Minnesota Gopher Women's Hockey 20-21

[FiveHoleFrenzy]

Tim is correct...It is an attempt to try and hold back a bit on some harsh criticism.

 

[ARM]

The good news: we have more time to sort out our goaltendings situation.

 

[Timothy A]

The good news: we have more time to sort out our goaltendings situation.

UMD, BC AND Providence ahead of you guys?!?! What a complete joke. As much as I sincerely dislike the rodents, I have much respect for the program and to get screwed over this badly is bad for the wwcha. All anyone wants is a fair trial and this one was as unfair as anyone can imagine. If UM, BC, Prov and UMD play a round robin tourney, MN wins.

 

[Hockeybuckeye]

I think it was only because they didn't want four WCHA teams to dominate the tournament. That's what gypped the Gophers!

 

[FiveHoleFrenzy]

UMD, BC AND Providence ahead of you guys?!?! What a complete joke. As much as I sincerely dislike the rodents, I have much respect for the program and to get screwed over this badly is bad for the wwcha. All anyone wants is a fair trial and this one was as unfair as anyone can imagine. If UM, BC, Prov and UMD play a round robin tourney, MN wins.

It's funny that you, as a Badger, fan are more worked up about this. Minnesota has no one to blame but themselves for missing out.

I don't know about other Gopher fans but I'm sick and tired of watching them f-up over and over again so thanks committee for putting them out of their misery. Too much talent, that when it was needed, didn't show up.

 

[robertearle]

It's funny that you, as a Badger, fan are more worked up about this. Minnesota has no one to blame but themselves for missing out.

I don't know about other Gopher fans but I'm sick and tired of watching them f-up over and over again so thanks committee for putting them out of their misery. Too much talent, that when it was needed, didn't show up.

Your players earned another game, or two. They deserve the chance to play them.

 

[FiveHoleFrenzy]

Your players earned another game, or two. They deserve the chance to play them.

I see in another thread you did a comparison with UMD from the analytical perspective. That's ok but I guess it comes down to the fact that they laid a egg big time twice by getting pounded in Madison and then got swept by OSU on their home ice. That 0-4 deal, too me, doesn't pass the eye test.

 

[robertearle]

I see in another thread you did a comparison with UMD from the analytical perspective. That's ok but I guess it comes down to the fact that they laid a egg big time twice by getting pounded in Madison and then got swept by OSU on their home ice. That 0-4 deal, too me, doesn't pass the eye test.

Duluth lost an overtime game to Bemidji, and one to Wisconsin. Minnesota tied Wisconsin. That means Duluth lost 0.5 + 0.5 for those, while the tie in five games for Minnesota against Wisconsin means Minnesota lost only 0.9 vs Wisconsin. All the other 'common teams' were 1.0 for both. That gives Minnesota the 'common opponents' win by 0.1. That along with a better RPI, and two head-to-head wins.

(The week before the Wisconsin series, Duluth played Mankato. I was paying attention because a loss in either and Wisconsin would have clinched the conference before even heading to Duluth. In both games, Mankato had a goal lead well into the third period. In the second game, Duluth avoided overtime with a goal at 19:57 of the third period. A loss to Bemidji and two narrow escapes vs Mankato. Maybe your eyes should have seen those. The players on Minn get screwed, and they didn't deserve it.)

 

[Steamboat]

Duluth lost an overtime game to Bemidji, and one to Wisconsin. Minnesota tied Wisconsin. That means Duluth lost 0.5 + 0.5 for those, while the tie in five games for Minnesota against Wisconsin means Minnesota lost only 0.9 vs Wisconsin. All the other 'common teams' were 1.0 for both. That gives Minnesota the 'common opponents' win by 0.1. That along with a better RPI, and two head-to-head wins.

(The week before the Wisconsin series, Duluth played Mankato. I was paying attention because a loss in either and Wisconsin would have clinched the conference before even heading to Duluth. In both games, Mankato had a goal lead well into the third period. In the second game, Duluth avoided overtime with a goal at 19:57 of the third period. A loss to Bemidji and two narrow escapes vs Mankato. Maybe your eyes should have seen those. The players on Minn get screwed, and they didn't deserve it.)

There is a lot of handwringing in certain quarters about the Gophers missing out on, what? One more game? I told my wife yesterday that the Gophers needed to beat Wisconsin to assure themselves a place in the NCAA playoffs. Do that and you deserve to be in, and you will be in. All the statistics that can be sifted through and debated doesn't negate the simple fact: they had their own destiny in their hands, and fumbled. A tough year to get in a groove. I feel for our student athletes and the difficult year they experienced. Other teams faced the same conditions. Let's now look for a good next season with a semblance of normality.

 

[robertearle]

There is a lot of handwringing in certain quarters about the Gophers missing out on, what? One more game? I told my wife yesterday that the Gophers needed to beat Wisconsin to assure themselves a place in the NCAA playoffs. Do that and you deserve to be in, and you will be in. All the statistics that can be sifted through and debated doesn't negate the simple fact: they had their own destiny in their hands, and fumbled. A tough year to get in a groove. I feel for our student athletes and the difficult year they experienced. Other teams faced the same conditions. Let's now look for a good next season with a semblance of normality.

Would winning on Saturday have gotten them in? At this point, I am not confident it would have. They already had a better RPI than Duluth, and "swept" the Pairwise comparison vs Duluth, and that wasn't enough. Why would anyone assume a Saturday win would have gotten them in?

 

[Offsides Guy]

There is a lot of handwringing in certain quarters about the Gophers missing out on, what? One more game? I told my wife yesterday that the Gophers needed to beat Wisconsin to assure themselves a place in the NCAA playoffs. Do that and you deserve to be in, and you will be in. All the statistics that can be sifted through and debated doesn't negate the simple fact: they had their own destiny in their hands, and fumbled. A tough year to get in a groove. I feel for our student athletes and the difficult year they experienced. Other teams faced the same conditions. Let's now look for a good next season with a semblance of normality.

So what destiny did UMD fulfill by getting blown out of the arena by OSU on Saturday?

 

[Timothy A]

So what destiny did UMD fulfill by getting blown out of the arena by OSU on Saturday?

The value in a 3rd place game could have been IMMENSE between UMD & UM. It would have been meaningful. UMD would have thought they were playing for their ncaa lives and UM would have thought they were playing for a higher seed or maybe for their ncaa lives.

 

[ARM]

The value in a 3rd place game could have been IMMENSE between UMD & UM. It would have been meaningful. UMD would have thought they were playing for their ncaa lives and UM would have thought they were playing for a higher seed or maybe for their ncaa lives.

Or they would have thought that they'd hoped to be playing at 2 pm for a WCHA Championship and an NCAA auto bid, but now, they're playing at 10 am for third place in a tournament with four teams. That's why we no longer have third-place games.

 

[robertearle]

The value in a 3rd place game could have been IMMENSE between UMD & UM. It would have been meaningful. UMD would have thought they were playing for their ncaa lives and UM would have thought they were playing for a higher seed or maybe for their ncaa lives.

I'm going to echo what I said earlier: who's to say that Minn beating Duluth in a 3rd place game would have been enough to get them in? They were already 2-0 head-to-head, what does 3-0 head-to-head prove?

 

[FiveHoleFrenzy]

Duluth lost an overtime game to Bemidji, and one to Wisconsin. Minnesota tied Wisconsin. That means Duluth lost 0.5 + 0.5 for those, while the tie in five games for Minnesota against Wisconsin means Minnesota lost only 0.9 vs Wisconsin. All the other 'common teams' were 1.0 for both. That gives Minnesota the 'common opponents' win by 0.1. That along with a better RPI, and two head-to-head wins.

(The week before the Wisconsin series, Duluth played Mankato. I was paying attention because a loss in either and Wisconsin would have clinched the conference before even heading to Duluth. In both games, Mankato had a goal lead well into the third period. In the second game, Duluth avoided overtime with a goal at 19:57 of the third period. A loss to Bemidji and two narrow escapes vs Mankato. Maybe your eyes should have seen those. The players on Minn get screwed, and they didn't deserve it.)

My eyes did see both UMD vs Mankato games as well as the UMD vs Bemidji game you refer to. The blowout to OSU should have been their nail in the coffin. So maybe UMD and UM should have been left out and Penn State chosen instead? That probably would have been better.

I'm with Steamboat. Minnesota had their chance and didn't get it done. That was their season in a nutshell.

 

[Offsides Guy]

so maybe umd and um should have been left out and penn state chosen instead? That probably would have been better.

.

yes!

 

[robertearle]

...had their chance and didn't get it done. That was their season in a nutshell.

Same could be said for BC, for Providence. And most obviously, for Duluth.

 

[bluffrinkrat]

So my wife asked me this morning if the Gophers have ever not been in the NCCA Tournament before and I said I know they weren't in 2007 which wasn't one of their better seasons and was Coach Halldorson's last season as head coach. She said at the time she wanted her epitaph to read, "Here lies Laura Haldorson. It wasn't about her." Brad Frost was made Associate Head Coach in 2007 as well. I was surprised to find they also did not make the Tournament in 2001, the year after they won it all.

 

[ARM]

So my wife asked me this morning if the Gophers have ever not been in the NCCA Tournament before and I said I know they weren't in 2007 ... they also did not make the Tournament in 2001...

In 2001, their goalie had a brain tumor which had not yet been diagnosed. In 2007, one goalie left the team and the other was still dealing with an ankle injury. In both seasons, the goaltending wasn't at a championship level down the stretch.

I think that we could say the same about this year's goaltending. It definitely wasn't this team's only issue, and overall, I wouldn't even say that it was the largest one. However, top-notch goaltending can cover a lot of other flaws. I thought that Bench stole the 4-0 win over OSU for them and was their best player during the 2020 portion of the schedule. In 2021, the schedule got tougher, the injuries mounted, the goalie play declined, and other teams improved faster. If the staff had a plan that was the equal of the opponents, then they couldn't get the team to execute it. The effort level was not at the level that is required on a consistent basis. That's a problem that has been increasing from season to season. As another UM coach might say, they weren't elite.

People can learn. I remember the current OSU coach being part of the problem in 2001, making undisciplined plays that cost her team a game it couldn't afford to lose to get into a four-team field. The biggest change that this current team needs is to up its desire. They haven't brought in a lot of hardware thus far in their careers. The first step, IMO, is to be hungry every shift in games, for every practice, for every workout. If you're tired of watching Wisconsin and Ohio State play in big games while you're in street clothes, then do something about it.

 

[Steamboat]

In 2001, their goalie had a brain tumor which had not yet been diagnosed. In 2007, one goalie left the team and the other was still dealing with an ankle injury. In both seasons, the goaltending wasn't at a championship level down the stretch.

I think that we could say the same about this year's goaltending. It definitely wasn't this team's only issue, and overall, I wouldn't even say that it was the largest one. However, top-notch goaltending can cover a lot of other flaws. I thought that Bench stole the 4-0 win over OSU for them and was their best player during the 2020 portion of the schedule. In 2021, the schedule got tougher, the injuries mounted, the goalie play declined, and other teams improved faster. If the staff had a plan that was the equal of the opponents, then they couldn't get the team to execute it. The effort level was not at the level that is required on a consistent basis. That's a problem that has been increasing from season to season. As another UM coach might say, they weren't elite.

People can learn. I remember the current OSU coach being part of the problem in 2001, making undisciplined plays that cost her team a game it couldn't afford to lose to get into a four-team field. The biggest change that this current team needs is to up its desire. They haven't brought in a lot of hardware thus far in their careers. The first step, IMO, is to be hungry every shift in games, for every practice, for every workout. If you're tired of watching Wisconsin and Ohio State play in big games while you're in street clothes, then do something about it.

That last paragraph is really pinpointing the issue with the team this year. I remember those epic games at Ridder, when every player was focused on getting to the puck, and every time the opponents had the puck they got covered, and every minute of the game was played at top intensity. Maybe this team missed their fans cheering them on. Maybe we forget how much a cheering crowd can inspire a team. Who will forget, if you were lucky enough to be there, the 3 overtime game against North Dakota? Let's hope that we are through with games to empty stands, and we can get back to the energy and excitement of live hockey. As fans let us acknowledge our roles as participants in our sport. Give this season an asterisk and look for the return of the real Minnesota Gophers!