2006-2007 ND High School Hockey

[UNDhockey22]

Devils Lake 10-0 over Shanley. 8-0 after 2nd. DL put in lots of younger kids in the 3rd. I think they were playing 4 lines and had their backup D playing a lot too.

Should be interesting to see DL play a team like Grafton or North. It looks like both those teams are middle of the pack and it will be a good measuring stick for them. This season will be very interesting...

[STARS9]

Speaking of south's D. Is it unusual for a coach to only play 4 D-men per game, if he has more than that to dress?

Thats normal for South. They typically play only four D.

[GRAFTONhockey]

I agree. That game was hard to watch. I dont know if Grafton is just out of shape or what. They looked sluggish and were playing like they didnt even care. Even with the way they were playing they should have won. I think they scored on themselves twice(once for sure) and another North goal was scored blatantly after the whistle. Does anyone know the last time Grafton started 0-2? Or how about the last time North started 3-0? Brutal.

I believe they just gave up

[ND Pride]

This last years elite 2 team has players on JV and a bunch of very average players.

Last fall's Elite II team roster has 24 North Dakota players on it and 23 of them are playing varsity hockey in North Dakota. Some of the players may be very average but if Bob Gillen has the correct rosters from this years high school varsity teams then it is hard to typify last year's Elite II as having a plurality of JV players. In any case, if the team was down from previous year's I have yet to hear an elaboration of why the team was perceived to be down. Was it their record in the Elite league? All I have heard is the view that it is at the JV level and that makes no sense to me. The rosters for this year do not support that and no one has provided any objective evidence such as the team's record in the league this past fall. I might agree if someone could post some data but so far no one has any. What does concern me, however, is the tendency sometimes to run down players and teams which really does not serve anyone well. I'm not picking on XtotheZ here as I am just picking up after his post. North Dakota High School hockey seems cleary to be down but let's try and be as objective as we can about it and not kick the kids around when the team quality is on a dip.

[hockey21]

Is junior A as bad for calling penalties. Cause this is nothing like college hockey the way they call the game will for sure make the stars leave sooner. This does no good for the kids who wanna make the college level. hurts the state!!!

[Lives-to-play-hockey-06]

Is junior A as bad for calling penalties. Cause this is nothing like college hockey the way the call the came will for sure make the stars leave sooner. This does no good for the kids who wanna make the college level. hurts the state!!!

Proof-read. and re submit for grading.

[hockey21]

Proof-read. and re submit for grading.

sorry. but dont you think it will hurt the state?

[ND Pride]

Is junior A as bad for calling penalties. Cause this is nothing like college hockey the way they call the game will for sure make the stars leave sooner. This does no good for the kids who wanna make the college level. hurts the state!!!

If you really want an answer to your question then on Friday and Saturday nights log onto the USHL and NAHL sites and check out the game sheets for penalties. You will find some of the same there although there may have been some improvement from earlier in the season. If you talk to folks who promote skill hockey the general consensus that I have seen is that they agree that it is good for the game - makes it - eventually more exciting for the fans, skill players, etc. On the other hand, if teams do not change their style then you will see a lot of penalties and fans can get frustrated as well as some players. The refs need to adjust to the new rules and some do it better than others. There are a lot of habits that have to be unlearned. I'm not necessarily making my statement but repeating what I have heard from folks who want to see more skill and scoring back in the game. Ultimately, at the highest levels hockey is a business and if the fans are not entertained then attendance will be hurt and therefore the bottom line as well. There is probably going to be a lot of frustraton along the way. Plus there are some fans and former players who like the old style. Ultimately, the game will adapt to what the fans want as that is what funds the sport at the pro, collegiate and junior levels. I think in a year or two most people will agree that the game will have improved with the current changes.

[ND Pride]

sorry. but dont you think it will hurt the state?

My opinion - really, this is not a state issue as the changes are national. I believe that it will help improve the game and therefore it will help the state.

[hockey21]

My opinion - really, this is not a state issue as the changes are national. I believe that it will help improve the game and therefore it will help the state.

The reason I say that is if you watch a college or a junior game they at least let some go.

[Messier11]

I completely agree the state is down. There are very few goalies that are worth anything this year. This could be the weakest talent pool ive seen in a very long time.

Lives-to-play-hockey must be the best player in the state either now or sometime in his playing career because I haven't read one positive thing come out of his mouth and from what I can tell his comments are foolish. The state is not down, every year people graduate and look back on the state and see boys playing that they were once better than. But without realizing it younger players do improve. I will agree there is not a whole lot of people I would have considered a Mr.Hockey candidate before the season, but a lot happens around the age of 18 and certain players can mature that were not once thought of as standouts, or the fact they might have been overshadowed as an underclassman and now have a chance to be a team leader. As for the state being down, there might not be a whole lot of standout seniors, but there is still a lot of talent across the state.

[hockey21]

Lives-to-play-hockey must be the best player in the state either now or sometime in his playing career because I haven't read one positive thing come out of his mouth and from what I can tell his comments are foolish. The state is not down, every year people graduate and look back on the state and see boys playing that they were once better than. But without realizing it younger players do improve. I will agree there is not a whole lot of people I would have considered a Mr.Hockey candidate before the season, but a lot happens around the age of 18 and certain players can mature that were not once thought of as standouts, or the fact they might have been overshadowed as an underclassman and now have a chance to be a team leader. As for the state being down, there might not be a whole lot of standout seniors, but there is still a lot of talent across the state.

Agree reminds me alot of 2000.

[Messier11]

The reason I say that is if you watch a college or a junior game they at least let some go.

In theory the new standard (not rules, since they are still worded exactly the same in the book) is a good thing. At the same time it is up to each official to be able to determine obstruction from just plain playing hard. This can sometimes be difficult. Hopefully we don't see games being taken over all across the state. As long as players are understanding the standard and officials are calling the right obstruction penaltys and not just trying to fill quotas in their head the game should improve and ultimately favor skilled players, especially good skaters.

[Lives-to-play-hockey-06]

Lives-to-play-hockey must be the best player in the state either now or sometime in his playing career because I haven't read one positive thing come out of his mouth and from what I can tell his comments are foolish. The state is not down, every year people graduate and look back on the state and see boys playing that they were once better than. But without realizing it younger players do improve. I will agree there is not a whole lot of people I would have considered a Mr.Hockey candidate before the season, but a lot happens around the age of 18 and certain players can mature that were not once thought of as standouts, or the fact they might have been overshadowed as an underclassman and now have a chance to be a team leader. As for the state being down, there might not be a whole lot of standout seniors, but there is still a lot of talent across the state.

Sorry Mark, I didnt mean to step on your toes.

[ND Pride]

The reason I say that is if you watch a college or a junior game they at least let some go.

Well, I not sure what to say as we would have to sit and watch a game together and compare notes. Consider this - Juniior A refs are better than high school refs - more experience typically, more training, better pay so theoretically they are better in how they officiate - most high school refs could not qualify for junior A work. At the D-1 level, those refs are theoretically even better. So, again, theoretically they should do a better job. Now I know that there are fans who hate certain WCHA refs and so forth but generally speaking the refs at the next higher level should have a better grasp of the game and should do a better job. I think in most cases they do.

[hockey21]

Well, I not sure what to say as we would have to sit and watch a game together and compare notes. Consider this - Juniior A refs are better than high school refs - more experience typically, more training, better pay so theoretically they are better in how they officiate - most high school refs could not qualify for junior A work. At the D-1 level, those refs are theoretically even better. So, again, theoretically they should do a better job. Now I know that there are fans who hate certain WCHA refs and so forth but generally speaking the refs at the next higher level should have a better grasp of the game and should do a better job. I think in most cases they do.

Very true why I think kids will start leaving more.

[Messier11]

I believe they just gave up

This was just a real frustrating game to watch. Nothing went right for grafton, and north capitalized on their chances. Graftons team appears to be pretty young and I think they will improve a lot this season. North played well scoring goals after being down by a couple early in the game. Powerplays helped north a lot tonight. I think grafton played hard but got confused with playing hard and obstruction. So I don't necessarily think grafton gave up, they just looked frustrated. Players of the game, Tyler Klein looked good as he skated the puck well and was rewarded with 1 or 2 goals, norths goaltender made some good saves (not sure on his name), Chad Demers had a couple for grafton, and Tanner Hills had a few points looking good up and down the ice.

[Messier11]

Well, I not sure what to say as we would have to sit and watch a game together and compare notes. Consider this - Juniior A refs are better than high school refs - more experience typically, more training, better pay so theoretically they are better in how they officiate - most high school refs could not qualify for junior A work. At the D-1 level, those refs are theoretically even better. So, again, theoretically they should do a better job. Now I know that there are fans who hate certain WCHA refs and so forth but generally speaking the refs at the next higher level should have a better grasp of the game and should do a better job. I think in most cases they do.

Do even know how you go about becoming a Junior referee or a college referee?

[Messier11]

Sorry Mark, I didnt mean to step on your toes.

Hey I'm just giving credit where it's due. Anybody can be a stud or an expert of the game on a forum board

[UofMGrad]

This was just a real frustrating game to watch. Nothing went right for grafton, and north capitalized on their chances. Graftons team appears to be pretty young and I think they will improve a lot this season. North played well scoring goals after being down by a couple early in the game. Powerplays helped north a lot tonight. I think grafton played hard but got confused with playing hard and obstruction. So I don't necessarily think grafton gave up, they just looked frustrated. Players of the game, Tyler Klein looked good as he skated the puck well and was rewarded with 1 or 2 goals, norths goaltender made some good saves (not sure on his name), Chad Demers had a couple for grafton, and Tanner Hills had a few points looking good up and down the ice.

Tanner Hills played very good tonight and is going to have a good season. Graftons goaltending was a little shaky, but it's early. Klein for North was playing good up and down hockey tonight and is going to have a really good year aswell. Tanner Bombinger stood out the most I thought. He drew a few penalties and ended the night with a hat trick. There were way to many penalties in the game, about 20 to many. It seemed like there was more shorthanded play than full strength. Grafton should pull out a good year even after starting 0-2. They're always exciting to watch.

[hockey21]

This was just a real frustrating game to watch. Nothing went right for grafton, and north capitalized on their chances. Graftons team appears to be pretty young and I think they will improve a lot this season. North played well scoring goals after being down by a couple early in the game. Powerplays helped north a lot tonight. I think grafton played hard but got confused with playing hard and obstruction. So I don't necessarily think grafton gave up, they just looked frustrated. Players of the game, Tyler Klein looked good as he skated the puck well and was rewarded with 1 or 2 goals, norths goaltender made some good saves (not sure on his name), Chad Demers had a couple for grafton, and Tanner Hills had a few points looking good up and down the ice.

Tanner Hills is the best team player grafton has. Its nice to see Demers score he will shine this season>

[dumndummer]

Speaking of south's D. Is it unusual for a coach to only play 4 D-men per game, if he has more than that to dress?

not knowing for sure but I would guess well over half of the teams only use 4 defenseman until the game is in hand or penalties on one of the 4

[dumndummer]

Lives-to-play-hockey must be the best player in the state either now or sometime in his playing career because I haven't read one positive thing come out of his mouth and from what I can tell his comments are foolish. The state is not down, every year people graduate and look back on the state and see boys playing that they were once better than. But without realizing it younger players do improve. I will agree there is not a whole lot of people I would have considered a Mr.Hockey candidate before the season, but a lot happens around the age of 18 and certain players can mature that were not once thought of as standouts, or the fact they might have been overshadowed as an underclassman and now have a chance to be a team leader. As for the state being down, there might not be a whole lot of standout seniors, but there is still a lot of talent across the state.

[/qI

I totally agree with this post last year is done, let this group of players enjoy their season and you will be able to watch alot of fun and competitive hockey

[UNDhockey22]

Very true why I think kids will start leaving more.

I don't think the new rules will mean more kids leaving to Jr. hockey if that's what you meant by leaving. You have to be a pretty special player to forgo years in high school to play Jr. A hockey. If you watch how strong those players are on their skates, or how they make plays at top speed you'll see it's not an easy adjustment to make for any player, especially someone in high school. I'm not saying we don't have the quality of players to play Jr. hockey, that's not what I'm saying at all. But Jr. A hockey teams choose you, you don't get to choose them. So in that sense, you may want to leave and play Jr. A hockey but you might not be what they are looking for.

[He Who Shoots Top Shelf]

I had the privellege of watching this great unknown from the WDA last night, and they are the real deal folks. I was very impressed with Kyle Everson. 1 goal and 5 assists, he was just all over the ice last night. Everything he touched ended up turning to gold. Their top line of Everson, Henke, and Heit will compete with any line in the state and often find themselves winning that battle. With Grafton's crucial loss last night I am going to say DL not the Spoilers will be vying for the top spot in the EDC with Red River and South.