UMD Travels in Style

SHELTON, Conn. -- I told Jack Connolly he had to blog about this, but hockey players aren't always the quickest to do such things.

UMD was forced by circumstances to take a charter flight to Connecticut for Friday's NCAA East Regional clash with Union College of Schenectady, N.Y.

(You try to find 40 seats on a flight to Connecticut -- or even nearby New York City -- on this short of notice. It ain't easy.)

The aircraft that was sent to Duluth for this task? A 737 equipped with so many seats that entire rows were empty. Fantastic. Nice and comfortable, and enough to draw some looks and words of surprise from players as they boarded. The best part? Dan DeLisle didn't have to duck.

Neither did I.

Even better? Most of the people who wanted to were able to sit in their own row. At worst, take the window, and someone takes the aisle, leaving plenty of leg room.

Best hockey plane trip of the year, no doubt. We should charter more often.

Now, we have to hope that this isn't the highlight of the weekend.

The Bulldogs match up well with a Union team that -- by all accounts -- likes to get up and down the rink. I'm not sure if the comparison to Nebraska-Omaha is valid, but UNO brings a lot of speed to the table, with some physical guys in the back to help keep those forwards skating.

I haven't seen enough of Union to label them as similar, but when I hear about teams in our league that like to get up and down the rink and might not be the most physical up front, that's who I think of first.

If UMD doesn't play their game, they're in trouble. Anyone will acknowledge that.

But if you look at the four regional brackets for the tournament, there is no question that the East Regional is the most favorable for UMD in terms of their chances of advancing.

In the Midwest, there are two WCHA teams in Denver and North Dakota. While I'm wholly convinced that UMD can beat both of them, the UND matchup isn't the most favorable because of their size and ability to win battles along the wall.

The Northeast Regional includes a Miami team that ended UMD's magical run in 2009. It also has a Merrimack team that looks scary as hell. The Warriors have a legit star in Stephane da Costa, and some big bangers on defense. Merrimack was the most penalized team in the country during the season, and it wasn't for a bunch of hooking minors.

All you have to look at in the West is top seed and defending champion Boston College. They're not big and imposing, but they're tough, smart, damn good, and very experienced. I tend to believe experience is overrated, because when people talk about rings in college sports, credit is often given to guys who didn't play a big role on a past championship team. Boston College has those guys. They also have a goalie -- John Muse -- who is 8-0 all-time in the NCAA Tournament. They have guys like Cam Atkinson up front, who was a star on last year's title team.

It's not just experience. It's guys who played a big role in their titles and are still around.

In the East, you have a Yale team that nearly tasted the Frozen Four last year, went out because their defense and goaltending needed to improve, and then improved those things. Union has steadily gotten better under Nate Leaman, and they are not a slouch despite their history.

If you believe in experience, UMD has advantages, thanks to guys like Jack Connolly, Mike Connolly, Justin Fontaine (them again!), Mike Montgomery, Brady Lamb, and Travis Oleksuk, all of whom -- among others -- played on the 2009 team. However, this is the first NCAA dance for key players like Kenny Reiter, Justin Faulk, J.T. Brown, Jake Hendrickson, and Wade Bergman.

In the end, in a tournament that is typically all about matchups, UMD did well with their draw. For a No. 3 seed, you can't ask much more than that.

Now, it's up to them to show everyone why they were a top team in the polls and Pairwise for much of the season.

Travel Misadventures: Running With Scissors

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Greetings from Gate 4 at the Colorado Springs Airport, where we sit and await the arrival of a plane from the Twin Cities.

Once the plane lands, they unload the bags, stuff our bags in, leave a bunch of other bags here, and get us on board, we'll be heading to the Cities. An 11:10 flight (Mountain time) has already been pushed back to 11:49, and since the plane isn't here yet, I don't like our chances of leaving on time (even if you define "on time" in this case as being 39 minutes late).

I'm not here to bore you with stats about late flights, or drone on about the somewhat-frustrating 3-3 tie UMD settled for Saturday night.

Instead, here's a story to make you feel really safe when you fly again.

As you know, everyone who is a ticketed passenger has to go through a security check. They run your bags through the scanner, and then you take off your shoes (and belt if you have one), empty your pockets, and walk through the body scanner.

When a radio guy travels to call hockey games, he has to carry a bag full of microphone cords, headsets, and the necessary equipment to broadcast a game. Makes sense that TSA would want to go through the bag thoroughly, no matter how carefully it's packed. I've come to learn that they really don't care. They tend to let me go anyway.

On this trip, I traveled with a duffel bag-type thing for the gear. Carried a headset, a mic to get crowd noise with, and the equipment that I plug into to do the game. Since it was so light, I threw my pack of movies that I always bring on the road into it. I ran it and my laptop bag through the scanner, walked through the body scanner, and went to wait for my stuff.

When the TSA lady pulled the gear bag out and asked me if it was mine, I said it was. No worries. I actually think the process is working well when they look through that bag.

I gasped audibly when she pulled a pair of scissors out of the front pocket of the bag, a pocket I didn't even know existed.

And these weren't small scissors out of a sewing kit or something. These were big ones. Adult size scissors.

She ran them through some kind of check, then re-scanned the bag. After that, I picked up the bag, and was shocked again.

Why?

Because she gave me back the scissors.

Aghast, I went to the TSA website, wondering what's allowed and what isn't. Oddly, scissors are permitted, as long as they are "metal with pointed tips and blades shorter than four inches."

This blade isn't shorter than four inches.

Maybe I just look like a nice guy or something. After all, I've always been told looks can be deceiving.

UPDATE/CLARIFICATION/CORRECTION: After I got home Sunday evening, I measured the blade of the scissors. They were less than four inches, and therefore legal. As my wife correctly pointed out, they could still do some serious damage.

Knowing that these things are actually legal might be more disturbing than thinking the TSA agent just let me keep them out of the goodness of her heart.

Here We Come

Holy Crap

Left Bemidji at 10:50 P.M. Friday.

Got home at 4:30 A.M.

Do the math. That's a drive of less than three hours that took close to six.

Not a fun trip.

Hopefully, this was our way of paying for the really nice weather we had in Colorado Springs. I know now to never rub that type of thing in.

Travel partner Kevin Pates has the full account here. I'd simply be duplicating the work, so go read it. He's 100 percent accurate in all of it.

Road Trippin'

GREEN BAY -- Since the family is in Green Bay for the weekend, expect posting to be light.

Practice Thursday night was interesting. Aaron Rodgers looked sharp, and there are a few young players who have a real chance to make this team. I was particularly impressed by rookies Kole Heckendorf and Brad Jones.

Expect to see Jones some in Saturday's game against Buffalo. He should be able to make the roster as a spare linebacker and special-teamer. Heckendorf isn't going to be so lucky, but expect to see him on the Packers' practice squad this fall. He's a good player.

BULLDOGS LOOK TO RALLY

Our lineups for tonight, starting with the good guys.

UMD
Connolly (Mike) - Sharp - Kemp
Akins - Connolly (Jack) - Fontaine
Greer - Carroll - Fulton
Gergen - Schmidt - Danberg

Oberg - Meyers
Cascalenda - Huttel
Kishel - Montgomery

Stalock - Hjelle

DU
Colborne - Bozak - Salazar
Rakhshani - Ruegsegger - Jackson
Maiani - Martin - Ostrow
Glasser - Gifford - Marcuzzi

Wiercioch - Mullen
Ryder - Nutini
Brookwell - Lee

Cheverie - Paulgaard - Guinn

BAD DAY AT THE OFFICE

Game 8: Denver 5, UMD 1

UMD goal
Michael Gergen 1 (Cody Danberg, Chad Huttel), 7:29 2nd period. Gergen flew through the neutral zone after getting a feed from Danberg, and his wrist shot trickled past Denver goalie Marc Cheverie.

Thoughts
Just not UMD's day. Hopefully, Saturday goes a bit better for the guys.

When the Bulldogs were playing well, they had trouble finishing in front of the Denver net. Cheverie was sharp, but he got help from UMD players missing their spots and overskating loose pucks.

Then things started going badly. Alex Stalock wasn't able to cover a loose puck in the crease that appeared to hit a teammate as he dove towards it, allowing Luke Salazar to get an easy goal. That came after Salazar put a rebound in an open net when Stalock made a save and Huttel lost a battle in front of the net.

Goals by Rhett Rakhshani and Tyler Bozak on the power play were too easy, as both players were open for backdoor goals while Stalock was on the other side of the net.

Brady Hjelle made his UMD debut in the third period, stopping all nine shots he faced. We'll see tonight if Stalock benefits from watching the third period from the bench.

Then again, none of the goals were really his fault. It's not like he has to play better. Instead, the guys in front of him do. They took pretty good care of Hjelle. If they can do the same tonight for Stalock, you can expect a different result.

UMD AT DENVER - GAME ONE

Here are tonight's lines, first for the visitors.

UMD
Fulton - Connolly (Jack) - Fontaine
Connolly (Mike) - Sharp - Kemp
Carroll - Akins - Greer
Gergen - Schmidt - Danberg

Oberg - Meyers
Cascalenda - Huttel
Montgomery - Lamb

Stalock - Hjelle

Denver
Colborne - Bozak - Salazar
Rakhshani - Ruegsegger - Jackson
Maiani - Martin - Ostrow
Glasser - Gifford

Wiercioch - Mullen
Ryder - Nutini
Brookwell - Lee
Marcuzzi

Cheverie - Paulgaard - Guinn

BACK IN DENVER

I feel like I practically live here.

Five times in less than four seasons, UMD has made the trip to Denver. Usually, it goes pretty well for them, with last year's playoff series a notable exception.

This series ought to be thoroughly interesting. Denver, with guys like Tyler Bozak, Tyler Ruegsegger, Rhett Rakhshani, Patrick Mullen, Luke Salazar, and so on, has the top offense in the WCHA.

UMD, thanks in large part to the play of guys like MacGregor Sharp, Justin Fontaine, and the unrelated Connolly brothers (Mike and Jack), is right behind Denver on the scoring ledger.

And this might actually be an okay time to get Denver on the schedule. The Pioneers are coming off two non-wins (a home tie and a road loss) against rival Colorado College. In those games, Richard Bachman stood on his head while carrying the Tigers on his back. He stopped 84 of 88 shots, including some amazing saves during Denver's power plays.

(Denver's power play is sick. I'll get to that in a moment.)

Anyway, the Pioneers have "only" netted ten goals in their last four games (1-2-1). It hasn't stopped guys like me and UMD coach Scott Sandelin from drooling over Denver's offensive talents. We know this is a deep and highly-skilled team. We're not stupid (especially true of Sandelin).

But there might be a hole. Perhaps that confidence can be shaken a tad. Maybe it already is. Bachman did a number on this team last weekend. Alex Stalock is no slouch.

Offensively, even though there is a mini-slump going on and UMD has been playing pretty well, Denver gets a slight edge. They're able to roll three really good lines and play a fourth that will make some plays and create problems. UMD can roll their four lines, but I don't know that they are quite as explosive as Denver. Consistent? So far. But not as explosive.

Denver has more power play depth, too. I can't believe they're only hitting at 15 percent so far. Watching them click against Colorado College, I'm convinced that they're a good bounce away from catching fire. Let that happen some other time. UMD's on-again, off-again penalty kill was on again last weekend and has to stay that way.

Keys to UMD success start with solid puck possession. The Bulldogs' defensive corps has been better than expected so far. A lot of that credit goes to improvements by returnees Josh Meyers, Evan Oberg, and Trent Palm, among others, along with sophomore Mike Montgomery, a former forward who has been a real find for UMD on defense. This is an area Stalock can contribute to, but he can't do it all himself. The Bulldogs have to avoid turnovers on their half of the ice. Preferably, if they're giving the puck up, it's deep in the DU zone. Make the Pioneers go 200 feet to score.

Get pucks deep and forecheck the hell out of these guys. Make them be the ones working to get the puck out of their own zone. If you let them dictate the forecheck and pressure your defensemen, you're hanging the goaltender out to dry.

Obviously, goaltending is a huge key. Marc Cheverie's numbers are lukewarm for Denver. He's allowing almost three per game and has a save percentage around .900. Stalock is the statistically superior goalie, and outside of a rather odd two-game stretch where he wasn't seeing the puck that well, he's been really good for UMD this year. Again.

Letdown syndrome is also a key. Denver is coming off an emotional and very disappointing series against CC. The Gold Pan is important in this state, and Denver got off to a bad start. That's after they blew a two-goal lead and lost at home to Ohio State the previous weekend. If UMD can get off to a good start Friday and take advantage of their positive momentum after last week, the Bulldogs could surprise some people out there.

One thing's for certain: I don't believe they're going to surprise themselves if they have success. This a confident group of kids. Let's hope they can get on a roll.

UMD TRIES TO SALVAGE ALASKA TRIP

UMD fields the following lineup as they attempt to get their first WCHA win of the season at Alaska-Anchorage:

Carroll - Akins - Greer
Connolly (Mike) - Sharp - Kemp
Fulton - Connolly (Jack) - Fontaine
Danberg - Bordson - Gergen

Oberg - Meyers
Kishel - Palm
Cascalenda - Montgomery

Stalock - Hjelle

For UAA:
Lunden - Bales - Clark
Grant - Crowder - Moir
Haddad - Parkinson - Wiles
Carlson - Tuton - Smith

Lafranchise - Robinson
Lovdahl - Vidmar
Hunt - Backstrom

Olthuis - Christianson

GARRISON CALLED UP

Former UMD defenseman Jason Garrison, who left school after last season to turn pro, has been called up by the Florida Panthers.

He was playing for the Panthers' AHL affiliate in Rochester (NY).

Garrison is in the lineup for the Panthers tonight in St. Louis.

More on that, plus lines and chatter from Anchorage, later. Assuming this wireless holds up. Grrr...

LOSING SUCKS

(Ignore the soccer ball. I think this is kind of funny.)

Game 5: Alaska-Anchorage 4, UMD 4*

UMD goals
MacGregor Sharp 5 (Mike Connolly 5, Nick Kemp 2), 2:00 2nd period. Kemp dropped a great feed to Sharp in the left circle, and he blasted a one-time past Jon Olthuis to get UMD on the board.

Justin Fontaine 3 (Evan Oberg 5, Josh Meyers 2), 17:23 2nd period (PP). Oberg and Meyers held the puck along the blue line, and Meyer's one-time pass was tipped in by Fontaine at the left post.

Justin Fontaine 4 (Drew Akins 1, Evan Oberg 6), 3:09 3rd period (PP). Oberg threaded a pass down low to Akins, who back-handed a wonderful feed across the goalmouth to Fontaine, who was open at the left post for a picturesque backdoor goal.

Trent Palm 1 (MacGregor Sharp 4, Michael Gergen 3), 9:55 3rd period (PP). Sharp had the puck on the right wing, and he got it to the top of the umbrella to Palm, who one-timed a great shot inside the left post. It was disallowed because the officials made a poor call.

Thoughts
Yes, I'm bitter about the disallowed goal.

Replay shows Connolly (Mike) at the left post, but not in the crease. Even if he did make contact with Olthuis, he has every right to be near the net as long as he stays out of the crease.

And I hate that coaches can sometimes get their way on these reviews by whining enough. Don Adam and Timm Walsh had no inclination to review the play until right before they dropped the puck to resume action after the goal. Only then did they decide to review the previous play.

I'd love to know more about this mysterious crease violation. I mean, "man in the crease" is a worthwhile, well-intentioned rule. But how do you call it when there weren't any offensive players actually in the crease?

It stinks. But UMD will deal with it. After all, they made this a difficult night by allowing four goals on UAA's first seven shots.

(This isn't to blame Alex Stalock for it. He had virtually no shot on most of the four.)

They still have to clean up the penalty kill, and they have to show up with a more consistent 60-minute effort Saturday. I'm confident this will happen.

I'm also confident that they will respond well to having a bad break go against them. History indicates they will. This is a resilient group.

UMD-UAA GAME ONE

UMD
Mike Connolly-MacGregor Sharp-Nick Kemp
Andrew Carroll-Drew Akins-Matt Greer
Michael Gergen-Jack Connolly-Justin Fontaine
Kyle Schmidt-Rob Bordson-Jordan Fulton

Evan Oberg-Josh Meyers
Trent Palm-Mike Montgomery
Jay Cascalenda-Brady Lamb

Alex Stalock - Brady Hjelle

Cody Danberg and Scott Kishel are the extras for UMD. Danberg is dinged up, while Kishel is a healthy scratch.

UAA goes with the following:

Lunden - Bales - Clark
Grant - Crowder - Moir
Haddad - Parkinson - Wiles
Selby - Tuton - Smith

Lafranchise - Robinson
Lovdahl - Vidmar
Hunt - Backstrom

Olthuis - Christianson

I have Jeremy Smith listed as a defenseman, but he's playing up front tonight because of a couple departures and some injury issues UAA is dealing with.

BULLDOGS AND MYTHICAL CREATURES

So, you know that there's no such thing as a Seawolf, right?

Because there isn't.

I'm not making fun of them. You can call your team whatever you want.

Actually, I give them credit for not using something lame that starts with the letter "A", like Aeros or Avalanche or whatever.

So UMD plays the Seawolves. I have a few thoughts.

First off, UMD needs to use their speed on the big sheet. Sullivan Arena is Olympic-size, and instead of skating circles around teams, UAA has bigger players who - while they can move - aren't as fast as the Bulldogs. I expect UMD to have an advantage in team speed, much like they did in Marquette on the big sheet. In that game, they scored an early goal and were dominant on the penalty kill, playing a great 60-minute game.

The Bulldogs have a dynamic top line, led by the play of sophomore Justin Fontaine. He's already got seven points, more than half his total as a freshman. The ice time he got last year is really paying off right now, as is his increased confidence. You put skill like senior Michael Gergen and freshman Jack Connolly, and you have a dangerous combination.

When they're not on the ice, look out for the line of freshman Mike Connolly and seniors MacGregor Sharp and Nick Kemp. The three combined for the game-winner against Western Michigan Saturday, and both Connolly (Mike) and Sharp are off to great starts. Kemp is playing better, but the results aren't showing up on the scoresheet yet. Sharp and Connolly (Mike) are playing great together, and Sharp is finding the net much more effectively than last year. Talking to him Wednesday, he mentions how he's "getting bounces" this year, but you know what they say about good players making their own bounces. Sharpie's worked too hard for me to just pass off his improved play on some dumb luck.

The Bulldogs need to tighten up the penalty kill. UAA's power play comes in hot, and UMD can't just rely on Alex Stalock to shut it down. Stalock is coming off a poor game, which usually means good things, and this time he's coming off a poor game that UMD actually won. That's been a rarity in his time here.

I don't do predictions, but a good weekend is important for the Bulldogs. They have St. Cloud State at the XCel Energy Center next Saturday, followed by series against Denver (road), Wisconsin and North Dakota (home), a home game against St. Cloud State (Thanksgiving weekend), and a trip to Colorado College. Even a top-five team is going to struggle to get more than 12 points out of that 10-game stretch.

Finally, let me take a crack at projecting lines. I hate doing this, but I'm in Anchorage, cold, bored, and tired. Cut me some slack.

Gergen - Connolly (Jack) - Fontaine
Carroll - Akins - Fulton
Connolly (Mike) - Sharp - Kemp
Danberg - Bordson - Schmidt

Meyers - Montgomery
Oberg - Palm
Cascalenda - Lamb

Stalock - Hjelle

This is just a guess, based on what we've seen and what has worked for UMD. I'm not sure if Matt Greer will be able to play Friday, and I'm guessing that the Lamb/Kishel rotation will be back in effect as long as everyone stays healthy.

ANCHORAGE, ALASKA ... HELLO!

It snowed this morning.

Not much, just enough to annoy.

It's actually one of the trips I enjoy most, but there are caveats.

1. It's a really, really, really long flight (just under six hours takeoff to touchdown).
2. I have more downtime on this trip than any other, because we leave Wednesday from Duluth and it gives me all day Thursday to adjust to the time change and putz around.
3. It's the farthest away from the family, and it's the longest time away. We don't return to Duluth until Sunday night.

Luckily, my niece lives up here, and she'll take me to lunch later today. Will probably go to some messing around shops and such here.

As for the hockey, I'll get you a preview later, unless I really haven't done well adjusting to the time change and I fall asleep. I think this is going to be a huge barometer for this UMD team, and it's an extremely important weekend from a "get some points" standpoint because of what is to come.

THE ODYSSEY BEGINS

When you next hear from me, I'll be a bit further north and west than usual.

Anchorage, to be exact.

I mean, it just seems like we got back from a road trip, and we're going on another one.

Weee.

Should be arriving in Anchorage around 11pm Central time, which would equate to 8pm Alaska time. Can't wait to see how angry my body gets at me for this one.

MUCH, MUCH BETTER

Game 2: UMD 5, Northern Michigan 0

UMD Goals

Sharp 2 (M. Connolly 2, Montgomery 1), 2:17 1st period. Sharp took the puck down the middle with Nick Kemp on the right wing. Instead of passing, Sharp picked the top right corner and beat NMU goalie Brian Stewart with a quick wrist shot.

Sharp 3 (M. Connolly 3, Kemp 1), 12:57 2nd period. Connolly brought the puck into the NMU zone, skated into the right circle, took advantage of some time and space, and found Sharp coming down the slot for an easy backdoor goal.

Akins 1 (Fontaine 1, Meyers 1), 5:03 3rd period (PP - EAG). As UMD was about to get a five-on-three, Fontaine found Akins open in front of the net.

Fulton 1 (Cascalenda 1), 8:11 3rd period. Fulton took a pass from Cascalenda in the neutral zone, came down the middle, and ripped a shot past Stewart.

Akins 2 (Fontaine 2, Oberg 2), 14:03 3rd period. Similar play to the first Akins goal. This one came at the end of a UMD power play, and was technically an even strength goal even though the offensive zone still showed a manpower advantage for UMD. It was Fontaine to Akins over the middle once again to close out the scoring.

Thoughts

A nearly-perfect effort. 60 minutes of solid play by UMD on both ends of the rink. We again saw a pretty good forecheck that bottled the Wildcats up at times. The Bulldogs were very good on the penalty kill in this game. NMU had a couple of rather long five-on-threes, and UMD kept a good pocket around Alex Stalock. Sticks got into passing lanes to break up feeds to open players (when you're two men short, you're going to give up some open people, so it's key to find the passing lanes and disrupt the rhythm).

This was a team shutout. Stalock had a couple nice saves during NMU power plays, but nothing that made you gasp. It was very reminiscent of the 1-0 win at UMass-Lowell last year in that regard. Stalock didn't have to stand on his head, but he was clearly seeing the puck very well.

A good start to the season. We saw a good mix of experienced players stepping up and finishing plays and young guys making plays. Hard to complain about anything we saw.

UMD AT NORTHERN MICHIGAN

UMD lines

Carroll - Akins - Fulton
Gergen - J Connolly - Fontaine
M Connolly - Sharp - Kemp
Oleksuk - Bordson - Schmidt

Oberg - Meyers
Kishel - Palm
Montgomery - Cascalenda

Stalock - Hjelle

NMU lines

Cherniwchan - Brown - Sirota
Kaunisto - Butcher - Fox
Smith - Olver - Hanson
Florek - Kosinski - Gron

Miller - Dorich
Gustafsson - Cosgrove
Lindemulder - Spady

Stewart - Hartigan

NOT BAD, NOT GREAT

Game 1: UMD 2, Lake Superior State 2

UMD goals

Sharp 1 (M. Connolly), 9:17 2nd period (PP). Connolly (Mike) stole the puck near the LSSU blue line, skated in and took a shot. The LSSU goalie made the save, but left a big rebound to his right that Sharp stuffed in from a bad angle.

Meyers 1 (Oberg), 2:17 3rd period (PP 5X3). After a Connolly (Jack) faceoff win, Oberg and Meyers played catch for a few seconds before Meyers ripped a wrist shot from the right point that eluded Inglis.

Thoughts

It wasn't a crisp performance by UMD, but it wasn't terrible, either. Kind of looked like a season opener, with both teams struggling to move the puck at times.

The Lakers were victimized by forechecking pressure from both Connollys, who looked really strong in that area. The Bulldogs forced LSSU to pass the puck up the ice instead of carrying it, and it make them really uncomfortable for a time.

Stalock recovered from a slow start to play well, but outside of a couple flurries in the third period, he wasn't tested much overall. Lots of long shots with little traffic, as if the Lakers thought they could get more goals like their second one, which was a long shot with little traffic (the kind Stalock will stop 499 times out of 500, in all likelihood).

The penalty kill started horribly but played very well in the last two periods. The best scoring chance on LSSU's power plays in those periods was probably a UMD rush.

Offensively, UMD struggled. They had a lot of chances, but Connolly (Jack) whiffed on a couple chances close-in, and they just missed on a couple of passes. I expect to see more crisp play out of the top lines tonight, as they did look like they were developing some better chemistry as the game wore on.

Northern Michigan, the opponent tonight, scored five goals on 11 shots against Michigan Tech last night. Tech goalie Rob Nolan stopped four of nine shots (!) before getting the hook.

So NMU, outshot 30-11 on the night, has some goaltending. The question is how are they going to handle not scoring on every shot? Methinks Stalock will be sharp from the start, and that will make things tough on the Wildcats.

I'm already in Marquette, having driven over after the game last night. I look forward to not being at this hotel anymore, as the entire sixth floor reeks of cigarette smoke. No idea where it came from, since the wing is entirely "non-smoking". Good thing I'm not allergic.

IN CASE YOU'RE WONDERING

Lines for UMD tonight against Lake Superior State

Andrew Carroll - Drew Akins - Matt Greer
Kyle Schmidt - Jack Connolly - Justin Fontaine
Jordan Fulton - MacGregor Sharp - Nick Kemp
Cody Danberg - Rob Bordson - Mike Connolly

Josh Meyers - Mike Montgomery
Evan Oberg - Trent Palm
Jay Cascalenda - Brady Lamb

Alex Stalock - Brady Hjelle

Lake Superior State goes with this:
Troy Schwab - Brad Cooper - Nathan Perkovich
Will Acton - Rick Schofield - Zac MacVoy
Dan Barczuk - Pat Aubry - Chad Nehring
John Scrymgeour - Fred Cassiani - Josh Sim

Tyson Hobbins - Matt Cowie
Simon Gysbers - Kyle Haines
Steven Kaunisto - Steven Oleksy

Pat Inglis - Brian Mahoney-Wilson