SIOUX VS MICHIGAN TECH

[fightingsioux4life]

Just got home from The Ralph.

Is anyone else as sick and tired of the "Duckies and Bunnies" crap coming out of the mouth of Hennesey (sp?) and Bernstrom? I like those guys, but all of this "they're playing really well, they just aren't getting the bounces" stuff is getting really old. You CAN lose one or two games in a season because of "unlucky bounces", but not this many and not this many at home.

For pete's sake, this is our house! If we can't win at The Ralph, it's going to be a long, painful second half.

Attention WCHA teams: If you are struggling to win games, just book a weekend at "Club REA".

Tomorrow night is the most important night of the season so far for this team. Another loss at home to Tech will make it very difficult for this team to regain it's confidence for the second half.

[Shawn-O]

Just got home from The Ralph.

Is anyone else as sick and tired of the "Duckies and Bunnies" crap coming out of the mouth of Hennesey (sp?) and Bernstrom? I like those guys, but all of this "they're playing really well, they just aren't getting the bounces" stuff is getting really old. You CAN lose one or two games in a season because of "unlucky bounces", but not this many and not this many at home.

For pete's sake, this is our house! If we can't win at The Ralph, it's going to be a long, painful second half.

Attention WCHA teams: If you are struggling to win games, just book a weekend at "Club REA".

Tomorrow night is the most important night of the season so far for this team. Another loss at home to Tech will make it very difficult for this team to regain it's confidence for the second half.

I agree, and they're still at it.

[Irish]

I hust got home also and listened to the radio on the way - I almost threw up listening to the crap they were spewing.

[OETKB]

Some would say this team is young and lacking top notch talent. Some say our offensive talent is not capable of producing.

However, by my count, UND had SIX drafted forwards playing tonight, and THREE drafted defensemen, two of which were first rounders. I don't know how many Tech players are draftees, but I'm guessing they didn't have 9 on the ice.

So, what is wrong with UND? Hak says he doesn't want to over-analyze it. Just wants to keep working.

I respect that. However, I think that if this team hasn't developed a sense of determination and leadership on it's own, that needs to be injected through a shake up. The military does that when they throw a bunch of young guys together in basic training. First, you break them down slightly through hard workouts and some harsh attitudes from the drill sergeants. Then, you allow team spirit to build after the egos have been abated. It might be time for "boot camp". Not to exact vengence on the players, but to change the direction of this team.

[mikeypat15]

It was hard to watch tonight, JUST NOT SKATING HARD

Only players that I feel actually skated.....

CHORNEY

OSHIE (Man he is a trooper)

[SiouxMD]

no it isnt, if we lose tomorrow night it is

i love 2 for 1 drinks..............lavosh at southgate with ham and pepperoni...........

I love lamp.

[OETKB]

Thank goodness I'm not just surrounded with the "everything is fine" and "you are not a good fan" crowd. I really get sick of that crap sometimes.

[Irish]

Some would say this team is young and lacking top notch talent. Some say our offensive talent is not capable of producing.

However, by my count, UND had SIX drafted forwards playing tonight, and THREE drafted defensemen, two of which were first rounders. I don't know how many Tech players are draftees, but I'm guessing they didn't have 9 on the ice.

So, what is wrong with UND? Hak says he doesn't want to over-analyze it. Just wants to keep working.

I respect that. However, I think that if this team hasn't developed a sense of determination and leadership on it's own, that needs to be injected through a shake up. The military does that when they throw a bunch of young guys together in basic training. First, you break them down slightly through hard workouts and some harsh attitudes from the drill sergeants. Then, you allow team spirit to build after the egos have been abated. It might be time for "boot camp". Not to exact vengence on the players, but to change the direction of this team.

Sorry to say it, but if you can't get a better effort out of this group than we saw tonight you have to wonder what is going on with the coaching staff.

[Shawn-O]

Thank goodness I'm not just surrounded with the "everything is fine" and "you are not a good fan" crowd. I really get sick of that crap sometimes.

At the end of the day, we're all a bunch of clowns on a message board. I'm cool with the different perspectives. My opinion: Not pressing the panic button yet, but I'm starting to shuffle through the junk drawer looking for the instructions.

[ndcaseman]

You can tell that they are not real radio people, if they were they would not be AFRAID to ask the questions that everyone wants to hear.

[BringDeanBack]

At the end of the day, we're all a bunch of clowns on a message board. I'm cool with the different perspectives. My opinion: Not pressing the panic button yet, but I'm starting to shuffle through the junk drawer looking for the instructions.

One has to start wondering about Hak's recruiting. After all, most of the Blais recruits are gone, and Hak can't seem to win. Ok, Toews and Oshie are great players but this team is soft. Where is the new Mike Prpich/Rory McMahon type players? It seems that Hak and Blais could both get some blue chippers but perhaps Blais was better at selecting the role player type recruits.

[OETKB]

One has to start wondering about Hak's recruiting. After all, most of the Blais recruits are gone, and Hak can't seem to win. Ok, Toews and Oshie are great players but this team is soft. Where is the new Mike Prpich/Rory McMahon type players? It seems that Hak and Blais could both get some blue chippers but perhaps Blais was better at selecting the role player type recruits.

I think guys like Martens & Zajac were meant to fill those rolls. However, on a team where they have nearly as many points as players like Kozek & Watkins, I think the roles get blurred.

[fightingsioux4life]

There certainly are a lot of people on here who are acting like spoiled rotten babies.

And you are. Spoiled, that is. 7 national titles. WCHA and NCAA D-1 hockey powerhouse. Awesome arena. Top-notch recruits.

And now things aren't so great. FOR ONCE. I mean, last season, everyone had this kind of attitude, and then you end up going to the M-Fing Frozen Four. Maybe that doesn't happen this year. Maybe it does. Who knows?

All I know is, UMD is LUCKY to go to the Frozen Four like once a generation, and I say less negative things about them than a lot of people on here. I just laugh when people ask "Is this rock bottom?" Unless you're UAA fans, Bengals fans, or Cubs fans, well, you don't know what rock bottom is.

Are you finished?

If you are, then I want to talk about the concept of excellence.

Excellence means playing hard every shift, every game. Excellence means winning your games at home. Excellence means beating the teams you are supposed to beat. Excellence means expecting a high level of performance from players, coaches, trainers, you name it. Excellence is the foundation of all success. If you don't have excellence, you WILL NOT have success. That is what built the great teams of the 1980's and 1990's. That is what will bring home Title #8 (when the time comes). And that is not what we are seeing right now from the Green and White.

If this team was short on talent, but was still working hard every shift, I would be pleased. This was the case during the first couple of years of the Blais regime. Less talent than most teams they faced, but they worked so hard and never gave up. They won games on pure effort alone. And even in losses, they were entertaining and fun to watch. I fell in love with those teams based on things other than wins and championships. Of course, the championships followed because Blais had established a standard of excellence that rubbed off on the players and incoming recruits. Tonight, other than Oshie (who I think is banged up), there wasn't much effort on this team.

I don't know what passes for excellence in Duluth. I don't know why Sandy can't seem to turn it around (maybe the DECC isn't a good draw for recruits). But I do know that the level of mediocrity sustained by the Bulldogs (except for the Frozen Four appearance in 2004) would never be tolerated in Grand Forks. Ever. You guys put up with Mike Sertich and his inability to land top recruits and put winning teams on the ice for years and years before you made a change. And if Sandelin can't get it done in Duluth (the jury is still out on that), you will probably put up with it for a long time before you make another change. I have nothing against you or your team (I love it when you beat the Rodents), but I think the standard of excellence in Duluth is much, much different than it is in Grand Forks.

If this team was working hard, skating hard and giving 110% every shift, I don't think you would be reading the types of comments on this forum that you have been for the past couple of weeks (and even before that). But that is not the case right now and that is why we are upset. And if that makes us "spoiled rotten babies", then so be it.

[OETKB]

... I want to talk about the concept of excellence.

Excellence means playing hard every shift, every game. Excellence means winning your games at home. Excellence means beating the teams you are supposed to beat. Excellence means expecting a high level of performance from players, coaches, trainers, you name it. Excellence is the foundation of all success. If you don't have excellence, you WILL NOT have success. That is what built the great teams of the 1980's and 1990's. That is what will bring home Title #8 (when the time comes). And that is not what we are seeing right now from the Green and White.

....If this team was short on talent and was working hard every shift, I would be pleased. This was the case during the first couple of years of the Blais regime. Less talent than most teams they faced, but they worked so hard and never gave up. They won games on pure effort alone. And even in losses, they were entertaining and fun to watch. I fell in love with those teams based on things other than wins and championships. Of course, the championships followed because Blais had established a commitment to excellence that rubbed off on the players and incoming recruits. Tonight, other than Oshie (who I think is banged up), there wasn't much effort on this team.

.

Don't want to get into a fued amongst posters (I hate that stuff), but some of this post defines this team's problems right now. Hak, I think, wants this to be a team that develops into a great team over time. However, not many are seeing great development. In fact, what many are seeing is a talented team of potential NHL'ers that aren't exactly killing themselves out on the ice to get wins (with the exception of Oshie).

[Goon]

Are you finished?

If you are, then I want to talk about the concept of excellence.

Excellence means playing hard every shift, every game. Excellence means winning your games at home. Excellence means beating the teams you are supposed to beat. Excellence means expecting a high level of performance from players, coaches, trainers, you name it. Excellence is the foundation of all success. If you don't have excellence, you WILL NOT have success. That is what built the great teams of the 1980's and 1990's. That is what will bring home Title #8 (when the time comes). And that is not what we are seeing right now from the Green and White.

If this team was short on talent, but was still working hard every shift, I would be pleased. This was the case during the first couple of years of the Blais regime. Less talent than most teams they faced, but they worked so hard and never gave up. They won games on pure effort alone. And even in losses, they were entertaining and fun to watch. I fell in love with those teams based on things other than wins and championships. Of course, the championships followed because Blais had established a standard of excellence that rubbed off on the players and incoming recruits. Tonight, other than Oshie (who I think is banged up), there wasn't much effort on this team.

I don't know what passes for excellence in Duluth. I don't know why Sandy can't seem to turn it around (maybe the DECC isn't a good draw for recruits). But I do know that the level of mediocrity sustained by the Bulldogs (except for the Frozen Four appearance in 2004) would never be tolerated in Grand Forks. Ever. You guys put up with Mike Sertich and his inability to land top recruits and put winning teams on the ice for years and years before you made a change. And if Sandelin can't get it done in Duluth (the jury is still out on that), you will probably put up with it for a long time before you make another change. I have nothing against you or your team (I love it when you beat the Rodents), but I think the standard of excellence in Duluth is much, much different than it is in Grand Forks.

If this team was working hard, skating hard and giving 110% every shift, I don't think you would be reading the types of comments on this forum that you have been for the past couple of weeks (and even before that). But that is not the case right now and that is why we are upset. And if that makes us "spoiled rotten babies", then so be it.

What I saw tonight wasn't even close to the effort I saw last weekend. Once again the goaltending was horrible. Two of the three goas were really weak. There is no excuse for losing to a team like MTU I hope Hak starts Grieco tomorrow night.

Bad thing is I think that TJ hurt his shoulder on a non call that Sheppard should have made. I hope TJ isn't hurt bad. I can say the defense did not lose this game tonight, they played good enough to win and Finley played good, got some good hits for this I am very pleased.

[fightingsioux4life]

Don't want to get into a fued amongst posters (I hate that stuff)

I'm definitely NOT trying to start a feud with Runninwiththedogs, she is a good poster on this forum and she's from UMD, a school which I consider the Anti-Rodentia!

However, when she comes on here accusing us of being "spoiled rotten babies" because we are not satisfied with our team's effort, I had to respond. I just don't think that expecting a solid effort from your hockey club equals being spoiled. We know we won't win every game, but we want our team to go down fighting. That hasn't happened this year and that is very, very frustrating.

Maybe if Runninwiththedogs (and other Bulldog fans) would complain and voice their opinions more often, the athletic department would put a more competitive team on the ice more often, maybe even a championship contender. Nothing gets the suits moving faster than complaints from alumni and fans. The new arena in Duluth might help with this, but it also takes committment from the top. And I honestly think that has lacked over the years in Duluth. That is all I am going to say about this.

GO SIOUX!!! (Hopefully in an upward direction! )

[proudsioux]

boy, i hope we dont get beat 4 times in a row in the REA especially to MT

[wakeboarding_crazed]

Yes, Finley played pretty physical out there. Chorney and Oshie continue to give their heart and soul to this team. Porter works hard out there, busts his ass. The missing ingredient in my mind, the ever so piss-poor waste of a talent Lamoureux! He absolutely sucked it again, three soft goals for another !@#!$ ass game from him. He needs to get his ass benched, the coaching staff could get smart and bench his pissy sorry ass! Lamoureux is the worst goalie on the team, and is a complete waste of a scholarship, waste of a talent and a total disgrace to the hockey program.

Lamoureux should go back to high school hockey, because that is all he is; a high school star! He can't hack it his first two years here as a !@#!$ back-up, he never will make it as a full-time starter, what a waste of a talent Lammy is!!

[Runninwiththedogs]

Whoa whoa.

Sorry.

I wasn't clear, and I'm really sorry. It's not the constructive criticism. The complaints that have real merit and analysis. That's not what I think is pathetic.

A whole thread about how Joe Finley sucks and needs to be signed NOW just so he will go away? This post by "Wakeboarding Crazed" about Phil Lamoureaux (unless it's tongue in cheek)? That's crossing the line. There are threads like that on tPB and I... well, I really don't post on them. I say stupid stuff some times... but I yell it at my computer. I read an interview my friend LetsGoMavs did with Chris Clark (MSU goalie) and he made some interesting points about what people say on message boards. He basically said "If you think I suck, I'd rather you come to the rink and say it."

Bring on the analysis. Bring on the dissection of a bad play. Bring on the "here's what I think we can do to get better." Quit the straight up "sky is falling" b*tching. I know you guys hate losing. I know you expect to win. But you have got to stand behind your team. Demanding excellence and saying a player has no business on the ice are not the same thing. It smarts a lot more for me, because you guys are like "this is rock bottom" and it is NOT. It is a rough spot. You are spoiled rotten by all these wins and you better believe I am jealous. Don't think my post wasn't somewhat fueled by petty jealousy.

I didn't mean the post to be taken in such a serious manner... hence the Cubs etc jokes (try living in Central Illinois when the Steve Bartman affair occurred...), but I should have thought about timing. Duh, your team just lost a tough one. I'm like a demon from the fiery pits of hell when the 'Dogs lose a bad one. I am sorry I added insult to injury. Hey, I love this team, too, I adopted them because of you people, whick rocks, and I'm trying to, I guess, defend them. Except that just meant being all passive-aggressive about the loss.

[luapsided]

who else saw the sioux play like pioux sign? Bi**h needs a slap.

First period we looked like All stars!

Oshie never gives up

miller looked good as expected

finley made some hits but needs to keep it that way

Lee played good also but needs to hit more players off the puck..HIT!

Defense shut down and left the net wide open too many times!

Should have been 6-1 not 3-1

Lammy played great. Id maybe say he let one weak goal in at max. No more than one.

I might make a sign tomorrow. One saying. "I want the old ralph back" or two. " all I want for christmas is some true hockey fans" or "loud hockey fans" The next person who says sit down with one minute left in the game is going to get stabbed.

Im very frusterated, I can't imagine how the players feel!

Once again. The people who run the REA couldn't put enough effort to lick the sweat off my ball sack. They have no idea how to run the place or control the crowd. You play soft music till the last second of the game and then crank it! If you have the ability to crank the music or whatever it is, DO IT RIGHT AT THE BEGINNING TO GET THE CROWD, OR WHAT WE HAVE OF A CROWD, INTO THE GAME!!!!!!!!

If we get down by three goals tomorrow, I say fight! Get something to get the team fired up. Since, by god, nothing else seems to be working.

[LeftyZL]

Yes, Finley played pretty physical out there. Chorney and Oshie continue to give their heart and soul to this team. Porter works hard out there, busts his ass. The missing ingredient in my mind, the ever so piss-poor waste of a talent Lamoureux! He absolutely sucked it again, three soft goals for another !@#!$ ass game from him. He needs to get his ass benched, the coaching staff could get smart and bench his pissy sorry ass! Lamoureux is the worst goalie on the team, and is a complete waste of a scholarship, waste of a talent and a total disgrace to the hockey program.

Lamoureux should go back to high school hockey, because that is all he is; a high school star! He can't hack it his first two years here as a !@#!$ back-up, he never will make it as a full-time starter, what a waste of a talent Lammy is!!

Settle Down...I hope you feel better after your rant...Anyways, Did you watch the game? How about the 1st period where Phil made 2 huge saves: One on a breakaway, the other on a scramble in front of his net. He was sharp. This team needs to score for him. They just need to score period.

Did you actually watch the game or are you just speculating again? Because if you feel the 1st goal Phil gave up was weak, than I guess Miller's goal he scored sucked too. The 2nd goal was on a power-play, and tipped. Grieco gave up how many goals to Mankato on the power play? Everyone was so happy with Grieco's play then. I, for one, don't think Grieco would fair any better with him in net than with Phil in net. The 3rd goal was probably the one I would want to have back if I were him. But at the same time, Oshie should have just chipped the puck off the boards and gotten it out of the zone instead of trying to dangle it around a forward who wound up getting the assist on their 3rd goal. Why don't you bash Oshie a little more? He single-handedly caused a goal scoring opportunity deep in his own zone.

You bashing someone on this board so ruthlessly is a complete discrace to all Sioux Fans. That's what embarrasses me the most about your post. Grow Up. Show A Little Class.

[proudsioux]

Settle Down...I hope you feel better after your rant...Anyways, Did you watch the game? How about the 1st period where Phil made 2 huge saves: One on a breakaway, the other on a scramble in front of his net. He was sharp. This team needs to score for him. They just need to score period.

Did you actually watch the game or are you just speculating again? Because if you feel the 1st goal Phil gave up was weak, than I guess Miller's goal he scored sucked too. The 2nd goal was on a power-play, and tipped. Grieco gave up how many goals to Mankato on the power play? Everyone was so happy with Grieco's play then. I, for one, don't think Grieco would fair any better with him in net than with Phil in net. The 3rd goal was probably the one I would want to have back if I were him. But at the same time, Oshie should have just chipped the puck off the boards and gotten it out of the zone instead of trying to dangle it around a forward who wound up getting the assist on their 3rd goal. Why don't you bash Oshie a little more? He single-handedly caused a goal scoring opportunity deep in his own zone.

You bashing someone on this board so ruthlessly is a complete discrace to all Sioux Fans. That's what embarrasses me the most about your post. Grow Up. Show A Little Class.

I no im going to get bashed here bad but how we can we show "class" when we are losing to michigan tech at home, on the verge of getting swept at home for the second straight time, swept by anchorage for the first time since 95

[redwing77]

I no im going to get bashed here bad but how we can we show "class" when we are losing to michigan tech at home, on the verge of getting swept at home for the second straight time, swept by anchorage for the first time since 95

1. It apparently is only ok to show class when we win or lose against teams that are percieved to be better than MTU and UAA. Gotcha.

2. MTU is a lot better than people give them credit for. I mean... aren't they ahead of us in the standings? I don't know for sure, but I'm 99% sure they are.

Do you know what let us down last night as far as I could tell?

Fundamentals.

Look, once again I'm being forced to compare with a team not many of us like, but this team just doesn't have quality passers like the Gophers do. I've seen so many pucks float over sticks, passes go behind players, past players, and be easily predicted as to be easily intercepted or blocked by the opposition. I SWEAR to you that if we were just a little better at passing (especially in the offensive zone), we'd have had more chances.

Two other factors:

1. We have no answer for the neutral zone trap.

2. Can't find the net. No, I'm not saying we only can't score, I'm saying we're seeing the same problems we saw last year early in the year: Just wide of the net/passed too far (coverred by the goaltender)/over the net/"easy save by..."/blocked. Oshie had 2 absolutely amazing moves but couldn't bury the puck in the 2nd or first half of the third period. Duncan had a rebound go just out of his reach and couldn't pick a corner on his other shot. For the last 4 minutes of the 1st period, I can't tell you for sure, but I don't believe UND even registered a shot on goal. Folks, we can't rely on the "pass till they drop dead of boredom/goaltenders legs fall off" gameplan. The puck ends up out of the offensive zone too often because we end up passing too much and wasting too much of our time (especially on the power play). This causes us to press (on the power play) and that can end up with shorthanded opportunities for the opposition. I really think, as an armchair coach, that we need to do everything in 3s. It should take at most 3 movements of the puck (1 pass counts as one movement) for the puck to get from our end of the rink and on goal at the other end. One pass out of the zone and 2 passes for the neutral zone/offensive zone to set up the shot. Then we crash the net. Goaltenders are being run left and right all the time and there is no call. We have to play that gamestyle. I listened to the radio and heard TWO PLAYERS try to do that. Their names? TJ Oshie and not Porter... not Duncan... CHRIS VANDEVELDE. Kozek didn't do bad, but he didn't have the puck when he was in front of the net and we couldn't get it to him often enough. He put himself in front of the net a few times, so I won't be so harsh on him. Folks, we need to get in between the faceoff circles at center ice. PERIOD. THat's how we need to roll.

Defensively, well, I think we did ok. A lot of the Finley detractors nearly got what they wanted. But I'd like to remind you what will happen if the ARs don't get involved tonight. You see, Chorney and Lee leave for the WJC on Sunday. So if Radke or Finley drop the gloves tonight, then we're even more short handed. Genoway will already be back at D and Foyt will play to cover for both Lee and Chorney, but if Finley or Radke have to serve a one game suspension, who will play in that slot? I honestly don't know.

All I can say for UND officiating wise is we got lucky on one count (Finley dropped the gloves and threw off his helmet and yet only got 2 minutes, unless I missed something) and unlucky on another (MTU's second goal). Overall, though, Shepherd didn't cost us the game nor did he especially make a negative impact. Remember, we need to be able to play well under adverse circumstances (like when Don Adam officiates).

TH said we weren't outplayed last night. I don't know that I agree with him because I think we were. But we didn't play poorly like we did against UAA on that Friday night or CC on that Friday night.

Also, anyone else notice that most of our bad games are played on Friday?

[Johnny Ringo]

There was a shift in the 2nd period were Kozek's line was being physical, finishing they're checks and it was like old Fighting Sioux hockey for 30 seconds, it did get the crowd into the game more.

It seems we're missing the physical aspect of the game this year especially. Radke and Finley both tried to mix it up to get some kind of spark but Shepperd's crew just couldn't allow that.

Remember the defense we had with Greene, Schneider, Fuher etc. who blocked some 20 shots in a game sometimes? I don't see that in this defense yet.

I'm still hopefull Hakstol will right the ship in the second half of the season.

[PCM]

2. MTU is a lot better than people give them credit for. I mean... aren't they ahead of us in the standings? I don't know for sure, but I'm 99% sure they are.

Would it kill you to look it up?