Jack Connolly's Hobey Journey Ends Today

Duluth may swell with pride late Friday afternoon, as the 2012 Hobey Baker Award presentation takes place at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa.

It's there that UMD senior center and team captain Jack Connolly will vie for the school's record-setting fifth Hobey award.

Connolly will already have his third All-American honor in his pocket, to go along with the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award, three All-WCHA selections, the 2012 WCHA Player of the Year award, three WCHA All-Academic selections, the Premier Player of College Hockey award, and other well-deserved accolades too numerous to mention.

(Oh, and if all of that isn't enough, you can be virtually assured it's just a matter of time before Connolly's No. 12 is retired by UMD. I'm not saying I've been told it's going to happen, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out it's beyond likely.)

The Friday afternoon Hobey ceremony will air on NHL Network. If you don't have that channel, you can come watch it at my house watch it online at hobeybaker.com.

To get you warmed up, Amsoil Arena's Jeff Stark produced a cool Connolly tribute video a couple weeks ago.

Jack Connolly Wins Senior CLASS Award

In what we can only hope is the first of two major national college hockey honors coming his way this week, UMD senior center Jack Connolly has won the 2012 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award.

Connolly, a three-time WCHA All-Academic, will likely be named an All-American player for the third straight year Friday.

Here is the press release on the Senior CLASS Award:

Minnesota Duluth All-American Jack Connolly has been selected as the 2012 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award winner in NCAA® Division I men’s ice hockey. The announcement and trophy presentation were made today by Lowe’s, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA, during the NCAA Men’s Frozen Four®.

The award, chosen by a nationwide vote of Division I men’s ice hockey head coaches, national media and fans, is given annually to the most outstanding senior student-athlete in NCAA Division I men’s ice hockey. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition.

An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

“Winning the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award means a lot to me and the UMD hockey program,” Connolly said. “I always try to do my best in everything that I do whether it be hockey, school or helping out in the community. I am truly honored and proud to receive this prestigious award.”

A three-time Western Collegiate Hockey Association All-Academic team pick, Connolly is scheduled to graduate this spring with a degree in communication. During his college career, he interned in the UMD sports information office and wrote a blog for the department’s website. Throughout his years on campus, Connolly has volunteered for the Boys and Girls Club of Duluth, the Pucks for Poverty Program, the Northern Lights Foundation, the Adopt-A-Highway Program and various cancer fundraisers.

"’Class’ is one of the best ways to describe Jack Connolly, so this is certainly a fitting and well deserved honor for him,” head coach Scott Sandelin said. “Everything he does – on and off the ice – he does with class.  I really can't say enough about what this young man has meant to our program, our school and our community over the past four years.”

On the ice, the three-time All-American and team captain has ranked among the NCAA’s leaders in scoring and assists and has been a finalist for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award for each of the past two seasons. After a seven-year absence, the UMD Bulldogs made it back to the NCAA Frozen Four in 2011, winning the national championship with an overtime victory against Michigan.

“Jack Connolly got to realize his dream of playing hockey for his hometown university,” said David Geren, Lowe’s vice president of marketing. “Because of all he has done in the classroom, on the ice and in the community, he has truly lived the dream to its fullest. Lowe’s salutes Jack for his dedication to the university and the entire city of Duluth.”

For more information on all the finalists, visit seniorCLASSaward.com.

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Men’s Ice Hockey First-Team All-Americans
Chad Billins, Defender, Ferris State
Jack Connolly, Center, Minnesota-Duluth
Ryan Flanigan, Forward, Merrimack
Keir Ross, Defender, Cornell
Paul Weisgarber, Forward, Air Force

Men’s Ice Hockey Second-Team All-Americans
Sean Duddy, Defender, Ohio State
Scott Greenham, Goaltender, Alaska-Fairbanks
Sean Lorenz, Defender, Notre Dame
Jack Maclellan, Forward, Brown
Cody Reichard, Goaltender, Miami (Ohio)

Jack Connolly Makes Hobey Hat Trick

For the first time since 2004, a UMD player is in the Hobey Hat Trick.

The award's selection committee has spoken, and a list of ten finalists has been trimmed to three for next Friday's award ceremony in Tampa.

The Hobey Baker Memorial Award Foundation on Thursday announced the three Hobey Hat Trick finalists for the 2012 Hobey Baker Memorial Award, honoring college hockey’s top player.  Alphabetically, they are: Spencer Abbott, senior forward from the University of Maine; Jack Connolly, senior forward from the University of Minnesota-Duluth; and Austin Smith, senior forward from Colgate University.

The three finalists were selected from the initial list of Top Ten candidates by the 23-member Selection Committee and an additional round of online fan balloting to determine this year’s Hobey Baker winner.  Criteria for the award includes: displaying outstanding skills in all phases of the game, strength of character on and off the ice, sportsmanship and scholastic achievements.

This year’s Hobey Baker Award winner will be announced Friday, April 6, 2012 from MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, FL during the NCAA Frozen Four.  The 32nd annual announcement will be aired live on the NHL Network at 6:00 p.m., ET, and at the Hobey website, www.hobeybakeraward.com.  Here is more on this year’s three finalists:

Spencer Abbott – University of Maine, Senior, Forward, Hamilton, Ontario
From a recruited walk-on four years ago to a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, Spencer Abbott has had a remarkable four-year collegiate career.  Already recognized as the Player of the Year in Hockey East as well as a First Team all-star, the Black Bear assistant captain leads the nation in scoring and in assists.  In 39 games this season, Abbott scored 21 goals, assisted on another 41 for 62 total points.  His unselfish scoring exploits earned him the conference scoring title and he was named player of the month twice while piling up 18 multiple-point games.  Abbott is a Family Relations major and has been on the Dean’s List three times.  Spencer is active in the community helping with Special Olympics, assisting at youth hockey clinics and participating in charity games.  Abbott, a pro hockey free agent, just signed a contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Jack Connolly – University of Minnesota-Duluth, Senior, Forward, Duluth, Minnesota
A repeat Hobey top ten finalist, the Bulldog captain had a fantastic season winning the WCHA scoring title, being named a First Team all-star for the third straight season and capped it off as the league’s Player of the Year.  A two-time All American, Connolly is second in the nation in points and assists accumulating 20 goals and 40 assists for 60 points in 41 games.  Duluth was the second highest scoring team in the nation this past season and Connolly never missed a college game, having played in 164 straight.  He was held pointless in consecutive games only twice in his illustrious four-year career.  The hometown hero is active in community endeavors helping with trash clean-up in the Adopt-A-Highway program, visiting Duluth hospitals, volunteering with the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and working with various cancer fund-raisers.  He’s a Communications major with a 3.3 GPA.  He is a pro hockey free agent.  Hockey runs deep in the Connolly family as Jack’s older brother Chris, was the captain and second leading scorer for Boston University this past season.

Austin Smith – Colgate University, Senior, Forward, Dallas, Texas
Austin Smith completes the trifecta of Hobey scoring whizzes as the nation’s top sniper with 36 goals to go along with 21 assists for 57 total points, third best in the country.  Dangerous at all times, Smith leads the nation in short-handed goals with six and scored seven power play goals as well.  Winning the ECAC scoring title this past season, Smith was named the conference Player of the Year and a First Team all-star. Along the way, Smith scored 30 goals this season faster than any college player in the last 12 years and is currently third in the nation with a plus-25.  A Sociology and Anthropology major, Smith helps out with the Hamilton, NY Food Cupboard, assists with food and toy drives during the season and is involved with the local Goals for Good program.  He is a fifth round draft pick of the Dallas Stars.

The ceremony will take place a few miles from the Tampa Times Forum, the site of the 2012 Men's Frozen Four. This is the first time since 2006 that we will have a winner that did not play in the Frozen Four, and it's the first time since the Hat Trick format was put in place in 2002 that none of the three finalists played on teams that qualified for the Frozen Four.

Abbott signed a pro deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs Thursday, while Smith has signed on with the Dallas Stars, the organization that owned his draft rights. Connolly is unsigned.

Saturday Hockey Notes and Thoughts: UMD Blows Another Chance

ST. CLOUD, Minn. -- It wasn't long after Friday's game here started before those of us in the press box were well aware of the opportunity presented to UMD.

Wisconsin scored once in the first period, then added three in a stunning second period, on its way to a 4-1 win over Minnesota at Mariucci Arena. That Minnesota loss swung the door wide open for UMD to get in position for the WCHA regular season championship.

Instead of walking into the door, UMD stumbled, losing 2-1 to St. Cloud State.

Simply put, the Bulldogs were flat for a chunk of the game, and SCSU took advantage on its way to a 2-0 lead. UMD struggled with the Huskies' young and mobile defense at times in the first half of the game. There was a media timeout with 9:11 left, and UMD started to string together some good shifts after that.

Unfortunately, all the puck-chasing done over the first 30-plus minutes took a toll, and the Huskies appeared to be a fresher team at times in the third period, before UMD finally was able to string together more good play late. It just wasn't enough, as UMD hit a couple pipes, flubbed on some scoring opportunities, and was stood up by SCSU goalie Mike Lee (35 saves) on a bunch of others.

From my perspective, it just looked like UMD was a tick off for too much of this game. Yes, there were parts of the game where the overall effort wasn't all that good. But when UMD did get things cranked up, its execution wasn't there. Breakout passes either too far or behind the intended receivers. Centering passes when guys should have shot. Shots when guys should have held on to the puck and let someone go to the net. Guys not taking great care of the puck and turning it over as a result.

St. Cloud State's forecheck pinned UMD a few times because of the Bulldogs' execution just not being where it needs to be. It was a good performance for the Huskies, who needed it, but not UMD's best effort.

That's unfortunate, because there was an opportunity there. Now, UMD will have to hope for no more than a share of the MacNaughton Cup, and the Bulldogs know now that they will be in a first-round series against Minnesota State next weekend at Amsoil Arena. UMD will be seeded No. 2, and MSU is locked into the 11th spot.

Saturday, look for UMD to play a lot better. It won't necessarily be about anything St. Cloud State does, instead the Bulldogs simply have to play with the kind of jam and jump they did last weekend. Do that, and everything else will be fine.

A share of the MacNaughton would be nice, but what's more important is entering the playoffs on a positive note. Friday wasn't that far off, so it's not like anyone is looking for a complete turnaround.

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Something was pointed out Friday that's really irritating me. The website Inside College Hockey has a regular Hobey Tracker feature, which is updated to show what the author(s) feel are the top candidates for the Hobey Baker Award.

This week's Hobey Tracker is available here, with the current choice being Colgate forward Austin Smith. Here's what was said about the second choice, UMD captain Jack Connolly.

There’s no denying Connolly’s consistency; he’s had at least one point in 31 of the Bulldogs’ 34 games to date and has been held scoreless in consecutive games just once. The issue, as was mentioned in the most recent INCH Podcast, is determining his impact independent of high-scoring teammates Travis Oleksuk (21 goals, 47 points) and J.T. Brown (20 goals, 42 points). Working in Connolly’s favor is the fact that whomever coach Scott Sandelin puts on his line—Brown, Oleksuk, Mike Seidel—produces offense.

Emphasis mine.

Listen. I don't pretend to be a great hockey mind, and I'm certainly biased in this case.

But whoever wrote this clearly hasn't watched UMD very much. Connolly has skated on a line with Oleksuk and Brown for precisely two-and-a-half games out of the 35 UMD has played to this point. Yes, he has a lot of power play points, but 1) he also has a lot of even-strength points, and 2) I fail to see how having a lot of power play points is a bad thing.

Beyond the "crazy simpleton" nature of the above statement is the undeniable fact that Jack Connolly has played a significant role in the career years being had by at least four UMD players, including Oleksuk and Brown, and including Mike Seidel and Joe Basaraba, Connolly's linemates for much of the 17-game unbeaten streak UMD had into January.

You can talk about Oleksuk and Brown being great players, and you're not at all wrong there. But to diminish the impact Connolly has had on them by pretending that they're the ones having the impact on him is borderline delusional, and points to a potential bias that would be simply inexplicable.

If you don't believe me, ask the guys Connolly has been playing with this season if they've been made better by having Connolly on the team. Hell, ask Oleksuk how he scored that late power play goal against Colorado College last Saturday. It might look like a sick, twisted wrister in the box score, but the tape tells a different story. Find a guy in the game who can make that pass.

I'm not here to pump Jack Connolly's tires. Honestly, I don't think I need to, because his play on the ice usually takes care of that.

Just pointing out that not everyone necessarily sees it clearly, no matter how hard they try.

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It's going to shape up to be a great finish in the WCHA. Minnesota's loss to Wisconsin leaves the league championship in doubt. There is a three way tie for the final home ice spot, as Colorado College became the fifth team to take a spot in the top six. CC beat Michigan Tech 5-2 in Colorado Springs behind a Jaden Schwartz hat trick two goals from Jaden Schwartz.

Nebraska Omaha fell 3-0 to Denver, which clinched the third seed. Juho Olkinuora threw a 26-save shutout at the red Mavericks. With the loss, UNO is tied with the Huskies -- both Michigan Tech and St. Cloud State -- for the last home ice spot. If all three win Saturday, UNO will get home ice. Michigan Tech and St. Cloud State are Denver fans for the evening.

North Dakota got two Danny Kristo goals to beat Minnesota State 4-2. The loss locks the Mavericks into a matchup at UMD next weekend, while North Dakota knows it will be seeded fourth. Aaron Dell started and won in goal for the Sioux.

Late Friday, Bemidji State held off Alaska Anchorage 2-1. Jordan George had two first-period goals for the Beavers, who didn't take a penalty in the game. The Beavers could finish ninth with a win Saturday and a Wisconsin loss, and the difference is significant. A ninth-place finish means a two-hour bus ride to Grand Forks, while finishing tenth would send Bemidji to Denver one weekend after traveling to Anchorage. Beaver fans rooting for the Gophers? It could happen.

UMD Salutes Successful Seniors

Seems like only yesterday that this senior class started up at UMD. For five of the seven Bulldog seniors, that would be four years ago (Kenny Reiter and Cody Danberg are fifth-year seniors).

As the team prepares for its home finale this weekend -- a two-game series against Colorado College -- there should be plenty of emotions on Saturday night, which will be the annual Senior Night. During the first intermission Saturday, the school will pay tribute to its senior class, one that will likely go down as the most successful in school history.

Over the last four years, UMD has tasted more success than it ever has before. The Bulldogs have won the Broadmoor Trophy and NCAA title, earned home ice in the WCHA playoffs three times, and qualified for three straight WCHA Final Fives (hoping to make it four this year). Oh, and they got to be part of a new era in a different way, with the opening of Amsoil Arena.

The record over this four-year period is (so far) 90-47-20. While the 1982-86 run produced 119 wins, it was a time where teams played more games than they do now (limit in the regular season is now 34, with a 36-game schedule allowed if a team travels to Alaska during the season).

The groundwork laid by these guys will -- we hope -- keep this team competitive for years to come.

Obviously, Jack Connolly will get the loudest ovation on Saturday. He'll likely be named the annual Fan Favorite on Friday night (unless someone else is, of course), while Reiter is honored as the school's first-ever four-time WCHA Scholar Athlete. Connolly is inching closer to Bill Oleksuk for 11th place (190 points) on UMD's all-time scoring list. He's a Hobey Baker candidate who -- along with his stellar play on the ice -- happens to be a regular on the All-Academic team in the WCHA. To top it all off, Connolly is a homegrown player, and one of the best homegrown players UMD has ever seen.

Fellow center Travis Oleksuk was one of the first "legacy" players recruited by Scott Sandelin's staff. Bill, as I just mentioned, is 11th on the all-time scoring list, and was a captain during his time at UMD. Travis has been a faceoff machine who developed a great scoring touch during his UMD career. He recently hit 100 points as a Bulldog, and scored his career-high 20th of the season in Saturday's 4-4 tie at Minnesota State. Oleksuk has 44 career goals, 15 of which have served as game-winners (seven last year, six this year).

There might not be a better example of a guy accepting a role and flourishing in it than David Grun. After playing in just three games as a freshman, Grun has logged over 100 in the last three. We knew coming in that he could shoot, but Grun has become one of the team's most trustworthy and responsible players. He eats a lot of penalty kill time, plays on the all-important third line, and has set an example for his teammates by working his tail off for everything he's gotten at UMD. He has done things the right way from the start.

So far, Cody Danberg has played in just one game this season, but there's still time to change that. He's been beset by injuries the last two years after playing 99 games over his first three. After a redshirt year last season, Danberg suffered a serious shoulder injury in the season opening win over Notre Dame. He might not be a 20-goal sniper, but his potential presence in the lineup down the stretch would be a huge lift for a Bulldog team that could certainly use his smarts and tenacity on a penalty kill that's struggled for most of this season.

No UMD player has played more minutes the last two seasons than Brady Lamb. He was a big part of last year's title run, playing his best hockey after coming back from a shoulder injury late in the season. He had assists on all three UMD goals in the national title game. Lamb has been pretty steady this season, showcasing his offensive ability to go along with physical play on the blue line. Oh, and no one banks in 190-foot shots like he does.

Of the UMD seniors, none have persevered like Scott Kishel. The former Virginia/MIB Blue Devil played in 47 games over his first three seasons, including only seven last season. He's been in on 30 games this season, and his offensive skills have been showcased. Kishel has three goals (the first three of his UMD career) and 17 points in 30 games, and has done some damage on the power play with slick passes and a sneaky wrist shot. He could have walked away, frankly, after not playing much over three years, but he should be credited for working hard and sticking with things. He's been rewarded with a strong senior season.

In goal, Kenny Reiter has turned into a rock. Thought to be the backup to Brady Hjelle a couple years ago, Reiter ended up winning the job with a strong playoff performance, and after Hjelle walked and ended up at Ohio State, Reiter has become the guy. With 47 wins, nine shutouts, a .650 winning percentage, and a .912 save percentage over his career, Reiter will go down as one of the best and most consistent goalies UMD has ever had. He's also developed into a top puck-playing goalie. Not in Alex Stalock's league, but still very good at the craft.

When the first period ends on Saturday, please consider scrapping your usual concession stand/hang out in the concourse/ice cream run ritual. Hang out in your seat for a few minutes, and take a moment to appreciate what this group of seven has accomplished.

Their work isn't done, but what they have been a part of at UMD is truly special and very much deserving of recognition from all who call themselves Bulldog fans.

Jack Connolly Marches Toward History

Jack Connolly's season goes beyond his Hobey Baker candidacy, his point streak, his exemplary work as UMD's captain, or his march up UMD's all-time scoring list.

The UMD senior center had four points last weekend -- including three on Saturday -- in a non-conference sweep of Alabama-Huntsville. That lifted Connolly into sole possession of 12th place on UMD's all-time list with 177 points. It also ran his point scoring streak to 22 straight, tying a school single-season record.

Connolly is on the verge of being a three-time All American -- which would be a UMD first. He's also on pace to top 200 career points, assuming UMD plays in at least three postseason games (a virtual certainty between the WCHA and NCAA playoffs). To put that in perspective, TJ Hensick was the last college player to hit 200 career points. And that was a while ago. As Chris Dilks noted this week on Western College Hockey, it's not like there's a long line of guys behind Connolly who have a chance at the number.

Only six players in UMD's history have 200 career points. The last one to hit the milestone in a UMD uniform was Derek Plante in 1993 (219 points). Dan Lempe (222), Matt Christiansen (219), Bill Watson (210), Gregg Moore (206), and Scott Carlston (203) are the others.

In case you're wondering, it's not unrealistic for Connolly to reach 210 points if UMD plays more than one game at the Final Five and four games in the NCAA Tournament. That would tie Connolly for fourth all-time with Watson.

Reality suggests that Connolly's feats will be exceptionally difficult to duplicate. Most players who are talented enough to rack up this many points would be serious flight risks before they've played four years of college hockey. Any chance we have of seeing 200-point players in the future probably lie in undersized, undrafted players like Connolly.

Over the rest of the season, there will be a lot of chatter -- both in this space and in other places -- about Connolly's candidacy for the Hobey Baker Award, given to college hockey's top player. Unlike some other awards, there are components to the award criteria that have little to do with hockey. However, you're not winning the Hobey if you roll up 15 points in 39 games on a team that goes 12-23-4, no matter what you do with your time away from the rink.

Connolly figures to be a strong possibility for the final ten that the Hobey folks will announce in mid-March, and there's a chance he'll make the Hobey Hat Trick, which is announced shortly after that. He leads the nation in points and points per game, he doesn't "fatten up" on power plays, he doesn't lack in goal-scoring ability (on pace to shatter his previous career high of 18 goals), and he plays in all key situations for UMD, including late in games where UMD is defending a lead. He's developed into a key penalty-killer over his career.

"Obviously, he's a heck of a player on a very good and a very deep team," Michigan Tech coach Mel Pearson says. "So sneaky, so smart. You have to be aware of when he's on the ice."

Pearson would know. For 40 minutes of each game of the teams' series in Houghton in December, Connolly was shut down. In the third period of each game, the Huskies couldn't stop him. Connolly had two goals and an assist in the third period of a 5-3 win Friday, then scored the game-winner in a 5-3 win Saturday.

"They have other parts, but he stirs the drink," Pearson said. "I thought we did an excellent job on him. You might be able to shut him down for 58 minutes, but those two minutes you don't, look out."

UMD coach Scott Sandelin thought Connolly's line -- he centers Mike Seidel and Joe Basaraba -- was out of synch and off its game in Friday's 2-1 win over Alabama-Huntsville. Last year, Connolly and his star linemates Mike Connolly and Justin Fontaine rarely put together a stretch of two sub-par games in a row.

Connolly wasn't going to let it happen this year, either.

"I thought he was outstanding from the drop of the puck," Sandelin said. "I thought he was at another level. It's hard to keep them down. Even those guys not having their best night is still good, but they were very good on Saturday."

UMD's balance is certainly a key to the team's success, but Connolly's ability to dominate in the clutch is what could take this group to another level. Focus too much on Connolly, and you risk getting torched by Travis Oleksuk and JT Brown. And even if you can contain both top lines, you still have to find a way to keep the third and fourth lines -- more than capable of contributing -- off the scoreboard.

Connolly is -- as Pearson says -- the straw stirring the drink. He's the most valuable player you'll find on any top team in college hockey, and he might be the best you'll see anywhere.

The Hobey debate is always an interesting one, because you get into a world where guys play different positions, different roles, and put up different statistics while playing on different teams in different leagues. Being on that committee is a hell of a responsibility, because it's your job to make sense if it all, even though there's a good chance you haven't seen all the candidates play in person.

When the dust clears and there are three guys sitting in the front row at the Hobey ceremony Apr. 6 in Tampa, you'll have a hard time convincing me Jack Connolly won't be one of them.

The only question that carries real intrigue, besides the obvious, is this:

Will he still have his Zac Brown-like playoff beard when he's sitting there?

It's a question we'll have a hard time answering until that day comes.

Saturday Hockey Notes and Thoughts: The Train Keeps A Rolling

OMAHA, Neb. -- For the UMD men's hockey team, it's unquestionably been an awesome ride.

J.T. Brown made sure it continued.

The sophomore's career night Friday helped UMD past Nebraska Omaha 6-2 in front of over 16,000 paid customers, a record crowd for this program. It was a monumental night for UNO hockey, but the Bulldogs did their thing and ruined it.

UMD used a four-goal third period to pull away from another tight game, and Brown was the ringleader on this night. UNO did a solid job against scoring leader Jack Connolly's line, keeping that group off the board until it was already a 4-2 lead.

They had nothing for Brown and linemates Travis Oleksuk and Caleb Herbert. A Herbert shot led to a Brown rebound goal at 1:23 of the first. UMD led 2-0 before UNO answered with two second-period goals to tie the score.

As we talked about last week, though, the third period is where UMD makes things happen.

The margin over the last 17 games is now 31-10. You can point to a lot of things over this 17-game streak, but this might be the most important factor.

Either opponents are completely out of the game through two periods, or they simply have no chance because UMD will wear them down in the last 20 minutes.

The Bulldogs are now 15-3-3 overall, in first place in the WCHA at 11-2-2 (the Gophers lost at North Dakota), and the road record is now 8-0-3. UMD hasn't lost a game away from Duluth in its last 15 (12-0-3). UMD is 22-5-7 in its last 34 games away from Duluth, dating back to the start of last season.

Brown's other two goals came :28 apart in what was a tie game in the third period. Mike Seidel had already been stopped on a penalty shot attempt (never actually got a shot off, because the puck was poke-checked by UNO goalie John Faulkner).

For Faulkner, who I thought had played pretty well, the roof caved in during that third period. UMD pressured with 20 shots, many of them of quality. And they did it without the benefit of a single power play. The entire third period was played at even strength.

UMD is 14-0-3 over the last 17 games, and the Bulldogs have indeed found some different ways to win. The third period dominance, however, is a repeat storyline, and it's no accident. UMD assistant coach Jason Herter was on our coaches' show back in September, and one of the things he noted was that the players almost all came back with superior scores on their conditioning tests than they did prior to last season. This is where that conditioning pays off.

The Bulldogs looked fresh in the third period Friday. They looked like a team that hadn't just played 40 minutes against a Division I opponent. It continues to be a big key for the nation's hottest -- and perhaps deepest -- team.

In Saturday's game, we'll see if Dean Blais can find an answer for Oleksuk's line. We'll also see if that answer comes at the expense of stopping Connolly's line.

No matter what, UMD will return home next week, and it's likely they will remain the nation's top-ranked team in all metrics. The other four teams in the top five all lost Friday, including Ohio State at home to Michigan and Boston College to Massachusetts, both shutouts.

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Connolly's two points in Friday's game ran his point-scoring streak to 19, three off the school single-season record. The captain now has eight goals and 12 assists during the third periods of these 17 games.

The points push his career total at UMD to 172, moving him into a tie for 13th place on UMD's all-time scoring list with Dan Fishback (1979-83). Former Hobey Baker winner Chris Marinucci is in 12th place, one point ahead of Connolly and Fishback.

Bill Oleksuk -- Travis' dad -- sits in 11th place at 190 points. Connolly is on pace for 60 points in the regular season, a total that would move him into eighth place all-time, one ahead of Huffer Christiansen. If UMD can extend the season long enough, a top-five slot might not be out of reach for Connolly.

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In Grand Forks Friday, North Dakota got a third-period goal from Brock Nelson to beat Minnesota 2-1. That gives UMD sole possession of first place in the WCHA.

In the first period, UND junior Danny Kristo got the boot for a hit from behind on Minnesota defenseman Ben Marshall. Here is the video, courtesy of nearly half my Twitter followers.



Clear-cut. Blatant.

So what the hell is Kristo trying to argue?

I know it's not much of a tantrum, but combine that with the hit itself, which was bad enough, and a message needs to be sent.

The rules regarding checking from behind have been in place since like 2005. That's six years. At what point is it fair to expect that we will start to see some changes in the way the game is played?

Josh Archibald's hit on Connolly here Friday was not much different, only without the additional jab thrown as part of the follow-through on the hit. The irony about it is that Archibald -- and every player on both teams -- took Jack's Pledge during the week leading up to this game.

These hits have to stop. There can be no way around it. And, obviously, the current system isn't working. You might argue that we're not seeing as many hits from behind lead to ejections, but it doesn't mean we're not seeing notably fewer hits from behind.

This is on players, coaches, and officials. We know WCHA officials -- and college officials in general -- aren't perfect. They aren't going to see everything, and they're not going to call everything. That's just human nature. But we need them to be better than they are. We need coaches to preach the importance of clean play that abides by the rules.

And players need to have that respect for one another. It's that respect that will prevent many of these dangerous and unnecessary hits. No, not everyone will practice that respect for opponents. But with improved teaching from coaches, more respect from players, and hopefully more accurate and consistent officiating, perhaps we can get this problem fixed.

It starts, in this case, with discipline. There is no reason why the WCHA should allow Kristo to play Saturday night. He embarrassed himself and his program with that sophomoric tirade after getting the boot, but before that, he committed a flagrant infraction with a dangerous hit. His follow-through suggests an intent beyond just playing a physical game.

At some point, someone has to get serious about this. With all the talk about hitting from behind all week long -- and at all levels of the game -- how can anyone think this is a clean hit? Not only is it not a clean hit, but at no point in the play is Kristo moving to do anything that would be a clean hit. Marshall didn't turn at the last second. Kristo didn't bump a guy who lost an edge. He plastered a guy from behind, and followed through with a jab to the head as he "finished his check."

I have a lot of respect for Kristo, and even more for North Dakota's coaching staff and program. But Kristo's play in this instance was disrespectful, and it would be nice to see the WCHA show some leadership on this issue. It would be the opposite of what we usually see in college hockey, and you could track something like this as one of the reasons we're seeing the changes we're seeing come 2013.

The WCHA won't do anything, and Kristo will probably play Saturday. Hopefully nothing stupid happens. If this were the NHL, Kristo would be asked to drop the gloves and answer for what he did. In the college game, he will probably get chirped at all night, and if the Gophers get a chance to get an extra shot in, they'll probably take it. I just hope they remember that two wrongs don't make a right.

******

The rest of the scores from Friday saw Michigan Tech beat Alaska Anchorage 6-2, Denver knock off Bemidji State 6-3, Wisconsin shut out Minnesota State 4-0, and Colorado College get by St. Cloud State 3-1.

The standings show UMD (24 points) up on Minnesota (22). Colorado College (20) is third, followed by Denver and Nebraska Omaha (17), North Dakota (16), Michigan Tech (15), St. Cloud State (13), Bemidji State and Wisconsin (12), Alaska Anchorage (7), and Minnesota State (5).

Saturday Hockey Notes and Thoughts: Another Dominant Third Period

KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- You could see it coming. It almost seemed as inevitable as a sunrise and sunset. And Western Michigan couldn't stop it. Not even a 27-day layoff could stop it.

The UMD men kept it rolling here Friday night, beating Western Michigan 4-1 to run its unbeaten streak to a school-record 15.

As has been the case for much of this streak, the Bulldogs got the job done with an overwhelming third period effort. Friday was the third time in 15 games that UMD scored three goals in the third period. UMD has at least one goal in the third period of 14 of the 15 games. The only game where UMD didn't score in the third period was its last before Friday, a 4-2 win at Wisconsin in which the Bulldogs did all the necessary damage in the first two periods.

In the last 15 games, UMD has outscored opponents 24-10 in the third period.

(For the season, UMD has outscored the opposition 77-45. The first period is even at 17, so UMD has a 60-28 edge from the start of the second period on.)

Friday night's third period was just like many of the others. UMD looked like the superior team. They were physical. They made good passes (not perfect, but good). They won battles all over the ice. For the most part, they kept goalie Kenny Reiter from having to do too much back there (one shot on goal, according to the official stats, in the last half of the period).

UMD also took advantage of its opponent's lack of discipline.

In the third period, Western took two minor penalties. They came 28 seconds apart, and the accompanying five-on-three was too much for the Broncos to defend. It didn't help that Luke Witkowski, one of their top defensmen, was one of the two offending parties.

(WMU coach Andy Murray was not happy with Witkowski's hooking penalty, but it was a hook. He got his stick up into the hands of a UMD player, forcing a turnover that sent the puck into the neutral zone. The Broncos got away with a much more flagrant foul in an earlier UMD power play, but that's no excuse for missing another obvious penalty. The kneeing call that led to the original power play was an easy, textbook call for the officials to make.)

During the five-on-three in a 1-1 game, some guy named Jack Connolly skated across the top of the UMD formation, left to right. He stopped and sent a tape-to-tape pass back to his left, where Travis Oleksuk was all by himself at the bottom of the faceoff circle. Oleksuk isn't going to miss that shot in his sleep.

Three minutes later, Joe Basaraba came into the offensive zone two-on-two with Mike Seidel. Seidel drove to the net, and Basaraba waited for the WMU defenseman to give him enough of an opening for a shot from the left circle. Once he had that room -- and it wasn't much -- he let one rip through WMU goalie Frank Slubowski to give UMD a 3-1 lead.

Jake Hendrickson added the empty-netter, and UMD had a 4-1 win.

UMD is not immune to anything. The Bulldogs started this game slowly, as expected, and they certainly had their share of average shifts in the first 20 minutes. You could see players keeping the game somewhat simple. Shorter passes, quicker shifts. A couple penalties in the first period didn't help the cause, including one before all four lines could take a shift.

I still thought there was some inconsistency in the second period, but you could see UMD starting to get things going again. They had a couple tremendous shifts after J.T. Brown's tying goal, including one that led to a Brown breakaway that Slubowski had to stop. The third period was a lot of nothing for a while, but UMD took advantage of the five-on-three, and that really seemed to change the rest of the game. The Broncos were somewhat deflated after that, and not even a good five-on-four kill where they didn't allow any real chances could get them back in their groove.

And, yes, someone grabbed the puck. When you make history, you make sure you get the puck.

******

The Broncos tried their very best to knock Connolly off his game. They hit him, denied him space, and hit him some more. It was a good, hard, physical effort against college hockey's best player (yes, I just said it, and I'm probably going to say it a few dozen more times before the season ends). Wasn't dirty, though a couple hits were a bit on the high side. Instead, it was a team doing its best to use physicality and intimidation to keep a guy from controlling the game.

Didn't matter.

You could see it coming. Connolly, Basaraba, and Seidel had a quality shift to close the first period, generating pressure and a nice scoring chance. They had a few more good shifts in the second period, and Caleb Herbert certainly looked good with that group while Seidel was serving a ten-minute misconduct. UMD's top line had a dominant third period, as it's done a lot during this streak.

For Connolly, it was just another day at the office. In the third periods of UMD's last 15 games, the team's senior captain has eight goals and nine assists. That's 17 points in 15 third periods, kids. A three-point-per-game pace. He steps up in third periods of games, and he is a huge reason why UMD continues to put such games away.

On the season, Jack has 32 points in 19 games. If UMD plays in 41 games, as it did last year, Connolly is on pace for 69 points, ten more than last season (59). At this rate, he'll have 60 before the WCHA playoffs even start.

Oh, and he is doing this -- scoring at this pace -- despite a "slow start" that had people wondering if the preseason Hobey hype was unwarranted. Seriously.

Over his 17-game point streak, he has 12 goals and 18 assists. I already quoted the third period numbers, which are incredible. But over 17 full games, he's almost at two points per game. At this rate, he's going to blow everyone out of the water in the scoring race.

After all, the Gophers are done playing cupcakes, and Wisconsin is done with them after taking care of RIT Saturday night.

"In the first month, I think Jack played well," coach Scott Sandelin said before the game Friday. "It seems like since we switched the lines in Denver, that was the weekend where he really took off. Showed his leadership, and showed his ability to be a top player in the country. Sometimes we get spoiled. We expect great things from him.

"I can't speak enough about how his play, and I think he's matured into a really good leader."

There are some great players in college hockey. Justin Schultz comes to mind immediately, as do guys like Austin Smith, Nick Bjugstad, T.J. Tynan, and Brian Flynn, and so many others.

But none of them are doing what Jack Connolly is doing right now. Namely, carrying college hockey's best team on a school-record unbeaten streak.

If that's not enough to make you think "Hobey," go ahead and hang out, because I'm sure he'll give you some more reasons before we're all said and done.

******

Elsewhere in the WCHA, well, guh.

Alabama-Huntsville got a late goal to beat Denver 3-2. The loss dropped Denver out of the top 20 in the Pairwise. Simply a disastrous loss for the Pioneers, and the WCHA in general, which has now dropped two games to UAH. The Chargers only have two wins. Blah. DU chose to rest Jason Zucker after the World Juniors, and they paid dearly. Zucker will not play in Saturday's finale, either, and that's a must-win for Denver.

Wisconsin beat RIT 6-3. Schultz -- easily the best defenseman in the country, and possibly the best I've seen at this level in my seven years of calling UMD games -- scored two goals and had two assists. He's pretty good.

St. Lawrence knocked off Minnesota State 4-3, and Cornell beat Colorado College 3-1.

So, yeah, not a good night for the WCHA.

On Saturday, in addition to all these series finishing up, North Dakota plays Clarkson in Winnipeg, and the Gophers host Notre Dame.

You almost have to root for Minnesota, kids. Seriously. This league needs another non-conference loss like Jessica Biel needs to go on a diet.