Pre-Frozen Four Thread
SIAP, I didn't see one.
I cannot concentrate at work today... 3 PM will not get here quick enough.
I keep running the North Dakota lineup through my head, and their offensive depth is staggering. Better than Miami-OH, and we remember how those games went. I am hoping the return of Burlon and Merrill entering beast-mode can shut down the Frattin line.
I am in club level, first row, just off the center ice line. Anyone else going to be there??
GO BLUE!!
I wish our game is first because then I could enjoy the second game if we won.
This Guy!
I got a good feeling about this game. If we play hard and to are potential I believe we can take it. GO BLUE!!
Go Blue! Beat the Sioux! We got a long 9 hours ahead of us.
currently I am sitting in the team hotel trying to get some HW done since I am missing classes and the ONLY website that seems to work on this internet connection is MGoBlog....
Fate?
I would just like to say that I'm pretty fugging amped for this game tonight. That is all.
I am incredibly nervous and I am not sure how I'm going to get through the day. Fortunately, I have a bar crawl this evening which means I might miss parts of the game, but also that I will be as drunk as I want to be in the case that we lose, limiting further self destructive behavior.
I wonder how many minutes Jon MF Merrill (and Chad Langlais) plays tonight.
Excited as hell for the game tonight. We got tickets through the athletic department for student season ticket holders which are picked up at will call, so we do not know where we are sitting yet but I assume they are high up by the band...which is fine by me, I am just glad I am here.
For Michigan to win tonight, they have to play an outstanding game, probably their best of the year. Backchecking will be a huge factor: this team is at their best when the forwards are skating as hard playing defense as they do when they are going forward. Hunwick as to be very good (obviously). They need to limit NoDak's power play chances. Scoring first would also be important, it gets their energy up and NoDak might start feeling pressure.
Simple fact is, I would rather take my chances against North Dakota coming off a two week bye rather than right after a win in the semifinals, Michigan has the talent to get it done. I am really excited and nervous, it should (hopefully) be a fun night
That's fantastic! I live in the Twin Cities, so if you want any suggestions about night life, restaurants, adult entertainment, etc. Lemme know!
we have our plan pretty much set with the Michigan fan get together before the game at the bar named on the athletic department's email.
If (when) we advance, I might take you up on suggestions for activities to do tomorrow though.
Unfortunately, I will not be able to make it to that get together. As a side note, be prepared to be overwhelmed by NoDak fans. They have a big fan contingency in the Cities and travel well because, let's face it, there is nothing else to root for in North Dakota. (See Nebraska Syndrome).
Such as a Minnesota Vikings party boat cruise? Maybe you should point him in that direction.
Funny thing is, my firm worked on that case. Gotta love violations of the Mann Act.
Good thing Michigan only has to play and beat North Dakota once. I just read this article http://www.foxsportsdetroit.com/04/07/11/Michigan-embraces-underdog-role-at-Froze/landing_um.html?blockID=499204&feedID=3804 and it read like a matchup of a loaded Red Wings or Penguins team vs. the Minnesota Wild in a playoff series. Scary stuff.
any online streaming links? I'd love to watch this from Korea.
sucks, won't work outside US.
I've heard some quips about the RCMB, and I had never been there before.
So I took a moment to peruse, and discovered that you have to pay to participate (about $9/month). I found this alarming (pay to post on a message board?), so I declined their invitation to embark on a 7 day free trial.
Perhaps MGB has spoiled me. Is this striking to anyone else, or is this so commonly known and accepted as to be routine?
Burning couches is very expensive these days.
I feel like if we can win this the championship will come home, but this is a tall mountain to climb right here. Hunwick's gonna have to play the best game of his career, and that's saying something cause he's had his moments in the past for sure.
If Michigan plays the same game they played against Colorado College, they win. Michigan's scoring is so spread out, there isn't a line you can focus on and say "Stop that one and we'll beat them". North Dakota is built more in the vein of CC though. Stop that top line and own the penalty kill and North Dakota loses most of its potent threat.
Stopping UND's top line is NOT like stopping CC's.
How so? They're pretty deep, man. We've got 8 guys with 20+ points, they have 9. We have five guys with double-digit goals, they have six. And five with 40+ points where we have one. I don't know how anyone can make an argument that we have deeper, more balanced scoring than they do.
but North Dakota's secondary scoring seems to feed off the success of thier top line. The most important goals ND scores are scored by that top line. Frustrate them and you can frustrate the rest of the team.
I'm not saying North Dakota is bad. Obviously they aren't. What I am saying is that they are certainly very beatable if we play the same game we played against CC. Control the front of the net, make them shoot from the outside, pressure on the penalty kill for long stretches, and score when the opportunity presents itself (the one thing we could have improved on from that game). North Dakota isn't the only one playing great hockey right now. Michigan belongs right where they are and have played the gritty kind of hockey that usually wins tournaments.
Michigan is a strong team. We know what it's like to loose and we still have that bitter taste in our mouths from 2007-'08 and this year with WMU taking away our CCHA title shot.
I think we're hungry and NoDak could be overly confident.
They're goalie is weak, and if a goalie has a bad night, that can be a death nail.
GO BLUE!!!
Hmmm. while I like your optimism, I disagree with your assessment of Dell. Statistically, he is the best goalie in the Frozen Four (Hunwick is second) and he just broke Ed Belfour's NoDak record for wins in a season. He has a sub-2.00 GAA and a save percentage approaching .930 -- he is legit.
Still, you are correct, any goalie can have an off night, and it is hard for a team to overcome that.
North Dakota is a very big team. 17 players are 6' and over.
Seriously... tall? Get Sparks in there skating underneath their wheeling kudgels.
Sparks has increased in potency since the LOKObition. Bring him on.
Anyone know how easy it would be to get tickets for Saturday if we win tonight? Considering making the 12 hour drive trip tomorrow night for the title game.
Depends on if UM-Duluth makes it. There will be less available tix than if Notre Dame gets lucky.
Also, scalping is legal in Minnesota, so there will always be tix available on the street.
Finals tickets are really, really easy to get outside the arena. It's like that every Frozen Four. And if scalping is legal in MN, it should be even easier. Worry not, make the drive, you'll get in.
Maize hockey jersey cleaned and laid out - Check
Bar venue selected for viewing - Check
Lucky rabbits foot in pocket - Check
Voodoo dolls of Matt Frattin and Aaron Dell with ample supply of pins - Check
Reminded self that in hockey, the better team doesn't always win - Check
I'm ready....Let's Go Blue!
Predictions?
Novel, I know.
that my anger with the airlines burns with the heat of 1000 suns? Thank you, Delta, for your $600+ airfare for each of the dozen or so flights every day between your two hubs, DTW and MSP. I'm sure each and every seat on every one of those flights is full at Delta's oh-so-reasonable fares. /rant
In other words: Wish I was there to see the victory over UND! Go Blue!
Hubs: that's why so expensive. Nobody else is gonna bother flying direct.
Don't get me started on the ingenious hub scheme that has resulted in all the major airlines losing money year after year (and Southwest, with no hubs, making money year after year).
I just worry this will turn into the kind of game where we technically outshoot them, even though they're not quality shots/chances, take dumb penalties, don't do Hunwick favors on the defensive end, and, thus, get throttled. That's pretty much the game NoDak forces you into playing, and that's why they're so frighteningly dominant.
Of course, I typed all of that out to ensure it doesn't happen.
I feel good about this game.
Spath over at Rivals is reporting Burlon is a healthy scratch today. Clare will play in his absence.