Headline: Gophers frustrated after 2 ties>
Publish Date: 02/27/1995
Matthew Cross
Staff Reporter
The Gophers hockey team stumbled, fumbled and then grumbled after
coming away with only a pair of ties in a home series with North
Dakota, which is in the bottom half of the WCHA.
A 3-3 Friday deadlock and a 5-5 final Saturday left Minnesota
clinging to a tie for second place with Denver -- again -- after the
Pioneers and Wisconsin split this weekend.
Despite clinching home ice for the first round of the WCHA playoffs,
the Gophers' mood is one of total frustration.
``You feel like you've walked home with your grocery bag and you
stumble on your own doorstep and all the bottles break,'' Gophers
coach Doug Woog said.
``You're right there, with a chance to enjoy the treats both
nights. But both nights, nothing happens,'' he said.
During both games, Minnesota wasted come-from-behind efforts by
letting North Dakota take advantage of Gophers defensive miscues.
On Friday, Sioux winger Kevin Hoogsteen intercepted a pass by Gophers
defenseman Dan Trebil and waltzed into the Gophers zone for a
breakaway goal with four minutes left in the game.
Sioux coach Dean Blais said he saw the game as a learning
experience for his squad and felt North Dakota deserved the point it
gained from a tie, despite its special teams' woes.
``The kids have to learn how to play well on the road,'' Blais said
Friday night. ``And tonight was as close as you're going to come
without winning.
``We didn't execute on the power play and penalty kill like we wanted
to, but that's been the story for the whole year. That's us, that's
North Dakota -- weak on the special teams, but we still manage to tie
or win games.''
The Gophers' disappointment Saturday night came with 11:02 left
in the third period when Sioux winger Ryan Johnson scored a
short-handed goal to bring North Dakota within a goal.
Landon Wilson added a power-play goal about four minutes later to tie
the game.
Both games were fast-paced, and, to Minnesota's surprise, North
Dakota kept up with the speedy Gophers in Mariucci Arena's
Olympic-sized rink.
But defensive breakdowns and mental lapses coupled with some unlucky
breaks hurt Minnesota.
The Gophers hit three pipes on Friday night and failed to
convert on numerous breakaways, but Gophers center Brian Bonin said
those things have nothing to do with good fortune.
``We're a better team (than North Dakota) with more potential,''
Bonin said. ``They came out and played hard. Maybe we were unlucky,
but I don't know if I believe that so much.
``There were a lot of mental mistakes, and after thirtysome games
that's inexcusable.''
Bonin had five points this weekend, with two goals and three assists.
Four of Bonin's points came on the power play, which was the Gophers'
most impressive showing this weekend.
Minnesota was 5 for 11 with a man advantage, but the Gophers, the
WCHA's best penalty-killing team, gave up three goals on nine
power-play opportunities to North Dakota, the worst power-play team
in the league.
``It definitely didn't feel like we got one point out of this,''
Gophers defenseman Mike Crowley said Saturday. ``A lot of teams would
be satisfied with a tie, but Minnesota is the kind of team that is
not satisfied unless we win.''
Crowley broke out of a scoring slump with three goals on the weekend.
He hadn't scored a goal since Dec. 11.
Still in a lock for second place, Woog said his team has got its work
cut out for them. And its goals are as follows:
``You're trying to accomplish three things,'' Woog said. ``You're
trying to finish first or second (in the WCHA), you're trying to help
your NCAA ranking and you're trying to clinch home ice (in the first
round of the playoffs). So we're one of three.
``In baseball, that's good. But not in the game of hockey. You've got
to do better than that.''
Gopher notes: Rookie forward Ryan Kraft suffered a minor concussion
late in the second period of Saturday's game.
Carol S. White BITNET: c-whit@uminn1
University of Minnesota internet:[log in to unmask]
Office of the Registrar
(612) 625-8517 GO Gophers!!!
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