Sioux Sports Talk

This is a quick overview of the Final Five tournament in St. Paul.  I’ll add more as the weekend progresses. And yes, I know the tournament is reseeded after the first round, but I think it’s more interesting to note where the teams finished in the conference, so I’m leaving them how they are.

Thursday night (7:07 p.m): #5 St. Cloud vs. #7 Minnesota
St. Cloud finished off the Badgers in two games; the Gophers played over 260 minutes of hockey (including five overtime periods) in their 3-game set with MSU-Mankato. The Huskies have had Minnesota’s number lately, and it continues at the XCel Center. SCSU 4-2.

Friday afternoon (2:07 p.m.): #2 North Dakota vs. #3 Denver
Both schools bring a great deal of talent to the ice. UND has an edge on the power play and between the pipes, and brings more experience to the Final Five. Lamoureux will hear his name called as a Hobey finalist on Thursday night and back it up with a strong performance on Friday afternoon. UND 3-1. For a complete preview of this matchup, click here.

Friday night (7:07 p.m.): #1 Colorado College vs. #5 St. Cloud State
The Tigers will be rested and ready, but it won’t be easy. This matchup could boast three or four Hobey Baker finalists, and it will be one to remember. I’m going with Colorado College, but if they get into penalty trouble, look out. CC 4-3.

Thank you for reading. I welcome your comments and suggestions. Check back after Friday’s games for reaction, commentary, analysis, and more predictions.

Well, I’m not too impressed with myself. I correctly predicted only 5 of the 10 Hobey finalists, after picking 6 out of 10 last year.

First of all, the five I got right (I’ve left the season statistics as they were when the committee narrowed the field down to ten):

Skaters:

Jr. F Nathan Gerbe, Boston College 27-25-52

Sr. F Ryan Jones, Miami (OH) 30-16-46

So. F Ryan Lasch, St. Cloud State 25-26-51

Sr. F Kevin Porter, Michigan 28-28-56

Goaltender:

Sr. Jean-Philippe Lamoureux, North Dakota
24-9-4, 1.6312 GAA, .934 SV, 6 SO

The committee also picked the following three skaters…

Jr. F Lee Jubinville, Princeton 12-26-38

Sr. F Simon Lambert, RIT 21-30-51

Jr. F T.J. Oshie, North Dakota 17-22-39

…while I had these three on my list:

Sr. F Matt Fornataro, New Hampshire 18-27-45Sr. D Jack Hillen, Colorado College 6-30-36Jr. F Chad Rau, Colorado College 27-14-41

I just don’t see Jubinville ahead of Fornataro and Rau. The Princeton Tigers played the 34th most difficult schedule in Division I, while Colorado College and New Hampshire came in 7th and 11th, respectively, in that category. Jack Hillen led all defenseman in scoring, but no blueliners were selected this year. And I’m a big Oshie fan, but I was surprised to see him on the list.

The committee tabbed these two goaltenders to join Lamoureux in the final ten…

Jr. Jeff Lerg, Michigan State
23-11-5, 2.2260 GAA, .925 SV, 4 SO

Sr. Kevin Regan, New Hampshire
23-6-1, 2.0689 GAA, .934 SV, 3 SO

…but I had selected these two:

Fr. Richard Bachman, Colorado College
25-6-1, 1.7485 GAA, .935 SV, 4 SO

Jr. Jeff Zatkoff, Miami (OH)
25-6-1, 1.6831 GAA, .934 SV, 3 SO

I can see Kevin Regan in the top ten over Jeff Zatkoff, because the Wildcats faced much tougher competition this year (strength of schedule #11 vs. Miami #24). But there is absolutely NO reason why Jeff Lerg should be on this list ahead of Richard Bachman. The Colorado College freshman has a better record, a lower goals-against average, a better save percentage, one more shutout, and played a tougher schedule this season. I don’t care that Bachman is a freshman; the top ten selections should go to the best players in the nation, and Richard Bachman has had a better season than Jeff Lerg.

Agree, disagree, let me know what you think. Who should have been in the Hobey top ten? And who would you leave out? We’ve got some time before the Hobey Hat Trick will be announced, so who would you select as your top three?

Thank you for reading. I welcome your comments and suggestions. Check back next week for my Hobey Hat Trick prediction.

There’s no question that these two teams have history: bad blood, controversy, and postseason clashes. But rather than looking at the past, both schools are treating this Friday’s game as an opportunity to gain momentum, gear up for the NCAA playoffs, and play for the WCHA playoff championship on Saturday night.

After narrowly missing out on last year’s NCAA tournament (and the West Regional held at Pepsi Center in Denver), the Pioneers seem poised for a run toward this year’s Frozen Four, also held at Pepsi Center. Denver is currently tied for 6th in the PairWise rankings, which mimic the method used by the NCAA Selection Committee to determine participants for the NCAA Division I men’s hockey tournament.

They will have to make that playoff run without one of their leading scorers. Sophomore Brock Trotter, who had amassed season totals of 13 goals and 18 assists in 24 games, signed a pro contract with the Montreal Canadiens. Trotter played his last game as a Pioneer on January 19th against Bemidji State. Freshman Tyler Bozak (17-15-32 in 38 games) is the only DU player with more points than Trotter’s 31.

It has been a tale of two seasons for Denver. The Pioneers opened the season with a sparkling record of 17-4-0, but sputtered to the end of the regular season, going 5-9-1 over their last 15 games before sweeping Minnesota-Duluth at home last weekend.

UND, on the other hand, spent the first half of the season in “Splitsville”, splitting eight consecutive series. The Sioux have been red-hot in 2008, going 16-2-3 to climb to 5th in the PairWise. North Dakota saw its 18-game unbeaten streak (15-0-3) come to an end in Game 2 of its WCHA first-round playoff series against Michigan Tech, but rebounded to defeat the Huskies 2-1 on Sunday night to advance to the Final Five.

Denver Team Profile
National Rankings: #6/#6
PairWise Ranking: 6th (tied)
Head Coach: George Gwozdecky (14th season at DU, 321-204-41, .603)
This Season: 24-13-1 Overall, 16-11-1 WCHA (3rd)
Special Teams: Power Play 14.2% (27 of 190), Penalty Kill 88.6% (156 of 176)
Last Season: 21-15-4, 13-11-4 WCHA (4th)
Key Players: Freshman F Tyler Bozak (17-15-32), Sophomore F Rhett Rakhshani (13-13-26), Freshman F Kyle Ostrow (10-13-23), Junior D Chris Butler (3-14-17), Senior G Peter Mannino (23-13-1, 2.26 GAA, .916 SV, 6 SO)

North Dakota Team Profile
National Rankings: #4/#5
PairWise Ranking: 5th
Head Coach: Dave Hakstol (4th season at UND, 103-54-15, .642)
This Season: 25-9-4 Overall, 18-7-3 WCHA (2nd)
Specialty Teams: Power Play 18.2% (31 of 170), Penalty Kill 88.1% (148 of 168)
Last Season: 24-14-5 (Frozen Four semifinalist), 13-10-5 WCHA (3rd)
Key Players: Junior F T.J. Oshie (17-22-39), Junior F Ryan Duncan (14-22-36), Sophomore F Chris VandeVelde (14-16-30), Sophomore D Chay Genoway (6-19-25), Senior D Robbie Bina (2-22-24), Senior G Jean-Philippe Lamoureux (24-9-4, 1.63 GAA, .934 SV, 6 SO)

By The Numbers
Last Meeting: February 16, 2008 (Grand Forks, ND). UND wins 4-1 to complete the weekend sweep of the Pioneers. Sioux junior winger Andrew Kozek scored a hat trick in Friday’s opener, bringing North Dakota back from a 4-1 deficit to win 5-4. The Sioux scored eight of the last nine goals in the series.
Last Meeting at the Final Five: March 18, 2005 (St. Paul, MN). In what will forever be known as the Robbie Bina game, Denver scored 42 seconds into overtime to defeat North Dakota 2-1 and advance to the WCHA championship game. Gabe Gauthier scored the game-winner, his second of the night, and Glenn Fischer made 29 saves for the Pioneers. Freshman goaltender Jean-Philippe Lamoureux stopped 30 shots in a losing effort.
Most Important Meeting: It’s hard to pick just one game, as the two teams have played four times for the national title. Denver defeated UND for the national championship in 1958, 1968, and 2005, while the Sioux downed the Pioneers in 1963.
All-time Series: UND leads the all-time series, 128-109-7 (.539).

Game News and Notes
UND goaltender Jean-Philippe Lamoureux enters the weekend leading the nation in goals-against average (1.6312) and is second in save percentage (.934). Both Lamoureux and Pioneer senior goaltender Peter Mannino have six shutouts on the season (tied for first among NCAA goalies), and Lamoureux has given up exactly one goal 16 times this season. With the departure of Brock Trotter, Denver freshman forward Tyler Bozak is the team’s active scoring leader with 17 goals and 15 assists. Bozak could become the second consecutive Pioneer freshman to lead the team in scoring, a feat Brock Trotter pulled off last season. North Dakota boasts the nation’s best defense, giving up only 1.74 goals per game. Denver is eighth at 2.26. UND has scored 3.03 goals per contest; DU, 2.87. The Sioux have played well on the road this season, posting a 10-4-2 record away from Ralph Engelstad Arena. The Pioneers have struggled, going 8-9-0 on the road. North Dakota has outscored opponents 42-11 in the first period this year. In the last six meetings between the two teams, UND has killed 27 of 29 Denver power play opportunities (93.1%).

The Prediction
Both schools bring a great deal of talent to the ice. UND has an edge on the power play and between the pipes, and brings more experience to the Final Five. Lamoureux will hear his name called as a Hobey finalist on Thursday night and back it up with a strong performance on Friday afternoon. UND 3-1.

Thank you for reading. I welcome your comments and suggestions. Check back all weekend long for reaction, analysis, and commentary from St. Paul.

The WCHA had its annual pre-Final Five press conference this morning. Here’s a summary (not to be confused with a transcript, which it’s not) of what Dave Hakstol had to say.

Congratulations to Scott and Colorado College for their championship.

I also wanted to mention Jamie Russell and his team at Michigan Tech. It was a tough series for us to come out of, so we take our hats off to the Michigan Tech Huskies.

Our senior class is happy to be able to return to the Final Five one more time and take a shot at the Broadmoor Cup.

Q: Can you talk about the Oshie-Duncan line and how they’re playing?
A: They’re both playing good, solid two-way hockey. Our depth is the most important part of our team, but those two guys are impact players and are playing well.

Q: How has your veteran defense been going for you?
A: We knew coming into the year that to be successful our D corps had to be a source of stability for us. Even though its a veteran crew, we have some new partners this year, so its taken some time to develop chemistry and grow together. They’re moving the puck out of the zone and adding some offense.

Q: You’ve lost once in the last few months, is there a difference in the way you’ve played?
A: Within the WCHA you have to play well and have some breaks go your way to win games. But you do have to work for those breaks. In the early year we were working hard in some areas, but weren’t mature enough to close out some of the tight games. It’s a subtle difference. Our work ethic is no different and our mentality is no different. We’re doing some little things better and have had some bounces go our way in the second half.

Q: Is the final line change (the home ice advantage) much of an advantage?
A: We work hard to gain the home ice advantage and that last line change. It depends on your opponent how much of an advantage it is. It’s always nice to have the ability to match things up if you want to do that, but it’s not the case in 100% of games.

Q: A couple years ago we talked about Bina being an emotional force, not being able to play. Now he’s back and playing as a senior.
A: He’s still an emotional force for us. He doesn’t say much, but he’s one of the most popular guys in the locker room and one of the most competitive guys. It’s a great story for the young man to see him back and for his family. He’s one of the driving forces on our hockey team, and the injury is only part of it. He’s certainly a leader for us.

Q: Goals have been hard to come by in the conference. Are we going to see a goaltending duel throughout the tournament?
A: Playoff hockey is hard to predict. If you predict a defensive struggle, you’ll see a 6-5 shootout. All the teams in the Final Five have outstanding goaltending and take a lot of pride in their defensive play. To get through the first round of the playoffs, you have to be playing good defense. Goals have been tough to come by, we’ve been scoring 3 goals per game and that’s near the upper end of the league.

Q: Duncan, Hobey last year, maybe this year wasn’t quite at that level.
A: Ryan has really lived up to everything the Hobey Baker Memorial Award is all about. His numbers have lived up, his consistency is as good as last year.

T.J. Oshie tallied both Fighting Sioux goals and Jean-Philippe Lamoureux turned aside 10 of 11 shots as North Dakota earned a hard-fought 2-1 win over the visiting Huskies of Michigan Tech. The victory propels UND to its sixth consecutive WCHA Final Five tournament, where the Sioux will face Denver in the Friday afternoon semifinal match-up (2:07 p.m.). North Dakota is currently 5th in the PairWise rankings; Denver is tied for 6th.

Oshie, a junior who quite likely played his last game at Ralph Engelstad Arena, went out in grand style, scoring his team-leading 16th and 17th goals of the season. He took a saucer pass from linemate Ryan Duncan and walked around MTU netminder Michael-Lee Teslak to knot the game at 1 late in the first period, and one-timed a feed from senior defenseman Robbie Bina for the game-winner just 19 seconds into the second period. Oshie’s game-winning goal came with the teams skating 4 on 4.

North Dakota has excelled in four on four situations all year long, outscoring opponents 8-2. It is critical for defensemen to move the puck and join the rush to create scoring chances while skating four on four, and North Dakota has plenty of blueliners who fit the bill. Robbie Bina (three assists), Chay Genoway (three assists), and Joe Finley (two goals), in particular, have been outstanding in 4 on 4 play.

Michigan Tech head coach Jamie Russell had high praise for UND’s Oshie:

“The kid’s a helluva hockey player,” Russell noted. “He’s a difference-maker. He’s not long in this league. He’s going to be a difference-maker at the next level as well. He’s a terrific hockey player. He plays hard, too. He’s strong defensively, he’s good on faceoffs, he’s solid on his skates, he’s a strong kid. He’s impressive.”

T.J. Oshie leads North Dakota with 39 points (17 goals, 22 assists).

Jean-Philippe Lamoureux rebounded from Saturday’s Game 2 defeat (3 goals allowed, 23 saves), allowing only Tyler Shelast’s tip-in goal at 11:27 of the first period. The goal came off a feed from Alex Gagne, who stole the puck from Oshie in the neutral zone and skated in two-on-two. Shelast, Saturday night’s hero, finished his career at Michigan Tech with 51 goals and 36 assists in 151 games played.

Two key moments stand out in this hockey game:

The first key was T.J. Oshie’s first goal, just 2 minutes and 42 seconds after Tyler Shelast had staked the Huskies to a 1-0 lead. Oshie swung the momentum back to North Dakota after UND had struggled for much of the opening frame.

The second key was MTU senior captain Jimmy Kerr’s 10-minute misconduct penalty at 10:35 of the third period. The Sioux were clinging to a one-goal lead at the time, and Kerr’s untimely verbal sparring with the official earned him a seat in the penalty box for the remainder of the game. The winger from Leduc, Alberta is Michigan Tech’s third-leading scorer (9 goals, 10 assists), and the Huskies desperately needed him on the ice at the end of the hockey game.

North Dakota helped Lamoureux out at every turn, blocking 23 of MTU’s 52 shot attempts. 18 of the remaining 29 attempts were wide of the net. The 11 shots on goal allowed by the Fighting Sioux is their lowest total this year. For the season, UND has allowed 24.3 shots on goal and 1.74 goals per game, the best defense in the country.

UND finished 0 of 2 on the power play (5 shots) while Michigan Tech went 0 for 3. The Huskies only managed 1 shot on goal during their three man-advantage situations. North Dakota’s penalty kill (88.1%) is sixth-best in Division I.

North Dakota’s penalty minutes continue to fall. The Sioux are now averaging 19.18 penalty minutes per game, fifth in the country. UND’s opponents are averaging 19.6 penalty minutes per game, and North Dakota has had 170 power plays (31 goals) and been asked to kill 168 penalties (20 goals allowed) this season. The 19.18 PIM for the Sioux this year are not far ahead of the top two teams in the PairWise, #1 Michigan (17.89) and #2 Miami of Ohio (17.84).

Michigan Tech fared well in the face-off circle on Sunday night, winning 35 of 63 (55.6%). North Dakota dominated Friday and Saturday night, winning 61.6% (77 of 125) over the first two games.

Lamoureux (24-9-4) heads into Final Five weekend with the nation’s best goals-against average (1.6312) and tied for the lead with six shutouts. He ranks fourth in Division I save percentage (.934), and is a virtual lock to be named one of ten Hobey Baker finalists. In addition to his six shutouts, Lamoureux has allowed exactly one goal 16 times this year.

Although it is customary for UND players to give a stick salute to the fans only after a home sweep, the Sioux treated the 11,639 fans at Ralph Engelstad Arena to one final salute for the 2007-08 season. Somehow, one more fan fit into the arena Sunday night, as Saturday’s announced attendance was a sold-out 11,638.

Three of the four North Dakota seniors (Lamoureux, Bina, Rylan Kaip) dressed for the series finale, and the trio returned to the ice for one final skate before heading down the tunnel for the last time at the Ralph. The fourth Sioux senior, forward Kyle Radke, was not in Sunday’s lineup. Lamoureux left a memory for one fan, tossing his goalie stick over the glass and into the crowd. The senior goaltender from Grand Forks, North Dakota recalled a game at the old Ralph Engelstad Arena:

“I remember being at (Sioux) game when Jason Blake (1996-99) scored an overtime goal,” Lamoureux said. “I was standing by the tunnel, and he gave his stick to a kid a couple of feet away from me. I thought it was pretty cool.”

North Dakota won five of the seven meetings between the two schools this year, outscoring the Huskies 23-9. Michigan Tech ends its season at 14-20-5, and says goodbye to seniors Peter Rouleau, Tyler Shelast, Jimmy Kerr, Malcolm Gwilliam, Jordan Foote, Mark Malekoff, and Jake Wilkens. There is also speculation that junior goaltender Michael-Lee Teslak (8-11-4, 2.20 GAA, .918 SV, 1 SO) will not return for his senior season.

The Sioux are a lock for the national tournament regardless of the results next weekend in St. Paul, but hope to return to the WCHA Final Five championship game for the third straight year. UND won the Broadmoor Trophy in 2006 (defeating St. Cloud State 5-3) and lost a thrilling overtime contest to Minnesota last season.

Thank you for reading. I welcome your comments and suggestions. I will be covering the WCHA Final Five tournament for SiouxSports.com, so check back throughout the weekend for news, notes, quotes, and commentary from St. Paul.

Michigan Tech’s senior class wasn’t ready to call it a career just yet.  Tyler Shelast scored a short-handed goal with six seconds remaining in regulation to tie the score at 2 and added the game-winner on the power play two minutes into overtime.  Fellow senior Jimmy Kerr scored the Huskies’ first goal, a power play tally at the 1:19 mark of the third period that cut UND’s lead in half at 2-1.  Kerr assisted on the game-tying goal, and classmate Peter Rouleau notched an assist on the game-winning goal, sending most of the 11,638 fans at Ralph Engelstad Arena unhappily to the exits.

Tyler Shelast notched his 49th and 50th career goals at Michigan Tech while playing in his 150th game.  He is the Huskies’ active leader in goals, points (86), and games played.

Michigan Tech snapped a number of streaks with the victory on Saturday night.  North Dakota’s unbeaten streak ended at 18 games (15-0-3), and an 11-game home unbeaten streak (9-0-2) also came to an end.

UND head coach Dave Hakstol did not seem concerned that the school-record unbeaten streak had come to an end. “Until you mentioned it, I hadn’t even thought about it,” Hakstol told a reporter. “We’re worried about a three-game series. We’ve got to win a game tomorrow night.”

It was the first time this season that UND has lost an overtime game, having gone 2-0-3 before tonight’s game with victories over Minnesota and Minnesota-Duluth in the extra session.

Kerr’s goal snapped a 108:58 shutout streak for North Dakota senior goaltender Jean-Philippe Lamoureux (23 saves), who saw his goals-against average rise to 1.6422 and his save percentage fall to .93393.  Lamoureux still leads the nation in GAA and shutouts (six), but fell to third in save percentage.

For the second consecutive night, special teams play was the difference.  North Dakota was held scoreless on six power play opportunities, despite generating 15 shots on net with the man advantage.  Michigan Tech went 2 for 5 on the power play (5 shots), and added a short-handed goal.

UND opened the scoring on its first shot on net, Brad Miller’s blast which trickled past Michael-Lee Teslak (24 saves) at 4:19 of the first period.  Matt Frattin and Ryan Martens assisted on the goal.  North Dakota has now outscored opponents 41-10 in the opening twenty minutes this year, and lost for just the third time when scoring the first goal (9-3-4).  When UND’s opponent scores first, the Sioux are 15-6-0.

A key stretch of the hockey game was the second half of the first period. North Dakota could not extend its lead, despite having three consecutive power plays in a seven minute span. The Sioux put ten shots on net in those six minutes with the man-advantage, but could not break the game open.

Brad Miller returned the favor to his linemate in the second period, dropping a pass for Matt Frattin that the freshman buried to give North Dakota a comfortable two-goal cushion.  But penalties would come back to haunt the Sioux.  After Frattin’s goal, UND was whistled for two minors (Ryan Duncan for holding at 0:36 of the third period and Chris VandeVelde for hooking at 1:27 of overtime), and Michigan Tech cashed in on both of those opportunities, tallying only one shot on goal on each power play.

One area of excellence for North Dakota was in the face-off circle, where the Sioux dominated all night long. UND won 45 of 72 draws (62.5%), a staggering statistic. Chris VandeVelde (won 17, lost 3) and Andrew Kozek (won 7, lost 1) led the way for the Sioux. North Dakota also gave Michigan Tech a face-off lesson on Friday night, winning 32 of 53 (60.4%). VandeVelde was the face-off star in the opener as well, winning 10 draws and losing only 4.

Taylor Chorney led UND with 7 shots on goal, while T.J. Oshie and Brad Miller had 3 shots a piece. Michigan Tech seniors Peter Rouleau (5 shots) and Tyler Shelast (4 shots) paced the Huskies.

Six of North Dakota’s last nine WCHA first-round home series have gone to a third game.  Take heart, Sioux fans: UND has won the previous five Game 3’s, outscoring opponents 28-6, with only one close contest (3-2 [OT] vs. Denver in 2003) in the bunch.  The other games were lopsided affairs: 10-0 vs. MSU-Mankato (1999), 9-4 vs. Denver (2000), 4-0 vs. Minnesota-Duluth (2001), and 3-0 vs. MSU-Mankato (2006).

Five of UND’s last 11 home playoff games have gone to overtime.  North Dakota holds a record of 3-2 in those games.

My rant about low attendance for Game 1’s around the WCHA did not fall on deaf ears. Each conference playoff series saw a jump in spectators for Game 2. Mankato saw the biggest increase with an attendance of 4744 (an increase of 546), followed by St. Cloud State (4270, +265), Colorado College (6149, +253), and Denver University (4820, +127). Even UND crammed 66 more fans into Saturday’s game, with attendance announced at 11,638. And no, I don’t think I had anything to do with the increase. But maybe I did…..

Aside from Sunday night’s Game 3 at Ralph Engelstad Arena, the only other first-round series yet to be decided is the matchup between the Gophers and Mavericks at Mankato. Colorado College, Denver, and St. Cloud have all punched their ticket to the WCHA Final Five.

Thank you for reading. I welcome your comments and suggestions. For reaction to Friday’s Game 1, click here. For more on the matchup between the teams, click here. Check back after Sunday’s series finale for more information, commentary, and reaction.

It’s amazing what a little open ice can do.

Junior forwards T.J. Oshie and Ryan Duncan and sophomore defenseman Chay Genoway led the way with two points each as UND downed visiting Michigan Tech 4-0 in the opening game of this best-of-three playoff series. The winner of the series advances to the WCHA Final Five in St. Paul next weekend.

A word about the “open ice”. Brian Thul and his assistants, Kile Bergren and Nathan Freeman, called nine obstruction penalties (tripping, hooking, holding, and interference) on the evening, and the result was an enjoyable, fast-paced contest. North Dakota’s skill players certainly took advantage of the open ice created by the officials simply calling penalties by the rulebook.

And lest you think I’m praising the officials because the calls went in UND’s favor, think again. The Sioux were whistled for five obstruction penalties to Michigan Tech’s four. Overall, North Dakota took seven minor penalties; MTU, six. I’m suggesting that the officiating we saw tonight was even-handed, and both teams adjusted to it.

Memo to the WCHA: Our league doesn’t need rule changes, we need officials who will enforce the rules which are already in place.

It was especially heartening to see Oshie (one goal, one assist) and Genoway (two assists) return from injury and perform well. Genoway’s skill on the power play and rushing the puck up the ice were both on display. The speedy defenseman leads all Sioux blueliners with 24 points (6 goals, 18 assists), despite playing in only 31 of 36 games.

It seemed to me that Oshie didn’t initiate contact like he normally does, but got stronger as the game wore on. “I felt great, maybe 95 to 100 percent,” said Oshie. “Obviously I wasn’t hitting as much.”

“Neither one was tremendously dynamic tonight, but they were both very good,” said Hakstol of Oshie and Genoway. “I thought they both did a real good, solid job.”

Senior goaltender Jean-Philippe Lamoureux strengthened his case for a Hobey Baker nod with another fine performance. Lamoureux, who has started every game but one for the Fighting Sioux, stopped all 14 Michigan Tech shots and helped UND kill off all six Husky power play opportunities. Eight of MTU’s 14 shots came with the man-advantage.

“Phil continued what he’s done for us throughout the year,” Hakstol said. “I thought he had good focus tonight. When he needed to make a save, whether it was a routine save or one of the big saves he made, he was there.”

For the season, Lamoureux’s stat line now reads: 23-8-4 (.714), 1.61 GAA, .935 SV, 6 shutouts. His goals-against average and save percentage are tops in the country, and he is tied for first in shutouts. He has played the nation’s toughest schedule, and logged more minutes in net than any of the other goaltenders in the top ten. During North Dakota’s 18-game unbeaten streak (15-0-3), Lamoureux has started 17 games and allowed zero or one goal 13 times. Tonight’s game was the 104th of his career, tying him for third-place on UND’s all-time list with Peter Waselovich (1973-77).

UND’s team defense continues to thrive, blocking shots and limiting chances. For the season, the Fighting Sioux have allowed 1.72 goals per game, the lowest in Division I. North Dakota is scoring an average of 3.08 goals per game, good for 14th.

“They just do a great job of blocking out,” Husky captain Jimmy Kerr said of the Sioux defense. “It’s really hard to get in front of their net. They also do a really good job of blocking shots in front of their net.”

North Dakota’s special teams were impressive yet again. UND scored on two of six power play chances, and blanked MTU on all six man-advantage situations. For the season, the Fighting Sioux have converted 19.1% (31 of 162) of their power play chances and killed 88.8% (142 of 160) of opponents’ power plays. UND’s power play ranks 16th nationally; their penalty-kill is 4th.

Duncan’s goal, UND’s first, came 5:25 into the first period. His wrist shot from the “Duncan Circle” was too much for Teslak to handle, and the Sioux were up 1-0. Teslak stopped 27 of 31 shots on the night, but had some trouble controlling rebounds.

The key stretch in the hockey game was the middle of the second period. North Dakota was dominating in puck possession, shots on goal, and scoring chances, but led only 1-0. T.J. Oshie (from Duncan and VandeVelde) and Darcy Zajac (Jake Marto, Chay Genoway) scored even-strength goals 49 seconds apart, and UND would never look back.

“They scored two goals back-to-back, and playing on the road, the crowd gets going,” said Michigan Tech head coach Jamie Russell. “You can’t give up back-to-back goals like that, and that certainly was a backbreaker.”

Junior wing Andrew Kozek scored a highlight reel goal in the third period to close out the scoring. Kozek got the puck in the slot after nifty passing plays by Ryan Martens and Brad Miller and made no mistake, scoring five-hole after getting Teslak to commit. Kozek leads the team in goals with 16 (in 35 games) after scoring 12 in his first two seasons combined (87 games).

Zach Jones, who had gone 23 games without taking a penalty, was whistled for three minor penalties, one in each period.

North Dakota was the only host school to register a sell-out (11,572) in Game 1 of the first round series. Colorado College drew 5896 fans (80%), Denver drew 4693 (78%), MSU-Mankato drew 4228 (88%), and St. Cloud drew 4005 (70%). I find this very odd.

UND is 20-3-1 this year when scoring the first goal, and has outscored opponents 40-10 in the opening period. North Dakota has now won four of the five games between the two teams this season, outscoring the Huskies 19-5.

North Dakota (24-8-4) and Michigan Tech (13-19-5) will meet again at Ralph Engelstad Arena for Game 2 of the WCHA first-round series. Game time is 7:07 p.m.

Thank you for reading. I welcome your comments and suggestions. For more on the matchup between the teams, click here. For reaction to Saturday’s Game 2, click here. Check back after Sunday’s series finale for more reaction, commentary, and analysis.

The last time Michigan Tech came to Grand Forks (January 11th and 12th, 2008), the two teams held average records in the conference. North Dakota’s WCHA record stood at 7-7-0, while the Huskies came in at 5-6-1. It appeared as if Colorado College (13-3-0) and Denver (11-3-0) had run away with the top two spots in the league, with the Sioux and Huskies both in good shape for a home-ice playoff series.

A Sioux sweep of the Huskies by identical 4-1 scores sent the two teams in opposite directions. Michigan Tech has gone 4-7-3 in league play since the series in Grand Forks; North Dakota is undefeated in conference action at 9-0-3. That stretch allowed UND to pass Denver University for second place in the WCHA, while MTU dropped to ninth place, one point behind eighth-place Minnesota-Duluth (9-14-5).

A big key to North Dakota’s first sweep of the season was their defensive play. The Sioux allowed only 33 shots in the two games combined and killed all ten Michigan Tech power plays.

At the time, I wrote the following about UND’s second half schedule and the possibility of a “Hakstol Surge”:

UND is in good shape for a stretch run, as the toughest part of their schedule seems to be behind them. With seven conference weekends remaining, the Sioux will host Michigan Tech, Alaska-Anchorage, Denver, and St. Cloud State, and travel to MSU-Mankato, Minnesota, and Minnesota-Duluth. It is my prediction that North Dakota will still be in third place at the end of the regular season, hosting a first-round playoff series, advancing to the WCHA Final Five, and avoiding the dreaded Thursday play-in game.

That stretch run begins now. UND can strengthen its position with strong showings this weekend and against Mankato and Anchorage. Five wins in those six contests isn’t out of the question, and would give the Sioux much-needed momentum heading down to Mariucci to take on the Golden Gophers in early February.

And North Dakota did me one better, winning all six games against Michigan Tech, MSU-Mankato, and Alaska-Anchorage before taking 3 of 4 points from the Gophers in Minneapolis.

And astute reader yababy8 did me one better as well, correctly predicting that UND would pass Denver for second place in the WCHA:

I think the Sioux make it to second in the WCHA. Factor in a nice sweep of the Pioneers and we just have two games to close in on a tie and we would win the tie breaker 3-1. I think Denver is not as good as their record suggests – We will see!

Nice work, yababy8!

One more word about the “Hakstol Surge”: In Dave Hakstol’s four seasons as head coach at North Dakota, UND has gone 44-32-5 (.574) before the new year and 57-21-10 (.705) after. The difference in the past two seasons is even more remarkable: in the first halves of 2006-07 and 2007-08, the Sioux went 18-17-2 (.514); in the second halves, 29-5-7 (.793).

And now, on to this weekend’s WCHA first round playoff series:

One problem for the Huskies has been scoring. Including the weekend series at Ralph Engelstad Arena, Michigan Tech has scored only 28 goals in its last 16 conference games (1.75 goals/game). For the season, MTU was not much better, netting only 55 goals in 28 league games (1.96 goals/game).

North Dakota, by contrast, scored 85 goals in WCHA action (3.04/game) and allowed only 53 (1.89/game). The Huskies allowed 77 goals (2.75/game) over the course of their conference schedule.

After opening the season 5-2-0 (including a home split with North Dakota) while scoring 22 goals (3.14/game) and allowing 16, the Huskies have scored only 52 goals in 29 games (8-16-5), an average of 1.79 goals/game.

One way to compare the teams offensively is to look at how their top scorers stack up in the league scoring race. Michigan Tech is paced by senior Peter Rouleau, who scored 9 goals and added 13 assists to finish 12th in the conference. The Huskies had only one other player in the top 50, senior Tyler Shelast (6-8-14), who ended up 36th.

North Dakota placed eight players in the WCHA top 36, led by juniors T.J. Oshie (12-17-29) and Ryan Duncan (9-19-28). Oshie and Duncan were two of only six players in the league to average a point or better in conference games. Sophomore Chris VandeVelde notched 12 goals and 12 assists, and the Sioux defensemen performed admirably as well. Rearguards Chay Genoway (5-13-18), Robbie Bina (1-16-17), and Taylor Chorney (2-14-16) were three of the top five scoring blueliners in the WCHA, while Joe Finley tallied 4 goals and 10 assists in league play after scoring 1 goal and 9 assists in his first two full seasons (84 games). Junior Andrew Kozek (12-3-15) rounds out UND’s top eight scorers, and his twelve goals in conference play are tied for the team lead.

Michigan Tech’s top goaltender, junior Michael-Lee Teslak (7-9-4, 2.14 GAA, .920 SV), has started almost every game down the stretch. Over the past four weekends, Teslak has a record of 3-4-0 to go along with a 2.68 goals-against average and a .903 save percentage. Before his mid-season injury, he had a GAA of 1.72 and a SV% of .934. Fellow junior Rob Nolan (6-9-1, 2.66 GAA, .899 SV) has played almost half of the minutes in net for MTU this season.

UND, by contrast, is a one-man goalie show. Senior Jean-Philippe Lamoureux played every minute of WCHA action for the Sioux this season, a feat equaled only by Duluth sophomore Alex Stalock, who logged every minute for the Bulldogs. Lamoureux won the league goaltending title, edging Colorado College freshman net minder Richard Bachman, 1.7431 to 1.7536 to notch the best goals-against average in conference games. For the season, Lamoureux leads the nation in GAA (1.66) and save percentage (.934) and is second in shutouts (five) while playing the toughest schedule in the country.

Amazingly, during North Dakota’s 17-game unbeaten streak (14-0-3), Lamoureux has started sixteen games and allowed zero or one goal 12 times.

Michigan Tech Team Profile
National Rankings: Unranked, tied for 22nd in the PairWise
Head Coach: Jamie Russell (5th season at MTU, 54-110-25, .352)
This Season: 13-18-5 Overall, 9-15-4 WCHA (9th)
Specialty Teams: Power Play 14.0% (24 of 171), Penalty Kill 84.2% (144 of 171)
Last Season: 18-17-5, 11-12-5 WCHA (6th)
Key Players: Senior F Peter Rouleau (12-16-28), Senior F Tyler Shelast (13-10-23), Senior F Jimmy Kerr (8-9-17), Junior D Geoff Kinrade (5-12-17), Junior G Michael-Lee Teslak (7-9-4, 2.14GAA, .920 SV)

North Dakota Team Profile
National Rankings: #2/#2, tied for 4th in the PairWise
Head Coach: Dave Hakstol (4th season at UND, 101-53-15, .642)
This Season: 23-8-4 Overall, 18-7-3 WCHA (2nd)
Specialty Teams: Power Play 18.6% (29 of 156), Penalty Kill 88.3% (136 of 154)
Last Season: 24-14-5 (Frozen Four semifinalist), 13-10-5 WCHA (3rd)
Key Players: Junior F T.J. Oshie (14-21-35), Junior F Ryan Duncan (13-20-33), Sophomore F Chris VandeVelde (14-15-29), Senior D Robbie Bina (2-21-23), Sophomore D Chay Genoway (6-16-22), Junior D Taylor Chorney (2-18-20), Senior G Jean-Philippe Lamoureux (22-8-4, 1.66 GAA, .934 SV, 5 SO)

By The Numbers
Last Meeting: January 12th, 2008 (Grand Forks, ND). North Dakota defeats Michigan Tech 4-1 to complete the home sweep. UND defeated MTU by the identical score on Friday night.
Most Important Meeting: The Sioux and Huskies have never met in the NCAA tournament, so I will go with the most important meeting that never was: in 1965, the Sioux lost to Boston College, 4-3, one game short of the national championship game, where they would have faced the Michigan Tech Huskies, who won the second of their three titles by defeating the Eagles. UND settled for third place that season, downing Brown University, 9-5. North Dakota went 13-3-0 in the regular season in 1964-65, with two of those three losses coming at the hands of Michigan Tech.
All-time: UND leads the all-time series, 131-88-8 (.595). The teams first met in 1948.

Game News and Notes
Michigan Tech is 7-0-1 when leading after one period; North Dakota has outscored opponents 39-10 in the first period this season. The Sioux have been whistled for 19.8 penalty minutes per game this year; the Huskies, 16.92. Michigan Tech appeared at the WCHA Final Five last season after traveling to Colorado College and taking two of three games from the Tigers in a low scoring series (2-1 OT, 0-2, 1-0). The Huskies fell to Wisconsin in the Thursday play-in game, 4-0. North Dakota has appeared in the past two WCHA Final Five championship games and three of the past four. UND won the playoff championship over St. Cloud State in 2006 but lost thrilling title games to Minnesota in 2004 and 2007. The Sioux defeated Minnesota for third-place in 2005. Husky sophomore defenseman Eli Vlaisavljevich’s last name is a 35 point Scrabble score – without landing on a triple word square. It is believed to be the best Scrabble score in the WCHA.

The Prediction
North Dakota has had some trouble recently in home playoff series, with five of their last eight first-round matchups going to three games and four of the last ten home playoff games going to overtime. But UND has found a way to advance to the Final Five the past ten times they have hosted the opening round of the playoffs, and they’ll do it again this weekend. UND 3-1, 4-0.

Thank you for reading. I welcome your comments and suggestions. For reaction to Friday’s Game 1, click here. For reaction to Saturday’s Game 2, click here. Check back after Sunday’s series finale for more reaction, commentary, and analysis.

UND skated to a 2-2 tie with the visiting St. Cloud State Huskies on Saturday night, extending its school record 17-game unbeaten streak (14-0-3). The teams battled to a 1-1 tie in Friday’s opener. The Sioux last lost a game on January 4^th to the very same Huskies in St. Cloud. That loss is North Dakota’s only defeat since the calendar turned to 2008.

Once again, the goaltending was spectacular. UND’s Jean-Philippe Lamoureux (31 saves) and SCSU’s Jase Weslosky (28 saves) turned in impressive performances, and were named WCHA co-Defensive Players of the Week for their weekends of work. In the two-game series, Lamoureux stopped 48 of 51 shots and Weslosky made 57 of 60 saves in battling to two ties. It was the second consecutive week that Lamoureux has earned the honor.

In Saturday’s finale, North Dakota led 2-1 until St. Cloud State was given a man advantage with under four minutes remaining. Sioux winger Andrew Kozek was called for hooking at 16:11 (only the fourth penalty of the game) and the Husky power play made no mistake. Ryan Lasch corralled a rebound of an Aaron Brocklehurst attempt and put it past a diving Lamoureux to knot the game at two. Kozek was the only player sent to the penalty box over the final 56:10 of the hockey game.

The Sioux took the lead late in the second period on Matt Watkins’ eighth goal of the season. The junior winger tipped freshman Derrick LaPoint’s shot up and over Weslosky with 1:08 remaining in the middle frame to put UND up 2-1.

The Huskies’ Brent Borgen knotted the game at one after a mad scramble in front of the Sioux net at the four minute mark of the second period. North Dakota’s Brad Miller scored a power play goal midway through the first period, less than twenty seconds after Tony Mosey went off for cross-checking. Both teams finished 1 for 2 with the man advantage.

St. Cloud controlled the face-off circle for the second consecutive night. The Huskies won 34 of 61 draws on Saturday night after winning 30 of 52 a night earlier. For the weekend, the Huskies won over 56%, led by Garrett Roe, who won 22 and lost only 11 in the two-game series.

It seemed as if referee Todd Anderson and his assistants forgot their collective whistles once again. The teams were called for only four minor penalties after combining for only three penalties on Friday night. Remarkably, Friday’s game, including a five-minute overtime session, took only 2 hours and 15 minutes to complete. Saturday’s game was even quicker, clocking in at 2 hours and 12 minutes (despite the extra frame).

Two of the WCHA’s best were on display this weekend at Ralph Engelstad Arena. Lamoureux edged out Colorado College freshman goaltender Richard Bachman for the league goaltending title (1.7431 GAA to 1.7536 GAA), while SCSU sophomore forward Ryan Lasch took the scoring title with a two point weekend (one goal, one assist). Lasch finished with 34 points (17g, 17a) in league play, edging CC junior forward Chad Rau, whose three points in the final conference series against Denver left him at 33 (23g, 10a) for the year. Remarkably, the 3^rd-7^th place finishers in the WCHA scoring race were all on the ice in Grand Forks as well. SCSU’s Andreas Nodl (15-16-31) and Garrett Roe (11-17-28), and UND’s T.J. Oshie (12-17-29), Ryan Duncan (9-19-28), and Chris VandeVelde (12-12-24) rounded out the top seven.

Minnesota-Duluth’s Alex Stalock was the only goaltender in the conference to play more minutes in league games than Lamoureux, backstopping the Bulldogs for 1688:36 (28 games) to Lamoureux’s 1686:40 (28 games). Stalock and Lamoureux were the only two goalies to play every WCHA minute for their teams.

UND, which entered the weekend as the second-most penalized team in the nation (20.76 penalty minutes/game), dropped to 19.8 penalty minutes per game (still second in Division I) after this weekend’s series. UND has killed 88.3% of penalties this season (6^th nationally), and improved its season power play percentage to 18.6% (16^th). SCSU penalty killers have a success rate of 87.3% (9^th), while the Huskies’ power play continues to crackle at 23.2% (3^rd).

North Dakota ends the regular season at 23-8-4 (18-7-3 WCHA), while St. Cloud holds a record of 17-14-5 (12-12-4 WCHA). Both schools are currently in the top ten (UND t-4^th, SCSU t-8^th) in the PairWise rankings, which mimic the method used by the NCAA Selection Committee to determine participants for the NCAA Division I men’s hockey tournament. After awarding automatic bids to the playoff champion in each of the six conferences, the committee will grant at-large bids to the top ten remaining teams in the PairWise to create a 16-team field.

The two teams split the regular season series, with each team gaining a win and two ties. UND and SCSU will share the Challenge Cup for the 2007-08 season.

The Sioux and Huskies will both host WCHA first-round playoff series this weekend. UND entertains the Michigan Tech Huskies, while the St. Cloud State Huskies play host to Wisconsin. Both series are best-of-three, with the winners advancing to the WCHA Final Five in St. Paul.

Thank for your reading. I welcome your comments and suggestions. For more on the matchup between the two teams, click here. For reaction and analysis of Friday’s game, click here. For more about the UND/SCSU Challenge Cup, click here.

One night before Senior Night at Ralph Engelstad Arena, North Dakota’s elder statesmen came up big in a 1-1 tie with St. Cloud State.

Senior captain Rylan Kaip scored UND’s lone goal, senior goaltender Jean-Philippe Lamoure (22-8-3) turned aside 17 of 18 shots, and fellow classmates Kyle Radke and Robbie Bina turned in impressive performances.

St. Cloud survived a furious first period during which North Dakota generated several quality chances and did everything but score a goal. The Huskies’ first shot on goal came with eight minutes remaining in the opening frame. UND finished with an 8-2 edge in shots on goal over the first twenty minutes, and 30 to 18 for the game.

“We had to weather the storm the first 10 or 15 minutes of the game, and then I thought we played a pretty good game,” SCSU head coach Bob Motzko said.

For the majority of the game, it seemed as if the officiating crew had swallowed their collective whistles. Only three minor penalties were called in the entire hockey game. The Huskies capitalized on the first of their two power plays at 16:43 of the second period after UND’s Brad Malone was whistled for slashing at 16:02. North Dakota did not score on its lone man advantage situation.

Dave Hakstol felt strongly that North Dakota should have been given a power play with under one minute remaining in the overtime. The UND head coach was visibly upset when Ryan Duncan was hauled down from behind while carrying the puck in the slot and no penalty was called.

The game may not even have gone to overtime had a disputed goal review gone St. Cloud’s way. Motzko claimed after the game that an apparent goal scored by the Huskies 75 seconds after Kaip’s game-tying goal should have counted. “It was a goal,” Motzko said. “What do you do? It was clearly a goal. I just watched it.” The third-year coach explained that when sophomore forward Ryan Lasch batted the puck out of the air, it was at his waist. “It wasn’t even close,” he concluded.

I watched the reply no fewer than a dozen times, and I tend to agree with that assessment. The problem is that it was ruled a high stick on the ice, and the lone camera angle that the referees are allowed to use shows nothing to contradict that call. There is no way of knowing from the overhead camera how high Lasch’s stick is when he makes contact with the puck.

So in a game where both teams desperately needed two points, each team came away with one. For North Dakota, that result, paired with Colorado College’s win over Denver, means that they are locked into second place in the WCHA and can not do anything tomorrow night to affect that position. It remains to be seen how that situation will impact their play on the ice during Saturday’s finale. My favorite quote on this matter comes from former Sioux defenseman Andy Schneider, who had this to say after UND defeated Minnesota for third place at the 2005 WCHA Final Five (several Gopher players and coaches were heard explaining that the game didn’t really matter):

“There’s a certain amount of pride when you put on a Sioux jersey. We know how fortunate we are to play here. Going into that Saturday game for third place, it didn’t matter that it was for third place. For North Dakota, we’re playing for the 70 years that there’s been hockey here.”

Last year, the Sioux and Huskies met in St. Cloud on the last weekend of the regular season, and the roles were reversed. SCSU was locked into second place in the WCHA, and North Dakota could move up to third place with a victory. UND spoiled Senior Night for the homestanding Huskies, rolling to a 7-2 win.

Each team has collected three points (one win and one tie) in the race for the Challenge Cup. Whichever team wins Saturday’s series finale will win the UND/SCSU commemorative trophy and have its name engraved on the trophy for the 2007-08 season. If the teams tie again, they will share the Cup. The Challenge Cup will be on display at the UND/SCSU fan social from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at Southgate Grill and Bar in Grand Forks.

On Saturday night, St. Cloud needs to collect at least one point to secure home ice advantage for the first round of the conference playoffs. The Huskies, currently tied for 11th in the PairWise rankings (with Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Boston University), could also improve their situation in the national picture with a victory. North Dakota dropped to 4th in the PairWise with the tie on Friday night.

In the first round of the conference playoffs, North Dakota will be playing at Ralph Engelstad Arena against either Minnesota-Duluth (12-15-6 overall, 8-14-5 WCHA) or Michigan Tech (12-18-5 overall, 8-15-4 WCHA), pending Saturday’s game results. Minnesota-Duluth leads MTU by one point in the standings and plays at Minnesota on Saturday night; Michigan Tech faces off with the Mavericks in Mankato. Both Duluth and Michigan Tech lost on Friday night.

Personally, I would rather see Michigan Tech as UND’s opponent for the first round of the playoffs. Yes, North Dakota went 3-1-0 against both MTU and UMD, but the Bulldogs played the Sioux tough last weekend in Duluth and could easily have won one or both of those games.

UND carries a 16-game unbeaten streak (14-0-2) into Saturday’s game, a stretch that ties a school record. St. Cloud State is the last team to defeat North Dakota, posting a 3-2 victory on January 4th. The Sioux have lost only one game in the year 2008, and no opponent has swept North Dakota this season.

Jean-Philippe Lamoureux has definitely earned Hobey Baker award consideration. Lamoureux leads the nation with a 1.6527 goals-against average and his .93415 save percentage is a fraction behind Colorado College freshman Richard Bachman (.93432) and New Hampshire senior Kevin Regan (.93428). UND’s senior netminder has posted five shutouts and allowed only one goal fifteen times while playing the toughest schedule in the country.

Despite being whistled for only two minor penalties, UND is still the second-most penalized team in the country. North Dakota’s average fell from 20.76 penalty minutes per game to 20.26 after Friday’s tilt. The Sioux boast the best defense in the nation, allowing a mere 1.76 goals per game. St. Cloud’s power play percentage of 22.9% is third best in Division I.

The line of Darcy Zajac centering Kyle Radke and Brad Malone brought a physical presence and some offensive spark. This could be the checking line North Dakota employs in the post-season.

The WCHA scoring race will go down to the final game of the regular season, and six of the top seven point getters in the league will be on display at Ralph Engelstad Arena. St. Cloud’s Ryan Lasch (16-17-33) collected an assist to stay one point ahead of Colorado College’s Chad Rau (23-9-32), who scored two goals in the Tiger’s 5-2 win over Denver University. SCSU’s Andreas Nodl (15-15-30) and UND linemates T.J. Oshie (12-17-29) and Ryan Duncan (9-19-28) were held off the score sheet on Friday night, while the Huskies’ Garrett Roe (11-17-28) and North Dakota’s Chris VandeVelde (12-12-24) notched single assists.

Lamoureux (1.7390 GAA) holds a slight edge over Colorado College’s Richard Bachman (1.7536) for the league’s goaltending title, awarded to the netminder with the best goals-against average in WCHA games. No other goaltender in the conference has a GAA under 2.10.

So it seems that North Dakota has plenty to play for on Saturday night: the senior class, Lamoureux’s goaltending title, momentum, the all-important PairWise rankings, and Sioux pride. As then-captain Matt Greene said about that same 2005 Final Five third-place game:

“We were here. There was a game,” Greene said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s three in three nights or five in five, we’ve got to do our job. We’ve got to come out to play. We’re a team that wants to win every game.”

Remember, the 2004-05 Sioux used the momentum from that Final Five third-place victory to advance to the Frozen Four, where they met those very same Gophers 19 days later. North Dakota defeated Minnesota on that day as well, recalling their earlier success.

And last season, UND’s 7-2 victory over St. Cloud State on Senior Night (when the Huskies had “nothing to play for”) carried over into North Dakota’s 6-2 win in the Final Five semifinal exactly two weeks later.

So don’t tell me the game doesn’t matter. And don’t tell the Fighting Sioux.

Thank you for reading. I welcome your comments and suggestions. For more on the matchup between the two teams, click here. Check back after Saturday’s game for more reaction, analysis, and commentary.