Wednesday Morning Post

• UND forward Colten St. Clair suffered a leg injury this past weekend against St. Cloud State and is expected to be out at least until the semester break. St. Clair's game contains an element of gritty hustle and his presence will be missed as an energy guy who plays a big role on the team's penalty killing unit.
• Drake Caggiula's slick first period goal against SCSU Friday night was chosen as NCAA hockey's top goal of the weekend.
• Sioux alum Dave Tippett became the all-time winningest coach in Phoenix Coyote franchise history last weekend.
• Chris Porter became the ninth Sioux alum to skate in the NHL this season when he made his season debut for St. Louis this past Saturday.
• The Hartford Courant says Danny Kristo has emerged as the Hartford Wolf Pack's most productive forward this season.
• Through 13 games Corban Knight leads Abbotsford (AHL) in points (12), assists (8), and +/- (+6).
• Mike Commodore recently did a good deed for a British Columbia charity. 
• Women's Four Nations Cup: Team USA defeated Sweden yesterday 10-0 with Sioux alums Jocelyne Lamoureux (1G, 1A) and Monique Lamoureux (0G, 2A) each posting a multi-point game for the Americans. Team USA's next action comes today against arch-rival Canada at 6:00 CST while UND defenseman Johanna Fallman and Sweden will take on Finland today at 2:30. Finland, featuring current UND forwards Michelle Karvinen and Susanna Tapani, dropped a tight 3-1 decision to Canada yesterday.
• World Junior A Challenge: Canada West and UND recruit Rhett Gardner earned the top seed out of Group B by going 2-0 in group play. They have advanced to Friday's semifinals where they will take on Group A's second seed. Team USA, featuring UND recruits Austin Poganski, Nick Schmaltz, and Ryan Mantha, opened group play last night with an 8-3 thrashing of Russia. Schmaltz scored two goals and assisted on two others and now has 12 points (7G, 5A) in his last five games of international competition dating back to August's Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup. Team USA's next game comes today at 6:00 CST against Canada East.
• NTDP Four Nations Tournaments: Recruits Shane Gersich and Christian Evers will be participating in a pair of Four Nations tournaments this week. Gersich and the NTDP Under-18 team will be in Finland while Evers and the Under-17 team will be in Slovakia. Both teams will play pre-tournament games today with regulation action beginning Friday. Check out USA Hockey's Four Nations info page for full schedules and notes for both teams.

Thursday Morning Post

• Senior forward Michelle Karvinen was named the WCHA Offensive Player of the Week following her strong performance in UND's road sweep of St. Cloud State. Karvinen picked up five points (4G, 1A) on the weekend and her seven goals on the season lead the nation.
• Karvinen will not be in the lineup when UND travels to Bemidji State this weekend. UND will also be without freshman forward Susanna Tapani and junior defenseman Johanna Fallman as all three will be preparing to compete in the women's Four Nations Cup in Lake Placid, NY, November 5-9. Tapani and Karvinen will represent Finland, while Fallman will skate for Sweden. Also competing at the Four Nations will be Sioux alums and Team USA standouts Jocelyne and Monique Lamoureux.
• The UND men's hockey Twitter account Tweeted yesterday that sophomore forward Drake Caggiula practiced without limitation. This is most certainly a positive sign for Caggiula, who took a nasty head-over-heels spill during Saturday's exhibition game against Team USA. Hopefully we will see him in the lineup this weekend against St. Cloud State.
• UND freshman defenseman Keaton Thompson was featured in his hometown newspaper yesterday.
• The coaching staff of the BCHL's Penticton Vees will be in Grand Forks this weekend to watch a number of their former players take to the ice at Engelstad Arena.
• Danny Kristo continues his strong play to start the AHL season. Last night he picked up a goal and two assists in Hartford's 5-3 win over Bridgeport, giving him twelve points (7G, 5A) in ten games. While Kristo's performance thus far is impressive, Blue Seat Blogs stresses the importance of patience in letting prospects develop at the proper level.
• Corban Knight notched a goal and an assist, including the overtime game winner, in Abbotsford's 5-4 win over Utica last night. He now has nine points (4G, 5A) in ten games, putting him right up there with Kristo among the AHL's top rookie scorers.
• The Ottawa Sun says Hockey Canada would do right in naming Jonathan Toews captain for the 2014 Winter Olympics, going so far as to call him "the best all-around player in the world."
• TJ Oshie is off to the best start of his career for the St. Louis Blues, having notched ten points (2G, 8A) in ten games with a +8 rating. The creative and relentless Oshie has helped drive the Blues towards the top of the Central Division with a refreshing dose of class.
• North Dakota recruit Rhett Gardner (Okotoks-AJHL) was named to Canada West's roster for the 2013 World Junior A Challenge. Gardner, part of UND's excellent class of 1996 birth-year commitments, was one of 13 forwards selected out of the 36 invited to camp.

Wednesday Morning Post

• Last Saturday's matchup with the NTDP Under-18 team might not have counted in the standings, but it was certainly more than just an exhibition game for UND.
• Mario Lamoureux has signed a Professional Try-Out contract with the Oklahoma City Barons (AHL). Lamoureux began the season with the ECHL's Ontario Reign, where he produced three goals in four games.
• Jonathan Toews notched his third career hat trick last night in helping lead Chicago to a come from behind victory against Ottawa. Here are the goals:

• Sioux alum Ryan Johnson was named Player Development Consultant for the Vancouver Canucks.
• Rangers Unlimited checks in to see how top NYR prospect Danny Kristo is faring in Hartford, with video of all six of Kristo's goals this season. Kristo has nine points (6G, 3A) in nine games thus far, second most among AHL rookies.
• Fox Sports West produced a really nice video featuring LA King winger Matt Frattin. Frattin discusses his move to southern California, his locker room banter with former Cornell goaltender Ben Scrivens, and his line dancing abilities. Check it out: 

• UND recruit Trevor Olson scored a pair of goals this past weekend as he's making the most of what's left of his USHL career. Olson, who will suit up for North Dakota next fall, is set to undergo season ending surgery in mid-November.
• Defenseman recruit Tucker Poolman scored his first goal of the season Sunday afternoon in the second period of Omaha's 6-5 win over Muskegon. He added two more in the third period for his first career USHL hat trick.
• A pair of exhibition games will get The World Junior A Challenge rolling this weekend, with pool play commencing next Monday. Team USA's entry will feature three North Dakota recruits in Ryan Mantha, Austin Poganski, and Nick Schmaltz while Rhett Gardner is currently battling for a roster spot at Canada West's selection camp.

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.

Thursday Morning Post

• Cousins Paul LaDue and Luke Johnson are set to make a big impact on UND during their collegiate careers.
• UND junior forward Andrea Dalen has been awarded Norway's Gold Puck for 2013.
• UND freshman defenseman Halli Krzyzaniak is preparing for her first season of college hockey.
• Johanna Fallman is a part of North Dakota's strong group of European talent.

Former Player Updates:

• Matt Frattin has had a strong preseason debut for the Los Angeles Kings' second line left wing spot. The style of play and the skill set Frattin possesses are exactly what the Kings are looking for in that spot, and that could have the Sioux alum primed for a breakout NHL season.
• Already having racked up a career's worth of accomplishments at the age of 25, the Chicago Sun-Times asks what's next for Chicago captain Jonathan Toews? Toews was recently ranked as the third best player in the NHL by a panel of NHL GM's and head coaches, while Zach Parise came in at number 23.
• Brock Nelson has made a strong push to make the New York Islander roster out of training camp, having earned enough trust of the Isles' staff along the way to have been spending time on the top penalty killing unit as an NHL rookie.
• Brad Malone is another former Sioux looking to make an opening night roster as he has had an impressive preseason thus far for the Colorado Avalanche.
• Former UND standout goaltender Jordan Parise has decided to call it a career as he is retiring from professional hockey.
• A healthy TJ Oshie could be what St. Louis needs to get them over the hump in the postseason.
• In what came as a bit of a surprise, the New York Rangers sent Danny Kristo down to their AHL affiliate in Hartford. By most accounts Kristo appeared to be having a strong preseason, and with the Rangers facing some injury and contract issues up front he appeared to be in line to take the battle for a roster spot down to the wire. Regardless, he showed several promising flashes during the preseason, so don't be surprised if he gets called up at some point during the season. 
• Travis Zajac is looking forward to putting a frustrating 2012-13 season behind him.
• Chris VandeVelde was invited to Philadelphia's training camp after signing an AHL deal with Adirondack, and he is now part of a trio trying to crack the Flyers' opening night roster.
• Andrew MacWilliam was re-assigned to the Toronto Marlies, but not before he left a positive impression on the Maple Leafs' staff.
• Quick Hits: Evan Trupp re-signed with the Alaska Aces (ECHL)...Aaron Dell signed with the Utah Grizzlies (ECHL)...Ryan Hill signed with the Mississippi RiverKings (SPHL)...Derek Forbort, one of the top players under the age of 25 within the LA King organization, was assigned to Manchester (AHL) after a solid preseason camp in LA...Darcy Zajac is lending a veteran presence to the Albany Devils (AHL)...Carter Rowney is attending Wilkes-Barre (AHL) training camp...Joe Gleason is attending Rockford (AHL) training camp...Updated Sioux in the Pros roster for 2013-14...

Recruit Updates:

• UND received a big verbal commitment this week from Christian Cakebread of the Fargo Force, a 1997-born forward who comes out of the Arizona Bobcat AAA program.
• Recruits Nick Schmaltz, Ryan Mantha, and Shane Gersich are all set to take part in tonight's All-American Prospects game in Pittsburgh (6:00 PM CDT start). Austin Poganski was originally scheduled to participate as well, but a minor injury will keep him out of the lineup. The United States of Hockey has a preview of the event, which can be viewed free of charge via FastHockey.
• The NHL's Central Scouting Service released its Preliminary Watch List for the 2014 NHL Draft, and a handful of North Dakota recruits are on the NHL's radar. Nick Schmaltz is listed as an A Skater (potential first round pick), Ryan Mantha, Austin Poganski, and Chris Wilkie are listed as B Skaters (potential second to third round picks), and Rhett Gardner and Shane Gersich are C Skaters (potential fourth round and later picks).
• Schmaltz came in at number 13 on Bob McKenzie's 2014 NHL Draft Preseason Report.
• Charlie Pelnik is expected spend the next couple of seasons playing for the Langley Rivermen (BCHL).

Thursday Morning Post

• A number of Sioux alums will be hitting the ice for the 2013-14 season this week as NHL rookie/prospect camps and tournaments kick into gear. Toronto's Rookie Tournament will feature four Sioux alums as the Maple Leafs (Andrew MacWilliam), Ottawa (Ben Blood), Chicago (Joe Gleason), and Penguins (Carter Rowney) will compete in a round robin tournament beginning today and running through the weekend. Danny Kristo will be part of the New York Ranger contingent competing at the Traverse City Tournament while Corban Knight and the Calgary Flames will be participating in the Young Stars Classic in Penticton, BC (Flames games will be streamed on their website). Derek Forbort will be attending the Los Angeles King rookie camp, which includes a pair of games against Anaheim, and Brock Nelson will participate in the New York Islanders rookie camp.
• Leading into the rookie tournaments, The Calgary Herald detailed Knight's unusually busy summer, while Blueshirts United featured Kristo in this nice interview:

• Hockey Prospectus recently ranked the Rangers' top prospects, and Kristo came in at number two while freshman forward Adam Tambellini was ranked fifteenth. Meanwhile, CBS New York says Kristo will be given every opportunity to crack the Ranger lineup. 
• Forbort checks in at number six amongst the Mayor's Manor top LA King prospects.
• Also from Mayor's Manor, Matt Frattin is fitting in nicely in Los Angeles following his offseason trade from Toronto.
• Following a strong performance at a tryout camp, Sioux alum Tate Maris earned an invite to the St. Charles Chill (CHL) training camp.
• David Toews has signed with the Reading Royals (ECHL) for the 2013-14 season.
• Former Sioux defenseman and Grand Forks native Nick Fuher has joined the Winkler Flyers (MJHL) staff as an assistant coach.
• The Hockey Guys have ranked the top recruiting classes for the next two seasons, and North Dakota's are ranked number two for 2013 and number one for 2014.
• Nick Schmaltz is a key cog in UND's 2014 freshman class, and TSN's Craig Button has him slotted at number 25 in his initial rankings for the 2014 NHL Draft.
• Sioux alum Phil Jackson recently did a Q&A with the LA Kings, and he mentions his time spent playing hockey as a youth with former Sioux All-American Terry Casey. Jackson and Casey were neighborhood friends in Great Falls, MT prior to Jackson's family moving to Williston, ND.

Wednesday Morning Post

• Midco Sports Net produced a nice segment honoring the original Ralph Engelstad Arena. It aired last night during the debut of North Dakota Hockey with Dave Hakstol:

•  Here's another segment from last night's episode featuring Sioux alum Evan Trupp:

• The Winnipeg Free Press says that while Sidney Crosby will likely wear the C for Team Canada at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Jonathan Toews is the team's real leader. Meanwhile, The Calgary Sun says Toews has quickly developed a reputation for winning. My feeling is that Toews probably has a better chance to be named captain than most media outlets are signaling, and Zach Parise is definitely on the shortlist of candidates to be the next Captain America. Don't be surprised if either, or both, don the C in Russia come February.
• The Hockey News' most recent Prospect Need To Know feature says maturation was a key step in Danny Kristo turning pro.
• Big things are expected out of UND recruit Ryan Gropp as he assumes more of the spotlight for the BCHL's Penticton Vees.
• Over the Boards has North Dakota's incoming freshman class ranked as the third best in the nation for 2013-14 and number one for 2014-15.



Tuesday Morning Post

• The 2013-14 roster for the UND men's team was released yesterday and the only real surprise was the absence of junior-to-be Dan Senkbeil. Senkbeil is transferring to Vermont and will be eligible to play in 2014-15 after sitting out this season to satisfy the NCAA's transfer rules. In 49 career games at North Dakota, he produced a goal and four assists.
• NHL.com continues its "30 in 30" series, with Brock Nelson being ranked third among New York Islanders prospects and Danny Kristo and Adam Tambellini coming in at one and nine, respectively, among New York Rangers prospects.
• Surly & Scribe took a look at the top candidates to fill the LA Kings' second line LW position, and they say Matt Frattin would be a good choice. 
• The roster for the 2013 All-American Prospects Game was released yesterday and four North Dakota recruits earned invitations. Ryan Mantha, Shane Gersich, Nick Schmaltz and Austin Poganski are all scheduled to take part in the American-born 2014 NHL Draft eligible showcase September 26 in Pittsburgh. An interesting omission was UND recruit and Tri-City Storm (USHL) forward Chris Wilkie. Wilkie was one of the NTDP U-17 team's top performers last season, including a very strong showing at last season's World U-17 Challenge. The United States of Hockey briefly highlighted a few of the players to watch during the event, and Schmaltz and Poganski were included. Schmaltz was also included in the latest edition of The Hockey News' Hot List.

Friday Morning Post

• UND incoming freshman defenseman Halli Krzyzaniak earned an invite to Hockey Canada's National Women's Program Red and White Series following her performance at the National Women's Development Team Selection Camp, and she says she is enjoying her time playing with Canada's big stars.
• Earlier this week the UND athletic department and Midco Sports Net released the broadcast schedule for the 2013-14 season, with the vast majority of the programming being produced in high definition. MSN will also be airing quite a bit of original UND programming, including Through These Doors and the new ND Hockey with Dake Hakstol. For those non-Midco subscribers out there (myself included), HD webcasts of most home hockey games will be available through a UND Insider subscription. CBS Sports Net, which holds the exclusive rights of national NCHC broadcasts, also recently announced that it is moving to DirecTV channel 221, meaning the additional purchase of DTV's sports tier is no longer required to receive CBSSN's NCHC broadcasts.
• Danny Kristo has been invited to the NHLPA's 2013 Rookie Showcase.
• Hunter Bishop, who played a handful of games in a Fighting Sioux uniform before transferring to Ohio State, has signed with the AHL's Manchester Monarchs.
• CBS Eye on Hockey is putting together All-Time teams for each NHL franchise, and former Sioux Ed Belfour earned the nod as the Minnesota North Stars/Dallas Stars All-Time goaltender. 
• A New York Islanders blog wonders if Sioux alum Brock Nelson will earn a spot with the Islanders this season. Hockey Prospectus also slotted Nelson in at number four in its rankings of the Islanders' top prospects, saying he "looks like he could be a very good two-way center" and that he "is a quality, do-it-all type of forward who could step into the NHL next season."
• Hockey's Future is also producing organizational prospect rankings and Derek Forbort is ranked fifth among Kings prospects.
• The Scouting Report took a look at some of the USNTDP U-18 team's NHL Draft prospects, and North Dakota recruit Shane Gersich was included.
• ESPN recently analyzed some of the top 2014 NHL Draft prospects from the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup (ESPN Insider membership required for full viewing), and here's a sampling of what they had to say about North Dakota recruit Nick Schmaltz: "had a very good tournament, ranking second among all players in scoring and impressing scouts with his very high level of skill...pure offensive abilities drive his value, as he can make a lot of flashy plays...hand-eye coordination, creativity and vision are his best traits...he is small, a slightly above-average skater and needs to work on his all-around game...a potential first- or second-round prospect." 
• The United States of Hockey took a long, hard look at the ongoing turf battle between the CHL and NCAA.

Sunday Afternoon Post

• As NHL.com's "30 in 30" series continues, a pair of UND sophomores found their way into their respective organization's Top 10 prospect lists. Jordan Schmaltz came in at number 6 among St. Louis' prospects, while Rocco Grimaldi sits at number 8 in Florida's deep prospect pool.
• The New England Hockey Journal published an outstanding feature on North Dakota sophomore goaltender Zane Gothberg, the Boston Bruins' 6th round draft choice in 2010. Gothberg says the goal for 2013-14 "is to win our last game, with that one coming in the national championship." 
• The 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics are already very much on the mind of Sioux alum Jonathan Toews, who is a candidate to wear the C for Team Canada.
• SportsNet NY put together a quick little profile on New York Ranger prospect Danny Kristo.
• UND recruit Rhett Gardner, who will suit up for the AJHL's Okotoks Oilers this season, says the current plan is for him to spend two years playing juniors before heading to UND one year out of high school.
• USA Hockey's Under-18 Select team, featuring North Dakota recruits Ryan Mantha, Austin Poganski, and Nick Schmaltz, fell one victory short of earning the gold medal at the Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup. Despite dropping a 4-0 decision to Canada in the gold medal game, it was a strong showing for a hard-working Team USA, and a great individual tournament for Schmaltz. He led Team USA in scoring with eight points (5G, 3A) in five games, and his five goals were the most of any player in the tournament. Poganski and Mantha each picked up one assist in five games played.

Top Shelf Prospects has been running through each NHL team's top prospects this offseason, and a few Sioux alums have been featured:

• Corban Knight (Calgary Flames) 
• Brock Nelson (New York Islanders)
• Danny Kristo (New York Rangers)

Signings, Awards, Etc.

Signings:

• Danny Kristo signed a two-year Entry Level Contract with the Montreal Canadiens Wednesday. He has reported to Hamilton, the Canadiens' AHL affiliate, and he is expected to be in action tonight when the Bulldogs take on San Antonio. He is excited to take on this new challenge.
• Captain Andrew MacWilliam signed a two-year ELC with the Toronto Maple Leafs Wednesday and he will report to the Toronto Marlies, their AHL affiliate.
• Former Sioux captain Chris Porter signed a two-year, one way contract with St. Louis yesterday. It is the first one way deal for Porter, who celebrated the signing by picking up a pair of assists in the Blues' 4-3 shootout win over Chicago last night.
• North Dakota junior defenseman Derek Forbort is expected to forsake his senior year of eligibility and sign with the Los Angeles Kings, who will be making a push to get their former first round pick into the fold.
• Dillon Simpson tweeted his intentions of returning to North Dakota for his senior season.

Awards:

• Danny Kristo was named the College Hockey News Player of the Year this week. He was also named to the All-CHN First Team, while linemate Corban Knight made the All-CHN Second Team.
• The Ontario Reign's Mario Lamoureux led all ECHL rookies with 65 points (25G, 40A) this season and was named to the ECHL All-Roookie Team. Lamoureux, who was a very impressive +30 on the season, also finished second in the ECHL Rookie of the Year voting.
• Michael Forney of the Colorado Eagles finished the ECHL season with 79 points (35G, 44A) in 71 games, and for his efforts he was named to the All-ECHL First Team. Forney's 79 points were second most in the league while his 35 goals were the fourth most.
• Aaron Dell of the Allen Americans led the CHL in GAA (2.30) and finished second with a save percentage of .916, numbers good enough to earn him CHL Most Outstanding Goaltender honors for the 2012-13 season. He was also named to the All-CHL Team and the CHL All-Rookie Team.

Etc:

• Former Sioux great Tony Hrkac came in at number five among the Top 35 All-Time Milwaukee Admirals (AHL).
• Zach Parise recently took part in a Q&A with ESPN.
• Evan Trupp's Alaskan homecoming was a good move for the ECHL's Alaska Aces.
• Matt Greene is recovering nicely from back surgery and could return to the LA King lineup in time for the postseason.

NCAA Tourney Links

Here is a handful of links regarding North Dakota's first round NCAA tournament match-up with Niagara:

• UND: Game Notes
• Grand Forks Herald: UND Takes Different Path to NCAA Tournament
• Grand Forks Herald: Parity Reigns in Men's College Hockey This Season
• Montreal Gazette: Kristo, MacMillan Among Habs Prospects on Display at NCAA Tournament
• Montreal Canadiens: Danny Kristo - Four Years in the Making
• Florida Panthers: Panthers Prospect Corban Knight Named Hobey Baker Finalist
• USCHO: West Regional Preview
• Inside College Hockey: West Regional Preview
• Star-Tribune: West Regional Preview
• Michigan Live: Top Five Players to Watch at West Regional
• Michigan Live: 3 Former Lumberjacks Lead Niagara into West Regional
• Buffalo News: Eagles Need Chubak to be Equalizer
• WIVB -Video: Canisius, Niagara Take AHA to New Level
• Buffalo News - Video: Niagara head coach David Burkholder on NCAA tournament
• Buffalo News - Video: Niagara forward Marc Zanette on NCAA tournament
• Buffalo News - Video: Niagara goaltender Carsen Chubak on NCAA tournament

Final Five Notes, Part II

• North Dakota begins its quest for a fourth consecutive Final Five championship tonight, and you can be assured plenty of UND fans will be there to cheer on their team.
• The Grand Forks Herald's Ice Time has a number of tasty nuggets available for your consumption this morning.
• As mentioned in the Herald's Ice Time, North Dakota seniors Danny Kristo and Corban Knight are solid candidates to make the list of ten finalists for the Hobey Baker Award. College Hockey News also projects the UND duo to be among the top 10 when the finalists are announced this afternoon (5:00 PM CDT), as does USCHO. CHN also opines on the Hobey vote's character issue.
• College Hockey Inc: Final Five Preview Podcast (With the GF Herald's Brad Schlossman)
• College Hockey News: Final Five Thursday Preview
• Sioux Sports Talk: North Dakota vs. Colorado College Preview
• Minnesota Hockey Magazine: North Dakota vs. Colorado College Preview
• Colorado Springs Gazette: Improved Defense Sends CC Into Final Five With High Hopes
• Colorado Springs Gazette: Three Things to Watch vs. North Dakota
• Grand Forks Herald: One Last Hurrah For the Final Five
• Star-Tribune: It's the End of the WCHA Final Five As We Know It

A Few Final Five Notes & Links

• North Dakota's final appearance in the WCHA Final Five begins tomorrow evening against Colorado College and the play of the ultra-competitive Danny Kristo will go a long way in determining UND's postseason success.
• Similar to Kristo, Nick Mattson made his way from the Twin Cities to Grand Forks to play his college hockey, and he knows bragging rights are on the line at the Final Five.
• UND Sports TV recently featured North Dakota senior forward and Hobey Baker candidate Corban Knight. Knight has 48 points (15G, 33A) on the season and with two more, he and Kristo would become UND's first 50+ point duo since Ryan Duncan and TJ Oshie accomplished the feat in 2006-07.
• As for North Dakota's Thursday opponent, a rejuvenated Colorado College team advanced to the Final Five with some timely contributions from a pair of freshman forwards.
• North Dakota will be looking to claim its fourth consecutive and ninth overall Broadmoor Trophy. Colorado College, despite all of its regular season WCHA success over the past two decades (six MacNaughton Cups since the 1993-94 season), has never won the Broadmoor.
• For plenty of detailed information on Thursday's match-up, check out UND's game notes, the WCHA's Final Five press release, or the Colorado Springs Gazette's Final Five preview capsules.

Friday Morning Coffee

• Danny Kristo, Corban Knight, and Rocco Grimaldi earned All-WCHA honors this season, and as a team UND placed 11 players on the All-Academic Team. A contingent of WCHA bloggers, writers, etc. also voiced their collective opinions on who the best of the best were during the 2012-13 WCHA regular season.
• Chay Genoway was traded to the Washington Capitals organization yesterday. He will report to the Capitals' AHL affiliate in Hershey.
• TJ Oshie is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
• Since Evan Trupp's trade to his hometown Alaska Aces (ECHL), the former Sioux winger has found the scoresheet in every game he's played. He has two goals and four assists in three games since joining the Aces.
• Mario Lamoureux (Ontario) continues to lead all ECHL rookies in point production with 59 points (25G, 34A) in 64 games. He is currently riding a seven game point streak during which he has amassed 10 points (4G, 6A).
• Brock Nelson (Bridgeport - AHL) is on a five game point streak during which he has produced eight points (2G, 6A). He currently leads all Sound Tigers with a 0.85 points per game average, and don't be surprised if he earns a late-season NHL call-up.
• A Chicago Tribune writer offers his reasoning as to why Jonathan Toews is the Chicago Blackhawk's first-half MVP.
• The Minnesota's GM recently discussed the impact of the Wild's newly acquired superstars Zach Parise and Ryan Suter. And if the Wild ever need an emergency Zamboni driver, Parise might just be their guy.
• A few months ago The Hockey News featured former Sioux standout goaltender Darren Jensen in its Backchecking segment.

All-WCHA Blogger/Website Awards: My Votes

It's a bit crazy to think that it is yet again time to discuss and debate the various conference award selections. The results of the Second Annual Blogger/Website All-WCHA Poll will be released later this week, but in the meantime here is the way I voted:

All-WCHA First Team:
F - Ryan Walters, UNO
F - Corban Knight, UND
F - Erik Haula, UM
D - Nate Schmidt, UM
D - Nick Jensen, SCSU
G - Stephon Williams, MSU

All-WCHA Second Team:
F - Danny Kristo, UND
F - Drew LeBlanc, SCSU
F - Matt Leitner, MSU
D - Andrew Prochno, SCSU
D - Mike Boivin, CC
G - Adam Wilcox, UM

All-WCHA Third Team:
F - Rylan Schwartz, CC
F - Nick Bjugstad, UM
F - Michael Mersch, UW
D - Andrej Sustr, UNO
D - Nolan Zajac, DU
G - Joel Rumpel, UW

WCHA All-Rookie Team:
F - Austin Farley, UMD
F - Rocco Grimaldi, UND
F - Jonny Brodzinski, SCSU
D - Nolan Zajac, DU
D - Ethan Prow, SCSU
G - Stephon Williams, MSU

WCHA Player of the Year - Corban Knight, UND

WCHA Defensive Player of the Year - Nate Schmidt, UM

WCHA Rookie of the Year - Stephon Williams, MSU

WCHA Coach of the Year - Mike Hastings, MSU

Holiday Leftovers

The blogging came to a screeching halt as the result of holiday travels, but having now returned home a Heinz post is in order. Here's some old news along with some not-so-old news in an effort to catch up:

• Team USA kicked off the 2013 World Junior Championship today with an 8-0 thumping of Germany, and North Dakota forward Rocco Grimaldi picked up an assist in the victory. They will take on tournament host Russia tomorrow morning at 8:00 AM CST, and the game can be viewed on NHL Network or streamed on NHL.com (Full Broadcast Schedule). Grimaldi is seeking to play a big role for Team USA, and he and WJC linemate Johnny Gaudreau are big on ability despite both being under 5'10". In another local connection, the team doctor for Team USA is Phil Johnson of Fargo.
• In a WJC lead-up feature, Jonathan Toews came in at No. 8 in TSN's Top 40 All-Time Canadians in World Junior history.
• Corban Knight finished off the season's first half in style with a six point weekend in a road sweep against Michigan Tech and he was named the WCHA Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts. Beyond the Pond says he is no silent Knight, while Goon's World asks the question, why not Knight for Hobey?  
• The Western College Hockey Blog issued its WCHA First Half Awards and Knight, Grimaldi, Danny Kristo, and Jordan Schmaltz all received recognition.
• After being named the CHL Goaltender of the Month for November, Aaron Dell stayed hot and was named the league's Goaltender of the Week for the week ending December 16th.
• Brock Nelson was recently included in The Hockey News' Hot List.
• The 2012 Spengler Cup is underway in Davos, Switzerland and former Sioux defenseman Travis Roche is representing Team Canada. Roche has notched an assist in two tournament games and is among an unheralded group of Canadians getting the job done. This year's Spengler is drawing a bit more interest than usual as a number of locked out NHL stars pepper tournament rosters. Among the familiar names are Rick Nash, Joe Thornton, Patrick Kane, Tyler Seguin, Patrice Bergeron, John Tavares, Jason Spezza, etc.
• Colby Genoway was recently featured in a nice video highlight package (link opens a YouTube video). Genoway currently plays for Lausanne of the NLB (Switzerland Tier 2) and is tied for 8th in the league in scoring with 45 points (19G, 26A) in 26 games. His 1.73 PPG rank first in the league among players with at least 25 games played. 
• As virtually everyone knows, UND recently received verbal commitments from two highly-coveted recruits. St. Cloud Cathedral's Austin Poganski and Holy Family's Shane Gersich both committed to North Dakota in the days leading up to Christmas. A recruit profile for Gersich is forthcoming, and in the meantime you can get to know Poganski a little better via his recruit profile.
• Poganski will be joining fellow North Dakota recruit Chris Wilkie on Team USA's entry in the 2013 World Under-17 Challenge, which runs Dec. 29 through Jan. 4th in Victoriaville/Drummondville, Quebec. Team USA plays an exhibition game Friday against Canada Pacific before kicking off preliminary round play Saturday in a tilt with Canada Ontario. Poganski is the only high schooler on the Team USA roster. The majority of the roster is made up of NTDP players, while a few others play for junior clubs.
• The 2013 Women's Under-18 World Championship begins Saturday in Vierumaki/Heinola, Finland, and North Dakota has four committed recruits taking part. Alexis Shaw (G), Gracen Hirschy (D), and Amy Menke are on Team USA's roster while Halli Krzyzaniak (D) will be playing for Team Canada.

Monday Morning Coffee

• After earning its first sweep of the season this past weekend against Michigan Tech North Dakota will enter the holiday break on a high note. After the impressive showing in Houghton, several UND players will be strong candidates for WCHA Player of the Week consideration. Corban Knight and/or Danny Kristo could take home offensive honors, while Clarke Saunders and Joe Gleason put up very nice numbers on the defensive side. UND will next take on Holy Cross January 4-5 at REA.
• If you have not already seen it, Sports Illustrated published a very nice article on North Dakota hockey's loyal following.
• The National Post featured Toronto Marlies winger Matt Frattin in an article in which Toronto brass had a number of nice things to say about the former Sioux star. Frattin came up big over the weekend as he scored the game tying goal with just 10 seconds left in regulation and then helped seal a 4-3 victory over Rochester by scoring in the shootout. He now has 12 points (8G, 4A) in 12 games this season.
• Brock Nelson recently went one on one with The Checking Line. He is currently tied for 3rd in scoring among AHL rookies with 22 points (11G, 11A) in 25 games.
• The Des Moines Register wrote on a quartet of Iowans currently playing for the Omaha AAA Under-16 Lancers, and included in the piece is North Dakota commit Christian Evers. The Omaha AAA program, which also produced UND commit and current USA NTDP forward Chris Wilkie, has quickly developed into a very powerful hockey program.
• North Dakota recruit Tucker Poolman's (Omaha-USHL) effectiveness on the power play earned some recognition from the USHL in its weekly update. Poolman, a defenseman, added a seventh power play goal over the weekend and is now tied for the league lead in that category. Meanwhile, recruit Paul LaDue continues to lead all USHL blueliners with 21 points (4G, 17A) in 24 games.
• The recently decommitted Brendan Lemieux got himself into some trouble with an illegal hit.

North Dakota vs. UAA: Notes & Links

North Dakota vs. Alaska-Anchorage - Notes & Links

• North Dakota: 1-1-0 Overall (0-0-0 WCHA)
• Alaska-Anchorage: 2-1-1 Overall (0-0-0 WCHA)
• Gametime: Friday 7:37 CDT/Saturday 7:07 CDT
• Both games will be broadcast across the region on a variety of media outlets and as always, here's the standard broadcast information. For the DirecTV folks, Friday's game can be found on channel 623 while the Saturday matchup will air on channel 626.
• Series Notes (PDF): North Dakota and Alaska-Anchorage
• For all of the GF Herald stories, check out Brad Schlossman's Friday Morning Reading.
• Anchorage Daily News: UAA Encouraged By UND's First-Half History
• Anchorage Daily News: Scott Allen Making the Most of His Chances
• Anchorage Daily News: UAA Has Odd Early-Season Schedule
• Series Numbers: North Dakota is unbeaten in its last six games against UAA dating back to the 2010-11 season, outscoring the Seawolves 28-10 while going 5-0-1 over that span. UND holds the all-time edge with a 45-17-4 mark while going 26-3-3 at home. Heading into this weekend, UND's 32 home games against UAA are split evenly between the old and new Ralph Engelstad Arenas, having played 16 games at each venue. UND never lost to the Seawolves at the Old REA, having gone a perfect 16-0-0. In the new Engelstad Arena, North Dakota is 10-3-3.
• Senior Danny Kristo, who will be making his regular season debut this weekend, is the lone active member of the UND Century Club with 109 career points. Corban Knight was held without a point last Saturday night against Alaska-Fairbanks, thus he remains on the Century Club doorstep with 97 career points. It will take a three point weekend, but expect him to be in the club by Saturday night. Carter Rowney, by the way, is third on the active list with 46.
• Michael Parks will not play this weekend due to the lower body injury he suffered in the exhibition game against Manitoba. He is still at least a few weeks away from returning to the UND lineup.
• Several players will be reuniting with former teammates this weekend. Dillon Simpson was a teammate of UAA's Bret Cameron and Scott Allen with the AJHL's Spruce Grove Saints, Corban Knight and UAA's Quinn Sproles were teammates on the AJHL's Okotoks Oilers, and Andrew MacWilliam and Austin Sevelrud were Camrose Kodiak teammates in the AJHL.
• UAA's Blake Tatchell was featured in TOE's WCHA Instant Impact series prior to the season, and thus far he has not disappointed. In four games the freshman has produced three points (2G, 1A) while centering a line that includes freshman Hayden Trupp and senior Alex Gellert. Hayden, of course, is the younger brother of former Sioux star Evan Trupp.
• USCHO's This Week in the WCHA
• USCHO's Weekend Picks
• USCHO's Three Things We Learned
• CHN's Tale of the Tape
• CHN's WCHA Power Rankings
• CHN's WCHA 3 Up, 3 Down
• CHN: WCHA Three Things
• WCHB Weekly WCHA Preview
• WCHA Weekly Press Release
• The Hockey Writer's Combine: UND vs. UAA Game Notes
• Sioux Sports Series Preview
• Episode 2.04 of Through These Doors: