Parise, where did the time go?

One minute, you're having the time of your life (like Jennifer Grey in Dirty Dancing) posting about the glorious WCHA, and then the next day you realize you haven't updated said blog in like 2 1/2 years. Oops. If Patrick Swayze were alive to read this right now, he'd be ticked at me. I've thrown away over 2 years of potential blogging (in my prime, no less).

I can never get that time back, and for that I apologize to all my loyal readers. We established such a bond all those years ago, and look how I repay you. I'm sure most of you have moved on to other blogs (with my hiatus, I'm positive other crappy blogs (like Donald's tired UAA blog, LetsGoDU, etc...Christ, even Sloe Gin has a horrible blog now)) have seen a bump in readers.

So much whining has gone unreported over these last few years. It's time to right a wrong here, folks. The Frozen Four is approaching. The end of the season is near. I think we all know who the winner of the Whiner of the Week (Year(s), really) belongs to. That's right:

Those cute Yale fans. So optimistic throughout the season that their #1 ranking in Nov/Dec would guarantee them a national title. All year long, WCHA fans would tell them that their patsy schedule wouldn't guarantee them crap...and yet it continued. And what do you know? The playoffs start and they barely squeak by Air Force (Air Force...really?) before losing to a WCHA team (naturally).

Congrats Yale Bulldogs, you really earned this one.

In closing...I'm happy to be back, but with no guarantees. How long will my busy schedule allow me to post my genius rants? It's not like I have no life like RWD (still sticking with that crazy numbers crap?) and I can spell & properly use the English language (unlike our friend Goon)...so it's hard to say. But for the meantime, it's good to be back.

See you all in St. Paul.

This Week in the WCHA: WOTW

What a crazy week in the WCHA.

Unranked SCSU sweeps previous #4 DU. UAA splits with UND on the road. UW takes 3 points from UMD. MSUM splits with CC. UMN continues their tie Friday/win Saturday streak with MTU. No team has yet established themselves as a clear-cut favorite, and no team has really laid down and said "we'll take that cellar spot, please" just yet. The parity in this league right now is amazing. While that will make for a fun, interesting season in the league standings...it could also hurt the WCHA come NCCA-time. Especially when you have teams like Air Force and Princeton essentially locking up their NCAA berths already while playing cupcake schedules.

Time for this week's WOTW award. This week had decent potential on the whine-o-meter scale. It certainly would have climbed up had SCSU been swept by DU, as those SCSU fans are known to lash out when the chips are down. You can always count on some fireworks from the UAA/UND series, with Donald trying his best to rile up comments from touchy UND fans. But this week, one person beat them all out. That's right...one person took down all other contenders. And that person is:
None other than ScoobyDoo from USCHO. He really is a respectable poster for the most part, but ever since he got banned from attending live hockey games he has taken a turn for the whine. I think it started last year with his constant "FORECHECK" posts. He was like a little kid who just learned a new word...he had to use it at every available opportunity even if it had nothing to do with the given situation.

This year, he has left "forecheck" behind and moved onto this. The constant argument that everyone else said that the Gophers wouldn't be able to score any goals this year, but how he knew that it wouldn't be the case. I think he mentions it at least 6.5 times per series thread.

1st period against MTU on Saturday: This, followed by this. Yes, those floodgates were certainly opened. Two whole goals against the 10th place Huskies. Nicely done. After the game, the classic Scooby optimism revealed itself.

Scooby being gay (not that there's anything wrong with that). That was followed by his application to become the next Gopher assistant coach. Yes, you and Lucia are certainly on the same wavelength, being that he "agreed with you" and all. :)

Congrats Scooby. Welcome to the WOTW club. :D

**(and just like in the USCHO poll, the Gophers have moved to the top of the WOTW standings)**

What did I miss?

Well that offseason came and went. Now the season is upon us, and of course, there has been rampant whining. Seriously people, have you not learned anything?

Alaska Anchorage - Another year and another top 5 prediction by Donald. What a surprise. They already have five wins...yippee, look who those wins have come against.

Colorado College - Are there only like 5 CC fans total? Thinking of something to write would be wasteful, as none of their "fans" would read it anyway. Regardless, they'll have a decent year, and then blow it in the end. Sounds familiar.

Denver - How is this team not scoring like 7 goals a game? I guess we can forget about the Colborne for Hobey campaign, huh? Good thing they got lucky with Salazar and Wiercioch, otherwise they would be 2-7 right now.

Michigan Tech - You almost feel sorry for them. They were on an uphill trend, but I think even they know that they're destined for a 9th or 10th place finish this year. Should be a good battle with those Seapuppies though!

Minnesota - A good start for the Gophers has their fans on arrogance-overdrive. Most of them still have to clean their shorts out though after the pre-season Aaron Ness Circle Jerk that transpired. Oops. I think MeanEgirl has a harder slap shot than him. With them peaking this early in the season, the only award that they'll get will be the coveted Virg Foss.

Minnesota Duluth - I actually thought UMD would be better than what they are. The Connolly boys look good, but they'll never be a contender with Alex "I allow 11 goals per year due to my wandering" Stalock in net. The Bulldog fans that say he is a top 5 WCHA goalie are delusional. It appears that UMD can only beat teams from Michigan...and SCSU. That won't get them very far.

Minnesota State - Mankato continues to attempt to play a hard-nosed, gritty, offensive flow game with some goonery mixed in for good measure. They're like a NoDak team...except without talent. They better hope that they do well this season, because they will suck next year. How gay is the Ole song?

North Dakota - Seriously, the fans on SiouxSports.com might be the dumbest people in the world. Half of them are calling for Hakstol's head after three games. Where have they been the last three seasons? UND has been crappy in the early season each of those years...it's like their new tradition, since they don't win titles anymore.

St. Cloud State - I guess the rest of the WCHA figured out that if you put a body on Roe and Lasch early in the game, they won't do crap for the rest of it. If that holds true, the Huskies are screwed. While I doubt they will finish in their current 10th place position, a top 5 finish seems unlikely. Will they even make the NCAA's to continue their One And Done streak?

Wisconsin - You gotta love all the UW fans in the preseason talking about their highly talented defense. For being so talented, they certainly do suck at defense. Half of them play like forwards on the ice. At least they stopped playing the freaking boring trap...for now. I would venture a guess that by midseason we'll be seeing those 1-0 / 2-1 games from them that their fans seem to love so much.

With all that said, this week's WOTW award goes to Boston University, because everyone knows that they are highly overrated, except for the pollsters evidently.

07/08 Season In Review: Whiner of the Year!!

Here it is. The season is over, all the individual awards and national title have been handed out. Except one...the most prestigious of them all, the one that every fanbase strives to achieve. Of course I am talking about the WHINER OF THE YEAR!

But this award is just too big for one man to decide on and give out. How could I be expected to remember all the incidents from the past year, and then pick the whiniest from the bunch? It's too large of a responsibility for a single person. Plus, as has been mentioned on here in the past, the blog was started up too late to capture many of the best, whiniest moments from this past season. So, I have decided to open this award up to all the readers of this fine blog. That's right. YOU pick the events that have resulted in the biggest whine-fests, and once we have them all listed, YOU get to vote on the winner of the WOTY!

So go ahead and post your favorite WOTY-worthy event from this past season...either in the comments thread or send me an email, and once we get them all tabulated I will put it to a vote to decide the fanbase that most deserves the WOTY. It can be any team, not just from the WCHA, and there can be multiple incidents nominated from the same team if needed.

Let's get this party started!

Review: Frozen Four Posters Game

For the 2nd straight season, the WCHA failed to win the national title. And worse yet, those damn easterners took home the grand prize, with the hated BC Eagles winning it all. Hopefully the WCHA can bring the title back next season. The best game of the weekend: The USCHO Poster's Game at Magness Arena. I was in the stands watching the festivities and enjoyed it immensely.
Best Fight: SloeGin vs. Arafel
Cutest Poster: Tie between MeanEgirl and Quizmire (although Quiz won points for doing the shootout in just her sports bra)
Best Sponsor: LetsGoDU and Puck Swami
Poster with the Best Tan: The Darkness
Best Shootout Move: Lord Sidious (too bad that he didn't get it in the net)
Best Shootout Snipe: pgb-ohio
Best Shooter: Arafel
Best Skater: brianvf
Best Assist Man: MinnesotaNorthStar
Best Hockey Pants: Tie between Mavboni Pilot and MinnesotaNorthStar
Best Post-Goal Celebration: SloeGin
Best Playoff Beard: Bakunin
Biggest Goon/Hack: Arafel (for her two-handed chop on shrader)
Biggest Whiner: shrader (after said hack)
Best/Worst Ref: Eric
Best PDA: SloeGin and Quizmire
Best Jersey: con1977 and his game-worn UW jersey
Most Time Spent Sprawled On Ice/Best Newbie: Mowers10
Hottest Photographer: UNHhockey29
Hairiest Photographer: thecomicbookguy
Best Play-by-Play: GreatLakerMohawk

Any that I missed? I look forward to watching this again next year in DC...it's too bad that I just found out about it this year.

Look for the Whiner of the Year to come out in a few days...

Who to Root For?

So the WCHA got a record-breaking 6 teams into the NCAA's, yet only one made it to "the show". To be honest, the most that I was expecting was two, so this result isn't too surprising.

Midwest: Everyone knew that at least one WCHA team would make it, and it would come from this regional. No one expected Princeton to get past one, let alone two, WCHA schools. UW was a surprise with their blowout of DU, and the regional final was a great game. UND advances, UW and DU have their seasons cut short.

East: Did anyone honestly think that SCSU could break the curse/streak? Michigan pretty much got a free pass to the F4, which is to be expected when you are the #1 overall seed. SCSU lost in the first round. Again.

Northeast: UMN had a tough test if they wanted to get to Denver. BC proved that they are a good team, and while Miami certainly wasn't as good as their record indicated (or as good as people in the CCHA thought they were), they were still a great overall team that could have advanced. Not a dynasty, that's for sure. UMN exits in the first round as well.

West: Here is where I was expecting the other WCHA school to come from. CC was the strongest WCHA team all season, and then they pretty much laid down for the last 3 games against UMN, UND, and MSU. Still, they were in what I considered the toughest regional with UNH and the defending champs. But they had home ice (where their record was amazing), so I figured they would get through. I was wrong. But I'm guessing that everyone picked this regional wrong...who would have guessed that freakin Notre Dame would make it to Denver?? CC gone in the first too.

So there we are...start with 6, and now down to just one. Now the real question. As WCHA fans, do you stick with WCHA loyalty and cheer on the Sioux, or do you cheer for another team? Here's my thinking: I could never root for Boston College (darn east-coasters) or Michigan (9 titles...but only 2 since 1965!). So I am hoping for a UND/ND final, and then I'll figure out which team to root for at that time.

Thoughts?
See you all in Denver.

*Above picture shamelessly stolen from CHN.

The DU Timeline for the 2007-2008 Season

Since LetsGoDU is so fond of "timelines", here is one for them:

Oct 12th-Jan 10th: DU is on a magical run, going 17-4 to start the season, battling with rival CC for the MacNaughton, and well on their way to a #1 seed for the NCAA's.

Jan 11th: The infamous VideoGate with UW. The tying goal as time expired is disallowed. This is the second incident of the season in which a blown call has gone in favor of DU. UW fans complain; DU fans rejoice and make fun of the Badger fans. The hockey gods are angered over this. They decide to do something about it.

Jan 12th: UW blows out DU, 7-2. It has begun.

Jan 18th: Air Force beats DU for the first time in 28 years.

Jan 20th: It is announced that freshman dman John Ryder will miss the rest of the season with an injury.

Jan 26th-28th: DU loses 2 recruiting battles in a matter of 3 days, as MacWilliam commits to UND and Wiercioch commits to UW.

Jan 31st: It is announced that Brock Trotter would miss the MSUM series for undisclosed reasons.

Feb 1st-2nd: MSUM sweeps DU.

Feb 2nd: Tyler Ruegsegger is injured during the Sat night MSUM game.

Feb 7th: After a full week of speculation by DU fans, Trotter bolts for the pros with no explanation from DU. Could this be a Bad-Boyz cover-up?

Feb 8th-9th: Despite Trotter and Ruegsegger out of the lineup, DU still manages to get 3 points against Minnesota (not that tough this year). Have they turned it around?

Feb 15th: That's a negative. After going up 4-1 against UND, DU gives the game away, losing 5-4.

Feb 16th: UND completes the sweep, and manages to cleverly have Testwuide and Vossberg get suspended for a game due to their fighting fun.

Mar 7th: Ruegsegger finally returns to the lineup.

Mar 7th-8th: DU gets swept by CC, essentially handing the MacNaughton Cup to their biggest rival.

Mar 13th-14th: DU sweeps UMD in the first round playoffs, securing their spot in the F5.

Mar 21st-22nd: DU beats UND and then UMN (which had huge crowd support) in the F5 to win the Broadmoor trophy once again. The DU fans rejoice, as this surely means that the team has turned things around just in time for the NCAA's.

Mar 23rd: It is announced that DU has to face UW in the Madison regional with a shot at playing in the F4 in DU's own backyard. How sweet that would be for DU fans!

Mar 29th: DU gets pummeled by UW, 6-2, ending their season and ruining their chance at playing in the F4 in their hometown. It is a tough pill to swallow, especially being that UW was the only sub-.500 team in the tourney. In the end, the hockey gods prove that they have a sense of humor, as the team that started it all way back on Jan 11th now fittingly ends the Pioneers' season.

Whiner of the Week: Mar 26th

My apologies for the delay in getting this week's WOTW award out there, and for keeping this short. I had a family emergency this week, and that takes precedence over college hockey. Yes, even playoff college hockey.

Anyhoo, after seeing the NCAA playoff field, I fully expected to see plenty of whining coming from MSUM fans. But...I just didn't see nearly as much of it as I expected. I'm sure they were plenty pissed about being brushed over so that a sub-.500 team could get placed in their own regional, but they didn't show it like I thought they would. They probably realized that one OT gwg is all it would have taken against UMN, and that probably would have kept the Gophers out of the NCAA's as well.

Speaking of the Gophers...I never realized that their fans would suck so much even at a F5 that they didn't even win. I guess I thought that their fanbase was better than that. Silly me!

Am I the only one that is getting annoyed with Michigan fans lately? Seriously. You've won more titles than any other team in history...try to act like you've been there before.

What's with MEg? She tells me that she wants to meet me at the F5, and then never gets in contact with me to arrange a meeting time/place.

So, since I need to wrap this up, and because I don't want to pick a solo winner from the above nominees...

Congratulations to the Whiners of the Week:

UMN fans, UM fans, and MEg

WCHA Final Five Preview: Mar 20-22nd

Holy crap, the Final Five is here! This is seriously one of the most fun weekends of the entire season. Fans from pretty much every team make the trip to St. Paul to cheer on their team (or cheer on whoever is playing their rival if their team didn't make it) and to boo at opposing fans when their faces get plastered on the jumbotron. Speaking of plastered...watch out for those crazy tailgaters!

Team, Fan, & Tourney Preview

CC Tigers: The Tigers get to faceoff against either SCSU or UMN on Friday night. I would think that they would have a better chance at advancing to the championship if they face UMN, as I don't think the Gophers have the speed or the offensive firepower to hang with them. SCSU, on the other hand, has a trio of good scorers. Either way, I see CC advancing to Sat night regardless, as they are just too strong this year even if they don't normally have good luck in the F5. I don't think that I've ever seen a CC fan younger than 50 years old. Maybe they are slowly dying off, with no young fans left to take the helm. On the bright side, they might have actually been alive to see the last Tiger national title.

DU Pioneers: The Pioneers won their first round series and have advanced to the F5 for the first time in a couple years. They play UND in the Friday afternoon game in what should be a good battle as they try to get revenge for the series in Grand Forks a month ago. DU just has to find some scoring, and then let Mannino handle the rest. You usually see a fair number of DU fans at the F5, and we might even see more this year due to their recent hiatus from the WCHA tourney. They could pull off an upset or two if they score some goals, but that could prove difficult, especially if some more DU players "pull a Trotter" and leave the team before Friday.

UMN Gophers: If there is a team that might be better off losing this weekend, it is the Gophers. They already played three games less than a week ago, with all three going to OT (two of them to double OT). If they beat SCSU on Thurs night, they would have to play on Fri and Sat as well, which would make it at least 23 periods of hockey in only 9 days! And that's assuming that none of their games this week go to OT, which is something all too common with this Gopher team. On the flipside of that, if they lose against SCSU they could very well miss the tourney. UMN fans were very happy this week...they got into the F5 despite being a horrible team all year. So hopefully they really enjoy their one game. Unless...can the Gophers become the first team to win the F5 after being in the play-in game? Answer: No...no they cannot.

UND Sioux: The Sioux battle the Pioneers on Friday afternoon, in what will probably be one of the better games all weekend, as the two teams always seem to match up well. UND has had the upper hand so far this year, but DU seems to have a recent history of beating UND when it counts...in the playoffs. The Sioux will almost certainly need at least one win this weekend to have any chance of moving up to a #1 seed. UND fans will travel well as always, so expect lots of them there. My only question is whether the fat mullet-man Sioux fan will be there. Everyone reading should know who I'm talking about...he's at every F5 and F4. So the answer is yes. If UND loses to DU, who will be blamed? Smart money is either on the officials or Paukovitch.

SCSU Huskies: The big question when the Huskies take the ice against the Gophers on Thurs night will probably be if UMN will have any legs at all after last weekend. SCSU should be fresh, as they finished off UW in two games, but the Gophers will also have the crowd behind them. The Huskies are a more talented team than UMN this year, but the Gophers showed some grit against MSUM, and also showed that Kangas is on form. For SCSU fans, this is like the SuperBowl...facing off against the Gophers in the F5. They just aren't smart enough to realize that it's just the play-in game. :)

Other: The Mavericks and the Badgers will be sitting at home watching these games while wondering what their fate will be for the NCAA's. UMD, MTU, and UAA are already out on the putt-putt course practicing their short game.

Whiner of the Week: Mar 19th

I was actually surprised at the amount of whining that took place during and after the WCHA 1st round playoff series. And by that, I mean the lack of it. I don't know what happened, as I expected so much more. Maybe people are just getting ready for the end of the season. Or maybe the classic Gopher instigators are living in a hole somewhere after their less-than-stellar year. Who knows. The only series that really stuck out to me with complaining was the MSUM/UMN series, which featured a combined 22 overtime periods or something along those lines. That whining was mainly directed at the officials, who seemed to lose their whistles in the overtime periods, except for when calling too many men penalties. :) But I didn't think that was enough to get them the award this week. Neither of the fanbases stuck out more than the other.

So, for this week, we are doing something different. This week's award is more of a "lifetime season achievement" WOTW. After saying that, I'm sure most of you already know who this week's lucky winner is. :) Whether it be his comical, over-the-top rants about how much he dislikes every other team (and their fanbases/towns/coaching staff/etc) in the league, his lofty preseason predictions for his team that they can never live up to, or his over-analytical responses to trolling posters who comment on his blog, his posts are pure comedy. Sometimes you can't be sure if he is actually taking himself seriously or if he is just trying to get a rise out of others. Either way, his WOTW-approved blog is GOLD. Good examples of fun can be found here, here, and here. And that's just in the past week!

Congratulations to the Whiner of the Week:

Donald and his UAA Fan Blog

WCHA Weekly Preview: Mar 14-16th

First round WCHA playoff time! For some teams, it's win-or-break-out-the-golf-clubs time...for other teams they are already assured a spot in the NCAA's, but they want the right to battle for the Broadmoor in St. Paul. Should make for some interesting matchups.

Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs @ Denver Pioneers

Summary: The Bulldogs snapped their 5 game losing streak with a win over Minnesota last Saturday. The Pioneers are on a losing streak of their own, now 3 games after being swept by CC. UMD ended DU's season in 05-06 after beating them in the 1st round playoffs in Denver. They might need to do it again if they want their season to continue past the F5.
WWN Says: Which fanbase would I rather see at the F5? The Bulldog fans would probably travel in greater number if they happen to make it (due to that whole distance thing), but the Pioneer fans are fun to hang with as well. That probably doesn't matter though, being that we'll all see them in April anyway for the F4 in Denver. So I'll pick UMD here.

Alaska Anchorage Seawolves @ Colorado College Tigers

Summary: This might be the only series that is almost a sure-fire bet that the home team will win. The Seawolves were the only team that wasn't fighting for placement in the WCHA standings the last few weekends, as they finished solidly in 10th place (10 points behind 9th). The Tigers, meanwhile, look to be playing quite well after sweeping DU and they will want to get a #1 seed at their own regional.
WWN Says: Which fanbase would I rather see at the F5? That's a really difficult question...being that I don't think I've ever met a fan (that I remember anyway) from either school. If the Seawolves made it, would any fans bother to come anyway? Donald's donation plan fell through, so I guess not. Ahh, who am I kidding, the Seawolves aren't going to advance.

Minnesota Gophers @ Minnesota State Mavericks

Summary: When was the last time that the Mavericks beat the Gophers? I would guess that most fans can't even remember. I know I couldn't, so I looked it up. It was Nov 8th, 2002 with a 3-2 win in Mankato. And now they would have to win twice in one weekend if they want to advance to the F5. Can they do it? There is more at stake for both teams as well...a poor series from either team could push them out of the NCAA tourney.
WWN Says: Which fanbase would I rather see at the F5? Tough call here. The Xcel is normally 65% Gopher fans anyway due to the "away" venue, but how many will show up if the Gophers aren't there? My guess: if the Gophers lose, you'll see a buttload of F5 tickets all of a sudden become available. But, there will still be some UMN fans there. And those will probably be the "good" ones, if there is such a thing. Plus, the league would be pissed if they weren't there...so I say go Mavericks.

Michigan Tech Huskies @ North Dakota Fighting Sioux

Summary: The Huskies have been inconsistent lately (actually, for the whole season it seems), although they did manage some quality wins against Denver and Mankato recently. And now they travel to face the Sioux, who are unbeaten in their last 17 games. It's a tall order, but UND might be ripe for the picking right now with 3 good players out with injuries. If they can't play, MTU might get past them and punch their ticket to St. Paul.
WWN Says: Which fanbase would I rather see at the F5? North Dakota State fans travel well, so if the Sioux advance, there will be a ton of them there. But if the Gophers don't make it, will any of those UND fans be wearing Holy Cross jerseys? I think that the MTU band will be there anyway, as well as the best Tech fan, so I'll just pick UND since I would rather not listen to the whining that would erupt if they weren't there.

Wisconsin Badgers @ St. Cloud State Huskies

Summary: For some reason, the Badgers seem to always have the upperhand when they play the Huskies. But SCSU managed to beat them just a couple weeks ago, and being that the series is at the NHC, this might tip the scales in their favor. Neither team has played that well recently, so this series is probably the most difficult to predict. Which should probably be the case in a series between the 5th/6th place teams.
WWN Says: Which fanbase would I rather see at the F5? If the Badgers advance, we'll see fans hopping around in their seats doing some sort of dance routine instead of watching hockey. If the Huskies advance, we'll see the number of snowmobile jackets in the Xcel increase by at least 10x. But, I have ulterior motives here. UW is really screwing up the brackets for the rest of the WCHA teams being that they are hosting a regional, yet are down in the 3/4 seed area. For that reason, we need them out of the picture, so go SCSU.

Whiner of the Week: Mar 12th

The college hockey world has entered the best time of year: playoff hockey. Now is the time when some dreams get crushed, others get realized, and whining gets even more rampant. Without further ado, some of this week's nominees:

• Well, the CC/DU series produced a nominee, but couldn't climb itself to the top of the pile. Maybe a potential postseason meeting between the teams would change that. Evidently the CC fans were a bit vulgar during the Saturday game...the comments section there was quite humorous. Seems that a CC fan was irritated enough by this that he started a thread on USCHO whining about the whining DU fans. Beautiful. After your team gets swept by your biggest rival, this might just be wishful thinking.
• Michigan fans were whining all weekend about how they should be ranked #1 in the polls because they had fewer losses than CC and UND. Who cares? It's the USCHO poll. At least they got their wish, and Michigan is back to #1 this week so they can shutup about it.
• How many more UND newbie posters can there be on the USCHO message boards? There were like 5 or 6 new ones in the last 3 days alone. At least half of them have been banned/suspended already.

We have another first for the WOTW award. For the first time, the award is given to an individual person...and a collegiate hockey player to boot. Rather than rehash the entire incident, I will just point you to this. Sure, I've called out LGM in the past for her sometimes annoying posts, but there is no excuse for doing what that player did. Physically confronting a fan of your own team just because she said that she didn't like you on her blog? Sounds like someone needs to learn how to handle criticism a bit better...and to top it off, my poor little MEg might be emotionally scarred due to the incident as well, since she was there too. :) Regardless, you don't do that crap, especially not to a woman. And for that...

Congratulations to the Whiner of the Week:

Kurt Davis of the Minnesota State Mavericks

WCHA Weekly Preview: Mar 7-8th

Here we are...the last weekend of the regular season. The Badgers and the Seawolves both have the weekend off, with UAA cemented in last place and UW hoping that neither SCSU or MSUM win any games this weekend and push them down the standings.

Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs @ Minnesota Gophers

Summary: The Bulldogs are in a bit of a slide lately, losing their last 4 games and only scoring one goal in the process. The Gophers, on the other hand, look to be playing a bit better after taking 3 points in each of their last 2 series. Despite the fact that these two teams appear to be heading in opposite directions, UMD always seems to play UMN tough, and I wouldn't be surprised with a split or either team taking 3 points.

WWN Says: Both of these teams are on the bubble and will be hungry for wins. For the most part, I like UMD fans...even RWD is growing on me...and I would rather the Bulldogs make the NCAA's than the Gophers. The majority of Gopher fans could use a year (or four) out of the tourney to bring their arrogance down a few notches. In the end though, both of these teams could end up missing the dance.

Denver Pioneers vs. Colorado College Tigers (home & home)

Summary: The Pioneers are coming off a split with Tech, while the Tigers showed a kink in their armor after getting a split with the Mavs at home. CC controls their own destiny for the MacNaughton...if they get two points they are guaranteed at least a share of the trophy. CC also needs some wins to ensure a #1 seed, while DU appears to be locked in as a #2.

WWN Says: This series has the best chance at producing the WOTW award for next week. A sweep by either team (or a horrible, game-changing decision by the ref) would almost guarantee it. I would love to see a rematch with these teams during the CoSprings regional in just a few weeks. That would be really fun to watch (both for hockey and for whining).

St. Cloud State Huskies @ North Dakota Fighting Sioux

Summary: This series pits the two hottest teams in the WCHA against each other. The Huskies have won 6 of their last 7 games, while the Sioux are unbeaten in their last 15. Both teams have plenty to play for, as SCSU needs two points to guarantee themselves home ice for the WCHA playoffs and UND wants a shot at the MacNaughton. A good series from either team would also solidify their PWR standing.

WWN Says: Huskies fans really make it hard to cheer for their team. The team is fun to watch...their PP efficiency over the years is amazing...and they play an enjoyable, up-tempo style with skilled forwards. But the community college fans are another story. With the playoffs approaching, we have probably seen the last of the Sioux "fighting incidents", but their fans will find something else to whine about. Perhaps North Dakota State will make the F5 again.

Michigan Tech Huskies @ Minnesota State Mavericks

Summary: The Mavericks went on a 3 game losing streak following their 7 game winning streak before beating CC last Saturday. That slide pushed them back into a big group of WCHA teams on the PWR bubble. The Huskies will be on the road for the WCHA playoffs...this weekend will just determine where they travel. They probably would rather avoid Colorado Springs or Grand Forks, so they'll want to move up in the standings. Tech would need some help from UMD and UMN to accomplish that though.

WWN Says: Do the Huskies have anything left to play for? The only way that they'd make the tourney would be if they won the F5. They gave MEg a win in her last home game. And they already know Teslak will be gone next year. How many times are we going to hear that Ole song this weekend? Maybe the Mavericks will be involved in a fight and WCH will deny it ever happened. :)

Whiner of the Week - Mar 5th

And...we're back. The WCHA has regained the coveted WOTW award, but not without some stiff competition from our friends to the East. I tell you, they just didn't give up without a fight, but in the end they relinquished the title to the West (much like in the NCAA tourney every year).
This week's nominees included:

• SCSU fans on message boards. The Jan Brady theory is so accurate here, it's not even funny anymore. They are constantly defensive because they think "everyone is out to get them". Here's some advice: Head to that concrete thing you call an arena, take off the Arctic Cat jacket, and actually watch hockey instead of just whining about it.
  
• CCHA and HEA fans that feel it is necessary to debunk the PWR system now that 8 WCHA schools have a realistic chance at making the tourney. Some good examples: here, here, and here. That's weird, since I don't remember them complaining that it was broken last year when only 3 WCHA schools made it.
• A look at the Future's Market: CC and DU play this week with a lot on the line for both teams. Commence whining! I can hear the "1957" chants starting already. :)
  

You can't help but feel somewhat sorry for a team when they get legitimately screwed over by the officials twice in just a few short months. Especially when that team is on the bubble for making the NCAA tourney...if those calls would have been made correctly, they could be in for sure. We, of course, all remember the DU/UW incident. Now, this past weekend, UW got screwed again, this time for the tying goal against SCSU in the 3rd period. A very nice premature whistle in that one. Another blown call = tons of whining spewing from Badgerland. I understand the frustration, but at some point you have to stop complaining and realize that the hockey gods are mad at you and it just isn't your season. Plus, I've never seen such whining about a single player...Roe from SCSU. Yeah, he's an arrogant, feisty player, but he's also damn talented. Every team would want that type of player suiting up for them.

Congratulations to the Whiner of the Week:

University of Wisconsin Badgers

WCHA Weekly Preview: Feb 29-Mar 2

Denver Pioneers @ Michigan Tech Huskies

Summary: The Pioneers appeared to get back on track a bit last weekend, sweeping UAA, while the Huskies had a rough series, getting swept by SCSU. Both of these teams have plenty to fight for still, as DU could still win the MacNaughton (and could still get a #1 seed in the PWR), and MTU could still finish 4th despite their current 9th place standing.

WWN Says: What happened to the Huskies? Two wins in their last 12 games? This one is a tough call -- the Pios fans are putting on some fun activities during the F4 weekend, but it would also be nice if MeanEgirl could witness a win or two for MTU in her last regular season series at home. Word on the street is that she used up all her eligibility...and the last thing we want is more whining from her. :)

Minnesota Gophers @ Alaska Anchorage Seawolves

Summary: Has this Gopher team found a pulse? They took 3 points from UW last weekend, but will still need some help if they want to finish with home ice or a spot in the NCAA's. How many more OT games can they play? They have a tough opponent this weekend with the Seawolves, who are the best last-placed team in college hockey. Easily.

WWN Says: I really don't know how much more of an emotional roller coaster the Gopher fans can go through this season. The latest PWR has them back in the tourney. I think that UMN still has a few more bumps and turns left in their roller coaster ride, so I'll have to go for a split here. Can the Seawolves pull it off? Well, they do have Suze on their side.

Wisconsin Badgers @ St. Cloud State Huskies

Summary: The Badgers can finish no better than their current 4th place in the standings, but they can certainly fall with 3 teams right on their heels. They play the Huskies, winners of their last 5 games, and only one point behind UW in the standings (with 2 games in hand). This should be a good series, and an important one for both WCHA and NCAA rankings.

WWN Says: The Badgers are on the bubble (along with 3 other WCHA teams) for making the tourney right now. A bad showing against the Huskies could make it an uphill battle for the playoffs. On the other side, the Huskies are currently okay in 9th, but they could also move into the bubble with a subpar performance. This should be playoff hockey here. But who to root for? More whining would probably occur from the UW side if they missed the tourney, being that they are hosting a regional...so I say "Go Huskies!".

Minnesota State Mavericks @ Colorado College Tigers

Summary: The Mavericks had their 7-game winning streak snapped in their last WCHA game against UW, but that streak enabled them to climb the standings and now they are firmly in the fight for home ice. The Tigers, meanwhile, are fighting to keep their #1 seed in the PWR and trying to hold off UND for the MacNaughton.

WWN Says: One loss to UNO, and MSUM moved from a 2nd seed all the way down to the cusp of missing the NCAA's. I wonder what a couple losses to CC would do to them? CC is quite dominant on their home ice, which will be scary for other teams come tourney time, but part of me wants to see the Mavericks back in the NCAA's. It's not like they could do any worse than SCSU!

North Dakota Fighting Sioux @ Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs

Summary: The Sioux are trying to catch CC in the WCHA and trying to stay above Miami in the PWR rankings. A victory or two against the Bulldogs would help both causes. The Bulldogs, after being held scoreless all weekend against CC, needs some points if they want to stay in the race for home ice.

WWN Says: How long will the shutout streak go on for UMD? A win or two for the Bulldogs would do wonders for their PWR, but they might need to score some goals for that to happen. Grandma's vs. El Roco. DHG vs. Dirty. Duluth vs. Grand Forks. Duluth has to win, because of this. But I'm not sure even the Irvin can hold up to the force that is The Oshie.