Monday Musings: High-Intensity NCHC Title Game Goes UMD's Way; Bulldogs Book Trip to Fargo

You've undoubtedly heard it.

"Hard to beat a team (insert a number) times in a row during a season."

It's true. Just look at Saturday night, where UMD tried to beat North Dakota for a fifth time in five meetings this season (sixth time overall). It was anything but easy.

In an intense, emotional, penalty-filled game, the Bulldogs used a late five-on-three goal from Joey Anderson to beat UND 4-3 and claim their first conference tournament championship since 2009. It's the second conference title for UMD under Scott Sandelin, and now the Bulldogs head to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in seven years. It's the first time ever that any UMD team in any sport has made the national tournament five out of seven years.

Actually, calling it "intense", "emotional", and "penalty-filled" is probably understating it. This was as crazy a game as I've seen in a long time. There were more combined penalty minutes in the Colorado College game Feb. 18, but this game had a level of intensity that one never got to. Saturday was an example of two rivals fighting for something valuable, and it was the kind of night that would be difficult to duplicate.

Unless the teams play again ... with a spot in the Frozen Four on the line. In Fargo. But I digress.

The fact UMD found a way to win this game Saturday night is an unrelenting positive in a season full of them. It was far from a perfect performance, with North Dakota doing a fantastic job of putting the Bulldogs on their heels early, with the help of some sketchy penalty calls. But UMD was frustrated, as evidenced by sophomore defenseman Neal Pionk taking a five-minute major for charging UND goalie Cam Johnson during a short-handed rush.

(Frankly, wouldn't have been mad if Pionk had been tossed for it, but right before the hit, it looks like he loses his balance a bit, as if he were trying to stop and couldn't. Weird sequence looking at the clip, and it was probably enough to keep him in the game.)

After UMD killed the major (had already gone down 1-0 on a Brock Boeser power play goal, so that was a gigantic kill) and the first period ended, Pionk appeared to be speared by UND's Cole Smith. No call came, but UMD captain Dominic Toninato was irate after the period ended (justifiably so), and UMD carried that emotion into the start of the second period.

Toninato, Riley Tufte, and Adam Johnson scored goals 58 seconds apart in the second, and just like that UMD had a 3-1 lead. It took two more long five-on-three UND power plays -- one in the second and one late in the third -- for the Fighting Hawks to level the score on goals by Tyson Jost and Trevor Olson. That set up Anderson's goal, which came after back to back UND penalties gave the Bulldogs their first five-on-three of the game.

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Deep down, I can't imagine either coach was pleased with the penalty minutes his team took in this game. But a deeper dive into the numbers shows that there may have been some mitigating factors involved.

First off, we need to throw out the coincidental penalties and operate under the assumption all those minutes were earned. That will take away 20 of the game's 57 minutes. Of the 37 remaining minutes that were assessed, I don't think any reasonable argument can be made against the following calls:

Pionk's major for charging (5)
Olson's roughing penalty in the second (2)
Jared Thomas' minor for tripping in the second (2)
Rhett Gardner slashing minor in the second (2)
Riley Tufte's penalty for interference late in the second (2)
Johnny Simonson high sticking penalty in the third (2)

That leaves 22 of 37 minutes that were either questionable or not-very-good calls, including the last two on UMD that gave UND the late five-on-three it tied the game with, and the last two on UND that gave UMD the five-on-three it won the game with.

This isn't to completely absolve the players of responsibility for their role in Saturday's various fiascoes. There is no excuse for Pionk blasting Cam Johnson like he did. Similarly, no excuse for Smith spearing Pionk. Gardner and Simonson for UND took silly, unnecessary penalties. This stuff happens, especially when a game is played at the level and intensity this one was. Emotions are bound to run high.

But referees Todd Anderson and Geno Binda have to be considered culpable. More than once, they rewarded both teams for clear embellishment and set a bad tone for the game. I don't know the last time I saw a college hockey game -- especially in the postseason -- where there were four five-on-three power plays. And three of the four were more than a minute in scheduled length. It was too much, and I stand by what I said on the air and on Twitter during the game: It took away from the game. That's unfortunate.

However, it's worth noting that they weren't working the conference championship game by accident. They earned that throughout the season, and that fact shouldn't be forgotten in everyone's consternation over how this game played out.

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Many UMD players should be applauded for their efforts on Saturday. Toninato was a leader in every sense, getting the first goal and on multiple occasions trying to stand up for his teammates. Alex Iafallo not only has points in 11 straight games, but he has ten points in the last five. Anderson has re-emerged after his production slipped after returning from the World Juniors. He has six points in his last five games after being held off the board for five straight.

Osterberg blocked five of the 26 shots UMD got a piece of in Saturday's game. Brenden Kotyk blocked shots and was physical. Hunter Miska made a few brilliant saves in goal and had a fantastic weekend, erasing any questions about his ability to step up and play well in big games as a freshman.

(There were legit questions about Miska in a big-game environment, something CBS Sports Network analyst and brilliant mind Dave Starman referenced on Beyond The Pond Saturday. He answered those questions Saturday night, and did so emphatically.)

Tufte made a few plays, including getting by Christian Wolanin and steaming down the right wing before sniping a shot home to give UMD the lead in the second period. He was a beast at times in Friday's game, too, and it's just fun to watch him show more and more signs of his development.

More than anything, these guys stuck up for one another when necessary and stuck with the game. There were a lot of opportunities to be discouraged and wonder if this was UMD's night. Instead of that, they stayed with what they wanted to do, and as Toninato said Sunday after the selection show, "controlled what we could control."

"Lot of emotions in those games," Sandelin said. "We've played North Dakota a lot. I thought the kill (late in the first after the Pionk major) was outstanding. To get out of that period the way it was going being down one, I was pretty excited for our guys. We finally had a good second period.

"It was an interesting game for sure. Lots of ups and downs."

Plenty to be excited about, as UMD won a couple games playoff-style. By any means necessary.

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Now, it's back to North Dakota. UMD is the No. 1 seed in the NCAA West Regional, and will play Ohio State Friday at 5:30.

The Buckeyes can fill the net, led by sophomore Mason Jobst (19 goals, 55 points) and senior Nick Schilkey (27 goals, 41 points). Ohio State averages 3.97 goals per game, but also concedes 2.98 per game.  The power play hits at 32.5 percent, including over 38 percent in Big Ten play.

tOSU is coached by former UMD assistant Steve Rohlik, who was with the Bulldogs from 2000-2010 and recruited many of the players UMD won a national championship with in 2011. Brett Larson was a part of the Ohio State staff before returning to UMD two years ago when Derek Plante stepped down.

"I've seen them a little bit," Sandelin said. "I know they have the ability to score goals and play a real pace game. We've got to keep doing the things we're good at."

Lots of talk about UMD and North Dakota meeting again in the regional final, which could certainly happen, but Ohio State and Boston University will have something to say about that first.

We'll be traveling to Fargo on Thursday morning. Expect content from the team press conferences that day at Scheels Arena. Full game preview coming as well.

Monday Musings: UMD Rallies Late, Sweeps Miami, Advances to NCHC Frozen Faceoff

UMD started strong in Saturday's Game 2 against Miami, and appeared poised to blow the RedHawks out of the building in the first period. Shots were 10-0 about halfway through the first, 16-4 for the period, but UMD only led 1-0 on an early Brenden Kotyk goal.

We've seen this script play out a few times through the season. UMD couldn't find another goal, and Miami was very much in the game heading into the second period.

Freshman Nick Wolff's first collegiate goal gave UMD a 2-0 lead in the second, but the inability to find another goal during the first-period surge came back to haunt the home team. Miami got a power play goal to cut the lead in half. Then early in the third, the RedHawks scored goals 1:52 apart for a 3-2 lead that seemed to stun those in attendance.

But like it has all season, the Bulldogs found a way back. Jared Thomas scored for the second time in three games, a sharp-angle shot that seemed to trickle in off the pad of Miami goalie Chase Munroe to tie the game 3-3 with 6:35 to play. Barely two minutes later, Alex Iafallo put a world-class inside-out move on Miami defenseman Grant Hutton before wiring a wrist shot by Munroe for the eventual game-winning goal. Captain Dominic Toninato added a late empty-netter to seal the deal in a 5-3 win that sends UMD back to Target Center for the NCHC Frozen Faceoff.

(Iafallo, by the way, takes his second nine-game point streak of the season into the NCHC Frozen Faceoff this coming weekend. He's over 40 points on the season now, and when UMD needed them most, both he and Toninato were stellar this past weekend. If that continues, this team will be very hard for anyone to handle.)

You don't get to 23-6-7 and the second spot in the national rankings (PairWise at least) without figuring a way around a few bumps along the way. Nothing is smooth, not even for what almost appears to be a juggernaut in Denver. UMD has overcome slow starts, big deficits, and now an injury to top defenseman Carson Soucy to keep winning.

Soucy, by the way, got cornered by Matt Wellens during Saturday's game.

Ran into UMD Sr D Carson Soucy at Amsoil. He said he expects to be back “soon.” His season is far from over. #umdmhky

— Matt Wellens (@mattwellens) March 12, 2017

Good news, for sure. UMD used Adam Johnson on defense Friday, and even though Scott Sandelin wouldn't rule out that look in the future, he was playing forward by the third period and played it the whole game Saturday. His line with Kyle Osterberg and Parker Mackay combined for three assists and a plus-five in the game. Jarod Hilderman played on defense, but appeared to be a bit limited in terms of minutes and situations.

Basically playing five defensemen and spotting Hilderman is something UMD can manage at this point, maybe on a game-by-game basis depending on the opponent. I thought Hilderman was quite good in the Saturday game at Western Michigan, so maybe he plays in Friday's semifinal against the Broncos and we'll see what happens on Saturday? Early speculation, as we have the whole week to look at that.

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Perhaps one of the reasons for Johnson being shifted back up front: The play of Wolff. As I said on the air Saturday, one of the joys of seeing every game UMD plays is you can see the young guys make incremental progress each weekend.

And Wolff is absolutely progressing. He's earning more ice time, which makes it tough to justify trying to assimilate Johnson to what's a new position for him at this level.

If you hadn't watched much of UMD in February, you might have missed the jump Wolff has taken in terms of his level of play. He scored his first goal on Saturday as part of a three-point night, but Wolff was also active with team-high six shots on goal and had a plus-four rating. For a guy who's been pretty steadily improving in the defensive zone, Saturday's game was an offensive breakout.

Wolff has shown his physical side more than a few times this season, and for a freshman, he's done a really good job making big hits without taking penalties for being too aggressive. That he hasn't taken a major this season -- while being unafraid to play a physical game -- is saying something, especially when you consider current UMD defensemen Soucy, Willie Raskob, and Neal Pionk all took at least one major penalty as a freshman.

Speaking of Raskob and Pionk, Wolff's emergence also takes more pressure off them, and it indirectly takes some heat off Soucy, who doesn't have to feel the need to rush back in the lineup before he's ready to do so.

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Western Michigan is next up for the Bulldogs, Friday at 4pm in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff semifinals. The Broncos needed overtime of a third game to take down Omaha 2-1 on a Michael Rebry game-winning goal.

(The NCHC has set a precedent of letting the top seed express its preference for which semifinal it plays in, and commissioner Josh Fenton said Monday Denver wanted to play in the late game. There's certainly something to be said for keeping the players' routines, and most DU Friday games started at 7:30pm local time. But there's a benefit to being in the early game, because wonky game times are fairly commonplace in the NCAAs, and it's a chance to get the body clocks tuned for the odd 4pm game start that isn't so odd in the national tournament.)

Freshman Ben Blacker was outstanding all weekend for Western, allowing just five goals on 98 shots, including one on 37 in Sunday's series-deciding game.

The teams split four games in the regular season, with Western Michigan winning the Friday games (4-3 in Duluth, then 7-4 in Kalamazoo) before the Bulldogs rallied to take Saturday affairs (2-0 and 6-3).

UMD struggled against Western Michigan's top players, most notably Colt Conrad, Sheldon Dries, and Griffen Molino, and especially in Kalamazoo. This time around, UMD will be the designated home team and able to exercise some control over matchups. Barring injuries or a Soucy return, I would anticipate the same lineup Friday against Western as we saw Saturday against Miami.

In terms of PairWise, UMD remains second, and if you use the predictor tool of your choice for the upcoming weekend, you'll probably find any final seeding between 1-3 is realistic. Lots of different ways to get UMD to any of those spots, not really any ways to get UMD to any spot below the third overall seed.

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A final note of thanks and congratulations to the UMD women's hockey team on a great season. It came to end Saturday with a 1-0 loss to Minnesota in the NCAA quarterfinals. For five seniors -- forwards Ashleigh Brykaliuk, Demi Crossman, Katie McGovern, and Lara Stalder, along with defenseman Sidney Morin -- and junior Maria Lindh (graduating), it was the final game in a UMD jersey.

They laid everything on the line and have nothing to hang their heads about from a superb effort that fell just a goal short.

Brykaliuk and Stalder, per assistant coach Laura Bellamy, deserve kudos as well for facing the media after the game. NCAA-mandated press conferences are a killer to watch when the losing team participates after having their heart ripped out, no matter the sport. Bellamy noted that Brykaliuk and Stalder were given the option to skip out and let other players take the questions of assembled media. Instead, they composed themselves as best they could and did what great leaders do.

Coaches talk all the time about culture. When you have a new staff take over, it's about building a culture the way they want to build it. A big reason Maura Crowell's second season ended in the NCAA Tournament is the culture created in the room, starting with the graduating class. Brykaliuk and Morin were great captains, and all the seniors were fantastic leaders. Thanks to the work they've done, UMD is quickly on the verge of a changed culture, one that expects greatness. For the young players, it was their first taste of big-time, high-level hockey. They'll come back in the fall craving more, and that's exactly what Crowell and her staff want. It's what's worked for so many great programs -- men's and women's, all sports -- over the years.

It's also how Minnesota has remained as good as it's been for so long. Lee Stecklein didn't arrive at Minnesota with national championship rings. She learned how to win from players who won, and now she's passing those lessons down as she wraps up her Minnesota career seeking an unprecedented fourth national title. Someday, that will be how it works at UMD, and it started -- at least in this go-round -- with players like Brykaliuk, Morin, and Stalder. We salute them on their way out, and wish them nothing but the best going forward.

Monday Musings: Split With Western Michigan Sets UMD Up For Postseason

Much better, more composed performance from UMD in Saturday's 6-3 win over Western Michigan in Kalamazoo. That they did it without big-minute defenseman Carson Soucy is a gigantic bonus, in my view.

There wasn't a long list of players who played well in Friday's game. UMD was guilty of missed coverages and not doing enough to get to the net front and disrupt WMU goalie Ben Blacker. Saturday's tone was set in the first period, when the Bulldogs were getting outshot in the early going but not letting anyone get second chances in Hunter Miska's kitchen. Then, the first Western Michigan penalty of the game ended up in the back of the Broncos' net when a shooting mentality and net drive led to Jared Thomas' first goal in 70 games, going back to Oct. 17, 2015.

A couple minutes later, Western captain Sheldon Dries took an undisciplined penalty and ended up in the box for six seconds. Why six seconds? Because Adam Johnson walked the blue line, found a lane, and scored off a Joey Anderson tip (yes, we know Johnson got official credit, but both he and Anderson said after the game it was tipped). It was a perfect example of a player up high finding a way to get a puck through to give UMD a scoring chance.

This time of year, you have to score that way.

You also have to, at this time of the season, deal with pushback from the team that trails. Down 2-0, Western Michigan didn't lay down. The Broncos leveled by the midway point of the second, and kept pushing to take the lead before UMD got a break late in the period. Blacker came out to play a dump-in and turned it over to Karson Kuhlman on the right wing. Kuhlman whipped the puck toward the net as Blacker hustled back to the crease. He stopped Kuhlman's shot, but Adam Johnson poked it by him as he kept sliding back out of the crease, and the puck crossed the line before the mass of bodies took the net off.

UMD seized the momentum, getting an Avery Peterson goal early in the third before Anderson made a great individual effort off the wall and ripped a shot by Blacker to chase him from the game.

The win is UMD's 21st of the season and it keeps the Bulldogs safely in the second spot of the PairWise rankings. UMD finishes NCHC play in second place after Denver swept Omaha over the weekend.

(Like I said last week, UMD didn't lose this conference title. Denver won it, going on a tear here down the stretch and looking every bit the national championship contender we believe them to be.)

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UMD had to shake some adversity. Soucy was injured late in Friday's loss when he got tangled with Western forward Griffen Molino. Nothing malicious in any way, but Soucy fell awkwardly after Molino collided low trying to get in front of a shot. He hobbled off the ice and didn't return, and didn't dress Saturday. As for prognosis and the like, we should know more in the early part of the week. Keep the fingers crossed for good news.

Without him, UMD went with freshman Jarod Hilderman and mixed up pairings. We saw a lot of Neal Pionk with Willie Raskob, and they were very good. It was one of Raskob's best games in a while, and Pionk was his usual self. If Soucy is gone for any length of time, these are the two I expect the Bulldogs to ride. Both are capable of handling big minutes and can be dynamic players moving the puck. Pionk's shot is a game-changer.

Dan Molenaar and Brenden Kotyk also saw a lot of minutes Saturday and did quite well. Kotyk had an assist and blocked shots like normal. Molenaar played in his 33rd straight game -- a great accomplishment for a guy who had been so snakebit by injury and illness in his UMD career -- and continued his stretch of very consistent work on the blue line.

UMD also played without forward Riley Tufte (illness), who was sick on and off during the day and ruled out after the team got the rink pregame Saturday. Tufte told me at the airport Sunday he was already feeling better, so hopefully he's a full go this week for Miami. Same for forward Kyle Osterberg, who left late in the first with an upper-body injury after a check to the head. He did not return, but hopefully recovers in time to go this week.

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Next up for UMD is the only weekend of playoffs that can't end its season. The Bulldogs will host Miami in a first-round NCHC playoff series starting Friday at 7. Same Miami team that gave UMD fits two weeks ago, but one swept last week at home by North Dakota.

The RedHawks need to win the league tournament to move on, and UMD wants to build off what it accomplished in a strong effort on Saturday.

Also, the UMD women and WCHA Tournament MVP Maddie Rooney host Minnesota Saturday afternoon. We'll have all the hockey this weekend on the radio, and preview stuff coming on the blog so watch for that.

Monday Musings: Denver Sweep Likely Sends Penrose Cup to Pioneers

Listen, I'm all about optimism. I'm not the guy who likes to throw buckets of cold water on things and such.

No, really, I'm not. Quit laughing.

But it seems a safe bet right now to say UMD will not be claiming its first Penrose Cup NCHC championship.

If that's how it ends up this weekend, the Denver Pioneers won it. UMD didn't lose it.

The Bulldogs won and tied over the weekend against Miami to run their unbeaten streak to 11, the longest since the school-record 17-game run in 2011-12. Yes, Miami got a late Gordie Green goal to tie Friday's game, then Green scored in three-on-three overtime for the extra standings point. Yes, it stinks to have missed out on a chance for a sweep.

But that's not what cost UMD the league title. No, what cost UMD the league title was Denver having won nine straight games since a Jan. 20 loss to St. Cloud State. What cost UMD the league title is Denver's 12-2 record (10-2 NCHC) since the new year. UMD is a mere 8-2-4 (6-2-4).

The Pioneers are playing great hockey. They kept winning when UMD needed just a little bit of help. Tip the cap to DU, don't scoff at the Bulldogs. And hopefully the two meet in the postseason, because it'll be epic.

As for Friday's game, the Bulldogs were not sharp in their own zone and still avoided a loss. That's probably a good thing, but it won't help if UMD can't use the lessons to get better.

Freshman goalie Hunter Miska wasn't his sharpest, but two of Miami's goals came on long shots with traffic, something UMD has typically done a good job of avoiding this season. If Miska can see it, there's a really good chance he stops it. And the Bulldogs can be better defending up high, preventing those pucks from getting through in the first place. Look for that to be a point of emphasis this week as Western Michigan looms.

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Current NCHC standings:
Denver 53 points
UMD 49
Western Michigan 39
Omaha 29
North Dakota 29
St. Cloud State 28
Miami 23
Colorado College 14

If my math and tiebreaker understanding are correct, Denver, UMD, and Western Michigan will be the top three, and WMU is locked into third. UMD is probably 85-90 percent to finish second.

After that, it's a jumbled mess. Miami can leapfrog teams with a home sweep of UND, and St. Cloud State gets Colorado College at home while Omaha hosts Denver. It's too early to tell for sure, but if North Dakota gets a point from Miami and UMD finishes second, it'll be guaranteed to face Miami in the first round.

UMD heads to Kalamazoo to finish the regular season against resurgent Western Michigan. The Broncos are still scoring, still getting great work out of the power play, but now Andy Murray has been able to settle on a starting goalie in freshman Ben Blacker. He's right behind Miska with a .925 save percentage (Miska is .926). These teams are pretty evenly matched, especially when playing at even strength. If UMD's power play can stay hot (goals in six straight games, 8-for-26 in that stretch), the Bulldogs stand a great chance of leaving Kalamazoo with points.

Monday Musings: Colorado College Rallies for Tie, UMD Penalty Kill Saves Standings Point

Lots of frustration on the UMD side of the Broadmoor World Arena Saturday night. The Bulldogs couldn't have asked for a better start, getting two goals inside of the first two minutes and holding a 2-0 lead after one. Dominic Toninato tipped in a Neal Pionk wrist shot for a power-play goal 58 seconds in, then Alex Iafallo raced by the Colorado College power play for a breakaway shortie 49 seconds later.

For most of the first period, outside of Colorado College's three power plays, the Bulldogs controlled the puck, were content to let the Tigers chase, and had their way with things.

(More on this in a second. I'll be circling back.)

Things went quickly south, however, as the penalties racked up. Despite UMD's strong depth of killers, players started to tire from all the chasing, which led to more penalties. In all, UMD took a season-high 35 penalty minutes, and Colorado College had ten power plays on the night, including 4:52 of time during three-on-three overtime that UMD was somehow able to kill.

After that incredible PK work, Iafallo was able to score in the first round of a sudden-death shootout to rescue an extra point in the NCHC standings for the Bulldogs, who are now two points behind Denver for first place.

Unfortunately, the penalties were the big story for UMD. We've seen some small discipline breakdowns over the course of the season, and a good chunk of that is basic human nature. It's going to happen every now and then. But what happened Saturday was the worst we've seen this year. It was a team-wide calamity that never let up, even in the latter stages of the game and in overtime.

Could an argument be framed that the officials applied a different standard after the first period? Yes. Even watching the game back, there are more than a couple instances of UMD players being held, hooked, or interfered with that weren't called. On the Tigers' tying goal, the turnover that led to the rush started with blatant interference on UMD's Parker Mackay that was not called (though similar contact was called against UMD earlier). So I get this can be really difficult for fans to stomach, and I'm sure the players and coaches were livid on the bench and probably after the game, too. And anyone who listened to the game knows I was displeased, too.

But this stuff happens in hockey, UMD knows this (it's happened already this season, multiple times), and the Bulldogs failed to make any adjustments to how the officials started calling the game in the second period. The penalty trouble continued until CC pulled within one in the final seconds of the middle frame.

Carson Soucy took four penalties for 19 minutes, including a major for contact to the head in overtime that we'll discuss, Willie Raskob three for six minutes, Riley Tufte and Avery Peterson each two for four minutes.

And they were all penalties. This is undeniable. By the letter of the law, each call was correct. Again, can you argue the home team should have had more than it did? Yes. But UMD can't control how the adversary plays or how the officials officiate. It didn't do a good enough job controlling what it could control in this game.

Three of the four biggest offenders are older players who simply have to know better. One is a captain. This simply can't happen, no matter how frustrating the circumstances might be.

Talking to a couple guys on the trip home Sunday, I'm not concerned long-term. This will go down as a lesson learned, and the Bulldogs will move on. 

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Soucy's major for a check to the head of Colorado College forward Tanner Ockey came in the final seconds of overtime. It carried over to three-on-three overtime, which meant CC had a four-on-three power play for 4:52. At that point, getting the full allotment of three points was out the window, and frankly the thought of getting two points wasn't exactly top of mind.

(By the way, I expect the NCHC to suspend Soucy for the hit, forcing him to miss Thursday's opener against Miami. It was pretty flagrant head contact, and it came late enough in the game that precedent would suggest he'll have to sit a game for it. Plus, it was similar enough to Soucy's hit on Bemidji State's Leo Fitzgerald -- or Myles, or Gerry, honestly I can't remember which one -- that justifiably drew a one-game suspension last season.)

(UPDATE: Sounds like no suspension for Soucy, certainly good news for UMD.)

But somehow, UMD survived that long power play for the Tigers. CC had three shots on goal, two of them from distance by defensemen. UMD blocked five shots and one other attempt missed the net. Particularly exemplary over the long kill were senior forward Kyle Osterberg and junior Karson Kuhlman. Iafallo and Toninato get marks as well, though some of their better work came during the myriad of CC power plays in regulation time.

Assistant coach Jason Herter does a lot of the penalty kill work, and it was great this past weekend. The Bulldogs killed two majors and allowed just six shots on goal combined. Somehow with three guys out on an Olympic surface, CC still got more shots blocked than it got on goal.

With everything that went wrong on Saturday, UMD should consider itself fortunate to have gotten one point out of that game, much less two. The penalty kill saved the bacon. It's a shame so many fans have forgotten how good they were amid panic over the lost point and how it might affect the Bulldogs' Penrose Cup chances.

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The penalty trouble wrecked what was probably the best 20 minutes UMD's started a game with all season. All four lines were in on the action, generating gobs of puck possession and quality scoring chances. What was a 2-0 game could have been, by any rights, 3-0 or 4-0 after one, the Bulldogs were that good.

It adds to the frustration over how the game evolved in the second period. UMD was dominating the game at even strength, and it didn't matter which line was on the ice. But the team took four penalties in the second, all of them completely unnecessary. Eventually, the Tigers -- as much as their power play struggled -- were going to cash in. It was just a matter of time.

But Scott Sandelin preached a puck possession game plan, and the players executed it to perfection for 20 minutes. Then the wheels started coming off.

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UMD dropped to second in the Pairwise behind Denver, thanks to Denver's gigantic edge in RPI rating after the weekend games. DU is .6033, UMD .6032, and that one-onethousandth of a point is the difference between the No. 1 and No. 2 overall teams in the ranking. If it flips back to UMD's favor, the Bulldogs will regain the top spot in the Pairwise. That's how close those two teams are right now.

If you use the College Hockey News page, you can project future results. If you put UMD down for a loss in each remaining game, it drops the Bulldogs all the way to fourth, still a No. 1 regional seed. Let that one process for a second.

Speaking of CHN, they also have what's called a "probability matrix" that lists the chance of a team getting in the tournament and also the best percentage chances at various seeds in the tournament. A few notes:

• UMD is 100 percent in the tournament
• UMD has an 83 percent chance of being the No. 1 or No. 2 overall seed
• The chances of UMD not being a No. 1 regional seed are less than one percent
• The 20,000 simulations generated for the matrix do not find any where UMD is seeded below eighth.
• Denver is also 100 percent in, and No. 5 overall Western Michigan is at 99.5. Murky beyond that for the NCHC. North Dakota is at 37 percent, St. Cloud State 35, Omaha only at 12 percent.

Miami is in town for games Thursday and Friday this week. The short week is necessitated by Amsoil Arena being booked for high school hockey sectional games Saturday (7AA during the day, 7A at night). The RedHawks were swept by Denver this past weekend by matching 5-2 scores. Both games were tied 2-2 before DU erupted for the last three goals of the game. On the season, Miami is seventh in the conference, 1-7-1 in its last nine games. Anthony Louis is still putting up points (33 in 30 games this year), Kiefer Sherwood is having a solid season, and freshman goalie Ryan Larkin has put up a .914 save percentage in conference play.

Not only do we have to watch and see if Soucy is punished by the conference, but senior defenseman Brenden Kotyk missed Saturday's game with a lower-body injury. It's hard to imagine -- no matter how badly UMD might want to win a conference championship -- any chances will be taken with the big man on a short week, especially considering the short week means they'll have an extra day to get ready for the trip to Kalamazoo next week.

UMD will announce the winner of its annual Fan Favorite voting Thursday, and Friday is Senior Night.

Monday Musings: Denver Sweeps CC, Takes NCHC Lead From Idle UMD; Bulldogs Head to Colorado Next

Hope everyone enjoyed the bye weekend. Last one of the season for UMD, so naturally instead of sitting on the couch, I went to Wild games Friday and Sunday. Great time both trips, thanks for asking. 😜😎

UMD continues its prep for the stretch run this week, as the Bulldogs' NCHC title hopes will be determined by six games over the next three weekends to finish the regular season.

And UMD now knows it will start that stretch run from a chase position.

Denver took care of business over the weekend, sweeping longtime rival Colorado College in a home-and-home series to run its winning streak against the Tigers to 12 and taking a one-point lead on UMD for the top spot in the NCHC. DU won 2-1 at home Friday before routing the Tigers 5-1 in Colorado Springs Saturday. The Pioneers are playing incredibly well, with five straight wins and an 8-2 record since the calendar flipped to 2017. Over that ten-game run, DU has six games of five or more goals.

Of course, UMD has been no slouch since the break. The Bulldogs stumbled out of the gates in January, going 0-2-1 over the first three games. Since then, UMD is 6-0-1, including a two-game sweep at North Dakota and a championship at the North Star College Cup. The Bulldogs also have tightened defensively as of late, giving up just five goals over five games with two Hunter Miska shutouts thrown in. Only two of those five goals were scored at even strength.

******

It's a two-horse race in the NCHC, with Denver (41 points) and UMD (40) both having clinched home ice for the NCHC playoffs and UMD 11 points up on third-place Western Michigan in the standings. Let's look at the remaining schedules for both.

Denver
at Miami -- the teams tied twice in Denver Nov. 18-19, with DU winning both shootouts
vs St. Cloud State -- they split Jan. 20-21 in St. Cloud
at Omaha -- DU swept a home series from the Mavs Jan. 27-28

UMD
at Colorado College -- we all know what happened Jan. 6-7 in Duluth, ugh
vs Miami -- first meeting this season
at Western Michigan -- they split Nov. 11-12 in Duluth

You can't base a ton off the early-season meetings, but it's clear that both teams have difficult paths to the end of the regular season. Miami will give them both fits, thanks to an improving group of forwards and the play of freshman goalie Ryan Larkin, who has a very solid .920 save percentage despite his team not giving him a ton of run support. St. Cloud State is playing exceptionally well right now and just got a huge home sweep of Miami, but UMD has to deal with the Colorado Springs trip and fun with altitude off a bye week. And the Tigers beat UMD in Duluth in their last meeting.

So don't be shocked if the league title isn't decided until the last week of the season, with Denver in Omaha and UMD in Kalamazoo. And on the surface, the edge has to go to Denver with that in mind. Little explanation should be necessary.

(Both Omaha and WMU can be overly reliant on special teams to create goals, which isn't optimal as we enter a time of the season where there are usually not as many penalties in games. However, UNO is explosive up front, and Western might be the most underrated team in the league offensively.)

As for the rest of the league, here's how it looks.

DU 41
UMD 40
WMU 29
SCSU 28 (but only four games left)
UND 26
UNO 26 (but only four games left)
Miami 21
CC 11

Max point totals:
DU 59
UMD 58
WMU 47
UND 44
SCSU 40
Miami 39
UNO 38
CC 29

We don't know much. UMD and Denver will be at home for the first round (SCSU can only tie UMD, but UMD has the tiebreaker based on head to head wins) no matter what. Colorado College will be on the road. Nothing else is decided, as UNO and Miami could get home ice by going on a late run, and there's still time for someone currently in a home-ice position to fade out of it.

******

UMD heads to beautiful Colorado Springs this weekend. Usually, I'd openly wonder how good the Bulldogs will be coming out of a bye and playing at high altitude, but I don't doubt they'll be ready for this series. CC waltzed into Amsoil Arena and took four points from UMD Jan. 6-7 in what's easily been the low point of UMD's season to date. I can't guarantee UMD will play well, but I can be virtually certain this team will be prepared to play.

The Bulldogs have seen much success on Olympic ice in recent years, a story I love rehashing whenever they play at Minnesota. St. Cloud State, or Colorado College, the last bastions of the big sheet that this team plays on even a semi-regular basis.

In the last 12 games UMD has played on the big ice, it is 11-1, with the only loss last season to Northern Michigan. Over its last 30 games going back to the 2011-12 season, UMD is 18-9-3.

Should be a fun weekend. Weather looks fantastic, and TV VOX Zach Schneider is traveling on this trip. We'll show him the ropes. Or I'll sunbathe at the hotel while watching Baskets on Hulu. One or the other. Either way, talk next from Colorado barring any big and unexpected news at media day Wednesday. Follow @BruceCiskie on Twitter for the other stuff that happens.

Monday Musings: UMD Tramples Omaha for Five-Point Weekend

UMD coach Scott Sandelin made it abundantly clear before Saturday's game that a repeat of Friday -- a 2-2 tie and shootout win against Omaha -- wouldn't be good enough.

In lauding his captain, Dominic Toninato, for a strong game Friday, he also took time to express disappointment in other players.

"You talk about playing the game the right way, you get rewarded, and Dom got rewarded," Sandelin said. "We didn't have as many (players) as we needed (Friday night). There are some guys who need to get going. We had some passengers, and that's not a good thing. We need everyone pulling on the same chain. It's a little frustrating to see that out of some guys that we count on."

Sandelin wanted a better, more composed performance out of his entire group. He got what he wanted.

UMD used two quick power play goals in the second period to open up a lead, and the top-ranked Bulldogs cruised past Omaha 5-0 Saturday night in front of a standing room only crowd at Amsoil Arena.

After Omaha had three power plays come up empty in the first 22 minutes of the game, the Mavericks finally took their first penalties about five minutes later. The first lasted just 15 seconds before Toninato basically centered a pass to Alex Iafallo off the pad of Omaha goalie Evan Weninger. Iafallo had an open net to shoot at for a 2-0 lead. 1:35 later, Joey Anderson tipped an Adam Johnson center point shot for a 3-0 lead. That goal came 11 seconds into a power play, so the Bulldogs had two power play goals in all of 26 seconds of man advantage time. #Efficiency

Leading 3-0 into the third, there were a couple chances for the Mavericks to get back in the game. Kyle Osterberg took a tripping penalty while trying to deliver a hip check along the boards during an Omaha rush. The Mavericks got pressure on that power play, with three shots on goal, but Hunter Miska held his ground well in net. Shortly after that, Teemu Pulkkinen had a golden chance with Miska down and out in the crease, but the freshman goalie was able to get a glove on the shot for a save you'll probably see in the NCHC weekly highlight package when it comes out Tuesday.

UMD put the game out of reach at 12:50 of the third when Avery Peterson tipped a Brenden Kotyk point shot by Weninger to make it 4-0. Neal Pionk got open on the back door and took a perfect shot-pass from Iafallo at 17:31 to cap the scoring, and UMD finished off Miska's fifth shutout of the season. That ties the school single-season record held by Brant Nicklin (currently UMD's volunteer goalie coach), Alex Stalock, and Kasimir Kaskisuo.

******

Besides Miska, lots of stellar performances to talk about from Saturday.

Toninato was a beast both nights. I still believe Anderson will eventually return to that line, maybe that happens when Parker Mackay returns from his upper-body injury. But Johnson was very good on Saturday after a bit of a so-so Friday.

(Mackay skated last week and will presumably be able to continue doing that during the bye week. Sandelin was vague last week about a prognosis, but one has to think the Colorado College series isn't out of the question for Mackay. Based on the four-to-six week timeline that was mentioned when he went down, CC is at least a small possibility. Whenever he returns, expect another line shuffle. Maybe Johnson moves back to center, but certainly there will be moving parts.)

I thought this was one of Willie Raskob's better games of the year. Moved the puck well, was involved defensively, and Carson Soucy was a beast all weekend. Outside of a couple flubs with the puck from Nick Wolff early in the game, the defensemen were really good on this night.

Also, the fourth line of Sammy Spurrell, Billy Exell, and Blake Young -- who played for the first time in 11 games -- was on point. Spurrell was ejected in the second period for facemasking, but before that the trio turned in a strong performance. Spurrell won five of seven draws, Young was physical, and Exell used his speed to create a couple scoring chances.

******

Up next is a vast nothingness. UMD takes a week off before the trip to Colorado Springs Feb. 17-18. Just a shot in the dark, but I'll guess the team doesn't need any kind of reminder of what happened when Colorado College was in Duluth Jan. 6-7. That two-point weekend serves as the only serious blip in what's been a stellar season to date, and it leaves UMD still with precious little margin for error in the NCHC championship race.

The Bulldogs head into break with a five-point lead on Denver for first place, however the Pioneers face the Tigers this weekend for a home and home having won ten straight meetings against CC.

Both those teams were off last week, but when we last saw CC, Tigers goalie Alex Leclerc, who stymied UMD over two games in Duluth, was doing the same thing to defending national champion North Dakota. Over a two-game split at the Broadmoor World Arena, Leclerc stopped 83 of 88 shots -- including a 45-save shutout in the Saturday game. 

So not much has changed with Colorado College. The Tigers are playing enough defense in front of a talented young goalie whose confidence has to be sky-high at this point. Should be interesting to see if they can reverse their fortunes against the rival Pioneers this weekend.

As far as the blog, nothing new here until probably next Monday, barring news. Last bye of the season, so R-E-L-A-X, enjoy having the No. 1 team in the land, and we'll reconvene next week.

Monday Musings: UMD Wins Final North Star College Cup

Lots of important notes out of UMD's North Star College Cup championship Saturday night in St. Paul.

For starters, UMD does indeed claim the beautiful wooden trophy in the event's final season. It's the second of the five trophies -- joining the blue ox trophy won in Bemidji Dec. 17 -- the Bulldogs want to get their hands on this season (NCHC regular season and playoff championships and the NCAA title are the others).

UMD's 2-1 win over St. Cloud State improved the Bulldogs to 4-1 this year against the Huskies. UMD is also now 9-3-3 when the adversary scores first, 10-1-2 away from Duluth, 5-2-3 when trailing after the first period, 4-3-4 when behind after two periods, 7-4 in one-goal games, and 13-5 in games decided by one or two goals.

Kyle Osterberg's overtime goal also lifted the Bulldogs to a season-high fifth straight win.

Guess that three-game winless run out of the holiday break is forgotten about now, eh?

Osterberg got the initial chance on his scoring play, with a long shot off the rush that SCSU goalie Jeff Smith was able to steer aside, but the puck remained in play and Osterberg got to it first. He whipped a perfect pass out to the opposite point, where sophomore Neal Pionk didn't waste much time getting it back to the net. Osterberg had gone around the back of the goal and camped out at the left post, perfect position for the rebound.

(This is courtesy of @UMDhockeygifs, and we couldn't be more grateful.)



It wasn't always pretty. UMD struggled in the first period, and SCSU had more than a few shifts where it controlled the puck in the Bulldogs' end of the ice for a long time. But the Bulldogs blocked 18 shots (four by Jared Thomas, whose goal-scoring struggles are old news, but he was in front of the line Saturday, willing to risk injury to get in the way of shots; and Jimmy Schuldt isn't exactly Ryan Suter when it comes to shooting the puck), and in both games of this tournament, UMD did a great job keeping the adversary away from goalie Hunter Miska.

That isn't to say Miska didn't play well, or that he didn't earn MVP honors for the weekend. 66 saves on 69 shots will do that for someone. But his weekend could have been a lot more difficult than it was had UMD not been so dedicated to blocking shots and keeping the opponent on the perimeter.

It's hard to get a feel for the intensity of a game when you're way up in the press box like we were this weekend, but it didn't seem as if the pace was that of the Minnesota game Friday. This would normally benefit St. Cloud State, and the Huskies did a good job through 38 minutes. But UMD started to get going late in the second period, and really made life difficult for Smith in the third. Alex Iafallo jammed one home 42 seconds into the third to tie the score, and that top line with Iafallo, Dominic Toninato, and Adam Johnson started grinding down the Huskies in the third.

From there, UMD really controlled the overtime, with Smith denying Johnson on a partial breakaway early before UMD finally broke through for the winning goal.

******

Our friend Matt Wellens wrote a quality column in Monday's Duluth News Tribune, hopefully putting the end of this tournament to bed. Here's a snippet.

College hockey fans in Minnesota should feel disappointed and betrayed because the North Star College Cup is dead. The State of Hockey no longer has its own tournament to celebrate the college game, as they do in Michigan (Great Lakes Invitational) or Boston (Beanpot).
And you — the fans — are wrongfully being blamed for this tournament's demise.
Now, I know the attendance numbers weren't great, especially when you compare them to what the NHL's Minnesota Wild draw at Xcel Energy Center (19,008 average so far this year) or the records that the Minnesota State High School Hockey League boys state hockey tournament sets every year (22,224 last year for a Friday evening session featuring two Class AA semifinals) in St. Paul.
This year's North Star College Cup was the lowest in four years, drawing a two-day total of only 23,265. The first tournament drew 28,906 in 2014 — and those are just the announced attendance figures. The truth is, there were a lot fewer butts in the seats.
But what do you expect out of a tournament that's just four years old? It needs time to grow, especially since four of the five participants don't get to take part every year. Only the host Golden Gophers participated in all four tournaments.

I would echo much of what Matt wrote. And I never meant to come across as blaming the fans, so please tell me y'all didn't take my writings last week that way.

There's plenty of blame to go around here. As I said on Twitter Saturday, I'm very disappointed that no effort was made to play this tournament a different weekend.

SCSU's Bob Motzko suggested Christmas, but I like Scott Sandelin's Thanksgiving idea the more I think about it. High school hockey really hasn't started yet, and there aren't a lot of youth hockey events played that weekend because it's so early in the season. You have a lot less competition for people, even when you factor in Thanksgiving holiday travel.

I know college hockey interest tends to be a bit lower in the early part of the season, but if we're trying to build a special event, it might involve thinking outside the box.

Further, keep in mind that Minnesota made this event part of its season ticket packages. There's some grumbling that it would have left over 11,000 tickets to sell by the other schools, but it simply isn't realistic to place this tournament on season ticket packages, especially for UMD and Bemidji State. You're looking at four hours of drive time to get from Bemidji to XCel Energy Center, two and a half from Duluth. There's a good chance you love college hockey if you're reading this, and that's appreciated, but the 4,500 season ticket holders UMD has are not going to be happy if they're plunking down an extra $60 for season tickets so they can pay to attend the North Star College Cup if they have no intention of going.

Hopefully this is the last of me on this topic. For now.

******

UMD returns home and to NCHC play Friday and Saturday against Omaha. The Mavericks are off a sweep at the hands of Denver. Omaha kicked away a 2-0 lead in a 5-3 loss Friday, and the Mavericks were out of it early Saturday as DU won 5-0. UNO is still fifth in the league, very much alive for home ice and the NCAA Tournament, and you can expect a desperate visitor on Friday night.

UMD wasn't at its sharpest in its four-game homestand out of holiday break, but this has been an improved home team the last couple years and I would expect that to continue down the stretch.

Omaha's power play is still at 25 percent on the season, so the Bulldogs have to do a better job of avoiding penalties this weekend than it did in Omaha, where the Mavericks scored six power-play goals (and none at even strength).

Monday Musings: Bulldogs Blow Lead, Win in Overtime

Everything came up roses in the early going for UMD Saturday against St. Cloud State. The Bulldogs weren't overwhelmingly good, but instead pounced on opportunities and took a 3-0 lead on the Huskies when Dan Molenaar scored early in the second period.

But oh how things change when the team playing from ahead gives up a bad goal and becomes undisciplined. Blake Winiecki got SCSU on the board with a bad-angle shot that caught UMD goalie Hunter Miska off-guard. It was a rare miscue for Miska, who has been so solid this season, but it didn't look like he had any idea there was a puck coming his way.

Shortly after that, UMD began a parade to the penalty box. Jared Thomas took a double-minor (two for goalie interference, two for roughing), and St. Cloud State got a power play goal to make it 3-2. Thomas' penalty was just the first, however. Dominic Toninato got a slashing minor, and then Brenden Kotyk was ejected for a hit from behind 31 seconds later, giving the Huskies a long five-on-three and relegating UMD to five defensemen for the rest of the night.

Jimmy Schuldt unleashed a rocket of a one-timer from the high slot to tie the game during the five-on-three, but true to its season-long form, the UMD kill rallied back and killed off the rest of Kotyk's major to keep the game tied.

UMD came up empty on a five-minute power play of its own in the third, but largely controlled five-on-five play. Couldn't get one home, so it wasn't until Molenaar set up Kyle Osterberg's tip for the winning goal that UMD emerged victorious.

Good game, nice crowd, lively building (something we haven't seen enough of this season), and a good way to close out the homestand. UMD has been a much improved home team as of late, and it was uncharacteristic to see the Bulldogs go winless over three at Amsoil Arena (with just four regulation goals scored).

It wasn't a virtuoso, not at all. But heading into the weekend, I was looking for improvement. Friday against SCSU was better than Saturday against Colorado College. UMD took another positive step on Saturday, and not just because it won. Saturday was a more complete effort by the Bulldogs, one that can be built on as North Dakota looms.

******

It's not all duckies and bunnies. There's no panic over the fact UMD has taken major penalties in three of the four games since holiday break ended. Of the three, only one of them -- Willie Raskob's contact to the head major that drew a one-game suspension from the NCHC -- was a truly regrettable hit. Avery Peterson had no intent, but probably deserved an ejection for his hit in the Friday CC game.

The call on Kotyk looked good to me until I watched the replay. By no means is this a rip of the officials involved. They don't get to look at the replays, which appear to show Winiecki was already falling down and Kotyk barely made any contact. Live action, it looked -- and I said this -- like Kotyk followed through on a push to the back, and I can't be mad at the call that was made based on that.

What I can be mad at is the NCAA Rules Committee still refusing to allow video review of potential major penalties in the regular season. Officials were allowed to look at video of such plays during postseason games last year, something that was well-received by everyone involved.

"When there’s so much on the line come playoff time for these schools, I think everyone enjoys the fact that the right call is going to be made a very high percentage of the time," NCHC Director of Officiating Don Adam told me in September.

I continue to hold out hope the committee will see the light. On Will Borgen's interference major in the third period, the officials spent the entire media timeout discussing the hit (a high and late hit on UMD's Neal Pionk) and still hadn't reached a verdict when we came back from break. Allow them to review that video, and there's no doubt in my mind the delay isn't as long.

(By the way, the replay I saw, it looked like Borgen got Pionk square in the head. Since I was pretty vehement about the fact Raskob deserved a suspension for his hit, I would be negligent of my duty if I didn't say Borgen deserves and should get a game for his hit. We'll see if the NCHC takes action.)

Anyway, I really don't think there's any reason for panic. There's an element of bad luck involved here. That said, I am a bit concerned about the poorly-timed run of penalties in the second period of a game UMD led 3-0. The Bulldogs took six penalties in the game, all in the second period. All six infractions occurred in a span of 5:06. Is it worth panicking over a game where the adversary had four power plays? No. But UMD has to do a better job avoiding runs like that.

******

Next up is the return trip up Highway 2, as North Dakota gets the rematch it's probably had circled since UMD finished a home sweep Oct. 29.

(I'm not sure anyone will admit it in Grand Forks, but let's not be dumb. This matters to them, and it should.)

Those two UMD wins in Duluth moved the Bulldogs to No. 1 in the national rankings for the first time. They held that spot -- outside of one week -- until the CC games in Duluth Jan. 6-7 knocked them from the perch.

Since playing UMD, North Dakota has gotten healthier -- Brock Boeser is back from wrist surgery in December, an injury that had impacted him for some time before he got cut open -- and the Fighting Hawks appear poised to make a run. There was a hiccup Friday against Miami, as the RedHawks scored five in the third period to win 6-3, but UND is 4-1 since its holiday break ended, and included in that was a two-game sweep in Omaha where it put up 16 goals.

I do think North Dakota can be vulnerable in the back, a spot it was quite strong last year, but the biggest key for UMD is avoiding matchup nightmares with the UND top lines while playing on the road. Boeser and star freshman Tyson Jost are separated at the moment, so we'll see which line Brad Berry wants dealing with Carson Soucy, and which one has to deal with Pionk. Neither are a picnic to play against.

Monday Musings: Lethargic, Lackluster Bulldogs Get What They Have Coming in Saturday Loss

A long, long time ago, UMD coach Scott Sandelin responded to a blowout loss by saying something along these lines (I'm paraphrasing, but the general point is accurate):

"They got what they deserved, and we got what we deserved."

Whenever those were spoken, it was indeed after a blowout loss by UMD. But they are often true when a game is played, no matter the final margin. They were true again on Saturday, when Colorado College got what it deserved, and UMD got what it deserved.

The final result was a 2-1 Tiger win, and while there are a lot of things I want to discuss in this here blog entry, the first thing that has to be done -- because it's 1) true, and 2) the right thing to do -- is to give credit where it's due.

Colorado College played very well defensively. The Tigers blocked 29 shots on the weekend (20 Friday), disrupted UMD's passing lanes, and got strong goaltending from freshman Alex Leclerc (.939 save percentage in six starts before the weekend, .958 save percentage in two games against UMD).

CC got timely goals from Mason Bergh (Saturday) and Sam Rothstein (short-handed on Friday) to shift momentum, and a five-on-three goal from Teemu Kivihalme Saturday provided the game's final margin. That stung for UMD because it came after a long five-on-three kill had started very well for the home team.

Sometimes, it's not necessarily about how many goals a team scores, but more when those goals happen. Rothstein's goal sparked one of the worst stretches of hockey UMD has played all season, and Bergh's Saturday marker seemed to take some life out of the UMD bench, as it was CC's first real scoring chance of the night.

Leclerc didn't really make any mind-blowing, "How did he do that?" saves. But he was a rock when his team needed him. The numbers over eight games tell you that he's playing well, and his team is defending well in front of him.

******

What happened? Well, it wasn't just the Tigers playing well. UMD wasn't sharp. Passes weren't crisp, guys weren't catching the accurate ones. Movements weren't those of a confident, sure-of-themselves group. Everything just looked a little off. And when you're even five percent off in the NCHC, you're probably not going to win. It was a good, hard reminder of the required level of play each night in this difficult league.

In another reminder of how not-sharp UMD was this past weekend, the Bulldogs took their first two major penalties of the 2016-17 season in the series. Avery Peterson was ejected for a check from behind Friday, and Willie Raskob got a game misconduct -- and likely a one-game suspension from the NCHC to be announced early this week -- for contact to the head on Saturday.

(A segment of UMD fans bristle when I argue a Bulldog should be suspended. If a CC player had delivered that hit to a UMD player, there'd be Bulldog fans advocating that player be removed from the league. So please understand we are trying to operate with a modicum of fairness, even though you all know we want UMD to win. I thought Raskob's hit was over the line and unnecessary, and it certainly warrants a suspension. He's not a dirty player. He made a mistake. It happens, but the fact he's not a dirty player doesn't excuse him from the rules.)

Heard a lot of fans complaining about the long break between games. One person even told me the break was a week longer than it was, because it felt like it was that long. Before the weekend series even started, I had two players privately tell me how tough it has been to get back in the groove after the holiday break, largely because the team had just finished up a two-week break before the Denver series.

None of these things were meant to be excuses. I mean, the player conversations I had came days before the CC series even began on Friday. They didn't know how it was going to play out, even if the words became a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Heck, I had conversations with people before the holiday break about how different it would be coming out of that one versus preparing for Denver. First off, that was a No. 1 vs No. 2 series and there was plenty of hype. Also, keep in mind the players were in a normal routine of school and practice during the week.

The other team is on break, too, however, so the logic can only take you so far. The Bulldogs needed to play better than they did, and surely they'll be reminded of that throughout the week as St. Cloud State approaches on Friday.

******

I've tried to exercise more and more patience with the officials. I've defended them in arguments with people, to the point where I'm sure some longtime followers wonder if there's something wrong with me. 😁

When I wrote about the re-emphasis of "standard of play" by the NCAA in September, it came with the obvious caution that not all officials are going to call the game the same way. That said, the hope was players and coaches would adjust and we'd see a quick improvement in the way the game was going to be played.

Apparently, that standard of play expired at the end of 2016.

And if you don't believe me, ask Matt Wellens, who saw the same game I did (I think):

This weekend — tonight especially — the rules emphasis appeared nonexistent, as if we were transported back to the 2015-16 season.
Holding along the boards? No call.
Chipping players or impeding them as they came into the offensive zone? No call.
Hooking? Some got called, but too many “red flag” moments when the stick got parallel with the skater and made contact went uncalled.
It made this series tough to watch, and the fans who had come to expect one thing got frustrated they were back to getting what they were told was now dead.

I'm all for letting the kids play. We don't need to see 20 power plays in a game. However, when there are constant restraining fouls being let go (both ways, yes, but it went more one direction than the other), it makes the game almost impossible. This was the most-like-2004ish hockey game I've seen since, well, 2004. That, friends, isn't a good thing.

The signature moment came while UMD was killing off Raskob's major on Saturday. Dominic Toninato decided to drive into the offensive zone, basically by himself, while UMD changed behind him. He was impeded trying to drive the net, lost the puck, and then took an illegal check while not in possession of the puck near the end boards.

I know players have been known to embellish contact while killing a penalty in hopes of getting a call to nullify the power play, but the second hit was interference and probably roughing as well. Nothing was called. Very frustrating for everyone in attendance, to say the least.

The NCHC has been better than this (I actually think, in whole, the league has done a great job enforcing standard of play while not taking too much away from the games), and I'm fully confident it will be again. But Saturday was difficult to watch, and might not have been with a little more love given to the standard of play emphasis.

(Long-view, UMD needed to do a better job fighting through some of the stickwork and body restraint that was going on. Goes back to the Bulldogs just not being totally in tune with the details of the game, something they've been quite good at most of the season.)

******

Moving on now, thankfully. UMD won't be No. 1 entering this weekend against St. Cloud State. Games are 7pm Friday and Saturday at Amsoil Arena.

The Huskies will be pretty much as ticked off as the Bulldogs entering the weekend. St. Cloud State lost a 2-0 lead in a 3-2 overtime loss to Miami on Friday, then never led in a 4-1 loss on Saturday.

The turning point of Friday was when SCSU forward Jacob Benson was given a five-minute major for contact to the head and a game misconduct when he backed into a Miami player in the neutral zone. The contact appeared to be with the RedHawk player's head, but it was a weird play that was similar to some big hits by Detroit Red Wings defenseman Niklas Kronwall over the years. I know a lot of SCSU fans were irritated with the call, but honestly looking at the replay I don't have a huge issue with it. Good chance it wasn't a correct call, but remember the officials don't get multi-angle replay views before deciding on a major penalty call. And I can't argue the idea that hit looked really bad live action.

(Potential major penalties can be reviewed, but only in the postseason.)

St. Cloud's goaltending has been a bit suspect this year, as the Huskies have struggled to replace departed star Charlie Lindgren. Sophomore Mikey Eyssimont has ten goals, Duluth native Judd Peterson nine, and World Juniors gold medalist Jack Ahcan has 13 points in 16 games. SCSU's depth isn't what it was last year, but this is still a dangerous team that has a solid power play and just doesn't take a lot of penalties.

Looking forward to a good series. UMD wasn't at its best last weekend, but there's no reason to be worried unless it happens again right away. With this group, I'm betting strong that it won't.

Monday (Yes, it's Tuesday) Musings: UMD Back to Work, Readying for Grind

UMD hasn't played in four of the last six weekends after playing at least an exhibition in every weekend since Oct. 1-2.

Hopefully, the nation's No. 1 team enjoyed its rest.

The Bulldogs return to action Friday night, starting a two-game NCHC series against Colorado College. Between then and March 4, UMD will play seven NCHC weekend sets and its final non-conference games at the (possibly final?) North Star College Cup in St. Paul. 16 games with one weekend off before the playoffs begin -- hopefully at home -- on March 10.

If all goes well for the Bulldogs -- and you all know where this team intends to end its season -- the Bulldogs will play 24 games and take just two weekends off before finishing up.

And, no, the schedule doesn't get any easier for UMD.

Colorado College might be in last place in the NCHC, but the Tigers won the Florida College Classic last week, beating Merrimack 3-0 and then Cornell 2-1 in overtime in the championship game. Goalie Alex Leclerc stopped 49 of 50 shots in the two games, picking up just his second and third wins of the season.

The Tigers are in a similar position to when they visited Duluth for Hockey Day Minnesota weekend last year. They're playing better hockey than they might have been earlier in the year, and while last year's team had picked up nice NCHC wins over St. Cloud State and Omaha, this one just won a holiday tournament and conceded just one goal in two games. 5-12-1 doesn't look like much, but CC is playing a more structured defensive game than it was. The Tigers are down about a half a goal allowed per game from last season, even though the team save percentage is down slightly (.880 compared to last year's .886). Leclerc's efforts in Florida lifted him to .884 on the season.

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Along with a return trip to Colorado Springs next month, UMD also hosts St. Cloud State, Omaha, and Miami, while traveling to North Dakota and Western Michigan, along with the North Star Cup trip. There will not be much -- if any -- damage done to UMD's schedule strength ratings down the stretch.

Much was made before the Bemidji State series about how good a defensive team the Beavers are. There's no question that is true. BSU isn't at 1.62 goals allowed per game by some sort of freak accident.

Goals against alone is a sketchy way to measure a team's defensive prowess, but run with me on this for a second. UMD is eighth nationally in goals against, and the Bulldogs so far this season have played ten games against five teams that are also in the top ten. UMD is 7-2-1 in those ten games (2-0 against both Michigan Tech and North Dakota, 1-0-1 against Bemidji State, 1-1 each against Denver and Notre Dame), outscoring opponents 32-18 with two shutouts.

What does this mean? It means UMD can play good hockey against strong defensive teams. This is a veteran group capable of adapting when a team wants to try to put the clamp down on them.

It's also a team that's taken advantage of its scoring chances, even when they've been scarce.

We talked before the Denver series about UMD's need to improve its puck possession game. That need hasn't changed much in the four games since that first double-bye. UMD did a very good job keeping Bemidji State from generating much in the Saturday road win, especially in the third period. Bemidji State spent most of the last 3:30 on the power play without generating a shot on goal.

However, UMD is still struggling mightily on faceoffs (55th of 60 teams nationally), and the Bulldogs have been outshot at even strength six times in 18 games, already more times than it happened all of last season.

It's one of very few warts in UMD's game at this point in the season, but something the coaching staff will keep working to correct through the second half.

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Many of you are aware of changes in the Duluth radio scene. I am now at Midwest Communications, plying my craft on the KQ Morning Show and doing whatever else is asked of me. However, I will continue to call UMD games as 92.1 The Fan remains a Red Rock-owned station.

Confused? I get it.

So what does this mean for UMD hockey fans? A couple things you need to know:

For starters, men's hockey games starting Friday will no longer be heard on KBAJ  (105.5 FM - Deer River/Grand Rapids) or KAOD (106.7 FM - Babbitt/Ely), and instead will only be heard on 92.1 The Fan (WWAX-FM) in the Duluth area.

Also, our streaming will change. Starting Friday, you can find the games here. Simply click or tap -- the site works on mobile devices -- on the game you want to stream and follow the on-screen instructions. I know it's not the most user-friendly interface on Earth, but it is free.

If you have questions or problems, please contact play by play voice Bruce Ciskie (bciskie@gmail.com) or Red Rock internet director Rich Cannata (rcannata@redrockradio.org). Thanks in advance for your support.

Monday Musings: Rally Falls Short and Season Ends in Worcester

Well, for a second straight season, UMD wrapped up its season with a heartbreaking 3-2 Northeast Regional final loss to a Boston school. This time, it was Boston College in Worcester, not nearly as controversial as last year's Boston University defeat in Manchester.

Instead, Saturday was a game UMD very well could have won were it not for the exploits of Thatcher Demko, the Mike Richter Award and Hobey Baker finalist who made some incredible saves and kept his team in the game at times where UMD was dominating play. Demko got backing from captain Teddy Doherty, who continued a huge senior season by scoring twice, and Ryan Fitzgerald, who put home his 23rd of the season for a 3-0 lead in the third period.

Wonder if anyone in the building or watching at home thought that would be the game-winning goal when it happened.

UMD got a power-play goal from Austin Farley, then a goal from Karson Kuhlman on a scramble in front to make it 3-2 with more than four minutes left. UMD buzzed on a late power play, but Willie Raskob's stick exploded in the left circle, and Tony Cameranesi's cross-slot pass hopped the stick of Farley on the goal line before BC cleared it to clinch the win.

Ugh. That close.

Demko really made a huge difference, and the Eagles got two timely goals from their captain to get going on the scoreboard and open up a lead. UMD still made it interesting, but BC's opportunism really burned the Bulldogs while Demko held them at bay just enough.

When you see a team put forth the kind of effort UMD did on Saturday, it really is hard to be down on them. A really good team lost by one goal to a really good team. It's truly as simple as that.

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It could be a news-worthy offseason for UMD. First off, there's always the looming possibility of early departures in college hockey. Minnesota has already lost Hudson Fasching, Michael Brodzinski, and Nick Seeler one year early. Omaha lost Jake Guentzel. Michigan is going to lose like half its team. It happens.

For UMD, there could be a few. Drafted players like Dominic Toninati and Carson Soucy have decisions to make, and there are free agents on the roster who might decide to turn pro, too. Based on what we know about the Wild and Seeler, it's likely GM Chuck Fletcher will present the pros and cons of leaving early to Soucy, then let the player make an informed decision.

Oh, and head coach Scott Sandelin's contract will expire after the 2016-17 season. UMD is 95-77-23 (.546) since Sandelin signed his last extension after the 2011 NCAA title win. That's up 38 percentage points from his current career number of .508 (287-277-65). Coaches at this level rarely coach the final year of their contracts (yeah, I know Red Berenson did, but he's freaking 76), so it'll be interesting to see what happens there.

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Lots of talk about the terrible regional attendance. This is not a recording.

It was not good in Worcester, especially after Providence was eliminated. You might not believe this, but Providence is basically as close to Worcester as Boston is, so the Friars fans were out in full force on Friday. Many more of them than Boston College fans in the building, and the place really emptied out after the UMD-Providence game ended.

Attendance in Cincinnati didn't look good. Attendance in Albany didn't look good. Attendance in St. Paul was embarrassing.

A few thoughts.

• Whoever it was in the NCAA that decided the XCel Energy Center was a good place for an NCAA regional needs to rethink their philosophy. They've yet to have a well-attended regional there, regardless of Minnesota's involvement. This was deplorable and should end this "regionals in NHL-size buildings" bit forever.
• The Cincinnati bit also needs to end. It doesn't work, even with Michigan and North Dakota playing there. Wait until Miami makes the tournament and has to play there and is joined by Notre Dame. It'll work about as well there as it did in Toledo.
• Worcester is a bigger building, and they tarped off the upper deck with nearby Providence and Boston College playing. Nothing will ever draw better than that in that particular building.
• Manchester gets another regional next year, which will be great if New Hampshire makes the tournament. Otherwise, ugh.
• Anyway, ticket prices are insanely high. They price out all but the most dedicated fans of participating teams, especially when you factor in the cost of travel on short notice (oh and it was Easter weekend). $86 for all sessions in Worcester. $90 in St. Paul. $60ish for single sessions. It's too much. Obviously these regional hosts are making money, because otherwise they'd stop bidding on regionals. They don't, and places like Worcester, Manchester, and Bridgeport are hosting constantly. But if someone doesn't look at this problem, nothing else that is done will matter.

Sandelin was on Beyond The Pond on KFAN Saturday and said he likes the format of neutral-site regionals, but "you have to find the right ones." He referenced Fargo last year (they host again next year), and while that looked great on TV and received rave reviews, it's a rare building in the West that doesn't house a Division I program but is close enough to one to sell out when said team (North Dakota, duh) makes the tournament. Is Fargo close enough to St. Cloud, the Twin Cities, Duluth, etc. to draw well if North Dakota has a down year?

I'm in favor of letting home sites bid on regionals, but what happens to UMD if the Bulldogs host a regional at Amsoil Arena and miss the tournament? It's an issue here, too.

(How about buildings with actual press boxes first? Worcester doesn't have one, and neither does Manchester. I don't need an XCel Energy Center-size press box or anything, but it's nice to not be calling games from a makeshift press row set up in the nosebleed seats of an arena.)

In all seriousness, we're going to keep talking about this, and it's just not likely anything is done. There are no quick fixes, no easy answers.

(I've been in favor of letting top seeds host regionals before, but the problem with that is arranging transportation and lodging for three teams on very short notice. How tough would it be to find 100+ hotel rooms in, say, St. Cloud on three days notice? The answer is "very," and the benefits are outweighed by the logistical issues that would crop up.)

The discussion on Twitter is good, for the most part, and I hope someone can figure something out. Right now, what we have is just not acceptable.

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Offseason is underway. I presume we will have a press conference with Sandelin at some point this week to wrap up the season. Might get a few more answers on potential departures at that point.

Keep following on Twitter for quick updates on departures, recruiting, and contracts. Always my favorite things to talk about!

Monday Musings: Seniors, Kaskisuo Secure Sweep

Fitting, I must say, that UMD's Senior Night ceremony led to some unheralded seniors making huge contributions in the Bulldogs' latest key victory.

Pregame, head coach Scott Sandelin lauded his eight-man class, saying "Some have been great contributors. Some maybe don't feel like they have been but they have. Every guy's a valuable member."

Even better: This wasn't their last home game. UMD's win Friday guaranteed one more series on home ice, which we'll talk about in a smidge.

In UMD's 3-1 win Saturday, senior defenseman Willie Corrin opened the scoring with his first goal of the season in the first period, and classmate Charlie Sampair gave UMD the lead for good early in the third.

Corrin has been more confident in the offensive zone as of late, and on his goal, he drove down the left boards with the puck and cut to the front, where his initial shot was stopped by Miami goalie Jay Williams before he put the rebound home. 

Miami was able to assert itself defensively more on Saturday than Friday. The RedHawks did a very good job cutting down on scoring chances, holding UMD to just 21 shots on the night and pestering the Bulldogs throughout the night.

I thought captain Sean Kuraly led the way for Miami from the start. He was strong in all three zones, and was a beast on the penalty kill for Miami as UMD was held to one shot in two scoreless power plays in the first period. Freshman Jack Roslovic was very good as well, after being hard to find for a chunk of Friday's affair.

Miami tied the game in the second period, as Kiefer Sherwood was set up at the doorstep by Kuraly and Roslovic. That goal came in the final two minutes of the second period, but it wasn't tied for long.

Less than two and a half minutes into the third, Tony Cameranesi stole a puck near the blue line and got a shot on Williams, who made the initial save but kicked the rebound into the left circle, where Sampair was able to drive it home for a 2-1 lead. Sampair is close to his 100th career game (96 after Saturday), and it'd be great to get him there. He struggled to get in the lineup as a freshman, and suffered a season-ending injury as he was really gaining traction in his sophomore season. 100 might not be a ton of games for a four-year guy, but for Sampair, I believe it's a meaningful accomplishment.

Sophomore goalie Kasimir Kaskisuo made that lead stand up, making a great save on Kuraly late when Miami went with six skaters. He made 20 saves on the night and 40 on 41 shots in the series, securing the NCHC goaltending title with a 1.69 goals against, edging out North Dakota's Cam Johnson, who finished with a 1.80 goals against in league play after allowing three goals on four shots in the first 12 minutes of UND's eventual 5-4 win over Western Michigan Saturday.

Kaskisuo is up to a .926 save percentage on the season, including .932 in 23 NCHC games. He is currently two-thousandths of a percentage point ahead of Alex Stalock (.924 in 2008-09) for the best save percentage in a single season in program history.

(His .917 from last year ranks third, behind Stalock and Josh Johnson, who was a .922 goalie as a senior in 2006-07).

I'm checking with UMD on this, but the Bulldogs' team save percentage of .922 is likely a single-season record as well (.920 in 2008-2009 is the highest I can find).

By the way, Kaskisuo's last six starts: 4-2 record, 1.16 goals against, .959 save percentage.

Seems that's pretty good.

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The mission last week was to get home ice. That's accomplished, but there is a lot more work to be done.

The math wizards at College Hockey News say UMD is better than a 50/50 shot to make the national tournament, but I guarantee you that chance reduces to near zero if UMD doesn't win this weekend.

It's Miami again, and this time it's a best of three to move on to Target Center and the NCHC Frozen Faceoff. If UMD wins the series in two straight, I believe the Bulldogs would need only one win at Target Center to secure an NCAA bid, but that depends on who else advances in the tournament.

(The home teams in this weekends' playoff series are 14-0-2 against the visiting teams, including UMD's 3-0-1 mark against Miami. Normally, I'd be inclined to pick some upsets this weekend, but I don't know where I would start on that venture.)

The Bulldogs have gotten hot here, but the hole they were in was pretty deep. To keep playing beyond this weekend, UMD must stay hot.

Monday Musings: Sweep Puts UMD in Better Position

Not sure you could have scripted a better weekend for UMD hockey. Both the men and women swept their road series, with the men likely staying alive for an NCAA at-large bid while the women kept their season alive in the WCHA playoffs.

(Great weekend for UMD junior Lara Stalder -- a goal and two assists Friday and one and one Saturday including the overtime game-winning goal -- and for senior goalie Kayla Black, who stopped 79 of 81 Bemidji State shots. The reward? No. 1 seed Wisconsin in a semifinal on Saturday afternoon. UMD needs to win Saturday and again Sunday to get the automatic bid. No at-large shot for the Bulldogs this year.)

The men needed wins. It wasn't just about the NCAA Tournament. We've beaten the horse beyond recognition this season. UMD was playing good hockey for the most part, but couldn't catch a break, and the Bulldogs were running out of time to turn things around.

Two wins in St. Cloud might not mean things are turned around, but it's as good a sign as anything we've seen since the Minnesota series in October, if we've seen those signs at all.

It's not about the PairWise, instead about what's between the ears.

Assistant coach Jason Herter bluntly said last week that he's "run out of speeches" for the team. So the timing of this is certainly good.

How did it happen? Well, I'm glad you asked.

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On Friday night, UMD started its top line -- Dominic Toninato centering Alex Iafallo and Adam Johnson -- and St. Cloud State opted to go with its second line, centered by David Morley. 39 seconds later, UMD led 1-0 on a rebound goal by Johnson.

For much of the remainder of the weekend, Toninato's line was matched against Kalle Kossila's top line of SCSU. I thought Toninato's group did a fantastic job when given that opportunity. And they played a lot of minutes, part of the reason for the matchup.

(Dom got destroyed in the faceoff circle this past weekend, but the line still did a good job defensively. Also, Toninato's line was probably the best on the team at pushing the puck out of the defensive zone. Despite big minutes against top SCSU players, they were rarely hemmed in for an extended period of time, and they were much more efficient than others on the weekend when given chances to clear pucks, even it meant taking an icing.)

That's not the only way UMD won. Far from it.

No matter who was on the ice, the Bulldogs played a smart, competitive, committed defensive game on Saturday, after admittedly being a bit too loose in Friday's win and getting bailed out by goalie Kasimir Kaskisuo (career high 49 saves Friday). UMD kept SCSU's prime scoring chances to a minimum on Saturday, keeping Kaskisuo clean for the most part and allowing him to see the puck.

(The Huskies' power play goal was an exception to this rule, but it was about the only exception.)

And it's hard to lose when you never trail (0:00 in 120:00 against St. Cloud State) and are rarely tied (29:00 of 120:00). That leaves UMD with a lead for 91 of 120 minutes in a weekend series, and that's okay.

(It's actually better than that.)

Karson Kuhlman had a huge weekend with three goals -- including the eventual winner Saturday on a great tip -- and an assist. The UMD defense was outstanding, especially Andy Welinski and Neal Pionk, who played big minutes against all of SCSU's top guys and acquitted themselves very well.

Defense is a five-man bit, but every blue-liner in the lineup made a big play at some point on the weekend, and when you have that and not many mistakes at the other end, you're not going to lose a lot of hockey games.

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One weekend remains in the regular season, as UMD battles Miami this weekend in Duluth. The teams are tied at 31 points, but UMD holds the tiebreaker edge. That means UMD needs to just split the series somehow to get home ice. And it's more than likely the Bulldogs will play Miami again the following weekend, unless the UMD-Miami series ends in a sweep and Omaha sweeps Denver (unlikely, I'd say).

UMD took four points at Miami in January, tying 1-1 (losing in three-on-three) before winning 5-2. The Bulldogs only tallied once all weekend, however, against red-hot RedHawks goalie Jay Williams, who won twice over the weekend against Colorado College to continue his strong play as of late. Williams has allowed two or fewer goals in ten of his last 14 starts, including back-to-back shutouts of the Tigers over the weekend.

It's just another goaltending code for UMD to crack in a league full of very good goalies.

(Think about it: Half the NCHC's goalies are up for the Mike Richter Award, and none of them are Williams, who has started 12 straight games since Ryan McKay got the start in the Saturday game against UMD and faltered.)

It'll be an interesting weekend for sure, largely because it's another in a series of better-win games for UMD that sets up an absolute must-win the following weekend, likely against the same team and quite possibly in the same building.

If UMD can win twice this weekend and get by whoever (Miami or UNO) in the first round of the NCHC playoffs the following weekend, it might not need to win the NCHC title to make the NCAAs. That's what this SCSU series may very well have provided UMD: Margin for error.

That and some much needed confidence. I know it's a tacky word to some, but seeing rewards for hard work means something when you've seen as few this year as UMD has. Now, we get to see if there is any carry-over to another huge weekend.

Monday Musings on a Tuesday: Bad Things Keep Happening

Very similar to the Saturday puppy blog, I just don't know what to say to you guys. So this will be quick.

I mean, UMD, by my admittedly biased but hopefully not totally inaccurate estimation, played four good to very good/great games against a great North Dakota team. UMD controlled the majority of the four games, including dictating pace this past weekend in a tough place to play.

Two goals on 139 shots, one power-play goal in 16 chances, and more importantly, zero NCHC standings points.

Zero. As in "none," "not any," or maybe "not even one damn point."

Looks so bad, no matter what the product looked like.

UMD played strong defensively (the Brock Boeser winning goal late Saturday was really the only significant mistake UMD made in its own zone all weekend) and had the puck a lot, especially Friday.

Nothing to show for it.

Plainly, it (bleeping) sucks.

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Two things from the Twitter crowd.

--> Lots of frustration, which is understandable. I'm not going to directly address the "fire the coach" mob, despite them being convinced they have a good case built around what the Wild have done since Mike Yeo was let go. This coach shouldn't be fired. No one has quit on Scott Sandelin, and changing coaches isn't going to magically cure the run of terrible luck this team has endured.

(Find me a team that's hit more goalposts and broken more sticks to ruin offensive zone possessions than UMD has this season. It's uncanny. You see a defenseman find a soft spot in the circle, someone passes it to his wheelhouse, he winds, and his stick explodes.)

--> People want to know what UMD (25th in the PWR) has to do to get back in at-large consideration. I don't pretend to be a math expert, but I'd say at this point it starts with sweeping St. Cloud, which would also give UMD the season series against a really good team. That can't hurt, though I admit to being clueless about how much it would actually help.

--> Lastly, people want to know if this team can get hot. I believe in this team until there are no more games to call. I'm not giving up and I know the team isn't. There are games to play, so hell yes this team can get hot. I freely admit they're running out of time, but it can happen, and the talent is there. Just ask, well, any coach or scout involved in this league.

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The not-terribly-smart hit by UND defenseman Troy Stecher on UMD senior Tony Cameranesi at 20:00 of the third period Saturday night drew him a one-game suspension from the league.

Troy Stecher's hit on Tony Cameranesi - no replay from UND broadcast, made my own https://t.co/6LL7dGicFL

— CJ Fogler (@cjzero) February 21, 2016

I hated the hit, and I'm glad the league acted. It was pretty cheap, in my estimation, and it came when the game was basically over. There was no "within the context of the game" moment. It was a hit Stecher didn't need to throw, and I'm sure he knows this without some radio hack in Duluth scolding him in a blog.

Stecher's a good player and a trusted leader on his team. He's a better player than he showed on that hit. UND will miss him in Omaha Friday night, and it will welcome him back with open arms on Saturday.

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From the frying pan to the fire.

UMD heads to St. Cloud State this weekend with one more chance to play spoiler in the league title race. SCSU and UND are tied at 47 points, six points up on Denver, which closes with Western Michigan and Omaha. SCSU finishes with us and then Colorado College, while UND gets Omaha and Western Michigan.

In case you still care about who wins the league.

UMD is tied for fourth with Omaha and Miami. Omaha has the tiebreaker at the moment. Here are the remaining schedules.

Omaha: vs North Dakota, at Denver
UMD: at St. Cloud State, vs Miami
Miami: vs Colorado College, at UMD

And that's it for a brief update. Enjoy the high school hockey section finals this week, and hey the Wild are playing hockey again, so there's that, too. Talk from St. Cloud.