I've been thinking for a while that one of the most disappointing things
about the Gophers this year is how few of the upperclassmen are actually
better players than they were two years ago.  Spehar, obviously, is at the
head of this list.  Eight goals?  For the season?  As a freshman, he looked
like he'd be a consistent all-WCHA player, and it seemsto have disappeared.
If it were just him, I'd think that the problem was obvious, but he isn't
the only one.  Bill Kohn and Mike Lyons are still making the same boneheaded
mistakes they were making as rookies, and Kohn has only 4 points, so he's
not performing at that en,either.  Mike Anderson was never going to be Mark
Parrish, but he's inconsistent with the things he can help out with.  Wyatt
Smith and Reggie Berg are obviously playing very well, but Berg goes through
some stretches where he just disappears.  Where did Nate Miller go?
 
Something is very wrong with this hockey team.  There has been a series of
events over the last several years (money to Chris McAlpine and all of the
bad breaks last year; perhaps the largest was the best Minnesota team of the
'90s getting destroyed by Michigan in Grand Rapids) that they have responded
to very poorly.  They simply aren't as good as North Dakota or Colorado
College right now, but there is no excuse for the Gophers being in seventh
place right now, even with the brutal schedule they've played thus far.
Ican't think of whose doorstep to leavethe responsibility for this malaise
at other than Doug Woog.  Personally,  I think it's time for him to go,
though I've never been a big fan.  At a minimum, I think it's time to at
least start asking why we think the situation is going to get better in the
coming years.  Yes, I'm really excited by some of the younger players, but I
said the same thing two years ago.
 
As to the specific post that prompted this, I suspect that Dave Spehar is
blowing off steam and will be back next year.  But is next year going to be
any better forhim?
 
J. Michael Neal
 
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