent level of a team that just got humiliated on the national stage. Erik Johnson is a stud, and the Gophs are lucky to have him. I am pretty sure that Toews will go number two overall after Johnson. His play down the stretch has really boosted his stock.

[yzerman19]

2 things.

1. As far as goal scoring and the show...everyone in the show is a goal scorer. You don't get to the NHL as a forward if you haven't put up a lot of goals in your NCAA or CHL career. You learn quickly who the Jagrs and Iginlas are. Everyone in the NHL was a stud during their amateur career...goal scoring, play making...everything. Third line grinders probably put up 30+ goals in junior.

2. I will always root for the Gophers to lose because of their fans. MN fans are generally so MN centric it makes me want them to lose. If you didn't play HS in MN and then play for the GOphers, then, well, who are you? THeir ignorance of hockey's main youth stages i.e. Midget AAA and Canadian Major Junior is almost hunorous. In general they know little about the game the way it is played outside of MN, but act as though they know everything. I've known a lot of Golden Gopher players over the years, and they were all GREAT guys. I would root for them to win as people, but I can't give Gopher FANS that satisfaction. I'll never forget talking about a friend (who was playing for the Peterborough Petes at the time) when a female Gopher fan told me how sorry she was for him that he wasn't good enough for the GOphers. SHe and her husband refused to listen to me when I told them the GOphers weren't good enough for this friend of mine. They walked out thinking I was a retard, when the truth of the matter was I was right. Oh, the player I was talkig about? Jamie Langenbrunner.

[specifics]

The last time the Gophers played the Sioux, the Sioux won at Minnesota. Two of the Gopher wins were by one goal during the one bad weekend that Jordan Parise had all year. And those games were played at a time in the season when the Sioux weren't playing nearly as well as they are now. I don't think anyone would disagree.

Unfortunately, we don't know how Minnesota stacks up against North Dakota at this point because A) the Gophers blew their chance to play the Sioux at the Final Five by losing 8-7 to SCSU (a team the Sioux then beat 5-3) and B) the Gophers blew their chance to play UND at the West Regional by losing to Holy Cross 4-3 (a team the Sioux then beat 5-2).

How is that laid out really well? You all wanna talk about Gopher fans arrogance and I say the Sioux are playing great and I get immature responses like this? I like how you left out the 6-1 win the Gophers posted the same weekend. And that the win the Sioux had they got an empty net. What's that all worth? Nothing, all I said was the Gophers will be the most talented team in the nation next year with all their guys returning. I don't see how that can be argued with the group of guys they have. If you want to look at stats of teams one team beat and the other team lost to just look at the regular season records, but where does that get us? Nowhere.

[MafiaMan]

I also go along with that philosophy. I just shake my head in disbelief at all the Sioux fans who cheered for Maine and UNH to beat the Gophers in the '02 and '03 championship games. I just don't get how you could cheer for any Hockey East team over any WCHA team... ever.

I'll tell you how, DaveK. In 2002, I wore my Sioux jersey to the X while with two of my buddies (the same two who have appeared in pictures with me on this site, one of whom is a Gopher fan). Along with my Sioux jersey, I wore a Gopher hat. I was taunted by numerous fans in and around the X, including a guy sitting behind me who tugged at my jersey and when I turned around, greeted me with the comment "where's your sh*tty team at?". I promptly pointed to my hat and told him I was all about the WCHA and was supporting his team. He lobbed another vulgarity my way and I removed my hat and tossed it on the floor.

In 2004, victorious Gopher fans were all over the X harassing Sioux fans after a hard-fought 6-5 win by the Gopher hockey team. In 2006, I saw no incidents of Gopher fans having trouble with Sioux fans after either the St Cloud game Friday, third place game Saturday, or championship game Saturday. By contrast, one of the weekend highlights of a Gopher fan over on Gopherpucklive.com was listed as "yelling 'seig heil' to random Sioux fans as they passed by".

Cheer against the Gophers? It's not that hard to do, actually.

[PCM]

How is that laid out really well?

How about if I lay it out like this?

If Minnesota had won the games it was supposed to have won against lesser teams, we'd now know which team was better at the end of the season.

But because the Gophers choked their season away, all you can do is come here a woof about next season.

Is that clear for you? Or do I need to draw you a picture?

[MafiaMan]

Oh, as for the Hobey Baker debate, I'm pulling for Ryan. He had a great finish to the year, was the nation's top goal scorer, meets all of Hobey Baker's sportsmanship qualifications, and is a great overall hockey player. I think Carle is deserving as well too, and in support of my pro-WCHA tendencies, would not mind seeing him win either (nice to see him get his first ever NHL goal at Xcel last night!). I haven't seen Collins play, so I don't know much about him... let's hope either Potulny or Carle can keep Hobey in the conference.

I'm sorry, I can't support Ryan Potulny's case for Hobey BAkers solely on the basis of "most goals." 38 goals on the season, but almost 1/3 of them, 12, against Alaska-Anchorage, the last place team in the WCHA.

[sagard]

How is that laid out really well? You all wanna talk about Gopher fans arrogance and I say the Sioux are playing great and I get immature responses like this? I like how you left out the 6-1 win the Gophers posted the same weekend. And that the win the Sioux had they got an empty net. What's that all worth? Nothing, all I said was the Gophers will be the most talented team in the nation next year with all their guys returning. I don't see how that can be argued with the group of guys they have. If you want to look at stats of teams one team beat and the other team lost to just look at the regular season records, but where does that get us? Nowhere.

Are you seriously going to talk up the Gophers while this years playoffs are still going on? There are plenty of reasons to be hopeful for next year, but now is not the time to chirp.

We have some serious games left and it really is a battle between UND who plays hockey vs. UW who plays a brutally effective systematic game. Yes there are some eastern interlopers who could be problematic, but I think we will be having another collision of WCHA teams in the final.

We need UND to win. I don't want to see UW style copied by others. It's a pain to watch and it's very tough to beat.

[Sioux87]

I will have to agree with the gopher fans on the fact that we have the best league in college hockey and maybe(swallows deeply) we should cheer for the WCHA over all other teams but rivalries die hard .

[siouxguyinstpaul]

"The Gophers are the most pompous organization in the country" says Patrick Ruesse this morning on KSTP.

They were a victim of poor coaching, their own arrogance and are now old news- lets move on.

[The Sicatoka]

Nothing, all I said was the Gophers will be the most talented team in the nation next year with all their guys returning.

They were that this year (and arguably last year), but that was on paper just like what you're saying now.

"On paper" doesn't matter.

On ice (performance when it matters) does.

[MafiaMan]

'specifics' is sounding an awful lot like Brendan Morrison in 1998. Hey, 'specifics,' THE BEST TEAM WON!

[sagard]

"The Gophers are the most pompous organization in the country" says Patrick Ruesse this morning on KSTP.

They are a victim of poor coaching, their own arrogance and are now old news- lets move on.

I'm with Reusse. Three Frozen Fours, two NCAA Titles, two Broadmoor, a McNaughton in five years is really a bunch of crap when you look at all the accomplishments of the other local teams.

[MafiaMan]

I'm with Reusse. Three Frozen Fours, two NCAA Titles, two Broadmoor, a McNaughton in five years is really a bunch of crap when you look at all the accomplishments of the other local teams.

I think the expectations are a bit high when anything less than an NCAA title is considered a failure. We've already seen the headline on GPL. It's a bit much to expect an NCAA title every single season.

[sagard]

I will have to agree with the gopher fans on the fact that we have the best league in college hockey and maybe(swallows deeply) we should cheer for the WCHA over all other teams but rivalries die hard .

I don't think so. Root for who you like. Personally I like the way the Sioux play hockey so they are easy to pull for once the Gophs are beaten. UW on the other hand plays a game that I find hard to watch and the more success they have will lead to teams copying their style.

[Old Barn Guy]

Many years of coaching and being a fan of hockey has taught me one thing that is for sure: Talent doesn't always win. It is a subjective entity and can sometimes be inflated in the eye of the beholder. I like tournaments best when the winners move on and the losers have time to reflect on what happened to them and begin their plan to prepare for the next year. Power ratings and the like don't go up onto the scoreboard. If you score more than your opponent, chances are you played better that game. Not always, but usually.

The Gophers' goaltending has not been at the level of their forwards or defense for quite some time now, and it finally caught up to them at the end of this season. They also have some problems of griping between teammates. An on-ice official that I know told me that the Gophers had been "chirping" at each other on the bench and on the ice during the St.Cloud and Wisconsin games at the WCHA tourney, and during the Holy Cross game Friday. He didn't give any more specifics, but it doesn't surprise me. They haven't really played like a team for a while. They did perform an outstanding comeback to tie St. Cloud and bring the game to OT, but it was more on the back of a few individuals that that happened. Potulny's performance in that game was one of the greatest individual efforts I've ever seen in any sport. I don't pull for the Gophers, but it would be great if Ryan Potulny were to win the HB.

Like I have stated, I would like to see a North Dakota kid win the HB, but after watching the Wisconsin-Cornell marathon shutout by Wisconsin's Elliot, I have to believe he will be in the running to win the award (if the playoffs performances are taken into consideration for the award). Otherwise, either Carle or Potulny would be deserving recipients.

[Goon]

I He lobbed another vulgarity my way and I removed my hat and tossed it on the floor.

In 2004, victorious Gopher fans were all over the X harassing Sioux fans after a hard-fought 6-5 win by the Gopher hockey team. In 2006, I saw no incidents of Gopher fans having trouble with Sioux fans after either the St Cloud game Friday, third place game Saturday, or championship game Saturday. By contrast, one of the weekend highlights of a Gopher fan over on Gopherpucklive.com was listed as "yelling 'seig heil' to random Sioux fans as they passed by".

Cheer against the Gophers? It's not that hard to do, actually.

Good point, thats why I cheer for one team. The UND Fighting Sioux. If our teams isn't there I just watch the games.

[Fighting Sioux Fan]

I don't pull for the Gophers, but it would be great if Ryan Potulny were to win the HB.

I find it hard to believe he deserves it anymore after Friday. I watched him not put extra effort in to pull in the puck in the HC zone. Instead, he let a HC player pick it up and the end result was an OT goal. If he would have put in more effort, he could have at least prevented the HC player from easily gaining control of the puck and maybe the gophers would have won.

[sprig]

UW on the other hand plays a game that I find hard to watch and the more success they have will lead to teams copying their style.

Have to agree. Anyone that wasn't a college hockey fan that happened to run across the UW/Cornell game yesterday will never watch a college hockey game again. What a snoozefest. Near 100 shots and were any of them scoring chances other than the GWG (maybe 5 or less total).

[siouxguyinstpaul]

I don't think so. Root for who you like. Personally I like the way the Sioux play hockey so they are easy to pull for once the Gophs are beaten. UW on the other hand plays a game that I find hard to watch and the more success they have will lead to teams copying their style.

I agree - thats what happened with the Sioux and Sconny on the Friday semi at the X. The Sioux had a one goal lead going into the 3rd - they dumped the puck and kept 3 guys back the whole period. Good for us, but kind of a boring to watch if you don't have a horse in the race.

[Goon]

Have to agree. Anyone that wasn't a college hockey fan that happened to run across the UW/Cornell game yesterday will never watch a college hockey game again. What a snoozefest. Near 100 shots and were any of them scoring chances other than the GWG (maybe 5 or less total).

I actually turned it off and watched something else very boring and hard to watch.

[Snake]

If I was a sioux fan I would be praying to my God that Irmen and Potulny did not come back next year. With all that talent coming back with the talent they already have, and now even more motivation.

Can someone invent a "Talent Meter" so we can settle the "we'll have more returning talent" debate once and for all? I think it's a bit ridiculous to say UM has the "returning talent" advantage. How many freshmen is UND skating with right now? Also, speculating on incoming recruits is somewhat of an unknown. Did anyone (not named TRIOUXPER ) foresee Oshie being as big of a stud as he has been this year?

The Gophers' goaltending has not been at the level of their forwards or defense for quite some time now, and it finally caught up to them at the end of this season.

Old Barn Guy hit the nail on the head. Talent up front is one thing, but the game is won from the goal line out, so I'll take UND's returning talent in goal over what UM has to offer.

Talent must also be assembled into a cohesive team.

---------

To stay on topic, I'd like to see the GF boy win the Hobey, but I'm leaning towards Carle. I'll try not to get caught up in the stats arguments between Carle & RP, but I find it hard to believe one can judge an individual's performance on the success of the team in a team sport. From the stats I've seen and the games I've watched, I would find it hard to believe that Matt Carle didn't do everything within his power to try to get Denver into the NCAA tournament. It just didn't work out for their team this year.

[Upper Deck]

I'll tell you how, DaveK. In 2002, I wore my Sioux jersey to the X while with two of my buddies (the same two who have appeared in pictures with me on this site, one of whom is a Gopher fan). Along with my Sioux jersey, I wore a Gopher hat. I was taunted by numerous fans in and around the X, including a guy sitting behind me who tugged at my jersey and when I turned around, greeted me with the comment "where's your sh*tty team at?". I promptly pointed to my hat and told him I was all about the WCHA and was supporting his team. He lobbed another vulgarity my way and I removed my hat and tossed it on the floor.

In 2004, victorious Gopher fans were all over the X harassing Sioux fans after a hard-fought 6-5 win by the Gopher hockey team. In 2006, I saw no incidents of Gopher fans having trouble with Sioux fans after either the St Cloud game Friday, third place game Saturday, or championship game Saturday. By contrast, one of the weekend highlights of a Gopher fan over on Gopherpucklive.com was listed as "yelling 'seig heil' to random Sioux fans as they passed by".

Cheer against the Gophers? It's not that hard to do, actually.

I'm with you. I lived in the Mpls for 10 years after growing up in ND. My dislike for the Gophs grew each year via the local media and having friends that are Gopher hockey fans. The Gophs, Badgers and Sioux are huge rivals - for both the players - and the fans.

Look at GPL, there's a "who to cheer for now" thread with most cheering against either WI or ND, and many cheering for Hockey East. I have to honestly admit, I wouldn't be cheering for the Gophs had they won and probably won't cheer for the Badgers if the Sioux should fall. I really don't care to see either of them win - and benefit from winning. My hats off to Sagard and other posters as I truly respect your attitude.

[Sioux Hockey Fanatic]

I am sorta going for Carle, mostly because nobody from DU has ever won, and because he really is an awesome player. He goes pro, and scores a goal in his first game. I think Denver was also a victim of some of themost amazing upsets that college hockey has ever seen. I also think Elliott has a great chance...we're talking about 3 shut outs in a row, and that game against Cornell was almost 2 whole games. That's some serious goaltending. If they favor teams that advance to the Frozen Four then I really think Elliott will win. I would really like to see a GF native win too. (even a Gopher) Anybody know when the last time a goalie won the Hobey?