I apologize to those on hockey-l who think I am taking cuts at the
Gophers.  The point I was trying to make is that the Gophers have a
tremendous recruiting advantage in college hockey.  There is nothing
disputing that.  Smaller schools have a much more difficult time
trying to recruit.  This is especially the case for St. Cloud State,
North Dakota, and MN-Duluth, because since the Gophers get the top players
every year, these schools fight for the remainders and pick
up whoever they can.  What also goes unnoticed is the strict recruiting
laws that face colleges trying to recruit in Canada.  This further
hampers a small school's ability to attract talented players.
Furthermore, I wasn't saying that ALL Gopher fans criticise teams with
Canadians.  But, many do.  I've been to many games at Mariucci and seen
the American flags being waved at the opposition and heard the
obsentities being yelled at the coaches and the Canadian players.  I
found this to be very irritating and unsportsmanlike.  For those of you
who are good fans of hockey, and am sure this is irritating to you as
well.  It is too bad some fans seem to ruin things for everyone.
Finally, I don't think myself or Reusse are ripping the use of Minnesota
players.  The Gophers should NOT use this as an excuse though!  Herb
Brooks' comments (Erik Biever's mail) stem from the fact that many Gopher
fans DO use this excuse.
 
Apologies to those taking offense -
 
Paul Thalacker
 
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