Rangers vs Bruins game: Gopher

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Monday, 11 March 2013

Tom Serratore the heart and soul of the Beavers

Having attended college at both BSU and UND, I have a fondness for the Bemidji State Beavershockey program.

Over the years, I have not found a lot of fans that dislike the Bemidji State Beavers. Sure you have a few.

I was there in the stands when the Beavers won the Division II National Title in 1993 against the Mercy Hurst Lakers, so I still have a few fond memories of the John S. Glas Fieldhouse on the BSU campus as well.

I also have a great respect for the Beavers head coach Tom Serratore, 12th year, 201–184–49, I think he brings a lot of energy to the room and if you run into him at Galen Nagel golf tourney at the Bemidji Town and Country, or see him at the postgame press conference, he’s the same person. Tom’s usually fired up.

Coach Serratore is what I classify as a high energy guy that brings a lot of enthusiasm to life and to the game of hockey. The Beavers play on the ice resembles the man behind the bench, tenacious, fiery, hardworking and up-tempo.

I also think that he’s a very good hockey coach, his teams are hard to play against and they play a high pressure fore-check that is incorrectly mistaken for the neutral zone trap.

This high pressure fore-check, if played to perfection, can lead to turn overs going the other way. This was the case on Friday night, as the Beaver’s and Gophers treated the fans to a great game of up and down the ice action.

Saturday night, not so much, the Gophers pretty much had their way with the Beavers and the Gophers never really gave the fans much doubt.

If you want to see what kind of coach Serratore is, go back and re-watch the 2009 NCAA Midwest Regional Semifinal game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. The Beavers had the Irish on their heels by scoring early and they forced the Irish to change their game plan. The Beavers would win the game 5-1, shocking the college hockey world.

The next night, the Beavers put the college hockey world into a coma by beating the Cornell Big Red 4-1 to send them to the Frozen Four in Washington D.C. at the Verizon Center, where their magical season would end two weeks later to the eventual runner up Miami.

This season, it’s been a rough year for the Beavers, but there will be better years ahead for the BSU hockey team. I don’t think any hockey program is going to be immune from it. The Minnesota Gophers just suffered through three rough seasons.

I love to go to the postgame press conferences and listen to Tom Serratore speak, last night he seemed very emotional in talking about his senior class. This was the last class to play in the John Glas Fieldhouse and then play at the new Sanford Center. This was also the senior class that made the move from the now defunct CHA to the WCHA.

“They’ve accomplished a lot here,” Bemidji State head coach Tom Serratore said when discussing his senior class. “We have five years seniors, four year seniors and three year seniors. Some of them helped us go to a Frozen Four in 09. They were part of a team in 2010 that was a number two seed in the NCAA tournament. We received an at-large-bid and went to Fort Wayne, Indiana for the Midwest Regionals. They were a big part of team that advanced to the WCHA Final Five as we transitioned into the WCHA that first year. Again, last year, we were basically a game from home ice in the WCHA, last year. You know what; they’ve done a lot of good things for this program. It’s tough to see those guys go. You can’t take away from their accomplishments.”

It’s no doubt that this class has had some big-time moments in BSU’s historic program and you can bet, it won’t be long before Bemidji is again standing in the lime light of another great run, thanks to its energetic head coach.

Cross-posted at the Hockey Writers Combine.

Sunday, 10 March 2013

The Weekend in Review; slugging through the snow in the north country (Sanford Center)

Bemidji State Beavers women's ice hockey

This past weekend, I went to Bemidji to watch the Bemidji State Beavers and the Minnesota Gophers play in a two game series at the Sanford Center. This was the last time the Beavers and the Gophers would play as members of the WCHA.

Obviously, most of us are aware of the upcoming realignment so we won’t review that again.

With UND out of town and in Mankato, it was an opportunity to go to another WCHA series within driving distant, that didn’t involve UND.

I also hadn’t seen the Gophers live this season, so I wanted to take a look, if you know what I mean.

I thought about driving to Mankato and watching UND and MSU, but after looking at the road conditions on the internet, it appears that was a good decision not to go.

The Sanford Center experienced its biggest crowd ever on Saturday night, 4,415 fans showed up to watch UMN and BSU, and there were a lot of Gophers jersey’s in the crowd.

Next season, UND fans are going to have to help the BSU fans pack that place on January 17, 2014 when UND comes to town to play the BSU Beavers in a non-conference tilt, to break that record.

I think this is what the City of Bemidji had in mind when they built the Sanford Center, I was down town getting gas on Saturday and even with all of the fresh snow, the downtown was hopping.

For me, this is the third series that I have been to at the Sanford Center and in comparing some of the other rinks around the WCHA that I have been to, the place is a nice facility.

While the Sanford Center might not have the “bells and whistles” of the Ralph Engelstad Arena, not many places do, the Sanford Center is an awesome facility and probably one of the best in the new WCHA going forward.

Head coach Tom Serratore should be able to use the Sanford Center to his advantage to land some good recruiting classes.

In 2010, I got take a tour of the facility and it’s got a lot of things recruits look for when they look at hockey programs. I was very impressed with the weight room.

I would say that the Sanford Center is definitely a destination for college hockey fans. For those that are wondering, they serve beer and Dunn Brother’s Coffee.

While no one will ever accuse me of being Marilyn Hagerty, the Sanford Center’s cheese burgers are phenomenal, and simply awesome and roughly about the same price as the ones at the Ralph. Size wise, their burgers are actually bigger in my opinion.

The bag of popcorn was reasonably priced and too big to consume in one sitting, I actually threw away about a third of it.

In comparing the Sanford Center to other arenas I have been to, it’s better than the National Hockey Center pre-renovations and it’s better than the old DECC or Amsoil Arena, in my opinion, to quote our favorite radio announcer Bruce Ciskie, “apologies to those arenas.”

I am sure there will be those fans that disagree with me on this, but hey, that’s just how I feel on the matter.

Thursday, 7 March 2013

B1G Hockey Conference Trophy

A peak at the new Big 10 hockey conference trophy twitter.com/GopherPuckStat…
— Gopher Hockey Stats (@GopherPuckStats) March 7, 2013

There it is, the new Big 10 hockey conference trophy, what do you think? I think it looks like something you put on the end of an arrow...

Weekend Match-Ups (by Donn)

This is it! The last weekend of the regular season, buckle up sports fan, ‘cause we got a full slate of games. The standings are still jam packed, with the top seven teams separated by 5 points. It is possible to have a four-way tie for the McNaughton Cup, if things work out that way, not likely, but possible. What we do know is that CC, UMD, MTU, BSU, and UAA will be on the road next weekend, we just don’t know who’s rink they will be at, and SCSU and UND have wrapped up home ice.

WCHASTANDINGS 2012-2013

Team………………………W-L-T………Points

1. St. Cloud St……………17-8-1.…….….35
2. Minnesota……………...14-7-2……..…33
2. North Dakota.………….13-6-7………..33
4. Minnesota State………15-10-1....…....31
4. Wisconsin…....………..12-7-7………...31
6. Nebraska-Omaha…......14-10-2…...…30
7. Denver…………..……..12-9-5..…........29
8. Colorado College …….10-12-4...…….24
9. Minnesota-Duluth….…..8-13-5……….21
10. Michigan Tech………..7-15-4.…..…..18
11. Bemidji State……..…..6-13-7.......…..17
12. Alaska-Anchorage…...2-18-6.......…..10

The # numbers below are now the PAIRWISE rankings.

WCHA Games

#2 Minnesota @ Bemidji St.

Last weekend the Gophers split (2-0L, 5-1W) with the Pioneers in Minneapolis and the Beavers got a point from NoDak (4-2, 2-2) in Grand Forks.

The Gopher faithfully will be hoping for some help, from Wisconsin, this weekend to keep their hopes alive for the last WCHA title. The Beavers still have a chance to move up the standings, they could finish as high as ninth place, with a sweep. BSU plays sound defense and clogs up the passing and shooting lanes. The Beavers style can frustrate teams, but if their opponents can get a lead, they can force BSU to change their style. The Gophers will need to draw some penalties to get the power play some chances to score. All the numbers point to the Gophers, but when teams like have BSU nothing to lose, you need to watch out for the kitchen sink. GOPHERS 3-PTS

Alaska-Anchorage @ #8 Denver (Fri/Sun)

Last weekend the Seawolves were swept by the Nanooks (2-1ot, 3-1) in the home/home series and the Pioneers split (2-0W, 5-1L) with the Gophers in Minneapolis.

The Pioneers still have some control over their own fate, but they need to sweep the Seawolves, and have UNO drop below them. I’m sure the Seawolves would like to welcome DU to the bottom half of the bracket and keep them there, by winning a game or two. DU played well last weekend in Minneapolis, I watched the replays. And if they play like that again this weekend, they should secure four points. UAA has nothing to lose; they have been locked into last place for a couple of weeks now. I wouldn’t be surprised if Shyiak pulled a few tricks out of his sleeve this weekend. PIONEERS SWEEP

#7 North Dakota @ #8 Minnesota State
Last weekend NoDak got three points (4-2, 2-2ot) from the Beavers in Grand Forks and the Mavericks split (4-1L, 7-2W) with the Tigers in Colorado Springs.

This is a big series for both teams. UND still has an outside chance at the title and MSUM for that matter too. The Mavericks are 10-5-1 at home this year and UND is 8-6-1 away from Grand Forks. NoDak has scored three more goals and given up three more than MSUM has in the WCHA this season, so those are pretty even numbers. The big difference is that NoDak has 7 ties in the league and the Mavericks have just one. With so much on the line for both teams, this should be a very entertaining series to watch. SPLIT

Colorado College @ Michigan Tech
Last weekend the Tigers split (4-1W, 7-2L) with the MSUM Mavericks in Colorado Springs and the Huskies split (5-3L, 5-1W) with the SCSU Huskies in St. Cloud.

The Huskies gave themselves a boost with a win over SCSU on Saturday, and gave the rest of the league hope at title with that win. MTU has been better over the last month, going 4-4-0 in their last eight games, and CC has gone 3-2-3 over their last eight contests. The Tigers can’t move up the standings, they are stuck at 8^th place and could slip to 9^th if they lose twice this weekend. CC hasn’t been too good on the road this season going 4-8-3 away from home and the Huskies are 5-7-2 at home in MacInnis Student Ice Arena. I’m going say both black and gold teams win. SPLIT

#10 St. Could St. @ #20 Wisconsin

Last weekend the Huskies split (5-3W, 5-1L) with the MTU Huskies in St. Cloud and the Badgers swept (4-3, 6-2) the UNO Mavericks in Omaha.

The other top teams will be watching the scoreboard for these games. If the Huskies win on Friday, they will secure at least a share of the McNaughton Cup. The Badgers have plans of their own; a win on Friday (coupled with a UNO loss or DU tie/loss) would secure them home ice. The Badgers are 7-7-3 home this year, but they aren’t playing in the Kohl center this weekend, they are at coliseum, for a throwback weekend, and the Huskies are 7-6-1 on the road. I’m not sure if the pressure got to SCSU last Saturday, because if they would have won, they would have already secured a share of the title. This series should have the feel of a playoff series with the stakes high for both teams. The Badgers need some quality wins to move up the rankings, and improve their odds of getting into the NCAA tournament. SPLIT

#25 Nebraska-Omaha @ Minnesota-Duluth

Last weekend the Mavericks were swept by the Badgers (4-3, 6-2) in Omaha and the Bulldogs swept the UAH Chargers (4-2, 4-0) in Duluth.

The Mavericks saw their chance at the McNaughton Cup slip away last weekend. UNO also saw their home ice spot put in jeopardy, with suffering a pair of losses in Omaha. They need to put last weekend in the past and move on to this series and get back on track. UMD is looking to continue to build momentum for the playoffs and what better way to do that by dragging UNO to the bottom half with a sweep in Duluth. However, that is a tall order given Omaha’s scoring ability and the Bulldogs porous defensive play this year. SPLIT

Monday, 18 February 2013

My Impressions of the Hockey City Classic

Sunday, I was able to take in both games of the Hockey City Classic that was played at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois from my living room.

I have to say that I was highly impressed and entertained by the event and thoroughly enjoyed both games. So, I am going to give the Hockey City Classic props.

In my opinion, the Hockey City Classic appears to have gone off without a hitch.

Obviously, I didn’t have any dog in the fight, as my favorite team was on a bye week, but it was a good way to pass the time. I can’t think of a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon, watching college hockey from the comfort of my living room with my DVR Recorder at the ready.

Did I mention, the best way to watch an outdoor hockey game, is from the comfort of your living-room. There are no poor sight lines and you’re never very far from the action. You also have the benefit of a replay and you can re-watch whatever you want to watch.

Normally, I am not a big fan of the outdoor games, and I think that we have been over saturated with them the last four or five years. I also think that they’re a bit of a gimmick, but if both teams agree to them, I am all for it. Even if it's for league points during a championship run.

I think that maybe the outdoor games need to be played during the month of December and January and not during the month of February.

Outdoor games can also be very unpredictable, because we can’t control the weather, mother nature has us at her mercy. But like any good traffic accident or train wreck, we all have to take a look, even though we shouldn't.

I have seen where some have said, that they thought the ice was worse in Chicago, than it was in Omaha. I don’t think that is a very accurate statement, seriously, it was 28 degrees in Chicago and a balmy 40-plus all day long in Omaha. I don’t know if the temperature got below 40 degrees during the course of the game.

Let’s not forget that the start to the UND versus Nebraska-Omaha game had to be delayed for two-plus hours, so the ice could freeze back up and be hard enough to play on, after the sun had melted it, making the ice unacceptable to play hockey on.

Historically, I think that the Frozen Fenway games have been the best college hockey outdoor games, but I am partial to the city of Boston and Fenway Park is a historical gem.

That being said, I was genuinely impressed with what I saw yesterday.

While I have seen a lot of grumbling from Minnesota Golden Gopher hockey fans on Twitter and on the fan message boards, I think we can call the event a huge success as 52,051 people showed up to watch the two game event and many more probably watched it at home on their televisions as well. I am sure if the Minnesota Gophers had won their game, their fans would've had a different view of the Hockey City Classic.

The good news is that Gopher fans will have a full period to get their whines about how this was a stupid idea ready.
— Chris Dilks (@ChrisDilks) February 17, 2013

Obviously, Soldier Field is much better for a football game but I think yesterday’s event turned into a pretty good made for TV event.

If I had one complaint, it would be the team’s uniforms; I was not a fan of any of them.

Let's give credit where credit is due

There are a couple of things that I have seen that I find troublesome. First off, Gopher fans should give the Wisconsin Badgers a little credit; I see their fans blaming the ice surface for the reason their team lost the game yesterday.

The reason, the Minnesota Gophers lost the hockey game was that the Wisconsin Badgers scored one more goal than the Gophers. Both teams played on the same ice surface. I have seen moronic comments along the lines on how if the Gophers had played in the Kohl Center they would have been guaranteed a victory. We don't know that.

I mean seriously, you have to give credit where credit is due, the Badgers are well coached hockey team and Mike Eaves is a very good hockey coach and his teams always play a solid team defensive scheme and yesterday they cashed in on the Gophers mistakes. That’s hockey, and the best team doesn’t always win. Just ask Brendan Morrison. You need to give your opponent some respect.

I also think that the Golden Gophers beat writer Roman Augustoviz said it best.

Those knuckleheads ripping Don Lucia for agreeing to play outdoors have their head buried in the sand. It was not the Gophers giving up a home game, it was Wisconsin.
So the Gophers lost. What do you expect? They have swept ONE series in the WCHA all season. And that was against last-place Alaska-Anchorage. As Lucia said recently, it is amazing his team is in the conference race at all.

Cross Posted at the Hockey Writers Combine

Thursday, 24 January 2013

Did the Minnesota and North Dakota series become more tame?

English: Ralph Engelstadt Arena at the Univers...

Ralph Engelstad Arena

The Minnesota and North Dakota hockey series is one of the best rivalries in college hockey.

Unfortunately, this past weekend was the final regular season WCHA series between the University of Minnesota and The University of North Dakota. There will be no more of these regular season battles.

The Rivalry has been likened by some as the modern day version of the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s feud.

All a person has to do is go on YouTube.comand search for Sioux and Gophers and there are literally hours of video of scrums, dustups and fights.

From a historical perspective, last weekend’s series between there UND and UMN was rather tame. There were no major dust-ups or line brawls. Both teams were whistled for a combined miniscule total of 64 minutes in penalties over the course of a two game series.

What’s even more shocking, there were no major penalties called against either team all weekend long, not a single one.

I thought UND was a bunch of knuckle dragging Neanderthal goons? Looking at the numbers it’s safe to assume that North Dakota is not anymore.

This weekend’s penalty minutes were tame compared to last season’s series at the Ralph Engelstad Arenabetween UND and UMN on

English: Logo for the University of Minnesota (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

January 13-14, 2012. Minnesota and North Dakota amassed 105 minutes in penalties. There were also two major penalties called during that weekend series, with each team garnering a five minute major penalty.

In years past, there were single periods that surpassed that penalty minute total of 64 minutes.

North Dakota Senior Defenseman MacWillam was asked about this past weekend’s games and if they were as tame as they appeared on the television.

“It has been in the past,” MacWillam said. “I think that hockey is changing a little bit. You can’t have the big hits anymore. So I think that might have contributed to some of it. It’s still heated between the whistles. It’s a little different than playing I assume. But that bitter rivalry is still there.”

UND Junior Defenseman Dillon Simpson who has played in the series for three seasons, had this to say about this past weekend’s series as well.

UND forward Mitch MacMillan
Eric Classen, UND Sports

“On the ice there is a lot of stuff on the ice going on,” Simpson said. “Maybe not as much open to the fans as you can see. But it’s always heated when we play those guys, and it was rough, a lot of big hits but nothing out of control. I think for us we were more focused, we needed to two wins big time. We were trying to stay out of the box and try to make it a game. It was still rough and still a tough series but at the same time nothing outrageous happened.”

One could make the argument that the players do adjust to the way the game is being called.

When Simpson was asked about his thoughts on not playing the Minnesota Gophers next season, he went on to say.

“It sucks, this is the biggest rivalry I think in college hockey”, Simpson said. “This is the most fun that I have playing on the weekends. It kind of sucks! Who knows if we will see them down the line this year, but it’s not fun not being able to play them next year.”

Originally Posted at the Hockey Writers - Combine...

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Saturday, 19 January 2013

Tom Miller nails it UND vs. UMN

North Dakota highway shield (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

If you haven't read the Grand Forks Herald on-line newspaper you should head on over and check out Tom Miller's article about the UND vs. UMN Hockey rivalry. I guess not everyone is gobbling up what Minnesota coach Don Lucia is shoveling.

“(The atmosphere) was good all weekend,” Lucia said. “Our fans get pumped for big games. Boston College and Notre Dame were great atmospheres, too.”

Seriously, Don? Give it up. Clearly, there is no replacing the UND-Minnesota rivalry. No other matchup will hold a candle to North Dakota-Minnesota. The fans know it. The players know it. In fact, everyone seems to know it but Lucia.

All weekend long you have ex-players on both sides of the ice talking about the rivalry and how great it is. Former Gopher and Sioux players going on and on about how great the rivalry, then you have Donny Lucia giving his petty reasons why the rivalry is taking a break. Give it up Donny.