UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

You do... you look like the #5 or 6 team in the WCHA.

Touche'.

We will see.

In other news, UNO is so good they moved up 3 spots in this week's USCHO poll to # 15, despite having the weekend off.

Imagine if they had actually played.

Apparently, the pollsters are in breathless anticipation of our third consecutive sweep upcoming this weekend.

[SCSU Euro]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

Touche'.

We will see.

In other news, UNO is so good they moved up 3 spots in this week's USCHO poll to # 15, despite having the weekend off.

Imagine if they had actually played.

Apparently, the pollsters are in breathless anticipation of our third consecutive sweep upcoming this weekend.

Or the teams ahead of you lost.

We did the same thing, leapfrogging Michigan and CC who got swept and Cornell who lost and tied.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

The Omaha World Herald sounds off on this weekend's UAH series, from a "why do we have so much trouble with these guys and BSU, too?" perspective:

http://www.omaha.com/article/2012112...-for-mavericks

We are 3-9-4 against UAH and BSU over the last two seasons while UAH was going 7-64-4 overall during that time frame and BSU was going 14-35-5 in all other league games not involving UNO during that same time frame.

Sheesh.

This. Must. Stop. Now.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

Yecch.

We won a game we mailed in and looked pretty bad doing so.

The team took a long time to come out of the locker room after the game for the sing along as the Mav's radio news media reported they got a well deserved earful from the coaching staff when this one was over. I don't think I'd want Dean Blais mad at me.

Also, not a well officiated game.

And to think, I paid my hard earned money to witness that. A horrible game. We won, though, so..................

In other news, Faulkner remains unbeaten in goal.

[BCat]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

Yes it was definitely a poorly played game by UNO. Good to get the win but hopefully the come out a little more inspired tomorrow.

[Pants]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

Faulkner remains solid in net. Tonight will hurt his save percentage a bit more, but anytime you can rely on a guy with 2 Goals Against a game or lower, when facing 15 shots or 30, that's a good bet. We have better D then we have had in recent years, too, and that really helps. I know Faulkner wants that first goal back from last night.

Hopefully UNO comes out and just destroys it tonight.

[BCat]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

Sounds like UNO put quite a beating on UAH on the radio, as I was unable to make it tonight. Good to hear Stolarz get the shut out. Up next seeing how UNO does against some stiffer competition.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

A much better game than last night, but, honestly, this wasn't our "A" effort, either. Stolarz gets his first career win, a shutout. You could almost hear him grinning on the post game show on the radio driving home from the game. For those that don't follow UNO, Stolarz is the highest round NHL draft pick in school history, a 2nd rounder of the Flyers.

3rd consecutive sweep in a row now for our guys. This is the 2nd longest winning streak in school history.

A complete game of sorts as 7 different players scored. We're really a well balanced team on offense (and much better than I thought, offensively) with 7 players now at 10 points or better. It's worth mentioning that last year's leading scorer, Matt White, is NOT one of those 7 guys.

We have some nice stats, team-wise, nationally, too:

Offense #4
Defense #8
Power play #10
Penalty kill #15

And we don't take many penalties, 44th nationally.

Conference stats?

Offense #2
Defense #2
Power play #4
Penalty kill #2

UNO has given up only 4 goals in the 3rd period this season, the least in the NCAA.

The downside, and once a thread for our upcoming Minnesota series gets started, every fan not wearing a UNO or Minny jersey is going to be saying the same thing about both of us:

Minnesota's record against Tuc's: 0-0-0
UNO's record against Tuc's: 0-1-0

UNO, Minnesota, Niagara, Holy Cross, and Union are probably the biggest unknowns in the top 25 of Pairwise right now (if you even believe Pairwise is worth looking at before about January 1) as, collectively, these 5 teams are are only 1-3-0 against Tuc's.

That is going to get shoved in our faces all week, particularly by fans of our conference foes. It's the only thing tempering my enthusiasm, somewhat, right now.

Needless to say, with apologies to, perhaps, CC and UND, our series with Minnesota this weekend is the biggest of the season so far in the WCHA.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

UNO moves up a couple notches this week in the USCHO poll to #13.

Nice article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune about UNO:

http://www.startribune.com/sports/blogs/180834471.html

I note that their Gopher blogger who wrote this is sorta misinformed about the so called "name change":

http://www.omaha.com/article/2012092...avs-like-omaha

I knew UNO was among the NCAA leaders in shots on goal (a hallmark of Dean Blais tenure here so far) and in least shots given up as well, but, I did not know that UNO was the biggest team in all of college hockey. I guess I shouldn't be surprised when the roster has thirteen guys 6' 2" or taller and 5 of those guys are 6' 4" or better.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

What do we make of tonight's win against the Gophers?

I'm reluctant to draw too many conclusions as yet. For now, I'll stick with the numbers. I want to see tomorrow night's game, which is now major league important for the Gophers. If we beat them again tomorrow.............

UNO is still undefeated all time at Mariucci. It would be kinda cool to leave the WCHA saying we never lost to Minnesota in their building.

John Faulkner is still undefeated this season.

UNO just had the first unbeaten and untied month in school history. We're one win from tying the school record for consecutive wins.

Minnesota lost for the first time this season when leading after one period and UNO kept their season to-date unbeaten streak alive when they score first.

The Gophers were outshot for the first time this season and 21 shots was a season low for them (and that number is right at our average shots allowed this season).

Tony Turgeon saw meaningful playing time for the first time this season and predictably spent his share of time in the penalty box.

I bet Minnesota wishes they hadn't run Ryan Walters off when they asked him to play another season of Juniors. He's the 6th leading scorer in the nation now (tied).

UNO is in the top 12, nationally, in all 4 of the biggies. Team defense, team offense, power play, and penalty killing.

This team may be a serious threat to the all time single season team record of 24 wins.

The only thing tempering my enthusiasm is the lack of games played against very many high caliber opponents so far. That said, the few we have played don't look any better than us--in any facet of the game, either.

Lets go get'em tomorrow night.

[LincolnMav]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

GREAT WIN!!! Let break out the brooms tonight at the Mooch. GO MAVS!

[BCat]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

I only got to watch the first period, where Minnesota seemed be in control for large portions. Good to hear that UNO apparently carried the last two periods, shutting down the Gopher offense. Looking forward to the game tonight. Great win. Can we now say we have beaten someone?

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

Can we now say we have beaten someone?

That's actually a pretty good question.

The only win they have a against a team with a winning record is against 6-5-2 Mankato, their bazillion NHL draft picks be ****ed.

Their loss to us moved them down to #18 in Pairwise as a result (to the extent THAT means much as yet). We're the only TUC they have now even played.

I'm glad we won but I am leery about reading too much into this as yet. I don't know how good Minny is or is not but, they don't look like anybody I am exactly fearful of.

[BCat]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

I realize one game at a time, but it was good to get the win. I do agree it is hard to know if either UNO or Minnesota is good right now. Just glad to get this win on the road.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO 2012-13 Season Thread - Blaising To An Xcellent Season?

Well, that was interesting.

If the Gophers are truly one of the best teams in college hockey, then, so are we, and I, for one, am not afraid of anybody left on our schedule.

When Searfoss scored with the extra attacker at the 17:58 mark of the third period tonight to make it 3-2, that sound you heard was the collective sphincters puckering of 10,103 Gopher fans.

We didn't really play all that well tonight and they still struggled to put us away. And just like last night, the longer the game went on the more the tide turned in our direction. They didn't score again over the 2nd half + of the game for the 2nd night in a row and we continue to lead the NCAA with only 4 third period goals given up all season.

Minnesota is a pretty good team. You know what? So are we. I've already read a bunch of "I don't want to play them again anytime soon" comments here and in other places made by Gopher fans. Yeah, they won tonight, but, physically, we manhandled those guys both nights. We just gooned it up a little too much tonight and it cost us. I doubt the Gophers care to see any more of Tony Turgeon anytime soon since I am sure several Gophers have various aches and pains inflicted by him.
It was funny how the theme of the weekend, watching these games on FOX Sports North, all of a sudden became how gigantic and imposing a team we are along with the palpable fear we instilled in the Gopher broadcast team, too. The weekend evolved from "What's wrong with the Gophers?" during the game last night to "We're fortunate we got a split-- please leave and take your "trees" with you" tonight.

I've never felt better after seeing our guys lose. Our glass is lot more than half full. You're a good team when you lose and still look scary doing it and the opposition is left going "Whew, thank god".

Considering the competition and the venue, I'm pretty hard pressed to think of a finer weekend of hockey in UNO history than the one we just witnessed. Definitely on the short list. Onward to St. Cloud where we hopefully don't have a letdown after they had a VERY shaky weekend in Anchorage.