I am sure someone will post the box score for this game, so I will
just post a few comments about last night's game (Friday). Looking
at the afore-mentioned box score, one would think the Gophers would
have handily won this game. They did all the things a team normally
have to do to win. Let's see what exactly they did:
 
-They won a good majority of the faceoffs
-They had signifacantly more shots on goal
-They scored to power play goals (out of six or so chances)
-Their penalty killing unit was perfect on the night
-There was scoring from three different lines
 
Wow! At first glance it looks like they won everywhere but on the
scoreboard. But this is not really true.
 
North Dakota, especially in the first and third periods, played
like a team possessed. Lots of intensity, lots of tenacity, lots
of emotion. Not to say that the Gophers had none of these, but
I find it difficult to believe this is the same team that lost
to CC 8-2 and 6-0 earlier this year.
 
North Dakota seemed to be more aggressive than the other teams
the Gophers have faced this year. By keepingt the play on the boards
(where ND clearly won the night) they managed, for the first time
this year, to keep the play in Minnesota's end for a significant
amount of time.
 
Goaltending was a bit questionable for Minnesota. Callinan has
started all the games so far this year, and he has yet to lose,
nut he has not looked good in the last three games. I have to
wonder if he is just not used to playing a full schedule, after
splitting the duties last year with Moen. How long before Woog
gives him a game off? I think he could use the rest, sometime
before the Thanksgiving tournament.
 
All in all, North Dakota reminded me a lot of the Minnesota team
from last year. Besides the similar starts, they seem to have a
lot in common: strong on the boards, getting the goals oftentimes
by just crashing the net--not nearly as many set up plays as the
Gophers are employing this year. But playing with lots of spirit,
and staying in the games, keeping the emotions high. Heart can,
as evidenced last year by the Gophers, overcome a lack of talent
and experience (both of which, by the way, Minnesota has much
more of this year). I look for North Dakota to do a bit more later
this year (although hopefully not tonight!).
 
The ending of the game, a 4-4 tie, seemed to me fitting. Flying
in the face of the shootout sentiment in Hockey East, I felt neither
team deserved to win, or lose, this game:
 
ND deserved the win for coming out strong against the #1 team in
the nation with just one win under their belts, but they deserved
not to win by letting the Gophers come back in (literally) the final
second (!!!) of the game.
 
Minn. deserved the win for never giving up, and the inspired play
in the final minutes of regulation and almost all of the overtime.
But they deserved not to win by putting themselves in a position
where they had to come back. In six of the seven games so far this
year, the opponent has scored first, and Minnesota has had to battle
back. While this is good for confidence, and being able to turn things
on when they need it, it was only a matter of time before it came
back to haunt them. If they had played the entire game like the
overtime period, this would have been a very different game, with a
very different outcome.
 
So the tie suits me just fine. Especially with the shakeup in the
Hockey-L Top 15.
 
Things to look for in tonights finale of the weekend series: who
gets the momentum from the result last night? The Gophers must feel
bad for having to tie the game in the final second to avoid the loss,
especially being heavily favored to win. But ND must feel equally
as bad for letting the game slip away from them.
 
On the three weekend series so far, Minnesota has looked significantly
better on Saturday than on Friday, almost as if they size up the
opponents on the first game of the series. The true test is if they can
come back and look sharp tonight, like the #1 team in the nation (not a
woof, mind you, just a comment on the polls) should.
 
And a brief look ahead: I saw the final period of the UM-MSU game on
Prime last night (at 3:30 in the morning--I had insomnia). Wow! This
was the Michigan I was expecting to play this year! And Michigan State
looked real good, too, as the third period seemed very even. If this
is what we have to look forward to over Thanksgiving--hey hey! It should
be a great tournament! I can't wait! The Gophers, I think, will play a
more structured team very well (no offense meant to ND fans!), and we
should see some great college hockey!
 
                                -Lee-nerd
                                [log in to unmask]
 
"Violence is the last resort of the incompetent." -Isaac Asimov