THN WCHA preview:
 
Predicted order of finish:
 
1.   North Dakota (28-13-4 last year)
2.   Minnesota (28-16-2)
3.   Northern Michigan (22-19-1)
4.   Wisconsin (36-9-1)
5.   Denver (18-24)
6.   Minnesota-Duluth (20-19-1)
7.   Colorado College (18-20-2)
8.   St. Cloud State (17-19-2 as an independent last year)
9.   Michigan Tech (10-30)
 
Five reasons why the Fighting Sioux will win:
 
1.   North Dakota led the WCHA in scoring last season and possesses the
     league's largest and best collection of proven scorers, including Russ
     Romaniuk, Dixon Ward, Greg Johnson, and Neil Eisenhut.  All four of
     those players scored more than 50 points last season for the Fighting
     Sioux.
2.   Despite the departure of Hobey Baker finalist Russ Parent, North Dakota
     should field a solid defensive unit.  Jason Herter (picked in the first
     round by Vancouver in 1989), Brad Pascall, David Marvin, Dave Hakstol,
     Jace Reed, and Darryn Fossand return for this season.
3.   Senior goalies Tony Couture and Chris Dickson are a reliable tandem
     between the pipes.
4.   Outstanding special teams play.  Back for North Dakota this season are
     players who accounted for 54 of the 71 power-play goals scored by the
     Fighting Sioux last year, when the team had a 28.1 percent conversion
     rate.  In addition, most of the players on a penalty-killing unit that
     was successful 81.1 percent of the time are returning.
5.   The North Dakota recruiting class, including forward Chris Gotziamann,
     defenseman Jamie Burt, and goalie Corey Cadden, is considered by some
     to be the best in the country.
 
Top MVP Candidates:
 
1.   Chad Erickson, G, Minnesota-Duluth.  A first-team All-American last
     season, Erickson is the best of the WCHA's collection of talented
     netminders.
2.   Jay Moore, C, Denver.  Moore is expected to carry the scoring and
     leadership load for the Pioneers.
3.   Duane Derksen, G, Wisconsin.  He was the top goaltender in last year's
     NCAA tournament, and if Wisconsin is to contend this season, Derksen
     will need to have another strong season.
4.   Ken Gernander, C, Minnesota.  The most gifted goal-scorer on the
     perennially contending Gophers.
5.   Bill Pye, G, Northern Michigan.  If he returns to the form he showed
     during his sophomore season, Pye could make a run at player-of-the-year
     honors.  Two years ago, he was 26-15-2 with a 3.15 GAA and a .904 save
     percentage.  {Well, I guess that answers my question as to why THN is
     stuck on this guy. -- Bill}
 
Most underrated players:
 
1.   Jay Moore, C, Denver.  An extremely hard worker, Moore has the
     potential to score 30 goals.
2.   Jeff Saterdalen, C, St. Cloud State.  Always in the right place at the
     right time.  A strong puck handler.
3.   Rob Andringa, D, Wisconsin.  A steady player who came into his own with
     the Badgers last season.
4.   Kelly Hurd, RW, Michigan Tech.  An outstanding two-way player for a
     mediocre team.
5.   Dallas Drake, C, Northern Michigan.  Has tremendous skills, but has
     often gone unnoticed while the spotlight shined on Phil Berger, Dean
     Antos, and Scott Beattie.
 
Best goalies:
 
1.   Chad Erickson, Minnesota-Duluth.  He has a sub-.500 career record (52
     starts), but Erickson posted a 3.65 GAA and a .881 save percentage last
     season.
2.   Duane Derksen, Wisconsin.  Came of age last year and was instrumental
     in the Badgers' drive to the NCAA championship.
3.   Bill Pye, Northern Michigan.  Was the MVP of the WCHA playoffs two
     years ago and is looking to rebound from a sub-par season.
4.   Tom Newman, Minnesota.  Almost carried the Gophers to what would have
     been their fifth straight Final Four berth with excellent performances
     down the stretch.
5.   Tony Couture, North Dakota.  His surprising play made the Fighting
     Sioux a contender last season.
 
Best Defensemen:
 
1.   Sean Hill, Wisconsin.  Capable of scoring 20 or more goals.  An
     improving two-way threat.
2.   Tom Pederson, Minnesota.  He anchors the Gophers' blue line and is a
     creative player.
3.   Brad Werenka, Northern Michigan.  Played in only eight games last
     season due to injuries.  His presence should dramatically improve the
     Huskies' blue line.
4.   Jason Herter, North Dakota.  Strong at both ends of the ice.  Like
     Hill, he has the potential to become a dangerous scoring threat.
5.   Larry Olimb, Minnesota.  Made an impressive transition from forward to
     defenseman last season.  A quick playmaker.
 
Watch these freshmen:
 
1.   Jason Zent, LW, Wisconsin.  The only high school player on the US World
     Junior Championship team in 1989.
2.   Joe Dziedzic, LW, Minnesota.  Multi-talented, with a heavy shot,
     Dziedzic was a third round pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1990.
3.   Bill Lund, C, Minnesota.  Led all high school scorers in Minnesota last
     season.
4.   Tony Szabo, LW/RW, Northern Michigan.  Figures to have an immediate
     impact as a 22-year-old freshman.  {Does anybody know if the "20-year-
     old" rule still exists in the NCAA?  As I dimly recall, an incoming
     freshman would lose one year of college eligibility for each year of
     his age over 20; thus, under this rule, Szabo would have two years of
     eligibility instead of four. -- Bill}
5.   Shawn Reid, D, Colorado College.  Should step in right away and
     stabilize the defensive unit, which has lost four-year starter Cal
     Brown.
 
New Faces:
 
1.   St. Cloud State, coached by Craig Dahl, joins the WCHA this season.
2.   Newell Brown is the new head coach at Michigan Tech.
3.   Frank Serratore takes over the head coaching duties at Denver.
There are also two new athletic directors in the WCHA, Jack McDonald at
Denver and Pat Richter at Wisconsin; and three new sports information
directors, Bill Crumley at Minnesota, Justin Doherty at Northern Michigan,
and Julie Kluge at Wisconsin.  The WCHA also has a new media relations
person in the league office, Doug Spencer, who replaces Julie Kluge.
 
Other notes:
 
North Dakota head coach Gino Gasparini correctly points out that ranking the
WCHA is difficult, saying "do it with a pencil."  The top three contenders,
North Dakota, Minnesota, and Northern Michigan, are all strong and evenly
matched, and defending champ Wisconsin, Denver, and Minnesota-Duluth also
figure to challenge.
Sean Hill of Wisconsin has a reputation as a free spirit.  Last year, during
a practice, the Badger players were told to show their most creative move in
a session of one-on-one with the goaltender.  Hill complied by pulling down
his pants while racing up the ice.  There is no word on whether that
particular move has been included in Wisconsin's playbook.
Finally, while Colorado College coach Brad Buetow is known as an intense
competitor during games, he is considerably more laid back in the off-
season.  As coach of the South team during last summer's US Sports Festival,
he scheduled only one practice per day while the other coaches all had two.
He was also known to drive some of his players to the golf course.  He says,
"It was such nice weather then, heck, I wanted to go [golfing] myself."
 
Bill Fenwick
Cornell '86
LET'S GO RED!!
 
"Well, I've always said I have a face made for radio."
-- ESPN's Chris Berman, when a power failure knocked out the TV cameras
   during a broadcast