Sioux in the Pros Update

Here's an update on how some of the Sioux alums playing professionally are faring early on this season:

• Brandon Bochenski (Astana) is currently second in the KHL with 11 goals and fifth with 19 points through 19 games. Additionally, his three game winning goals are tied for third and his +14 rating is fifth best.
• Rastislav Spirko leads Spartak Moscow (KHL) with 14 points (6G, 8A) in 18 games.
• Danny Kristo (Hartford) is second among AHL rookies with 7 points (4G, 3A) in six games.
• Kristo and Brad Malone are among the AHL's leading goals scorers with 4 each.
• Corban Knight is tied for second on Abbotsford (AHL) with five points (1G, 4A) through seven games. His five points are also sixth most among AHL rookies.
• The Ulmer brothers are off to strong starts in the Austrian elite league. Jeff leads Ljubljana with 14 points (7G, 7A) in 14 games while Jason leads Linz with 21 points (7G, 14A) in 15 games. Andrew Kozek (6G, 4A) and Curtis Murphy (3G, 7A) are also among the top scorers for Linz.
• Jake Marto and Jason Gregoire are each among the top four scorers for Sodertalje (Sweden tier 2). Marto has nine points (2G, 7A) in 13 games while Gregoire has eight (2G, 6A) in eight.
• Ryan Bayda's eight points (5G, 3A) are tied for the Augsburger (Germany tier 1) team lead.
• Carter Rowney was signed by the ECHL's Wheeling Nailers and has two assists through two games.
• Aaron Dell has signed a Professional Try-Out (PTO) contract with the Norfolk Admirals (AHL) but has yet to see game action. Earlier this fall Dell signed an ECHL contract with the Utah Grizzlies.

Comings & Goings

It's been awhile since the last post containing transaction news, but in the last few weeks a decent amount of player movement has taken place amongst the UND hockey world. Below is a rundown of the recent comings and goings:

• North Dakota received a verbal commitment from defenseman Ryan Mantha yesterday. Mantha, who will play for Sioux City (USHL) this upcoming season, joins Nick Schmaltz, Chris Wilkie and Brendan Lemieux as 1996-born UND commitments. To learn more about UND's newest recruit, you can check out his Recruit Profile or you can catch him in action September 28th when Sioux City opens the USHL regular season against the Fargo Force at Scheels Arena.
• Taylor Dickin, who spent one and a half seasons with North Dakota, has opted to transfer to the University of Manitoba. Dickin and the Bisons will travel to Grand Forks October 6 to take on UND in an exhibition tilt.
• Jordan Parise came to terms with Valpellice of Italy's Serie A, joining Anthony Grieco as former Sioux goaltenders who have signed on with an Italian elite league club. Earlier this summer Grieco signed with Pontebba. Parise spent last season playing in Germany while Grieco played with Asiago of Serie A.
• Corey Fienhage signed an AHL contract with the Rochester Americans. He split time last season between Rochester and Gwinnett (ECHL).
• Michael Forney re-signed with the ECHL's Colorado Eagles. Forney spent the bulk of last season with Colorado, where he was one of the team's top point producers. He also spent some time with the AHL's St. John's IceCaps and Texas Stars.
• Joining Forney in Colorado is Aaron Dell. Dell, of course, recently forfeited his final season of collegiate eligibility to sign a professional contract, and he will be one of two new faces in goal for Colorado.
• Andrew Kozek has signed with Dornbirner of the Erste Bank Liga (Austria Tier 1). He spent last season with the Nikko IceBucks of the Asia League.

Wisconsin Recap

Being on the outside looking in with regard to the national tournament picture, North Dakota came into the weekend knowing that it must defend its home arena during the stretch run if it hopes to earn an NCAA tournament berth. By way of 5-3 and 4-2 victories, the Sioux defended Engelstad Arena and avenged a Badger sweep in Madison earlier this season. Here are a few observations:

• North Dakota is now 11-3-1 since the Sunday game of the Bemidji State series. Through that game the Sioux were scoring 2.42 goals per game while allowing 3.00. Since then they are scoring 3.53 while allowing 2.60. 
• Michael Parks was very good this weekend. As a whole he's been very solid all season long, but it appears as though he's finding the form that allowed him to score the sixth most goals in the USHL last season. He had four points (3G, 1A) through the first 21 games, but since then he's produced five points (3G, 2A) in six games.
• Stephane Pattyn celebrated his 21st birthday in style by scoring his first career goal Friday night. On what was the game-winning goal, he strongly held his position in front of the net and Mario Lamoureux rewarded his efforts by slipping him a pass that Pattyn neatly tucked home.
• One obvious key to limiting the damage caused by Wisconsin's top guns is to keep the puck off their sticks. UND won 58% of the faceoffs this weekend while holding Justin Schultz and Mark Zengerle, two of the top point producers in the nation, to a combined two points (0G, 2A) and a -4 rating. North Dakota's overall team defense was very good this weekend as well. Wisconsin had a difficult time generating quality scoring chances.
• Joe Gleason is settling into his forward role quite nicely. He's been very good over the past few games at gaining the offensive zone with speed, and when that happens it really puts the opposing team on its heels. He's a tremendous skater with the invaluable ability to play either defense or forward effectively, but he's really becoming a difference maker while playing up front.
• Derek Forbort returned to the lineup this weekend, seeing his first action since getting injured during the World Junior Championships. He seemed confident, he played with a bit of an edge, and he had a very nice series. With the upcoming off-week, the team now has two weeks to try and get everyone as healthy as possible for the last month of the regular season and playoffs.
• The top line of Brock Nelson, Danny Kristo, and Corban Knight picked up where it left off last Saturday. After being held off the scoresheet last Friday in St. Cloud, "The KnightLine" has produced 17 points (7G, 10A) during the team's three game win streak.
• With Brock Nelson scoring a goal each night, the Fighting Sioux are now 12-2-0 when he scores, 3-8-2 when he does not.
• Andrew MacWilliam appears to be breaking out offensively. In 20 games prior to flipping the calendar, the junior defenseman had one assist. In the seven games played in 2012, MacWilliam has recorded five points (2G, 3A), including last night's bomb from beyond the blue line. As a unit, North Dakota's defensemen contributed eight points (2G, 6A) against Wisconsin.
• Based on the play of the goaltenders this weekend, I'd expect the goalie rotation to continue in Duluth. There were several weird, flukey goals scored this weekend, but both Aaron Dell and Brad Eidsness did what they had to do in order to give the team a chance to win.
• The Sioux are now tied with Colorado College for fourth place in the conference standings. However, the two teams immediately below them in the standings (Michigan Tech and Nebraska-Omaha) have two games in hand on the Sioux. UND is off next weekend, while Michigan Tech travels to Minnesota State and UNO hosts Bemidji State. The following week UNO travels to Michigan Tech while North Dakota takes to the road against Minnesota-Duluth.

Running Down the Sioux in the Pros: ECHL & Overseas

As advertised, here is the rundown of the former Sioux playing in the ECHL and various leagues overseas. Tomorrow's post will feature updates on the Sioux recruits.

ECHL:

• Colorado Eagle defenseman Aaron Schneekloth is quite possibly having the best statistical year of his professional career. The Eagles franchise moved from the Central Hockey League to the ECHL this season, but the change in competition hasn't slowed Schneekloth. Through 17 games he has 16 points (8G, 8A), 6 power play goals, a +10 plus/minus rating, while his 16 points, 8 goals, and 6 PPG lead all ECHL defensemen. He was also a runner-up for last week's ECHL player of the week award after producing five points (4G, 1A) in three games. Earlier this month Schneekloth took part in a podcast to discuss several aspects of his career, including touching on his time spent at North Dakota.
• Schneekloth's Eagle teammate Michael Forney is also having a solid year, with 10 points (4G, 6A) in 17 games. Forney was recently featured in the Eagles' Player Profile series, and there was a decent amount of Mighty Duck talk. Here's the interview:

• Something about November must get the Toews family revved up. While brother Jonathan has been busy tearing up the NHL, David Toews has been on a nice streak of his own. The Toledo Walleye forward is currently on a 5 game point streak, during which he has accumulated 6 points (1G, 5A).

Overseas:

• Adam Calder is having a big year in the EPIHL (England Tier II). Through 20 games, he leads the Slough Jets with 21 goals and 39 points. His 39 points also rank him second in the league.
• Colby Genoway has 26 points (6G, 20A) in 19 games with Lausanne of Switzerland's Tier II league. He leads the team in assists, ranks second in points, is fifth in the league in assists, and is tied for 11th in points.
• Jean-Philippe Lamoureux is among the top goaltenders in Austria's Tier I league. He has started 23 of Olimpija Ljubljana's 24 games and has posted a 2.28 GAA and .937 Save %, both of which are second best in the league. The save percentage is his best since his high school days in Grand Forks.
• Andrew Kozek has 28 points (20 G, 8A) in 19 games for the Nikko Icebucks (Asia League). His 20 goals lead the Icebucks and rank second in the league, while his point total is tied for the sixth highest in the league.
• Curtis Murphy has notched 22 points (6G, 16A) in 24 games for EHC Linz (Austria-Tier I). He is the top point producing defenseman in the league.
• With 20 points in 16 games, Bill Trew leads the wonderfully named Landshut Cannibals (Germany-Tier II) in points and is tied for the team lead in assists. His 20 points are also 15th best in the league.
• Jordan Parise joined the Dresdner Eislowen after former Minnesota goaltender Kellen Briggs went down with an injury. In 11 games Parise leads the league with a 2.09 GAA, and his outstanding play has led to a contract with Augsburg of Germany's elite league. He is expected to make his Augsburg debut Friday against EHC Munich, which features former Sioux Jason Ulmer as its second leading scorer.
• Brandon Bochenski (Barys Astana-KHL) has 19 points (9G, 10A) in 21 games. His 9 goals are tops on the team and his point total has him tied for the team lead.

Former Sioux News, LaPoint Signs, NHL Rookie Camps, Links, Updates, Etc.

Former Sioux Ryan Johnson has accepted a try-out with the Detroit Red Wings. The faceoff and shot blocking specialist spent the latter portion of last season with the Chicago Blackhawks and would be a nice addition to Detroit's penalty killing unit if he can crack the roster.

Derrick LaPoint has signed with the Reading Royals of the ECHL. LaPoint, a former Florida Panther 4th Round draft pick, became a free agent August 15 after failing to come to terms on an entry level deal. The Royals are the ECHL affiliate of the Boston Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs.

Meanwhile, as first reported by the Grand Forks Herald's Brad Schlossman, Andrew Kozek has signed on to play with the Nikko Ice Bucks of the Asia Hockey League. Also in Asia is Former Sioux Darcy Mitani, who plays for High 1 and is the league's all-time leader in Assists and Points.

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A few weeks ago Matt Frattin was confirmed to take part in Toronto's rookie tournament. Several additional former Sioux will also be taking part in NHL rookie camps and tournaments beginning next week as the NHL's preseason starts to rev up. Chay Genoway will suit up for the Minnesota Wild's entry (Full Roster) in the Traverse City NHL Prospects Tournament while Corey Fienhage will be playing for Buffalo. The MSG Network will be broadcasting the tournament's New York Ranger games (J.T. Miller will be playing), and depending on the standings after pool play, maybe we'll have the opportunity to catch the Wild or the Sabres take on the Rangers.

The Vancouver Canucks will be hosting the 2011 Young Stars Tournament. The Winnipeg Jets will be part of the tournament and while no Jet roster has been released, I'd expect Jason Gregoire to be part of the lineup.

Brett Hextall will be attending the Phoenix Coyotes rookie camp while Brad Malone is on the Colorado Avalanche training camp roster.

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According the to the Edmonton Journal Dillon Simpson is part of a deep pool of Oiler defenseman prospects while Sioux commit Jordan Schmaltz makes this Top 5 list of the top U.S.-born 2012 draft prospects.

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Here are a couple of updates from previous posts:

Sioux Commits in Fargo taking on the Force:

Date		Opponent	Sioux Commit	Sioux Schedule
Thu, Oct 20	vs	Sioux City	Jordan Schmaltz	@ Wisc. 21st & 22nd
Fri, Nov 11	vs	Cedar Rapids	Jack Rowe	No Game - Off Week
Fri, Nov 18	vs	Lincoln	Luke Johnson	No Game
Sat, Nov 19	vs	Lincoln	Luke Johnson	@ BSU 19th & 20th
Fri, Dec 09	vs	Team USA - 18	S. Matteau, M. Koules	vs. Neb-Omaha
Wed, Dec 28	vs	Lincoln	Luke Johnson	No Game
Fri, Jan 06	vs	Sioux City	Jordan Schmaltz	No Game
Sat, Jan 07	vs	Sioux City	Jordan Schmaltz	Clarkson @ Winnipeg
Thur, Jan 26	vs	Sioux City	Jordan Schmaltz	vs Wisc. 27th & 28th
Sat, Apr 14	vs	Lincoln	Luke Johnson	No Game

Road Game On-Sale Dates:

Series	Game Date	Tix On-Sale	Tickets/Details
Home Games	-	Sept. 10	Tickets
Wisconsin	Oct 21/22	Sept. 22	Tickets
Minnesota	Nov 4/5	Oct. 5	Details
Bemidji St	Nov 19/20	Sept. 17	Tickets
Alaska-Anchorage	Dec 2/3	Sept. 26	Tickets
Clarkson @ Winnipeg	Jan 7	TBD	Tickets
St Cloud St	Jan 20/21	Sept. 12	Tickets
Minnesota-Duluth	Feb 10/11	Sept. 26	Tickets
Denver	Feb 24/25	Sept. 10	Tickets
Final Five (St Paul)	Mar 15/16/17		Tickets
NCAA Regionals	Mar 23/24/25
Frozen Four (Tampa)	Apr 5/7