lakersparty
Active member
There have been some exciting endings this year. The hard work in the corner and then Riedell blasting that shot with 9 seconds left...nice!
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LSSU Lakers 2020-21
- Thread starter LSSULaker889294
- Start date
lakersparty
Active member
5 regular season games left, only 4 points from 2nd place, and 3 games in hand. Close out strong and the sky is the limit for this team. Nice to see Mitens get a break on Saturday to be rested for the final stretch.
Tough remaining schedule. 4 of the 5 games on the road; 1 at Tech, 2 at Bemidji and 1 at Ferris. Even with their terrible record, playing at Ferris can be tough; the Bulldogs took Mankato to OT a few nights ago.
LSSULaker889294
Registered User
Hopefully Minnesota State can beat Bemidji State in regulation tonight. If NMU loses in regulation tonight against MTU, the Lakers are guaranteed to finish ahead of the Wildcats in the standings.
I'd prefer to see NMU win tonight. It's their last league game. The winner of tonight's MTU/NMU game will pass the Lakers in the standings. Tech will still have 2 games to play, although they will be tough ones at Mankato. I'm more concerned with Tech and Bemidji passing the Lakers in the standings than I am with NMU. NMU can't get any more points after tonight. Bemidji still has 5 games to play and are in a position to make the biggest move upwards. A tie game tonight between NMU and MTU with NMU winning the shootout would also be good for the Lakers. If Tech wins tonight and manages a split at Mankato next week, that would force the Lakers to also have to split at Bemidji next week.
John J. MacInnes
Coach Emeritus
The Ferris game is now the key for Lake State. Even if Tech manages a split with Mankato, the Lakers hold the tiebreaker.
Given the remaining pair against UAH for Bemidji, I would be surprised if the Beavers and the Lakers are not the two home ice teams.
Given the remaining pair against UAH for Bemidji, I would be surprised if the Beavers and the Lakers are not the two home ice teams.
lakersparty
Active member
Obviously I'd like the Lakers to get as good of a conference seed as possible, but last I heard the Lakers aren't even allowing any fans so home ice advantage isn't what it should be. I'm looking beyond that and these games against the Beavers are the key.
I think the WCHA has put itself into a position of possibly having three NCAA bids with Minnesota State and 2 from the Bowling Green/LSSU/Bemidji/Tech group. Doing well against Bemidji would put the Lakers in a really good spot for consideration. If the Lakers struggle against the Beavers then even with a 4 seed in the WCHA playoffs, I don't think they have enough to make the NCAAs unless they win the WCHA tourney and that's a tall task given how badly the Mavericks have dominated Lake State.
John J. MacInnes
Coach Emeritus
After some deeper research, the tiebreaker is not locked up for the Lakers over Tech.
Here's the tiebreak order:
a) Conference head-to-head (tied again)
b) Winning percentage in conference (currently LSSU but only because they have played one fewer game)
c) League wins in regulation (currently Tech with 6 over LSSU's 5)
d) League record against teams above in standings (very much in flux this week)
I'd be happy with a split at Bemidji.
LSSULaker889294
Registered User
Lakers are only 7 wins away from 1,000 all time in school history. Current record is 993-867-173.
https://www.uscho.com/stats/history/lake-superior/mens-hockey/2020-2021/
https://www.uscho.com/stats/history/lake-superior/mens-hockey/2020-2021/
LSSULaker889294
Registered User
Tough loss in overtime but still got a valuable point. Lakers still can finish in second place with getting all six points the next two games. I dunno though, I have a feeling all these games lately will affect the Lakers negatively today. I hope I wrong.
I also hope Calder heats up again. He has definitely cooled off lately.
I also hope Calder heats up again. He has definitely cooled off lately.
lakersparty
Active member
I think the tired game was against Tech where they weren't sharp because of the schedule. They looked good last night. If they didn't give up the SH goal on a really nice move, that could have been a regulation win. I feel strangely confident that they'll get it done today and against Ferris to finish the season strong.
Calder has seemed frustrated at times. I think there have been some no-calls that have been getting to him in recent games, and I also wonder how much he has been hurting from taking a puck to the leg a couple games back (I forget which one). Even so he was very close to winning the game in OT and picked up an assist last night.
lakersparty
Active member
I also want to give some props to the Bemidji announcers. Those guys are pretty knowledgable about their team, the Lakers, and college hockey in general. It was really interesting to hear from the main announcer how he grew up a Wisconsin fan so he's well aware of Lake State's past from the 1992 NCAA championship game. I also like how they field questions from fans during the game. They've got a good thing going there.
LSSULaker889294
Registered User
Bad time for the penalty kill to all of a sudden start struggling.
LSSULaker889294
Registered User
Yet a loss and the Lakers can still end up as the #5 seed. Nevertheless , huge win tonight and a successful trip to Bemidji taking 4 of 6 points.
I believe if Tech loses against Minnesota State in regulation Friday, the Lakers clinch home ice for the first round of the WCHA playoffs.
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lakersparty
Active member
That third period was great. The Lakers took advantage when Bemidji was tired. You can tell the team has good conditioning to be able to deal with such a difficult stretch of games and come away with lots of points.
Props to Calder getting it going again, too. And Posa’s great pass to Benggston was huge.
Props to Calder getting it going again, too. And Posa’s great pass to Benggston was huge.
lakersparty
Active member
I know the computers aren't super relevant this year, but I tend to think the NCAA committee will at least look at them briefly. Here are the Lakers ranks with the third-ranked strength of schedule in the nation.
KRACH: 7
Pairwise: 12
RPI: 12
KRACH: 7
Pairwise: 12
RPI: 12
LSSULaker889294
Registered User
Lakers clinch a home ice spot with a Michigan Tech loss against Minnesota State in regulation tonight. With Minnesota State having nothing to play for and will probably not give 100 percent due to having the #1 seed locked, Tech will probably take advantage and win.