Some alarming stats from Friday night home games:
-4.5 goals against per game overall
-5.2 goals against per game in WCHA
-Opposing teams have gotten off to 4-0, 5-0, and 6-0 leads in 3 WCHA series openers
-WCHA opponents average 2 goals in the 1st, 2.5 in the 2nd, and .6 in the third
-The Gophers have yet to score in the first period at home in conference, get .6 goals in the 2nd, and 1.3 in the third
-Only Wisconsin has outshot Minnesota overall, but Gopher goalies have a .857 save percentage on Friday nights
(remember this is just Friday night home games)
I could keep going but it's getting more depressing. After last nights 5-2 drubbing at the hands of an offensively challenged Michigan State squad it is clear this team is mediocre at best. They have yet to beat a team with a winning record. The penalty kill is 56th out of 58 teams in the nation.
What does the coach say after the game? "The guys did some good things tonight, but to me our start and turnovers doomed us." Coach Lucia, I got some news for you, this has happened every Friday night this season. There are no good things when you get beat 5-2 by a team that hasn't won on the road all season.
He also said, "Alex played real well in relief and that was a positive for me." Guess what a positive is for me and every Gopher fan out there? Not having to pull your goalie every Friday night because he's getting shelled. Apparently giving up odd man rushes is not a problem in the Gopher "system."
Defensively the Gophers are worse than they have ever been. Look at the numbers these are historic lows. Don brought us to the heights and now he's showing us the bottom. Not sure he thinks it's the bottom and that's whats REALLY scary.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Thanksgiving Props
Things to be thankful for this hockey season
- Goal scoring after several years of 2-1 games being the norm it seems every weekend there are several 6-5 games in the WCHA. I'm all for a well played 1-0 game where the goalies stand on their heads, but most times in the past couple years it was because of a lack of offensive skill rather than defensive prowess
- Erick Haula, Jason Zucker, Jaden Schwartz, Sam Brittian, Marc Zengerle, Derek Forbort, Justin Faulk, Nate Condon, David Makowski, Micos Gordic, J.T. Brown, Matt White and Nick Jensen--all talented freshman. It's been a long time the WCHA has had this many quality freshman at once.
- New Arenas by all accounts the new rink in Bemidji is gorgeous and with Duluth's arena almost ready to go it gives college hockey fans more reason to travel and support their clubs.
- Jay Barriball's return nice to see him scoring goals again
- Chay Genoways health fan of North Dakota or not this kid was one of the best college hockey players in the nation last year, nice to see him back
- St. Cloud's struggles there has never been a fan base whose team has done so little yet talk more trash. Sorry Bob, your team sucks
- UNO proving that a good coach can make any team into a contender
- Jesse Martin has a player ever handled a serious injury with more class?
- Thanksgiving dinner it wasn't cooked by any of the referees or linesman in the WCHA so it was good
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Monday, November 1, 2010
Sweepin' up the Tigers...
The Gophers scored 13 goals in one weekend......really!? It's been so long since Gopher fans have seen an offensive explosion that one might tend to get a little too giddy about this weekends result. Yes, Minnesota played much better as a team throughout the weekend, but I think The Poodle (Scott Owens) would agree Colorado College was terrible.
Coming into the series CC was holding opponents to 2 goals a game. Tiger goalie Joe Howe had given up 9 goals in 5 games. He allowed 10 goals on 41 shots in a little over 4 periods. Ouch!! The Wayzata native had problems with rebounds on Friday and after Zach Budish's goal 53 seconds in on Saturday, he looked frustrated with himself and the guys in front of him. Sadly for him it was only the beginning.
I'm sure the Gopher goalies can relate. If Kent Patterson doesn't stand on his head Friday night, we might be talking about a split. Minnesota again found themselves out of position, turned too many pucks over in the neutral zone and gave up far to many odd man rushes in the first 2 periods Friday. The Tigers just lacked the finishers.
A couple things became abundantly clear in this series. Minnesota's best d-pairing is Aaron Ness and Mark Alt and Taylor Matson is playing the best hockey of his career.
Ness came in with unreal expectations he could never live up to. Nothing in his skill set is elite, add the lack of size to the mix and you begin to wonder if he is a D-1 player. However, his confidence with the puck has grown immensely the past 5 games. He's skating the puck out of the zone, joining the rush, and creating opportunities for the forwards. Ness was +5 on the weekend with 3 assists. His stick work in his own zone was excellent.
Alt seems to be getting better every game. Unlike Ness, Alt possess skills that could become elite. He is starting to figure out how to use his size. Alt's skating stride is somewhat awkward, but he moves well for a kid who goes 6'3 and 195 lbs. What's most impressive is his poise. Rarely do you see #20 running around in his own zone and he's one of the few Gopher defensemen that can make the tape to tape first pass on the breakout. I doubt he will ever become the "superstar" Kevin Gorg thinks he will be, but we are beginning to see why he was pick 53rd overall by Carolina. Don't get used to him Gopher fans, got a feeling Mark won't be around past his sophomore season.
Lucia has to love that Taylor Matson is finally healthy. He has 4 goals and an assist in his last 4 games. Matson is a 2-way forward that gives an honest effort every shift. #9 posses the speed to be an offensive threat and back checks better than anyone on the team. Friday night the puck kept following him the whole game. Because it was a turnover fest Matson excelled. He owned the neutral zone and was one of the main reasons CC didn't score on 6 power play chances. Taylor didn't have his best game on Saturday, he scored a nice backhand goal, but struggled against CC's top line.
Matson's biggest contribution might be waking up Jake Hansen. Hansen along with Jared Larson were Matson's wingers both nights and were one of the Gopher's best lines. They forechecked hard and consistently created chances . It's great to see Jake play hard because it's obvious he belongs, but effort every night has never been his strong suit.
Overall, a real good weekend for Don Lucia and the Gophers. They scored first which they hadn't done since the UMass series. Lucia's line combinations seemed to be working well. The team seemed well prepared both nights. However, CC was soft and committed a lot of turnovers. Their top line of the Schwartz brothers and Tyler Johnson was tough on Saturday night, but they had little help. The Tiger defense was as bad as I've seen this year (remember I watch the Gophers every weekend) and Joe Howe just didn't have it this weekend. If I'm Lucia I take the four points and run. I have to figure out how to get my defensman to play smarter hockey, especially the upperclassman (Wehrs and Fairchild). The penalty kill showed some holes on Saturday after being very good on Friday, that will need to be cleaned up before a good Wisconsin team comes to Mariucci this weekend.
Coming into the series CC was holding opponents to 2 goals a game. Tiger goalie Joe Howe had given up 9 goals in 5 games. He allowed 10 goals on 41 shots in a little over 4 periods. Ouch!! The Wayzata native had problems with rebounds on Friday and after Zach Budish's goal 53 seconds in on Saturday, he looked frustrated with himself and the guys in front of him. Sadly for him it was only the beginning.
I'm sure the Gopher goalies can relate. If Kent Patterson doesn't stand on his head Friday night, we might be talking about a split. Minnesota again found themselves out of position, turned too many pucks over in the neutral zone and gave up far to many odd man rushes in the first 2 periods Friday. The Tigers just lacked the finishers.
A couple things became abundantly clear in this series. Minnesota's best d-pairing is Aaron Ness and Mark Alt and Taylor Matson is playing the best hockey of his career.
Ness came in with unreal expectations he could never live up to. Nothing in his skill set is elite, add the lack of size to the mix and you begin to wonder if he is a D-1 player. However, his confidence with the puck has grown immensely the past 5 games. He's skating the puck out of the zone, joining the rush, and creating opportunities for the forwards. Ness was +5 on the weekend with 3 assists. His stick work in his own zone was excellent.
Alt seems to be getting better every game. Unlike Ness, Alt possess skills that could become elite. He is starting to figure out how to use his size. Alt's skating stride is somewhat awkward, but he moves well for a kid who goes 6'3 and 195 lbs. What's most impressive is his poise. Rarely do you see #20 running around in his own zone and he's one of the few Gopher defensemen that can make the tape to tape first pass on the breakout. I doubt he will ever become the "superstar" Kevin Gorg thinks he will be, but we are beginning to see why he was pick 53rd overall by Carolina. Don't get used to him Gopher fans, got a feeling Mark won't be around past his sophomore season.
Lucia has to love that Taylor Matson is finally healthy. He has 4 goals and an assist in his last 4 games. Matson is a 2-way forward that gives an honest effort every shift. #9 posses the speed to be an offensive threat and back checks better than anyone on the team. Friday night the puck kept following him the whole game. Because it was a turnover fest Matson excelled. He owned the neutral zone and was one of the main reasons CC didn't score on 6 power play chances. Taylor didn't have his best game on Saturday, he scored a nice backhand goal, but struggled against CC's top line.
Matson's biggest contribution might be waking up Jake Hansen. Hansen along with Jared Larson were Matson's wingers both nights and were one of the Gopher's best lines. They forechecked hard and consistently created chances . It's great to see Jake play hard because it's obvious he belongs, but effort every night has never been his strong suit.
Overall, a real good weekend for Don Lucia and the Gophers. They scored first which they hadn't done since the UMass series. Lucia's line combinations seemed to be working well. The team seemed well prepared both nights. However, CC was soft and committed a lot of turnovers. Their top line of the Schwartz brothers and Tyler Johnson was tough on Saturday night, but they had little help. The Tiger defense was as bad as I've seen this year (remember I watch the Gophers every weekend) and Joe Howe just didn't have it this weekend. If I'm Lucia I take the four points and run. I have to figure out how to get my defensman to play smarter hockey, especially the upperclassman (Wehrs and Fairchild). The penalty kill showed some holes on Saturday after being very good on Friday, that will need to be cleaned up before a good Wisconsin team comes to Mariucci this weekend.
Friday, October 22, 2010
Found in a dumpster behind the Bierman Building
Dear Tim,
First of all, I really have to say that your wife cooks a mean cinnamon roll. I know you aren't a part of Joel's Monday morning coaching meetings anymore, but someone brought in your wife's rolls this past week and we all agreed they went well with Wendy's quiche. She's such a friggin' suck up. Everyone knows that the rowing team has more time to cook than the rest of us. It's just not fair.
Anyway, what I really wanted to do was thank you for taking all the heat for our department. Joel needed a patsy and it was great that you could step up. Your program hasn't won at an elite level since I was a kid and you have to go all the way to Texas to recruit. Your travel budget must be huge! I should really try to get some of that cash before the new guy comes in. God knows I don't need it to travel for recruiting since our state is filled with blue chippers, but I noticed during post game hand shakes that John and Grant still have the same suits as last year....so I thought new suits would really help morale. You see we lost 2 in a row to a team that has never played in our conference before and it wasn't even close. So it's nice that you could take some of the heat this weekend because Joel might start to notice soon.
It's gonna be really hard around here without ya. Everyone is still talking about your replacement and making snide jokes about your tenure. It's been wonderful for me because now I can operate without any attention. Hell, in 2002 when we were fighting to get into the tournament, my assistants and I were logging 60-70 hours a week on film and game planning. Once you came and opened the building every morning 5:30 it took the pressure off all of us. Joel just assumed we were all working. Last week I didn't watch Nebraska-Omaha film until Thursday. I was so surprised that they back checked so hard on Friday night that I had to slip Tim Walsh a hungee just to start calling penalties.
So Tim you will be missed, we all needed someone to raise expectations of our fans and take the pressure off of us. Joel hasn't been to Mariucci for a whole game in 2 years and I have hidden the attendance numbers. The search for your replacement should take another month and a half or so, by that time all the expectations for my program will be gone and by the looks of those attendance figures apathy will have set in. There's nothing I like more than apathy. I won 2 national titles dammit I deserve to rest!
I wish you the best in Austin with Mack and someday I want you to explain how you got your accent growing up in New Jersey.
Sincerely,
Don
P.S. the envelope is under the dead grass in the lockeroom at TCF. You'll notice it's a little thick. Borton put in a little more this week. She has some extra cash after 2 of her assistants quit. Life is great at the Maturi Country Club! Just sad that we lost our patsy.
First of all, I really have to say that your wife cooks a mean cinnamon roll. I know you aren't a part of Joel's Monday morning coaching meetings anymore, but someone brought in your wife's rolls this past week and we all agreed they went well with Wendy's quiche. She's such a friggin' suck up. Everyone knows that the rowing team has more time to cook than the rest of us. It's just not fair.
Anyway, what I really wanted to do was thank you for taking all the heat for our department. Joel needed a patsy and it was great that you could step up. Your program hasn't won at an elite level since I was a kid and you have to go all the way to Texas to recruit. Your travel budget must be huge! I should really try to get some of that cash before the new guy comes in. God knows I don't need it to travel for recruiting since our state is filled with blue chippers, but I noticed during post game hand shakes that John and Grant still have the same suits as last year....so I thought new suits would really help morale. You see we lost 2 in a row to a team that has never played in our conference before and it wasn't even close. So it's nice that you could take some of the heat this weekend because Joel might start to notice soon.
It's gonna be really hard around here without ya. Everyone is still talking about your replacement and making snide jokes about your tenure. It's been wonderful for me because now I can operate without any attention. Hell, in 2002 when we were fighting to get into the tournament, my assistants and I were logging 60-70 hours a week on film and game planning. Once you came and opened the building every morning 5:30 it took the pressure off all of us. Joel just assumed we were all working. Last week I didn't watch Nebraska-Omaha film until Thursday. I was so surprised that they back checked so hard on Friday night that I had to slip Tim Walsh a hungee just to start calling penalties.
So Tim you will be missed, we all needed someone to raise expectations of our fans and take the pressure off of us. Joel hasn't been to Mariucci for a whole game in 2 years and I have hidden the attendance numbers. The search for your replacement should take another month and a half or so, by that time all the expectations for my program will be gone and by the looks of those attendance figures apathy will have set in. There's nothing I like more than apathy. I won 2 national titles dammit I deserve to rest!
I wish you the best in Austin with Mack and someday I want you to explain how you got your accent growing up in New Jersey.
Sincerely,
Don
P.S. the envelope is under the dead grass in the lockeroom at TCF. You'll notice it's a little thick. Borton put in a little more this week. She has some extra cash after 2 of her assistants quit. Life is great at the Maturi Country Club! Just sad that we lost our patsy.
Friday, October 15, 2010
They Play Hockey in Nebraska?
Don't tell anyone but this is a HUGE series for Coach Don Lucia and the Gophers. Nobody seems to notice, but the Huskers bring in an experienced team that put 101 shots on goal last weekend and a coaching staff with a championship pedigree. Dean Blais, Mike Guentzel and Mike Hastings are three names Coach Lucia's been hearing way too often for his liking. Some Gopher fans wouldn't mind trading coaching staffs and if the Gopher's struggle again this season they might get what they want. Add to that a little bad blood between the coaches and you should have a rivalry right? If tickets sales and media coverage are any indication this is nothing more than a warm up for Clown College next weekend. Don't sleep on the Huskers, I guarantee you Lucia isn't.
It was obvious last weekend that Coach Lucia is feeling better. In the 3rd period Saturday night he really gave it to his team during a time out. He looked like a pissed off porcupine when he screamed, "DO YOUR JOB!!" It was nice to see that kind of intensity out of Lucia and it seemed to carry over to his young team. That intensity will definitely be needed this weekend.
There are few question marks when a Dean Blais coached team comes to town. His teams play Canadian style hockey. They skate, they hit and they work hard every shift. They play a physical style that has given the Gophers fits in the past. You can count on scrums after the whistle and plenty of traffic in front of Minnesota goaltenders. How do the Gophers win?
Get to the front of the net
Gopher forwards did an excellent job of getting to the dirty areas last weekend. Jay Barriball scored 3 of his 4 goals within 5 feet of the net. Jacob Cepis and Mike Hoeffel repeatedly drove to the net against Massachusetts and were rewarded for their efforts. Zac Budish did a nice job of screening the goalie and getting his stick on pucks in the paint. That has to continue against a tougher UNO squad. Omaha is much bigger and will be more inclined protect the middle of the ice and keep their goalie clean.
Answer the bell
The Huskers WILL be physical. They will take that extra step and drill the defenseman after he passes the puck. They will go to the front of the net and try to make the Gopher goalies life miserable. They will get their sticks up high and face wash after the whistle. Minnesota can't back down, especially early. They have to be engaged physically and try to create a few scrums themselves. Someone other than Seth Helgeson has to be a presence on the back end. This teams manhood is gonna be questioned this weekend how they respond will tell a lot about them.
Don't watch the puck
Massachusetts created a lot of scoring opportunities because Gopher defensemen were ignoring their defensive responsibilities and watching the puck carrier. Some of that can be attributed to youth and lack of practice time. UNO has better finishers than the Minutemen so if guys get caught staring it's gonna end up in the back of the net. The Gophers have to stay in their lanes and do a better job of using their stick to negate those cross-ice passes that killed them last weekend.
Play to your strengths
Minnesota should have a speed and skill advantage over Nebraska-Omaha. They need to use the entire sheet at Mariucci to create time and space for Cepis, Haula, and Barriball. That allows them to be creative and put pressure on the Nebraska defensman. If the Huskers want to play physical and take penalties the Gophers have to make them pay on the power play. Converting 4 of 9 chances like they did last weekend is a lot to ask but consistent zone time and pressure are a must.
I expect better played series by Minnesota this weekend. Sure they swept UMass, but they were sloppy at times and gave up way too many quality scoring chances. A solid week of practice should help the freshman get their feet wet and it better because the water is about to get deep. This series is huge for UNO too. They will come in with a chip on their shoulder and want to prove that they belong in the WCHA. Coach Blais will have his team ready and expect a huge push by the Huskers early on Friday. The Gophers need to weather the storm and play wide open fast hockey.
I predict a split-Gophers win Friday in close one and fall Saturday in a let down effort.
By the way I know UNO is called the Mavericks, but that's Mankato's mascot and they were here first. I can't think of a good nickname so they're the Huskers.
It was obvious last weekend that Coach Lucia is feeling better. In the 3rd period Saturday night he really gave it to his team during a time out. He looked like a pissed off porcupine when he screamed, "DO YOUR JOB!!" It was nice to see that kind of intensity out of Lucia and it seemed to carry over to his young team. That intensity will definitely be needed this weekend.
There are few question marks when a Dean Blais coached team comes to town. His teams play Canadian style hockey. They skate, they hit and they work hard every shift. They play a physical style that has given the Gophers fits in the past. You can count on scrums after the whistle and plenty of traffic in front of Minnesota goaltenders. How do the Gophers win?
Get to the front of the net
Gopher forwards did an excellent job of getting to the dirty areas last weekend. Jay Barriball scored 3 of his 4 goals within 5 feet of the net. Jacob Cepis and Mike Hoeffel repeatedly drove to the net against Massachusetts and were rewarded for their efforts. Zac Budish did a nice job of screening the goalie and getting his stick on pucks in the paint. That has to continue against a tougher UNO squad. Omaha is much bigger and will be more inclined protect the middle of the ice and keep their goalie clean.
Answer the bell
The Huskers WILL be physical. They will take that extra step and drill the defenseman after he passes the puck. They will go to the front of the net and try to make the Gopher goalies life miserable. They will get their sticks up high and face wash after the whistle. Minnesota can't back down, especially early. They have to be engaged physically and try to create a few scrums themselves. Someone other than Seth Helgeson has to be a presence on the back end. This teams manhood is gonna be questioned this weekend how they respond will tell a lot about them.
Don't watch the puck
Massachusetts created a lot of scoring opportunities because Gopher defensemen were ignoring their defensive responsibilities and watching the puck carrier. Some of that can be attributed to youth and lack of practice time. UNO has better finishers than the Minutemen so if guys get caught staring it's gonna end up in the back of the net. The Gophers have to stay in their lanes and do a better job of using their stick to negate those cross-ice passes that killed them last weekend.
Play to your strengths
Minnesota should have a speed and skill advantage over Nebraska-Omaha. They need to use the entire sheet at Mariucci to create time and space for Cepis, Haula, and Barriball. That allows them to be creative and put pressure on the Nebraska defensman. If the Huskers want to play physical and take penalties the Gophers have to make them pay on the power play. Converting 4 of 9 chances like they did last weekend is a lot to ask but consistent zone time and pressure are a must.
I expect better played series by Minnesota this weekend. Sure they swept UMass, but they were sloppy at times and gave up way too many quality scoring chances. A solid week of practice should help the freshman get their feet wet and it better because the water is about to get deep. This series is huge for UNO too. They will come in with a chip on their shoulder and want to prove that they belong in the WCHA. Coach Blais will have his team ready and expect a huge push by the Huskers early on Friday. The Gophers need to weather the storm and play wide open fast hockey.
I predict a split-Gophers win Friday in close one and fall Saturday in a let down effort.
By the way I know UNO is called the Mavericks, but that's Mankato's mascot and they were here first. I can't think of a good nickname so they're the Huskers.
Friday, October 8, 2010
Rash Observations After One Game
Thoughts from the first night of the NHL:
- Anyone watch #8 for those dirty Blackhawks last night? Yes the Nick Leddy era of Chicago hockey has begun. 19 minutes, -1, 3 shots. He got beat on a give and go once but looked like he belonged all night. His poise with the puck and fluid skating really stood out. Who had money on him being NHL ready at 19? Chuck Fletcher didn't. More on that later.
- The Penguins lost, but as a Gopher fan it's hard not to root for them. At least 2/3 of the game Alex Goligoski or Paul Martin are on the ice. Alex has pretty much taken Gochar's roll. Martin made a sweet back hand pass for a goal early in the 3rd.
- Break up the Oil!! Edmonton put it ON the old guys last night. Calgary even tried to goon it up that sure didn't work. The first NHL goal for Jordan Eberle was sick, but the best of the rookies might be Paajaarrrrvvviii
- It sure is fun to watch Phil Kessel skate...and shoot...good thing cause that's all he does. Unless Phaenuf plays like he did before he was a "star" Toronto is gonna be back in the lottery. Oops.
- The Wild are slow. Russo keeps talking about Richards being on the hot seat. Wonder if Fletch is gonna makes a move in the first month to try and save the coach HE chose. The Wild brass believe this is a playoff team. Really? Watch the other Western Conference teams and tell me which teams are worse. If you are using your second hand and your names not Terhaar, I bet you have a Wild flag on your car. Dangle Brent Burns for a young forward and a pick and let's start rebuilding this thing.
- Carolina, Colorado and Philadelphia don't have any Gophers on there squad so who cares about them. Neither do the Wild...boy that Barker trade smarts more and more all the time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)