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2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

D2D said:
Nice article on Gopher recruit Rachel Bona:

http://www.startribune.com/sports/preps/106930418.html?page=1&c=y
Click to expand...

Thanks for the link. Definitely one of the teams and players I hope to see in action at some point this season. Minnetonka, Breck, Irondale, the T'breds...could get busy. Am I missing anyone? I do believe at least a couple have regularly checked into their future digs. When ARM speaks of possibly being a year away I believe there just may be something to that premise.

For now, time to get things headed in the right direction during some rematches and some initial tussles with Mavericks, Buckeyes, Bemidji and The Crimson.

Edit: Please add Hill Murray to those listed in paragraph 1...thank you.
 
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Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

brookyone said:
Edit: Please add Hill Murray to those listed in paragraph 1...thank you.
Click to expand...

No. 4 Hill Murray vs. No. 1 Minnetonka this Friday night would be a fun game to see. Unfortunately, I'll be out of town and will have to miss it.
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

CrazyDave said:
It was fantastic to see Westy back on the ice, and I'm glad to see the team has finally decided on captains (good and sensible choices, I might add) :) .
Click to expand...
For the benefit of one who has been away from hockey for too long, who are the captains? I'm guessing West for starters, or I'd dispute your "sensible".
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

West and Rasmussen each with a "C".

Schleper, Schoullis and Erickson each with an "A".
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

Gracias. After a month with no captains, I guess they wanted to make sure that they have plenty of them going forward.
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

ARM said:
Gracias. After a month with no captains, I guess they wanted to make sure that they have plenty of them going forward.
Click to expand...

ARM, do I detect just a bit of sarcasm here?
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

D2D said:
ARM, do I detect just a bit of sarcasm here?
Click to expand...
Is it sarcasm -- or maybe confusion. Last year we had 4 captains, and I thought that was a couple too many. So now we have five. I do believe this is an area where more isn't better, it's just more. I like two captains, or if the personnel is such that one stands out and the 2nd does not, use a C and 2 wearing the A. If captains are good to have at the end of the season, then they probably add value in week one as well.

It just seems like a team's leadership shows up in other areas. Looking at a couple of model cases, in our most recent championship season, the Gopher captains were Stephens and Wendell. It didn't mean Darwitz didn't lead, but Stephens and Wendell were empowered to speak for the team, and I doubt their peers had a problem with that. In Frost's first season as head coach, the senior class was such that you could have picked any two of its members and had strong captains, and Graft and Ross were named co-captains. McKenzie was a leader on that team whether or not her role was official, but in some ways, it was Ross' team. That year, Minnesota was 15th nationally in penalty minutes per game, or in the middle of the pack. In the three years since, we've been #1, #4, and are currently #1 again. By comparison, Wisconsin is typically in the bottom half, often near the very bottom. The exception was last year, when the Badgers' minutes put them in the top half, their team wasn't very successful, and UW didn't seem to have the rock-solid leadership that they typically do.

Ideally, I'd like the coaches to be able to turn to the captains and say we're committing too many penalties, work with your teammates to come up with a way to reduce that. The game is tough enough when you have to compete with teams like Wisconsin and Cornell w/o having to spend twice as many minutes in the box as they do. Admittedly, the hostilities at the end of the first UND game added 35 minutes and make the numbers look worse, but even without those minutes, we'd still be 4th in the country.
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

ARM said:
I do believe this is an area where more isn't better, it's just more.
Click to expand...

Agreed, and I wonder why it's so difficult to just pick one or maybe two. Is it not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings? Ironically, if too many get picked then anyone who is not chosen will likely have hurt feelings. The ideal scenario, IMO, is to be able to choose a single captain and two assistant captains.

Also agree on the penalty situation. You know that with an aggressive style and forecheck you're going to take a fair number of infractions, but all too often we've seen some real momentum-killers that with a little smarter play could have easily been avoided. A few examples: failing to recognize speed quickly enough, then having to use the stick or an arm; poor decisions at the offensive blueline, then having to interfere; and sometimes not moving the feet at the end of a shift and getting an easily avoided "frustration penalty". Certain players also need to exercise better judgement when the team is already shorthanded...it becomes very difficult to kill a series of successive penalties that includes multiple minutes of being TWO players down.
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

Another page on the www for GWH news courtesy of FSN.

http://www.mnhockeynews.com/page/show/61349-golden-gopher-women

Looking at the schedule...next five weekends that includes a NC series with Harvard loom quite large in determining the Gophers fate in the WCHA. Battling MSU twice, BSU and OSU...all among teams jockeying for a top 3-4 finish in the conference. Three series at home, two on the road...no, it doesn't get any easier after that...but if you were looking at a point on the schedule when it's time to start adding a few to the W column, now would be that time. Those conference foes on the schedule over the next five weeks have challenged strongly and beaten some very good teams. Gophers best be ready to play strong and withstand those challenges...time to close the gap in the race.

Anyone going to All Seasons this weekend?
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

That info is courtesy of mainly Marc Christopher with not a lot of thanks to FSN. It has been around for a couple of years, but it isn't easy to find unless one already knows that it is there.

I'm planning to head to All Seasons. Hopefully we don't have another weekend snowstorm.
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

ARM said:
I'm planning to head to All Seasons. Hopefully we don't have another weekend snowstorm.
Click to expand...
Think I heard we are expected to experience a little frozen precip. this weekend as well...in much milder form and lesser accumulation than our first blast last Sat. -- Sun. I just got my phone, TV and internet back a couple hours ago...nothing since early Saturday. :( No power for several hours on Sat. as well. My thumbs are killing me from all the twiddling...s'pose I could have read a book or somethin'.

Those Comcast commercials touting their superior customer service...I've found those claims to be a load of doo doo. End of non hockey anti Comcast rant.

Arrived at my door this morning:

http://server2.maxanet.com/cgi-bin/mnlist.cgi?oberman2/61

VERY nice! ;)
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

brookyone said:
Think I heard we are expected to experience a little frozen precip. this weekend as well...in much milder form and lesser accumulation than our first blast last Sat. -- Sun. I just got my phone, TV and internet back a couple hours ago...nothing since early Saturday. :( No power for several hours on Sat. as well. My thumbs are killing me from all the twiddling...s'pose I could have read a book or somethin'.

Those Comcast commercials touting their superior customer service...I've found those claims to be a load of doo doo. End of non hockey anti Comcast rant.

Arrived at my door this morning:

http://server2.maxanet.com/cgi-bin/mnlist.cgi?oberman2/61

VERY nice! ;)
Click to expand...

That's a shame. The internet and TV thing. (wink)
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

brookyone said:
Think I heard we are expected to experience a little frozen precip. this weekend as well...in much milder form and lesser accumulation than our first blast last Sat. -- Sun. I just got my phone, TV and internet back a couple hours ago...nothing since early Saturday. :( No power for several hours on Sat. as well. My thumbs are killing me from all the twiddling...s'pose I could have read a book or somethin'.

Those Comcast commercials touting their superior customer service...I've found those claims to be a load of doo doo. End of non hockey anti Comcast rant.

Arrived at my door this morning:

http://server2.maxanet.com/cgi-bin/mnlist.cgi?oberman2/61

VERY nice! ;)
Click to expand...

I saw on the National picture that you had suffered winter weather, or, as our meteorologists are wont to say, "snow chances". Sorry it was you, glad it wasn't us. I still have the resin chairs around the patio chiminea, and although Mr. Hux thinks it's already too cold, what's a fire for?
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

CanHockGuy said:
That's a shame. The internet and TV thing. (wink)
Click to expand...

Brooky didn't like my ability to beat him. He sent me a message like all cowards do when they can't stand up for themselves...... How does the team look this week DA?
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

brookyone said:
Another page on the www for GWH news courtesy of FSN.

http://www.mnhockeynews.com/page/show/61349-golden-gopher-women

Looking at the schedule...next five weekends that includes a NC series with Harvard loom quite large in determining the Gophers fate in the WCHA. Battling MSU twice, BSU and OSU...all among teams jockeying for a top 3-4 finish in the conference. Three series at home, two on the road...no, it doesn't get any easier after that...but if you were looking at a point on the schedule when it's time to start adding a few to the W column, now would be that time. Those conference foes on the schedule over the next five weeks have challenged strongly and beaten some very good teams. Gophers best be ready to play strong and withstand those challenges...time to close the gap in the race.

Anyone going to All Seasons this weekend?
Click to expand...
Just to make sure nobody thinks I've disappeared... (though cruising the Caribbean last week was fun). ;)

I would fully concur with the analysis. These remaining four weekends of play in 2010 are critical to the team, particularly the three in WCHA play. The team can't continue to play inconsistently and expect to win against those teams.

As for this coming weekend, I'm planning on being at both games. The latest weather report I heard was that any precip would be holding off until Sunday. And I must make a stop at Pagliai's Pizza for "Death by Cheese" either before Friday's game or after Saturday's.
 
Re: 2010-11 Minnesota Gophers -- May, West Pursue Erie March

Here is a link to another Rachael Bona story that as far as I know hasn't been posted:
http://www.sportsprepzone.com/schools/school-article-profile.php?Article_ID=1682

"When I began looking around for a college program and looked into the Gophers, I was told they did not have room for me; they already had too many forwards.

"To be honest I didn't know what to think or where to look [for a college hockey playing opportunity]. My mind was set on playing for the Gophers and here I was told they did not have room for me."
Click to expand...
That's why I love that Minnesota seems to be making a renewed effort to recruit local kids. Student athletes from other states and countries may want to attend Minnesota, but I don't know that it is a dream as it is for many of the in-state girls.
 
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