Colorado College Championship Reunion

Members of Colorado College's last National Championship team swap stories and plan next season's 50th Anniversary Celebration at the Broadmoor Hotel

DULUTH VOTE IS TODAY: Arena Yes!

The big news out of Duluth is the "Arena Yes!" vote is on Tuesday. Hopefully the voters of Duluth will approve a 1/2 cent sales tax increase on restaurant tabs to help fund a $67 million dollar renovation of the DECC. LetsGoDU supports the non-binding referendum, because its going to help the WCHA become even more competitive and balanced. Even if approved, the Minnesota Legislature and Governor have to approve funding, but this election is a critical first step. The election is Feb. 28.

Denver's program was transformed almost instantly with the addition of Magness Arena.

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If its good for the WCHA, then Arena Yes!

Whats Up With Wisconsin?

The Golden Nation Blog has a pretty accurate assessment of the Virg Foss Trophy winners. It will interesting to see if their coaches can right the ship....

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Meanwhile, over at the Wisconsin Hockey Blog they aren't happy about the recent turn of events.

CC Raises New Banner

Colorado College coach Scott Owens called a Press Conference today to announce that CC would be raising a new banner during the DU-CC game on Thursday commemorating the Cheetahs recent sweep of Minnesota Duluth.

Brett Sterling will also be honored by having his Jersey retired for getting a Hat Trick against the Seawolves. If he can do the unthinkable and score his first even strength goal against DU, he is a shoo-in for the Cheetah Hall of Fame.

WCHA Recognizes DU Scholar Athletes

MADISON, Wisc. - The Western Collegiate Hockey Association, announced an inaugural group of 47 WCHA Scholar-Athlete Award recipients. Only 19 Male players achieved the award and six play for the University of Denver. This was the highest number of players from any team in the conference.

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To earn recognition as a WCHA Scholar-Athlete, conference-member student-athletes must have completed at least one year of residency at their present institution prior to the current academic year and must also have a grade-point average of at least 3.50 on a 4.0 scale for the previous two semesters or three quarters, or may qualify if his or her overall GPA is at least 3.50 for all terms at his or her present institution.

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University of Denver:

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Zach Blom (Jr., D, Englewood, CO)

Steven Cook (Jr., F, Denver, CO)

J.D. Corbin (Jr., F, Littleton, CO)

Daniel King (Jr., G, Colorado Springs, CO)

Brock McMorris (Jr., F, Cherry Hills, CO)

Ted O'Leary (Sr., F, Arvada, CO)

CC....Got Banners?

Colorado College to Change Nickname & Logo

In an expected move Colorado College President, Dick Celeste, announced last week that Colorado College was changing its Nickname and Logo to the Cheetahs.

"We wanted a Nickname that better reflected our Nationally Famous Hockey Program. Everyone knows that there aren't any Tigers in Colorado, but there are plenty of Cheetahs at Colorado College."

He mentioned than CC planned on petitioning the Colorado Springs City Council to change the road signs around Colorado College to, "Welcome to Cheetah Country."

This move by Colorado College is sure to focus more attention on the University of Denver, which is the only school in the WCHA who's Nickname and Logo don't match and the University of North Dakota who's nickname is offensive to wealthy Liberals in New England.

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In a related story:


Slattengren Dismissed From CC

Senior Forward Aaron Slattengren was kicked off the hockey team and dismissed from Colorado College.

Former CC defenseman Brady Greco who played with Slattengren last season, maintains Slattengren was a good student. (Note: One year later Greco was arrested in Johnstown, PA.)

Greco was a history major. Slattengren was majoring in history and political science.

“I had maybe one or two classes with him, and everything seemed to be going well,” Greco said. “As far as I know, he got regular As, Bs and Cs in his classes.

“Everyone helped each other on and off the ice when I was there. When we were in class, we would study together and go over problems.

“It would never escalate to a situation of cheating.”

Denver Lineup Changes Again

(Left) Tom May is the big beneficiary of the new lineup

Coach Gwozdecky made some major changes to the lineup on Saturday night. Tom May was promoted to the starting line with Gabe Gauthier and Patrick Mullen to counter UND's high flying first line. J.D. Cordin was moved to the Dingle-Stastny line which is sure help his offensive numbers. Steven Cook's hustle and hard play have kept him in the mix, is now with Paukovich and Helgason.

Forwards
Tom May - Gabe Gauthier - Patrick Mullen
Ryan Dingle - Paul Stastny - J.D. Corbin
Steven Cook - Geoff Paukovich - Ryan Helgason
Ted O'Leary - Michael Handza - Jon James

Defensemen
Matt Carle - T.J. Fast
Adrian Veideman - Andrew Thomas
Chris Butler - J.P. Testwuide

Goaltender
Glenn Fisher
Peter Mannino

DU Expodes In Third Period To Top Sioux
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(left) Dingle & Stastny were the gunslingers on Saturday night
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Box Score

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DENVER - The No. 11 University of Denver Pioneers clinched home-ice advantage with a come-from-behind 7-3 win against No. 10 North Dakota tonight at Magness Arena. The Pioneers, who built a 2-0 lead against UND, fell behind 3-2 early in the third period before scoring the game's final five goals to secure the win.

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Sophomore center Paul Stastny led the Pioneers with a game-high four points off two goals and two assists, marking the third four-point game of his career. All four of Stastny's points came on four consecutive third-period goals as part of DU's comeback against the Fighting Sioux.

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DU sophomore left wing Ryan Dingle scored two third-period goals, both on the power play, and added an empty-net score to record the first hat trick of his career. Dingle, who also recorded one assist, helped the Pioneers end a two-game power-play drought and go 4-for-8 on the man advantage against North Dakota.

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Hobey Baker Award candidate Matt Carle had two assists for DU, which limited UND to a 1-for-7 mark on the power play. Junior goaltender Glenn Fisher stopped 25 shots and had a career-high two assists in picking up his ninth win of the season.
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"We've had a few times this season where we considered a game a `must-win,' and tonight was one of them," DU Head Coach George Gwozdecky said. "We needed to have our big guys come up big in the third period, and it was great to see us respond in a very difficult situation."

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It took the Pioneers only one shot and 11 seconds to take a 1-0 lead over North Dakota. Sophomore left wing Tom May took control of the puck at center ice, skated down the right side and whistled a shot over Jordan Parise's left shoulder for a goal with 19:49 left in the first period. The 11 seconds it took May to score DU's opening goal marked the earliest in a game the Pioneers have scored all season.

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DU ended its power-play drought 3:31 into the second period on an extra-man opportunity stemming from a five-minute major and a game-misconduct penalty on UND's Joe Finley for checking from behind. Junior defenseman Adrian Veideman maintained possession of the puck through traffic skating down the center of the ice and slid it past Parise as he tumbled into the net to give DU a 2-0 lead.

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The Fighting Sioux took the lead for the first time in the game at 4:33 of the third period with T.J. Oshie scoring their third consecutive goal to put UND ahead 3-2. A little more than a minute later, DU tied the game on the power play when Stastny scored on a deflection in front of the crease off a hard pass from senior center Gabe Gauthier.

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The Pioneers regained control of the game by scoring the next four goals, including two power-play scores and an empty-netter by Dingle. Dingle's power-play goal off a wrist shot at the 10:06 mark of the third period put DU ahead 4-3 and proved to be the game-winner.

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A goal by Stastny, who scored off a pass from Dingle behind the net, extended the Pioneers' lead to 5-3 at 11:42. Stastny returned the favor by assisting on Dingle's power-play score at 16:32.

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DU returns to action on Thursday in Colorado Springs to begin a home-and-home series with the Colorado College Cheetahs. The two teams will square off again Friday at Magness Arena.

DU loses to UND

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(Left) Coach Gwozdecky is escorted from Magness Arena by the assistant referees
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DENVER - The No. 11 University of Denver Pioneers were held to 0-for-7 on the power play and were unable to overcome a 3-0 first-period deficit in a 6-2 loss to No. 10 North Dakota tonight in front of 6,140 fans at Magness Arena. DU, which entered its game against the Fighting Sioux with the nation's fourth-best power play, was held without a power-play score for the second consecutive game and lost its third contest in a row.

Pioneers sophomore left wing Tom May notched the second multiple-point game of his career with one goal and one assist. Senior left wing Gabe Gauthier scored his 14th goal of the year while junior defenseman Matt Carle, a Hobey Baker Award candidate, added to his WCHA-leading assist total with his 37th of the season.

Logo Ate

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Thanks to a Wisconsin poster (con1977) the mystery of who took a bite out of the DU Jelly Donut has finally been solved. Bad Boone. Don't eat the logo.
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GO DU - BEAT THE SIOUX

UND @ DU

Puck Swami in Italy, probably in an Internet Cafe on the Finnish Hockey Board, breaking down the upcoming semifinals with Russia.

Back in the States DU vs. UND is the big series this weekend in the WCHA. Gwoz is going to emphasize defensive intensity and blocked shots. Expect to see DU sacrificing their bodies. The big news is that Gwoz may shake up the Goalie rotation tonight and start Mannino (Denver Post).

DU would love to turn it into rough game with lots of penalties so that the Power Play Units gets plenty of ice time. With Gauthier, Dingle, Stastny, Carle & Butler/Veideman out there you basically have five lefthanded forwards on the PP unit. DU scores on the PP when Stastny is able to get the puck with time down low. Carle racks up all those assists on the PP because he is able to thread the needle to Stastny, who finds the open man.

My favorite DU player to watch is JD Corbin, he flies around the ice and watching the Winter Olympics this week, I can't help thinking that he could win a medal in Short Track Speed Skating...

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Keys for UND

(Stats provided by Startmann)

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UND away record 10-4-1
UND scores most goals second period, but give up most goals second period

Drew Stafford has 20 goals
Also, Stafford has highest number of shots 135....twice as many as his teammates!
Oshie is the man......17 goals .254 shot %...DU better cover him!
Toews, Stafford and Zajac all good on faceoffs.

UND has 2 good powerplay lines that share time.
UND averages 29 shots per game with .112 %
Opponets avg 31 shots per game with .077%
UND scores 3.3 goals per game
UND give opponets 9 powerplay chances per game....Powerplay must work for DU this weekend

SCARY STAT.....top 4 scorers for UND +/- is +40

DU top 4 scorers +/- is +19
UND has 19 players with a positive +/-
DU has only 8 players with a positive +/-
Parise has 2.17 GAA and will probably go both nights

DU must score alot in 1st and 2 periods and hang on in the 3rd, complete the first pass out the defensive zone and transition quickly to catch them short handed. Odd man rushes will win this weekend....whoever has more will win.

DU goalies must be top form this weekend.

DU's Probable Lineup

Steven Cook - Geoff Paukovich - J.D. Corbin (DU's Defensive Line)
Gabe Gauthier - Paul Stastny - Patrick Mullen (HOF Line)
Ryan Dingle - Michael Handza - Ryan Helgason (The Hustle Line)
Tom May - Ted O'Leary - Jon James

Adrian Veideman - Andrew Thomas
Matt Carle - T.J. Fast
Chris Butler - J.P. Testwuide/Julian Marcuzzi

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Peter Mannino (Friday)
Glenn Fisher (Saturday)

North Dakota Laws:

It is illegal to lie down and fall asleep with your shoes on. (The "Dave Hakstol Law")
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It is legal to shoot an Indian on horseback, provided you are in a covered wagon. (No wonder people are a little "touchy" on the Logo Issue)
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Beer and pretzels can't be served at the same time in any bar or restaurant. (Who would want beer & pretzels together anyway?)

Fargo/Grand Forks

One may be jailed for wearing a hat while dancing, or even for wearing a hat to a function where dancing is taking place. (This is the "Phil Kessel Law." No fist pumping and celebrating goals)

"Excuse me Marty. Mind if I borrow your Hobey?"
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Carle Increases Lead In Unofficial Hobey Poll

Nothing like a roadbump in Minneapolis to increase your Hobey Baker numbers. This week Carle got 5 first place and 2 second place votes out of the seven pollsters.

CSTV: Results

MATT CARLE, DEFENSEMAN, JR., DENVER

Dave Starman
"Very quiet weekend at Denver is disappointing, but his body of work doesn't get overlooked because he got outplayed by Ryan Potulny in one weekend. No knee jerk reactions here."

Scott Pellerin
"He has steadily improved and impressed me all season. Has the complete game and makes everyone on the ice better. "

Adam Zucker
"One of the smartest, and most accurate passers in the game, hence the 32 assists."

Who Hates DU More? CC or UND

Its the classic quantity vs. quality debate. Colorado College fans have a deep hatred of DU for many reasons, most of which are legitimate. You have that whole "big city-little city" complex, business school vs. liberal arts, championships vs. Hobey Baker Awards, 2005 vs. 1957 to name a few.

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This week on SiouxSports.com, the North Dakota Hockey Message Board, the hatred has been ratcheted up a level with both UND and DU playing for their NCAA lives this weekend. Keeping in mind that DU has ended UND's season two years in a row he's a sampling of the "good stuff:"

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http://board.uscho.com/showthread.php?t=56091&page=4&pp=20

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"Punko***** and his girlfriends are in for a dog fight this weekend."

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"DU was playing pretty cheap at the end Saturday night"

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"I hate the '$itchgreat point but i say win friday, get a lead staurday and then kick his azz late staurday and let him have it!!"

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"All teams are now suffering for the Punkovich cheap shot, and the Don Adam incompetence."

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"PJ Atherton is my "favorite" Gofer after knocking down Punk-boy against DU last weekend"

(above) Good looking American Uni's, with optional cape

(above) Lousy Uni's make the USA look like a Second-Rate hockey power

Whats Up With Team USA

Team USA is off to a 1-3-1 start in Torino. After a tie with Lativa, the first question must be, "Why is the Head Coach still in Italy?" Any self-respecting National Program fires the coach after such a crappy start. He should be flown home in economy class between two overweight American Tourists. Brazil goes through about five coaches during its pilgrimage to the Soccer (er, football) World Cup.

Next question concerns the uniforms. When the National Team looks like a poorly dressed high school track team, you just can't get that "warm and fuzzy" feeling you get watching "Miracle" for the 33rd time. Didn't we learn anything from Herb Brooks? Adding insult to injury the uniform manufacturer in question, a Fortune 500 company based in Oregon, routinely uses Asian Sweatshops instead of employing overpaid, lazy American workers. If Herbie was giving the speech today it would be, "The Swoosh on the uni is more important than the name on the back."

If there is blame to be shared for the "Torino Tumble" I blame myself for having high expectations going into the Olympics. But when the average salary for the US team member is well over a million dollars and their opponents get paid in fish, audio equipment and animal pelts, the expectation is that the boys will bring home a medal.

Here's a simple rule of thumb...Team USA should not be losing or tying countries that are:

a). less than 10 years old.
b). the average age of their Zamboni's are older than the country
c). the Zamboni's in question are made out of surplus military parts
d). any country that has had a civil war in the last 5 years
e). within range of our Cruise Missiles

What's with every European Country having a team? I thought they all combined into one country called the Euros. They get to pound us over the head with economic sanctions and then split up every four years during the Olympics. This is costing the USA a lot of Silver Medals.

Is it too much to ask that we should expect a little more for the $50 trillion in rights fees that the US networks are paying to underwrite the Olympics for the rest of the world to enjoy? For that kind of money the USA should get a bye to the medal round of every sport. Otherwise, the foreigners should be forced to watch the horrible ads that make it all possible. If I see one more Chevy Tahoe ad or even worse Ice Dancing, I think I'm going to throw up.

USA Hockey needs to take a cue from the US Military. Only schedule countries that you know you can pound into the ground such as Grenada, Panama, Spain via Cuba (remember the Maine?), England when they're busy with Napoleon and Iraq twice. OK "Iraq II" is not a dominating victory, but its better than tying Latvia in hockey.

If the USA doesn't medal here, perhaps a better solution would be adding ice hockey to the Pan American games and not invite Canada. We need a Gold Medal to get our mojo back...

Minnesota Sweeps DU

MINNEAPOLIS - Minnesota Golden used a three-goal first period towards a 5-1 win over the Denver Pioneers. With the win, Minnesota completes its two-game sweep of DU and moves two points ahead of second-place Wisconsin and three points ahead of third-place Denver in the battle for the MacNaughton Cup.

"We never recovered after Minnesota's fast start," DU head coach George Gwozdecky said. "Our guys battled in the final period, but it was too late. We're a resilient group and we'll bounce back."

Minnesota struck twice in the first 1 minute and 37 seconds of the game and it was essentially over from that point. Gabe Gauthier scored Denver's only goal.

Minnesota Upsets First Place DU

(Left) Pioneer fans react to falling out of First Place in the WCHA for the first time since Feb. 11, 2006

Box Score

MINNEAPOLIS - Ryan Potulny scored two goals, including the game-winner at 12:24 of the third period, as the Minnesota Gophers edged the Denver Pioneers, 3-2. With the win, Minnesota moves ahead of DU in the WCHA with 33 points. DU is tied for second with Wisconsin at 32 points. The loss ended DU's season-high seven-game winning streak and eight-game road winning streak.

Denver failed to capitalize on its second five-minute power play of the game in the middle of the final period. Minnesota's penalty-kill unit outworked DU's power-play unit for the five minutes and the momentum helped lift the Golden Gophers past the Pioneers moments later. Potulny scored his second game-winning goal of the season when he buried his own rebound from the slot past Glenn Fisher less than two minutes after burning off the five-minute DU power play. DU pulled Fisher for the final 70 seconds, but failed to send the game to overtime.

"Give credit to Minnesota's penalty-kill unit," head coach George Gwozdecky said. "We didn't execute our power play on either five-minute advantage and Minnesota took advantage. We'll regroup and be ready to go tomorrow night."

Minnesota's Ben Gordon (a pioneer killer) scored the lone goal of the first period. Gordon redirected an R.J. Anderson shot past Fisher at the right faceoff circle at 10:37. The Golden Gophers outshot DU, 8-7, and the Pioneers failed to capitalize on two power-play opportunities during a five-minute power play from a major checking-from-behind penalty on Minnesota's P.J. Atherton at 14:46.

Ryan Dingle tied the game for DU at 6:52 of the second period. He tallied his 20th goal and 12th power-play goal when he slid a Paul Stastny a centering pass from the low slot past Kellen Briggs. Minnesota quickly regained its one-goal lead when Potulny beat Fisher high to the glove side at 7:18. Patrick Mullen tied it at 2-2 with a lunging shot from the slot at 12:57. Mullen hustled after his own rebound that caromed hard off the back boards from the left faceoff circle. The goal was Mullen's seventh of the season and third in the past two games.

Cornell Cracks Down On Fishy Fans
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(Left) The Lynah Rink Haz-Mat Team braces for poisonous blowfish, Antrax-laced Tuna and live Pirhanna that Cornell Students have been known to throw on the ice against Harvard

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ITHACA — Just like salmon returning to spawn (ok, what frustrated novelist wrote this crap), it happens every year — the throwing of dozens of dead fish onto the Lynah Rink ice by Cornell fans moments before the start of the Big Red's annual hockey showdown with rival Harvard.

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Sometimes, more than 100 fish, an occasional lobster (do you know how many children are starving in Africa?...Neither do I, but its probably a lot) or octopus, and a few goldfish (the few not swallowed by drunk frat boys on the way to the arena), have splatted onto the Lynah ice during pre-game warm-ups as fans taunt the smartest of the Big Red's rivals.

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Occasionally, a poorly aimed piscine has bonked the head of a Harvard player (ouch, thats gonna leave a mark), adding to the bad blood (DNA) between the two teams.

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Cornell University officials (who couldn't find employment in the private sector during the longest economic boom since the 1950's) have long grown tired of the tradition. In recent years, fans have been (illegally?) searched (& siezured) before they enter Lynah and all fish found have been confiscated (anybody want to guess whats for dinner on Sunday night in the dorms?). After all, the fish-tossing delays the start of the game and provides a health hazard for the players of both teams.

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Occasionally, a fish has been thrown during the game, and a 2-minute unsportsmanlike conduct penalty has been charged to Cornell (which only makes it harder for Cornell's pathetic offense to score goals). Big Red officials say they have been warned that a delay of Saturday's 5:30 p.m. game, which is being televised nationally on CSTV, will result in a penalty (we wouldn't want any of CSTV's 35 viewers to change the channel).

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As such, Cornell officials are taking their fish smuggling prevention to the next level (there's a "next level" in the fish-smuggling-prevention-business?). In a press release issued Thursday, Cornell officials warn that “those found with fish will lose their ticket to the game" (does this include students with Sushi spilled on their jackets from a previous meal?). As always, throwing objects onto the ice is prohibited, and violators are subject to expulsion from the rink (since there is nothing else to do in Ithica on a Saturday night, you might as well just shoot the offenders because their weekend is D-E-A-D).”

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The press release also warns fans that “shouting obscenities" (anyone heard of Freedom of Speech?) or using threatening language ("Hey Harvard, while you're wasting time playing hockey your classmates are studying. You'll never get hired on Wall Street"), signs or gestures will result in ejection from Lynah Rink and loss of playoff tickets (nobody, and I mean nobody, wants to miss that First Round "ESPN Instant Classic" against Brown).”

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Instead, fans are urged to bring stuffed toys (did you say Stuffed Flounder?) for the “Cops, Kids and Toys Program" (I prefer "Pigs, Kids & Vids Program"), a program that benefits more than 600 (police) families and 1,600 Tompkins County (police) children each year (Looks like Police Chief's son is gonna get a new X-Box on Sunday morning).

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Before all that, though, head coach Mike Schafer's club will take on Dartmouth (no wonder Cornell wins 25 games every year) at 7 tonight, with first place in the ECAC Hockey League on the line.

Goldy's "Coming Out Party" on ESPN2

Goldy and members of the Gophers Men's & Women's Hockey Team unwind at the Clothing Optional Wrap Party

Goldy Gopher Attending The Premere of

Brokeback Mountain

DU "Movin' On Up" to 11th in Pairwise

Hit: Music Link

1	Wisconsin	29	3	20-7-2	.7241	1	.5869
2	Minnesota	28	4	19-6-5	.7167	2	.5821
3	Miami	27	1	21-5-4	.7667	3	.5779
4	Boston University	26	7	18-8-2	.6786	4	.5642
5	Boston College	24	5	19-7-2	.7143	6	.5517
6	Nebraska-Omaha	23	20	17-11-4	.5938	7	.5515
7	Colorado College	22	14t	19-12-1	.6094	5	.5526
8	Michigan	21	14t	18-11-3	.6094	8	.5498
9t	Michigan State	20	16	17-10-7	.6029	10	.5432
9t	Cornell	20	6	15-5-4	.7083	11	.5427
11t	Denver	17	9t	18-10-2	.6333	13	.5346
11t	Ohio State	17	34	14-15-4	.4848	17	.5305
11t	Harvard	17	17t	14-9-2	.6000	20	.5271

Time To Go "Fargo" on the Gophers
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GO DU

DU To Battle The Evil Empire This Weekend
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(Left) Minnesota Coach Don Lucia leads the #1 Ranked Golden Gophers against the Pioneers
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Everything is on the line for the Pioneers this weekend. First place in the WCHA, a possible NCAA playoff berth, WCHA playoff seedings, DU's eight game winning streak, state pride...you name it. DU also comes into the game with an unusually successful 5-1-1 record on the Olympic ice.

Can DU duplicate the stifling defense exhibited against the Badgers and then blow the game wide open with their Power Play? That has been the formula on the current winning streak as well as timely contributions from the rest of the team. Against the Gophers the series just may be decided by the goaltending. The "Catholic Rotation" has been at its best over the past 18 months in pressure situations and it doesn't get much bigger than this. DU also hasn't lost a Third Period lead all season long.

Minnesota comes into the game with their own winning streak, a deadly Power Play Unit, home ice advantage and "Blue Chippahs" out the wazzoo. Doug Woog said in his article this week that the advantage goes to the team that scores first. I agree. Both teams have the ability to dictate the flow of the game and scoring first does just that.

With a split DU controls its own destiny, owning the tiebreaker with the Badgers and a one point advantage over the Gophers.

DROP THE PUCK....

Matt Carle Jumps to #1 in CSTV Hobey Poll

(left) Matt Carle's steller play at DU has been recognized by the panelists at CSTV

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MATT CARLE, DEFENSEMAN, JR., DENVER

Dave Starman - "Nice six-point weekend against the team that gives Denver fits. So much for the curse of the Purple Bull."

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Scott Pellerin - "Has had a great second half of the season and continues to impress everyone with his overall play. Is by far the best offensive defensman in the country."

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Elliot Olshansky - "Five assists against Mankato on Friday is the kind of performance that makes people sit up and take notice. Denver is rolling right now, and Carle is the biggest reason."

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Carle For Hobey Website

Hockeysfuture.com runs article on DU Recruit Matt Glasser

Matt Glasser, LW – Fort McMurray Oil Barons (AJHL)
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Another youngster with shoulder issues hampering his play this year is Edmonton Oilers seventh round pick Matt Glasser of the powerful Fort McMurray Oil Barons. Glasser spent a couple informative and beneficial days at Oiler camp last fall where he received some bad news.

“It was actually determined at Oiler camp when I got my physical done that I have a piece of bone missing in my shoulder so I had to get an MRI done to have a look at that,” Glasser told Hockey’s Future in early January. “I might need a bit of surgery done on my shoulder which I could probably get done at the end of the year here. It hasn’t been bugging me too much but it is something that I do need to get looked at.”

At first Glasser said the problem wasn’t affecting his play but with a little prodding…

“When I throw it out I’d say there is a fair bit of pain for a few minutes but I never really took much notice of it until the MRI and they said there was quite a bit of damage done,” Glasser admitted. “It has been hurting me this last month but I don’t want to make it any worse so I know that something will have to be done to it.”

As a result of his concerns Glasser has not been the offensive force he was expected to be with the Barons this year. His 15 goals and 35 points are just enough for seventh in team scoring, and he has not been able to up his game much from a year ago.

“I think the shoulder is part of it but they’re not as high a scoring team as they were last year,” argued Oilers GM Prendergast. “I think he’s been a bit snake bitten too because (coach) Gord Thibodeau told me early in the year that he hit the goal post like nine times in the first few weeks of the season. I think we’ll find out what he’s made of at crunch time in the playoffs.”

The Oilers believe that Glasser’s development will blossom next year in Denver and already the player is looking ahead to those days too.

“I think about it every day to tell you the truth,” Glasser revealed. “There’s a lot of tradition there and they’ve won two championships back to back. My focus right now is in Fort McMurray but when the season ends my thoughts will be going to University.”

LetsGoDU Tops 10,000 Visits in First Season

Today we had our 10,000th visit to LetsGoDU. Its been a great season for the Pioneers and to average almost 100 visits per day on the Blog surpasses the wildest expectations. Thanks to all the people who have visited our site and especially to those who stop by daily.

Kudos to the DU Posters on USCHO.com who send me ideas, photos, suggestions and encouragement (keep them coming). Thanks to the DU hockey players, parents, coaches and administrators who have made unbelievable sacrifices to return Pioneer Hockey back into one of the elite programs in college hockey.

Finally, thanks go out to all the great hockey fans of the other 58 Division I Hockey Programs who like to keep abreast of Pioneer happenings by visiting this site. Check out the many other excellent Blogs, Message Boards & Sites listed on the right.

GO DU

10 Compelling Reasons Why The Gophers Will Get Swept This Weekend

1). Minnesota is looking ahead to the big intra-state rivalry series with Duluth in two weeks

2). The Gophers are only the second best Program in the state behind Shattuck St. Mary's.

3). Don Lucia doesn't care about the regular season, he's already sewn up third place. Plus Don no longer has Bob Motzko, the real brains of the operation, coaching the team any longer.

4). The Corporate Seatholders at Maruicci Arena

5). In Dinkytown "Back-To-Back" means Friday-Saturday Keggers at Blarney's

6). Fox 9 News

7). SEVEN Championships trump 5 every time

8). The Gophers won't fall for John Hill's "Motivational Tricks" this week

9). Jeff Frazee will be lethargic from actually attending class

10). Colorado "high altitude" bred hockey players are far superior to the soft Minnesota variety

Paul Stastny Named INCH's Player of the Week
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His Statistics: 2 GP, 3-3–6

His Impact: The Pioneers have had their struggles this season, but it appears they aren't going to relinquish their status as back-to-back NCAA champions without a fight. Stastny has played a key role in Denver's current seven-game winning streak, scoring six goals and adding five assists during that span. Three of the goals and three assists came in DU's sweep of Minnesota State Mankato last weekend. The two wins allowed the Pioneers to move into sole possession of first place in the WCHA standings with three weeks left in the regular season.

Two Pioneers Named WCHA Players of the Week

MADISON, Wis. - University of Denver center iceman Paul Stastny, who led all conference players with six scoring points in a two-game sweep over visiting Minnesota State this past weekend, has been named Red Baron WCHA Offensive Player of the Week.

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A 6-0, 210-pound sophomore from St. Louis, Mo., Stastny scored three goals, including a game-winner, and set up three others as the two-time defending national champion Pioneers stretched their winning streak to seven games and moved into sole possession of first place in the WCHA race.

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In a 7-4 Denver victory at Magness Arena last Friday (Feb. 10), Stastny scored two goals and assisted on two others for four points. One of his assists came on teammate Gabe Gauthier's second period game-winner. Then last Saturday, Stastny came back to score the game-winning goal and added another assist as the Pioneers registered a 5-1 win over the Mavericks. In addition to his six points, Stastny also fired seven shots on goal and earned a +2 plus-minus rating.

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On the season, the Colorado (NHL) Avalanche draftee ranks second on his team in scoring with 11 goals, 29 assists and 40 points in 30 games and is fourth overall among WCHA players.

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Matt Carle, a defenseman and team captain at the University of Denver, has been named WCHA Defensive Player of the Week as a result of his outstanding two-way play in a pair of home-ice conference victories over Minnesota State this past weekend. This marks the third defensive player of the week award for Carle this season (also on Dec. 5 and Dec. 19).
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A 6-0, 195-pound junior from Anchorage, Alaska, Carle netted six assists, earned a +3 plus-minus rating, blocked six shots, and had six hits in the two-game series as Denver (18-10-2) limited MSU to 44 total shots on goal and two power-play goals in 15 opportunities.

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In a 7-4 victory over the Mavericks last Friday at Magness Arena, Carle turned in a WCHA season-high five assists, including one on teammate Gabe Gauthier's second period game-winner. The San Jose Sharks (NHL) draftee then came back on Saturday evening to draw his sixth assist of the weekend, this time on teammate Paul Stastny's eventual first period game-winner.

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Aiming to become only the third defenseman in the 54-year history of the WCHA to win the conference scoring race (based on league games), Carle currently tops the conference with nine goals, 29 assists and 38 points in 22 games. Overall, he also leads the league with 11-35-46 in 30 games. Minnesota's Lou Nanne was the first blueliner to top the league in scoring with 9-23-32 in 1962-63 while UM's Mike Crowley (5-37-42) shared the 1996-97 title with Colorado College forward Brian Swanson.

Patrick Mullen scored two goals on Saturday Night

Gambling Crisis Spreads to Gopher Program

Looks like Wayne Gretzky isn't the only one married to a compulsive gambler. Don Lucia has a similar problem on his staff with John Hill. Hill bet the Gopher team that they wouldn't win their next four games. When he lost the bet, he refused to pay.
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If Minnesota players feel a bit cheated this week, they have a reason. Before their series against Colorado College three weeks ago, assistant coach John Hill said if the Gophers won their next four games, a stretch that also included a pair at Wisconsin, he'd get them on a chartered plane to Houghton instead of a bus.

The players held up their end of the bargain, but they're still on the bus this week. Apparently, budget concerns overruled Hill's deal.

DU Sweeps Mavericks to Move into 1st Place

Box Score

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DENVER - DU took over sole possession of first place atop the WCHA by sweeping Minnesota State with a 5-1 win and extended its season-best winning streak to seven games with the victory.

Pioneers freshman right wing Patrick Mullen posted the first two-goal game of his career and was one of six DU players who recorded multiple points in the win. Sophomore goaltender Peter Mannino won his 10th game of the season, stopping 19 Minnesota State shots.

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Denver, which tallied a season-best five power-play goals in Friday night's victory against MSU, went 3-for-7 on the man advantage Saturday and has scored a power-play goal in 17 of its 18 wins this season. Minnesota State was held to an 0-for-6 mark on the power play, and goaltender Dan Tormey made 25 saves in taking the loss.

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"It was really important that we played with a much different mentality than we did last game," DU Head Coach George Gwozdecky said. "I thought we maintained our discipline a lot more tonight, and our power play was able to take advantage of some of the mistakes they made."

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The Pioneers raced to a 2-0 lead in the first period for the third consecutive game and went into the first intermission ahead 3-0. DU controlled play for most of the opening period, building a 10-to-1 shot advantage at one point, and scored on both of its power plays with freshman defenseman Chris Butler (St. Louis, Mo.) posting an assist on each of those goals.
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Senior left wing Gabe Gauthier opened the scoring on the power play at 1:39 of the first period, skating in alone from the right circle and wristing a shot above Tormey's right shoulder for a 1-0 Pioneers lead. Junior defenseman Matt Carle, a candidate for the Hobey Baker Award, notched an assist at 5:59 of the first period on a score by sophomore center Paul Stastny that put DU ahead 2-0.

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The Pioneers extended their lead to 3-0 on a power-play goal by sophomore left wing Ryan Dingle (Steamboat Springs, Colo.) at 14:20 of the first period. Dingle's tally, which came on give-and-go from Stastny in front of the net, occurred with 30 seconds remaining on a five-minute power play stemming from the first of three MSU game misconduct penalties.

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One minute into the second period, Mullen put DU ahead 4-0 with his fourth goal of the year. Minnesota State answered at 3:30 of the period when right wing Austin Sutter collected a Pioneers turnover deep in their own zone and beat Mannino.

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The Pioneers had several other chances to score in the second period, including a two-man advantage for 1:30, but finished the period 0-for-3 on the power play.

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DU spent most of the first half of the final period in the Mavericks' zone thanks to two five-minute power plays that resulted from game misconduct penalties. Mullen tallied his second goal of the game at 6:08 of the third period on the power play after he batted down the puck on the edge of the crease and slide it into the net.

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With 32 points, the Pioneers are one point ahead of No. 1 Minnesota for first place in the WCHA. Those two teams will face each other in Minneapolis next weekend for a two-game series with puck drop for both Friday and Saturday's games scheduled for 6:07 p.m. MST.

5 Assists on Friday Night

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New Pioneer Record for a Defenseman

"Did Anybody Catch The License Tag Of The Truck That Just Hit Me?"

Minnesota State captain David Backes (a.k.a. Brokebackes Mountain) looks out to the rink after crawling off the ice following a check against Denver during the first period of their NCAA hockey game at Magness Arena.

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PS-Thanks to the Boston University fan (and LetsGoDU reader) who sent me this photo. Congrats to BU for running their current winning streak to 10 games. It was pointed out that I failed to congratulate BU for destroying DU 1-0 in Agganis Arena earlier in the season...We'll rectify that situation in the Frozen Four. See you in Milwaukee.

The Face Of College Hockey

Elliot Olshansky who writes for the CSTV website, runs the Rink Rat Blog and travels all over the country following college hockey, captured these photos at the Beanpot. For "Western" fans The Beanpot a tournament held in Boston so an East Coast team can collect a trophy near the end of the season.

Elliot also captured these awesome photos at Lambeau Field yesterday in the skate around.

CarleForHobey.com Picks up 5 Assists

Box Score

The Hobey Baker race just got a lot more interesting as Matt Carle tallied five assists against the Mavericks in a 7-4 victory in Magness Arena. Five of DU's goals came on the Power Play as the Pioneers won a crucial game and moved into a three way tie for first place.

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The Pioneers extended their season-best winning streak to six games with a win against Minnesota State tonight at Magness Arena. Carle increased his point total to a WCHA-leading 45 (11 g, 34 a) while sophomore center Paul Stastny tied a career-high with four points (2 g, 2 a).

The Pioneers continued to have success on their WCHA-best power-play unit, going 5-for-9 on the man advantage. DU junior goaltender Glenn Fisher picked up his eighth win of the season and stopped 20.

"It was a very physical game tonight, but the good thing is that we got two points," DU Head Coach George Gwozdecky said. "Our guys are starting to do the little things better with more consistency, like blocking shots, which is critical for us at this point."

A fast-paced first period saw both teams combine for eight goals, including five power-play tallies, with DU setting a season high for goals in a period in taking a 5-3 lead into the first intermission. Carle totaled four assists in the first period, helping the Pioneers go 3-for-4 on the power play in the opening frame.

DU took a 2-0 lead in the contest, scoring both of its goals 30 seconds apart. Sophomore center Geoff Paukovich beat goaltender Dan Tormey high to the stick side on a slap shot on the power play at 7:07 before Stastny's wrap-around goal from Carle put the Pioneers ahead 2-0 at 7:37 of the first period.

Carle assisted on each of DU's final three goals of the period, including power-play scores by freshman defenseman Chris Butler at 12:01 and by senior left wing Gabe Gauthier at 13:45, to put the Pioneers ahead 5-3 at the first intermission. DU junior right wing J.D. Corbin also notched an even-strength goal at 12:44 by skating past MSU defenseman Jon Dubel down the left side to the front of the net, where he slide the puck past Tormey for the score.

The second period remained scoreless until Stastny's power-play goal from Carle at 16:37 extended the Pioneers' lead to 6-3.

The Pioneers scored once more in the third period on sophomore left wing Ryan Dingle's power-play goal at 16:19 with the assist going to Gauthier.

Denver finished the game with a 30-to-24 advantage in shots. The Mavericks' Tormey allowed five goals on 10 shots before being replaced 13:45 into the first period by Chris Clark, who allowed two goals on 20 shots. DU is still on the outside looking in in the playoff hunt, but like Matt Carle they bserved notice on Friday night.

Its time to take the Mavericks out to the Woodshed

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DENVER - The No. 9 Denver Pioneers host Minnesota State in a two-game WCHA series on Friday, Feb. 10 and Saturday, Feb. 11. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:37 p.m. MT on Friday and 7:07 p.m. MT on Saturday. The games will be televised live on FSN-Rocky Mountain and broadcast live on KCKK AM 1600 (Friday), KKFN AM 950 "The Fan" (Saturday) and DenverPioneers.com (both nights).

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DU's Weekly Comparison With CC

Colorado College			vs	Denver
	.5486	1	RPI	0	.5298
8-7-1	.5313	1	TUC	0	.3750	4-7-1
14-8-1	.6304	1	COp	0	.6250	14-8-2
0-2-0		0	H2H	2		2-0-0
		3	TOT	2

GO DU

DU Pep Band Website & Other Blogs

I've added more "Links" on the right hand side of the Blog. There's tons of good sites and blogs on the list. If you know of any other good sites or blogs write a comment below and I'll add them to my list.

For "homesick" DU Alums, the DU Pep Band Website features a continuous loop of "Fairest of Colleges" which as fight songs go doesn't win any awards, but hey, its all we got...

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The Carle for Hobey Website has been getting good reviews from hockey fans and bloggers alike. The videos are awesome. You probably need a DSL/Broadband line to see them in a reasonable amount of time. If he wins the Hobey, the assist to Stastny in the Championship Game last season might be the clincher.

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I've added links to the DU Cheerleader Site to increase Blogspot/Google Ratings with the 15-85 male demographics. Be sure to hit the "cheer team bios" to find someone who would be compatable with you.
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If you want to check out the funniest college website out there, bar none, check out Boston College's Pinhead Nation. It takes a while to figure out what is going on and don't do it at work (you'll get fired), anywhere near your wife (you get divorced) or if you are under 18 (you'll get grounded). Read a few of the articles to get a feel of what is going on. Basically if you didn't go to Boston College; you were either an idiot, poor or a lousy hockey player... (WARNING: ITS VERY GRAPHIC) I'm not kidding, so if you're offend easily hit the DU Pep Band site...

"Rink Rat" to Visit Lambeau Field

This week the Rink Rat, Elliot Olsansky will be visiting Lambeau Field to witness the Wisconsin-Ohio State game. It should be a crazy atmosphere with over 50,000 frozen fans watching the game outdoors.
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Elliot writes one of the coolest college hockey blogs, and is on a whirlwind tour of college hockey arenas this season. He witnessed DU's game at UMASS earlier in the season. DU fans will recognise Elliot for his now famous CSTV expose on Danny King's surprising Hobey Baker vote tally.
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The "Rink Rat" is an assistant editor for CSTV.com and a regular contributor for men's and women's ice hockey. He knows all the words to Opus' "Live is Life," thinks "Sieve" is the greatest word in the English language, and watches Miracle at least once a month. Simply put, he loves college hockey. Elliot will be covering over 65 games this year all over the college hockey landscape, and talking with players, coaches and fans along the way.

Its a "White Out Weekend" Against MSU-M

(Left) - The UMass hockey "White Out" on February 13 with the first-ever sell out of the Mullins Center in a showdown with Boston College.

Support your DU Hockey Team on February 10-11 by wearing nothing but WHITE. Pioneer Ambassadors and AUSA (Student) Senate will be giving away long sleeve WHITE shirts to everyone that has a student ticket and student ID at the game on Friday night. Please come and support your DU hockey team. If you know anyone who is attending the game and does not have a student ticket, encourage them to wear WHITE!

WCHA Recruiting Paying Dividends
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(Left) Engelstad Arena
Grand Forks, ND

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Adam Woton from College Hockey News.com has a few theories on WCHA recruiting domination ranging from new arenas to Global Warming. He mentioned perhaps the brightest star in the WCHA constellation, the abundance of great young coaches at every program.

"Last week, we talked about the fact that only Boston College was a lock in Hockey East to make the NCAAs, which is hard to believe since we're only seven years removed from HEA having three teams in the Frozen Four. There's a lot of talk about the reasons for this, most of which come down to the WCHA improving its facilities and coaching in the last 10 years or so.

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But one thing that is overlooked is the quality of youth players. According to a couple of Hockey East coaches, for some reason, New England is simply not producing as many blue chip kids anymore. This will take some more investigating to determine whether this is valid, and if so, why. But note, for example, that Wisconsin now has 13 players on its roster from the state of Wisconsin. And we all know about Minnesota. Plus Colorado is booming in production. The Western schools have an advantage in geography.

Perhaps we can blame it on Global Warming. I'm fond of blaming that for a lot of things. You got warts? "Global Warming." The Red Sox win the World Series? "Must be Global Warming." ... But in this case, the warmer temps in New England over the last 20 years means less pond hockey. It could be a factor."

How much longer til the Frozen Four?

The High Priced Talent Takes a Break
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CarleForHobey.com

The CarleForHobey.com website is up and running. The site looks fantastic. It features some terrific photos, but I had some trouble with the video with a Mac...

As a previously suspended bandwidth hijacker, I always appreciate having access to great college hockey photographs.

One of the many quotes from the website...

“Matt has had more impact on our program from Day One than any player I have ever coached. Even after three seasons, I am still amazed at the great plays he makes during games. He is at his very best and is a true ‘superstar’ when the game is on the line. Matt’s durability and capacity for playing time is a testament to his great work ethic for training and conditioning. He’s the best defenseman I’ve ever coached.” - DU Coach George Gwozdecky

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Alaska Roadtrip Photos

The Power Play Unit takes a Breather

UAA Poster "jimjamesak"

DU is 7-0-0 All Time w/ Toga's in the House

I wonder if this DU Parent is punching
"Danny King" in the Two Hole on the Hobey Ballot?

The Fish are Wild in Alaska

Suze the UAA Superposter

Ruckus The Bald Eagle in Flight

Mananuska Valley

More Alaska Roadtrip Photos