A good weekend for the Gophers!
 
The Gophers swept the Sioux 3-2 on Friday and 10-6 on Saturday in two
penalty filled games. Despite all the penalties, the games were fast
skating and very short. Both games were over in under 2.5 hours!
 
Casey Hankinson (Jr, F, Co-Captain) had a stellar weekend with four
goals and three asssists. He had the hat trick on Saturday night and
the fans rained hats onto the ice after his third goal, he eventually
got a fourth goal on Saturday night also.
 
Other Gophers who scored on Saturday night were: Wyatt Smith, Brett
Abrahamson, Brian La Fleur, Mike Lyons, Dave Spehar, and Bill Kohn.
Freshmen Mike Lyons (D) and Dave Spehar (F) got their first as Gophers
on Saturday!
 
Goals for the Sioux were scored by: David Hoogsteen, Curtis Murphy,
Tyler Rice, Jesse Bull, Matt Henderson, and Adam Calder.
North Dakota never gave up on Saturday night, and they have a fast
skating team. It seemed as if they were getting frustrated on Saturday
and that was their downfall in the end.
 
I had the interesting experience of having a Sioux fan sitting next to
me on Saturday night....I think that she was pretty bold, for sitting
in a decidely Minnesota section and making disparaging remarks about
how the Gophers were getting away with murder on the ice, because they
"were in their own barn"!  Good thing I was in a pleasant mood, as I
could have given her a piece of my mind or two!!! Not a good idea to
trash talk when you are outnumbered in the opposing team's arena.
 
Now, to answer  a few of the questions posed by Charles, earlier today....
(for you folks that ARE on Info-Hockey-L bear with me, as I posted about
this on Info-L Friday night).
 
The first goal on Friday night *was* good! Kraft shot the puck and it
landed on top of goalie Kvalevog, who was flat on his back in the
crease, Rasmussen came by right after and knocked the puck into the
back of the net. The goal light did not come on, but the Referee was
right there and signaled the goal. I saw the replay on the news that
night, otherwise I would have no clue how it went in....in fact that
was the main topic of conversation in between periods. The only
question was did the whistle blow first, but seeing how the Ref *did*
signal the goal, it had to be good.
 
As for what happened to UND on Saturday night?  Well, being in first
place and undefeated at this point in the season, makes you a big
target. The Gophers know that from prior experience and I think used
that to their advantage.
 
The announced attendance is for "tickets sold", not people present.
It's a bit of a problem for those of us who are there too, as we know
that there are plenty of people who are hoping to get in! And people
will do all sorts of things, like selling tickets that someone has
given them to another party who scalps them outside the arena. I sure
wish the police would put those scalpers out of business. We have even
given the ticket office ideas on how to get those seats filled, by
re-selling them, but so far, no progress on that front.
 
Saturday night was a big night for people giving/selling their tickets,
as on the other side of my seat was John Harris (former Gopher hockey and
golf player) and his wife.
 
The Gophers must continue to improve their defense and get the freshman
more experience. North Dakota will do well this season and Dean Blais
has really turned that program around....it just isn't the same without
Gino (Gasparini)....really hard to hate them as much. :-)
 
Next up: Michigan Tech in two afternoon games on Saturday and Sunday.
 
-Carol
GO Gophers!!!
 
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