It Was Going to Happen Siouxner or Later

What a weekend indeed. Our Huskies came to Grand Forks having been shut down by the #1 Gophers and losing two heartbreakers to SCSU, and the Sioux series was one to be decided by hard work and dedication. After taking the first night in convincing fashion, the second night was to be another nail-biter.

Rob Nolan started in net for the second consecutive night, after a dominating performance on Friday. For the Sioux, though, Anthony Grieco was placed in goal after Phillipe Lamoureux's 3 goal game. Once again, the first period went by with little activity, few penalties, and no scoring. After a night of less-than-stellar performance, The Oshie was able to convert on the powerplay, 49 seconds into the second. Ironically, this happened immediately after I warned the neighboring Sioux fans to avert their eyes for fear of the brilliance.

It seemed as if the Sioux had a foothold in the game, until 12 minutes in when Alex Gange was able to scoot a puck past Grieco. Less than a minute passed, and Jimmy Kerr fired a convincing shot straight past Grieco putting the Huskies up. This prompted UND coach Dave Hakstol to pull Grieco in favor of Lamoureux. Luckily for Lammy, the UND fans serenaded him with a chorus of boos, surely giving him and the Sioux team a good feeling of confidence. The Sioux were unphased by their fans' feelings, though, when The Oshie fired a shot from the side off of Nolan's glove and into the net.

Enter stalemate, once again. The Huskies and Sioux played hard for the next 20 minutes, with Lamoureux making some brilliant saves, showing up the crowd, not to be unmatched by Robby Nolan's continued hot streak. Lammy would be the first to break, though, when John Schwarz fired a shot at the net, and Malcolm Gwilliam sent it soaring straight past the goaltender's glove. 11 minutes to go, and the Huskies up one, and so it would remain. Gwilliam's beautiful game winner settled the match, and after some stellar defensive play and continued offensive pressure, the Huskies took their second consecutive win at the Ralph and first sweep of UND in ages.

So how did this win happen, you ask. Two words: Matt Greene. MeanEgirl had bet me that Matt Greene, former Sioux captain and Edmonton Oilers defenseman would not score a goal before 2007. Greene made MEg eat her words, though, with a brilliant offensive play totally unlike him on Thursday night, beating Manny Fernandez for his first goal. A dejected MEg settled on a Sioux sweep, and traveled to Grand Forks expecting the worst. All the negative energy from Greene's goal and MEg's negativity likely combined with the lack of atmosphere in the Ralph, disabling The Oshie and allowing the Huskies to win. Honestly, how else would a team like Michigan Tech be able to sweep in the Ralph?

In all seriousness, though, the play this weekend was reminiscent of the play we saw opening the season. Our guys faced some tough opponents in the past weeks, as evidenced by the current WCHA standings. If Denver takes the series vs. UAA tonight, though, Tech will be tied for 5th. The guys will get a short break before the annual GLI, and then face UMD once again before returning home against the CHA Bemidji State Beavers.

As an analysis by the editor, I'd like to take a moment to thank all the Huskies and their parents for making this weekend awesome. It would be so easy to cheer for a team like the Gophers, who win week after week, but making a 9 hour trip to watch our guys play a team like the Sioux, where no win is ever certain, and then be treated to such good play game in and game out, and have the parents treat us so nicely as well is just awesome. The guys showed their class after the game as well, when a team of kids from the Twin Cities waited for them to come out and got autographs.

I would also like to thank MEg and Mitch's Misfits for making home series the way they are as well. I don't mean any offense to fans of the Sioux, but the atmosphere in the Ralph is non-existent. I was awestruck by the grandeur of the building, but no one seemed to care about cheering the team on. They booed their goaltender, one guy threw a beer on the ice after the Saturday game, and my personal least favorite aspect, the "home of the Sioux" during our national anthem. I think we can learn the most from the children present though. We sat in front of a group of boy and girl scouts there for a scout night, and the kids were awesome. They knew nothing about hockey, but every time we would shout something or cheer for the Huskies, they would be interjecting their "let's go Sioux" etc. The girl scouts were even able to get the entire building on their feet egging the team on with a minute to go. Here's to the kids, the good hockey fans, the players and their families. This weekend was perfect, and stay tuned for some analysis from the midget.


Oh, and Dirty did buy Hot Pockets, and they were amazing.

A Night in Paradise

The recently sliding Michigan Tech Huskies made their trip to Grand Forks, North Dakota this weekend to fight the Fighting Sioux for a series in the $100+ million dollar Ralph Engelstad Arena. After night one, though, it appears that the Huskies have regained the play that they exhibited early on in the season.

Friday night started out very slowly, the most entertainment coming from one of the skating cheerleaders trying to skate on her skate guards, to no avail. The dueling Zambonis also provided much entertainment, as well as the fabled TJ Oshie injuring himself by falling into his own net.

Play went slowly through the first period, with little eventful occuring. The Oshie continued to suck, and neither team showed a real advantage. The second period opened as the first, with little to brag about, save the Oshie's continued lack of greatness. After nearly 16 minutes of stalemate, Alex Lord shoved a puck in past Lamoreux after a puck had gone in and bounced out less than 5 seconds prior. The few Husky fans in attendance did quite the job of showing up the fans in the Ralph noisewise, and the momentum paid off when Lars Helminen lightly lobbed a puck in from the blueline on the powerplay, and after a deflection (off a high stick) from Peter Rouleau, Lamoreux opened his 5-hole wide, letting an easy save slide right through.

After exhibiting great sieveness, Lamoreux once again opened his 5-hole wide as Ryan Bunger built on his goal total, weaving up to the net and sliding a backhander in. Though the great Oshie and UND seemed to be shut down and Rob Nolan would get a shutout, Brad Miller was able to scoot a puck by near the end of the third with an extra attacker. This came to no avail, as the arena was emptying with nearly 2 minutes remaining, and the Huskies took their first game at the Ralph since 2003.

What can be learned from this series? Disrespecting Native Americans may get your hockey team a $100 million dollar arena, but the angry spirits will eventually curse your hockey team (don't tell Tyler Hirsch), causing them to continually lose [sarcasm]. Perhaps it was the rude replacement of "home of the brave" to "home of the Sioux" in the nation's national anthem. Or maybe it was the ugly drunk preppy kids displaying signs of affection with their middle fingers during the third period, or the exploitation of attractive women with glowing wands dancing on the ice for us. No, maybe it was just good hockey vs. bad hockey. Stay tuned for more updates regarding the rest of the series.

Don't Nobody Worry 'Bout Me

So, MEg is a lazy midget, and I get to do this again. Well, number 1 came and went, and reactions are mixed. There were times when it looked like the Mighty Mites were left on the ice (See Game 1, period 2), and times where you could almost feel a Husky comeback, but wait, the Gophers scored again.

All in all, it was a well fought series with little to complain about other than the lack of points. In all honesty, this weekend could have been a murdering, but Michael-Lee Teslak, Rob Nolan, and a (mostly) stellar defense kept the Gophers to under 30 shots, continuing a long streak. There wasn't really much of anything exciting to take out of the weekend, save seeing some absolutely amazing displays of passing and teamwork from #1.

Probably the highlight of the week for the Husky faithful, though, was Evan Kaufman getting a crash course in "heads up hockey" from Mike Batovanja, except for the fact that another Gopher goal was scored a few seconds later.

On a positive note, though, the Huskies didn't commit many major farces. Our lovely zebra this weekend tried his best to destroy any chance of offensive play for the Huskies (including Eli Vlaisavlejvich using his magical mind powers to trip Kyle Okposo on a breakaway from beyond his reach and Jordan Foote cross-checking himself in the facemask), but nothing could stop Kellen Briggs (see picture above) from being a sieve, coming out of his Gopher hole as a penalty expired and falling, allowing Jake Wilkens to find the only goal Friday.

This weekend will be a difficult one to predict, as the Huskies travel to Grand Forks to confront the Fighting Sioux, obviously too wrapped up in fighting the NCAA in the courtroom to bother with hockey. They gave up two games to the Badgers, and haven't been playing very well in general.

Chris Conner continued his NHL play with his second game, this time a 4-3 ot win vs. the Phoenix Coyotes. Conner had a few good opportunites in the second and third periods, but registered only 5 shots on goal. His status is uncertain for the Tuesday game vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets, as Stars stars Brendan Morrow, Mike Modano and Eric Lindros's injuries are on a day-to-day basis. Hopefully he will continue to show his worth to the Dallas coaching staff and have the opporunity to continue playing for the Stars.

Well, its been a long weekend, and only one to go before the Huskies get a short break prior to the Great Lakes Invitational. I think its safe to say despite the losses, at least we didn't lose to Holy Cross.

A Victory for the Short People

So, Tech gave up a hard game to the Go-farts tonight, but we're going to ignore that for now. As of yesterday morning, word was passed up that four year Michigan Tech standout, Chris Conner, would be making his NHL debut for the Dallas Stars against the Edmonton Oilers.

5'-8" Conner is seen here next to 6'-4" Oiler Jean-Francois Jacques. Much noise was made about Conner's size in the tidbits covering his recall.

As with his play at Tech, though, Conner did not let size matter. He played a total of 10:48 on the ice, included in that a 0:53 powerplay stint. He had 2 good hits, one missed shot, as well as 3 shots on goal, one of which was taken alone in front of the net, but Dwayne Roloson was able to stop Conner's best attempt to get his first goal in his first game. The Stars play again tonight vs. the Phoenix Coyotes. The official game review by the Stars listed his performace as "spirited" and he spent more time on the ice than the 2 other first timers of this week, so Chris may very well be given the opportunity to play again tonight and Monday vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets. Stay tuned for more updates.

You Are Cordially Invited...

The real action in Houghton this weekend wasn't on the ice, but off. We all remember the Part I of our love saga between MEg and Casey Borer, seen here, and discussed here. The conclusion to this epic love story, which continued last year in St. Cloud, was much anticipated this weekend, and let me say, it turned out to be much better than the hockey, especially Friday's.

The action began early Friday, as MEg attempted to flirt with Casey as he got ready for the game on the bench. Casey ignored her for roughly 5 minutes while Aaron Brocklehurst got off to his weekend of douchbagginess early by criticizing MEg's undying love for Casey. As Casey headed to the locker room, though, he informed MEg that he would be happy to accept her offer of a single red rose after the game.

As warmups began, MEg faithfully waited for Casey, bearing her sign informing the rest of the team of Casey's obvious desire to be with MEg. He couldn't resist continually glancing over in her direction, smiling throughout. Casey's teammates didn't want anyone to know of their captain's weak spot for a real Husky, so they fruitlessly tried to injure MEg with pucks, but were thwarted thanks to the MacInnes's high-strength polycarbonate boards.

Friday came and went without Casey visiting MEg in the penalty box, but Saturday night would bring more fun. As MEg entered the arena for the night, she was greeted by Casey leading the team in running around the building. She offered her rose again, but Casey ran off. She tried hard to resist chasing after him, and felt it would be better to save it for another time. Once again, MEg faithfully displayed her affection for Casey throughout the game, but Casey denied her advances and remained out of the penalty box.

Once the game was complete, MEg stood waiting for Casey to emerge from the dressing room, and soon enough, he came. Casey, being the shy man he is, tried to avoid MEg, but she soon noticed her love, and ran to meet him. She offered her rose, and finally, he graciously accepted. After the usual pictures, and the Zamboni driver's best efforts to run the couple over, it happened.

Yes, friends, MEg got down on one knee, and despite Casey's attempt to leave, she proposed marriage to her love. Casey was left breathless, but what would he say...? After what seemed like a lifetime of waiting, what does he utter?

Yes.

Casey has accepted her offer to spend their lives together (click the "Yes" for full details). MEg attempts to put the cheap plastic ring on his finger, and the two will forever share their existence.

Later that night, MEg informs Carly (Casey's "girlfriend") on Facebook of their engagement, hoping to avoid any complications. She even offered to let Carly be a bridesmaid. Carly, obviously knowing of Casey's desire for MEg, replied "I would just love to be a part of both of your happiness." To me, though, it sounds like she wants a threesome more than anything, but its official, MEg and Casey will be wed. They will announce a date and location soon, but for now, enjoy the sequel to Part I on the MEg and Casey saga here.

Congratulations to the new couple!

Something to Not Smile About

Argh. Our undefeated record in the MacInnes for the 06-07 season is gone. All gone.

I don't even want to talk about Friday.

Saturday however! Great hockey abound! Hockey like that is the reason why there are hockey fans. For the second night in a row, the Huskies outshot the Huskies... Ryan Bunger got his first goal as a Husky to bring make the score 1-0 Tech. It continued on that way for over 20 minutes until Marty Mjelleli tied up the game. Unfortunately, Marty struck yet again about 7 minutes later, with about 2 minutes left in the game, to make it 2-1 SCSU. Though Tech was discouraged, they certainly didn't give up. Only 23 seconds later, Ryan Angelow found the back of the net to tie up the score.

Overtime commenced.

Enter: Heartbreak. With only 11 seconds left in overtime SCSU somehow got one right by Robby Nolan. Crap.

As disappointing as the game was, as hard as the guys worked, as much as they have to show for it (nothing, zero conference points), I am VERY pleased with the team. They played EXCELLENT hockey and stood tough with one of the tougher teams in Division I hockey.

Michigan Tech, who is now 6-6-2 (3-5-2 WCHA), will be facing their biggest challenge of the season thus far, #1 Minnesota, 13-1-3 (7-0-3 WCHA). The Huskies are looking forward to handing the Gophers their first conference loss[es] of the season in the MacInnes. I think I can speak for all Tech fans when I say, I hope Don Adam isn't the ref...

.................. You know it's true.

Something to Smile About

While MEg is busy being angry about the ignorance and foolishness of the overly politically correct, I figured I'd share something that we can all be happy about. This came from George Gwozdecky, coach of the Denver Pioneers. (Special thanks to Quizmire for this.)

I think that Michigan Tech ... I think everybody here who watched this series saw a completely different Michigan Tech team then they have in many, many years and they play hard, they play well together, they're getting great goaltending and they're the kind of team that is going to be in every series throughout this year and it doesn't surprise me that they've had the success up to this point they've had because they're a very good team.
I'm impressed with Michigan Tech, speaking, to get outshot by a team like that is nothing to be embarrassed about or anything like that. They gain an awful lot of respect for how they play and as I said before, I think they're going to be outshooting quite a few teams this year. I think that they stood the league on its ear last weekend with what they did against Duluth - manhandling Duluth, [a] pretty darn good Bulldog team, and they went to Vermont about a month ago and took Vermont apart. Vermont's a damn good team, so when you look at that, and you say, well, how come you got out-shot, they're a pretty good team, they're a pretty darn good team.

One summer seems to have made quite the difference, not only with our Huskies, but with the entire WCHA. Check out this week's standings:

1. Minnesota
2. Denver
3. North Dakota
4. Michigan Tech
....Alaska Anchorage
....Colorado College
7. St. Cloud
....Wisconsin
9. Minnesota-Duluth
....Minnesota State

The presence of the shiny rodents at the top isn't surprising, but seeing Seawolves and MTU Huskies at number 5 with the Badgers at 7 makes this Tech fan happy. There's still plenty of hockey to go around, and next weekend will bring quite a bit of entertainment with the continuation of our MEg-Borer soap opera in a battle of the Huskies. I guess if you're a Husky fan, that means there's no way to lose in this series. We can forget about ignorant old women who run their mouths on bullcrap topics and look forward to some awesome hockey instead, regardless of the mascots and their ethnic affiliations.

Ignorant Idiot of the Year Award

So as I'm sitting here trying to enjoy my vacation, I stumble upon probably the most effed up thing I've read in a long while... Dartmouth's Director of Athletics and Recreation, released a statement to The Dartmouth, which is the student paper at the university, on the upcoming hockey tournament they will be hosting; a hockey tournament in which the North Dakota Fighting Sioux will be participating in.

From here:

Apology for hockey tournament mascot
By Josie Harper, Director of Athletics and Recreation
Published Tuesday, November 21, 2006

To the Editor:

I am writing to strongly denounce the historical and recent affronts to the Native American community at Dartmouth and to offer the support of the athletics department in playing a leading role to combat racial, ethnic and sexist ignorance and intolerance on our campus.

At the same time, I must offer a sincere apology to the Native American community, and the Dartmouth community as a whole, for an event that will understandably offend and hurt people within our community. In late December, we will host a men's ice hockey tournament that includes the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux. UND is one of 14 colleges or universities that continue to maintain a Native American name and image to represent their athletic teams.

Let me state clearly that UND's position is offensive and wrong. When we scheduled UND nearly two years ago to participate in our tournament, we did so without considering their team's nickname and symbol. Perhaps we should have, but I deeply regret that we didn't.

On Friday, as I was traveling on College business, a member of my staff met with the Native American Council to discuss our hockey tournament and to offer our apology for the pain that it will cause. In the days and weeks ahead, I will develop a specific and continuing plan to address issues of respect and tolerance within the athletic department as well as considering a policy for scheduling athletic contests against institutions that support offensive nicknames and symbols.

I can't make this stuff up, folks. I just can't. I cannot believe that someone in her position at an Ivy League university could say things so dumb. I've heard more intelligent things from NMU fans.

I'm going to quote it again because it's just amazing:

Let me state clearly that UND's position is offensive and wrong. When we scheduled UND nearly two years ago to participate in our tournament, we did so without considering their team's nickname and symbol. Perhaps we should have, but I deeply regret that we didn't.

WOW. JUST WOW. The only thing you're going to be regretting, Ms. Harper, is putting this release out to the public.

It is my strong belief that this woman should be kicked very hard in the shin for saying things so dumb and making her once respectable university look moronic and ignorant. Ok, so perhaps Dartmouth is still respectable, but they have an AD that's dumber than a brick. If the university wants to maintain their respectability, they should drop her like a bad habit.

If you too would like like to let Ms. Joann Harper know how much of a moron she is, please take the time to send her an email. She can be reached at Joann.Harper@Dartmouth.edu. You can perhaps make a better impression over the phone. Her number is (603) 646-2465. Maybe next time she can think twice, or even think once, before she publicly humilates her university.

Just a Little Bit Short (Like Me...)

Apparently LetsGoMavs doesn't like me slacking on my blog, so to make her happy, I'll have to do an update. It's Thanksgiving Break for us Techies, so we're kind of lazy right about now. Michigan Tech is the only school in Michigan that gives their students a whole week off for Thanksgiving...

But anyway, on to hockey...

So last weekend our Huskies went to Denver to see what they could do against the then-11th ranked Pioneers, who were just coming off a sweep against UW at the Kohl Center. This was their first REAL test to see whether or not they mean business this year. I know I say that every week, but I mean it this week!

For this past weekend, I'm giving my team an A for effort. I don't think that's enough consolation for them, however.

The Michigan Tech Huskies proved that they could play with the big boys for 6 periods of hockey. Almost everything went the Huskies' way, except for the scoreboard.

Friday night was a heartbreaking 0-1 loss. Don Adam did everything he could to help our Huskies out. Tech was on the right side of a 5 on 3 power play for 1:31 AND had a 5 minute major powerplay. Unfortunately, Tech's powerplay is flatter than an 10 year old girl's chest. In the end though, Brock Trotter's very fluky first period power play goal would prove to be the game winner.

On Saturday the Huskies proved that they will not just lay down on the ice, no matter how deep of a hole they dug themselves into. After the first period, the Huskies found themselves down 0-2. They just couldn't seem to produce anything. Second period though, the Huskies came out firing. With goals less than 1:30 apart, the game was tied at 2. One of those goals was a powerplay goal, fortunately. Similar to the night before, they had over a minute of 5 on 3 AND a five minute major powerplay. They were again unable to do anything with either of those major opportunities though.

With each team getting a goal in the third, first Denver then 1:09 Tech returns the favor, overtime was forced. Both teams had some great opportunities in OT, but in the end, DU's Peter Maninno and MTU's Robby Nolan stood tall (like I only wish I could do), and reserved their teams each one WCHA point.

As for Tech's play this weekend... they played hard and were always in the game. Unfortunately, they only managed to take 1 point this weekend while they were deserving of all four, but that's the way it goes sometimes.

I'm pretty sure that the Huskies will be working on their power play at practice before SCSU comes to town on 1-2 December. That's definitely one area this team could use some help with. Everything else has been outstanding, namely the forechecking, goaltending and defense. The team always keeps the offensive pressure on, but just sometimes has a problem finding the back of the net.

MTU Team Embarrasses UMD Team

...Ok, so I wouldn't call it an embarrassment, just as I wouldn't really call RWD's blog entry on me an embarrassment... at least not entirely. It just works with the whole name scheme.

Last Friday's battle between the Huskies and the UMD Bulldogs proved to go absolutely... nowhere. The teams fought their hardest and only walked away with a 0-0 tie. Perhaps the lack of results was due to the lack of energy in the building.

The goaltending on Friday night was outstanding. The passing was a bit sloppy. The checks (at least the ones by the Huskies) were outstanding.

On Friday night, Drew Dobson saw his first ice time in a WCHA game. The overall impression that he has made on the Tech fans was very positive. I personally thought he came out with a lot of energy from beginning until end, working hard every step of the way. Coach Russell must've also been pleased with his hard work, as he was in the lineup on Saturday night as well (where he assisted on Tech's first goal of the night!).

The results on Saturday proved to be a bit more exciting for Michigan Tech fans. MTU senior Tyler Skworchinski (3-3--6) put away the last two in the 4-1 Tech victory, including the icing-on-top empty netter at the end. Also scoring for the Huskies was Malcom Gwilliam (2-2--4) and Tyler Shelast (4-4--8) with the GWG.

Michigan Tech's goaltending this weekend was excellent. Michael-Lee Teslak posted his second shutout of the season on Friday night while Robby "No-More-Red-Light" Nolan stopped 95.2% of the shots he saw on Saturday.

Hopefully the guys can keep this up... great physical play, excellent goaltending, superior defense and very good depth. They will see their biggest challenge yet next week as they travel to Denver to face the Pioneers. The Pioneers are just coming off of a sweep against the defending national champions, the UW Badgers. They have a lot of momentum and home ice on their side. However, if the Huskies continue the way they've been playing, Denver is in for a real fight...

UMD Blogger Embarrasses MTU Blogger

Luckily it's all over with now. That was absolutely one of the most frightening experiences of my life. Well, probably one of the top 125 at least. Runninwiththedogs, who does sarcastic and biased coverage of the Bulldogs in the Runnin' With the Dogs Blog, featured me in her Gauntlet series. As I have been reading her blog for quite some time now, I have come to the conclusion that she has balls the size of watermelons. Never afraid to ask or say anything, and that's what makes her blog so great.

You can find The Gauntlet: Nerd Edition here:

http://runninwiththedogs.blogspot.com/2006/11/gauntlet-nerd-edition.html

What the Heck Is Up With this Hockey Thing?

So, after the early season noise made about the Huskies' miraculous start, it seems we are as mortal as the rest of the WCHA. I personally cannot be a reliable source for game information, as I was busy listening to the Edmonton Oilers get royally screwed by ever-stupid ref Mick McGeough, as well as watching Don Adam screw over the UMD Bulldogs on my awesome cable package at home. By the time the Huskies played, I was half asleep and absorbed in a wonderful calc assignment, while talking to MEg and trying to download Real Player to get the stupid broadcast to work, so I missed most of the game.

From what I've seen, Tech played hockey, but not to the end result we would have liked. CC maintained a shots-on-goal advantage Friday, wheras Tech took the SOG margin Saturday, but both games ended unpleasantly for us loyal Tech fans. Ironically, the only losses this year have come on Olympic size sheets.

These losses beg the question, what happened? Like I said, I don't have the answers, but I can offer some condolence to anyone ready to jump off the wagon. This year is no different than the others, it has merely started out a bit sketchier conference-wise. The great thing about the WCHA is that any team can win any weekend, as shown by UAA playing hard and splitting the weekend with the Badgers, after Tech dealing them a 0-9 loss and a weekend sweep. UND and SCSU played to a 3 point weekend for the Sioux. UMD and UMN would have split the weekend if not for outrageously bad officiating. Tech has a horrible record with CC, but there is nothing to say that we cannot move on and continue our winning ways, provided the psycholgical part of the sweep does not affect anyone, which it should not by any means. One cannot expect any team to play a perfect season in a league as competitive and diverse as the WCHA. If we wanted to win week in and week out we'd go to the CHA, at which point I'd pack my bags and move to Madison. So fans, remain faithful and keep those Boosh Factors high, because this upcoming weekend will be an exciting one. I cannot make any guarantees, but look for some high quality hockey at the John MacInnes Student Ice Arena--I know I'm ready for it.

More Polls Than a Polka Festival

Polls, polls, polls, and I'm not talking about a strip club on a Friday night. Chances are, a good number of Tech fans don't know about many of the Men's D1 hockey polls, and for good reason. I'm not one to putz with the history of Tech in such polls, but let's just say we haven't been in many in a LONG time. Because of this, it comes as quite a surprise that Michigan Tech, yes, THE Michigan Technological University Huskies, from Houghton Michigan, that crazy engineering school lost in the frozen north are indeed nationally ranked according to many reputable sources. Hockey season has been on for a few weeks now, and I must admit, I was pretty pissed off at all the early speculation about how Tech would be nationally ranked, especially after only beating NMU once and Vermont twice. Yes, Vermont was ranked #10, but that was in a poll conducted after the FIRST week of competition. Then came the sweep there, followed by the sweep of pretty boy Nathan Lawson and the Seawolves, and now come the newest polls. Tech was able to squeeze into the top 20 of the Inside College Hockey power rankings, but recieved only votes in the other polls.

This week, however, INCH ranked the Huskies 13th. Yes, for those of you who are triskaidekaphobic, this may not be a good sign, but to all the bakers out there, we're movin' on up. 13 is a mere 3 spots out of 10th. Unfortunately, though INCH is a slightly less reputable source than one would hope. Today was a good day nonetheless, as USCHO.com ranked MTU #18, displacing Northern Michigan by one spot. Even better, USA Today, which ranks only 15 teams weekly, placed the Huskies at #15.

Yes hockey fans, the Huskies are ranked. Even more beautiful is the fact that perrenial powerhouse Colorado College is not. Though we have proven that ranking is not a reputable mark of whether or not a team will perform well, it provides a little hope for a team that has had trouble convincing the country that we mean business. Unfortunately, for those of us willing to continue our college education, there is little time for celebration until the weekend, but throw yourself a little bash, because thousands of people are reading three little words they've never seen on those polls before, and it means so much. By the way, if you didn't get the joke in the title, you suck, and Go Huskies, Go Badgers.

What's Going on in the Other WCHA Blogs?

As I'm sitting here in one of the EE computer labs, I come across DG's blog over at Let'sGoDu, and I'm trying REALLY hard not to burst out into loud obnoxious laughter over his last blog entry... I'm not even going to talk about it. Just go see for yourself. Fantastic.

Representing UMD, Runninwiththedogs started up this sweet thing called The Gauntlet, where she interviews some of the craziest fans of the team that UMD is playing that weekend. Though it's awesome and she makes the other fans look bad, I hope she quits after next week or so... as the Tech series is coming up soon.....

Over at the UAA blog, Donald is questioning how well the Seawolves will be doing this year. Before coming to Houghton, they were undefeated. Now they're... well, not. UW is coming to Anchorage this weekend for a series, and I think I speak on behalf of all Tech fans (except those closet Badger fans), when I say KICK SOME BADGER BUTT this weekend.

And since I have class in a few minutes, that's all I'm doing for now. For more information, check out the links on the right.

Is it Dusty in Here?

Luckily enough for the Huskies, there were no witches in attendance at Saturday night’s pre-Halloween series ender. Only one errant pep-bander was spotted with a straw broom, who ironically brought it out seconds before Seawolf Chad Anderson lifted the score to 4-3. After starting the season 4-1-0, the Huskies hit the ice to better the record, looking for their first home sweep since Alaska Anchorage was swept January 24-25, 2003.

After a truly dominating performance, it seemed the Misfits were ready for another 9-0 win, but as many guessed, the Seawolves came out swinging. Slow play by the Huskies through nearly the end of the second period left the Seawolves to lead for a majority of the game, though. Junior Tyler Shelast was able to even things up with a goal that UAA coach Dave Shyiak and captain Charlie Kronschnabel insisted on contesting incessantly, causing a lengthy delay in play. The goal stood, and Shelast would come through again with the game winning goal in the third.

Though the play may not have been as efficient as the Huskies may have wanted, the parity shown between lines continued Saturday. Shelast had two goals and an assist, while juniors Jake Wilkens and Jimmy Kerr came home with two. Wilkens scored his first career goal, and Kerr finished off the game with a puck in an empty net. Junior Jordan Foote scored the initial goal, and Phil Axtell, Geoff Kinrade, Malcolm Gwilliam, Alex Gange, Tyler Skworchinski and Lars Helminen all tallied assists. Sophomore goaltender Rob Nolan made 23 saves against the Seawolves, earning him his second career win.

The relative laxness of play wasn’t helped by a smaller crowd than usual. Though Mitch’s Misfits and the Huskies Pep Band kept UAA goalie Nathan Lawson on his toes, it took winger Kevin Clark’s ejection, as well as incessant arguing with official’s calls to get the fans fired up. Hopefully upcoming home series will not be plagued by this laziness, though this was the first times I personally have witnessed a lack complaining at the referees, with a very “uncontroversial” first game.

Though this sweep betters Tech’s record to 5-1-0, the Huskies face the Colorado College Tigers in Colorado Springs this upcoming weekend, and despite a slow start for the Tigers, it seems as if predictions can’t accurately be made about which way WCHA games will be going this year. With the evenness of the lines and increased speed of the skaters, it looks as if the Huskies will be able to take to the ice with confidence and hopefully pull off another set of wins.

Tech Squeaks by Anchorage, 9-0

Where does one even begin when writing about the UAA @ MTU game on Friday 27 October 2006? It's something that won't be forgotten by a lot of people...

I'm not sure that it has hit me yet... the score, Teslak's shut out, and Rouleau's hat trick. What an amazing night. What more could a Tech fan ask for?

Nine goals in one game. That is more goals than Michigan Tech got in any single weekend last year. Three Huskies got three points each on the night: Rouleau, Gagne, and Shelast, while Helminen and Axtell each picked up two points. Angelow, St. Louis, Kerr, Wilkens, Skworchinski, Gwilliam, and Kitti got one point apiece. The highlights of the night (besides scoring NINE freakin' goals) were of course Rouleau's HAT TRICK, with hats from the Misfits peppering the ice (just awesome I might add), and Teslak's first collegiate shut out. It's a great night to be a Michigan Tech Husky Hockey fan. However, the work this weekend is only half done. The guys are going to have QUITE the task ahead of them tomorrow as I'm SURE the Seawolves are going to come out with the vengeance like someone killed their puppy.

One thing this blog writer would like to say is that the UAA Seawolves are a classy bunch of guys. I was just waiting for Kronschnabel to break a Husky in half, but luckily he, and all of the Seawolves, kept their cool. There weren't really any scrums that occured... just some crazy hockey. Be prepared for the real Seawolves to come on to the ice tonight though folks. We're going to have some seriously good hockey on our hands. Hopefully the Huskies can stay focused and finish the job.

Victory is Spelled H-U-S-K-I-E-S

This past weekend, the Michigan Tech Hockey Huskies went to #10 Vermont to not only to play hockey, but win. So they did.

Friday night's score was 4-3 OT, while Saturday was another close one at 2-1. Goaltender Robby Nolan received his first collegiate win on Saturday night. It has definitely been an exciting weekend for Michigan Tech Hockey.

Not only has Coach Russell been talking about how this team is going to be more aggressive this year, but he has been talking a lot about how much more depth this year's team has than in the previous years. This past weekend is a great example of exactly what he was talking about. Each of the 6 MTU goals scored against the Catamounts were all scored by different Huskies. Tech racked up 16 points in Vermont, which were distributed among 12 different Huskies. Each line is making a contribution.

After this past weekend, the Huskies are now at 3-1-0, all of which have been against ranked opponents. Michigan Tech will open their WCHA schedule at home this weekend against the UAA Seawolves (2-0-2), who are coming to Houghton after a win and tie at rival UAF. This should be a great series, and not to mention Tech's third week in a row against opponents with the colors of green and gold.

Pictures from Last Weekend

Just thought I would share a couple of pictures taken this past weekend at home versus Northern Michigan. In the pictures below, you can see Section L in all their gold glory. The next night, about 100 of the pictured below would make the journey to NMU.




















And below is Mitch's Misfits (which is now part of Husky Hysteria ;)) during the NMU starting line-up introductions.



























A very special thank you goes to Ben Hoover of the Misfits for taking these awesome pictures! I haven't asked his permission if I could share them with the world or not... So Ben, if there's any problem with this, let me know. I can take it down, no problem.

Husky Hysteria - Take Two

Alright, here's the update I promised a while ago. I dedicate this entry to Runninwiththedogs, who keeps getting on my case about this situation, even though she doesn't really care.

We're going to keep Mitch's Misfits. Due to the recent creation of a new group, the Painted Bandits-who support MTU Volleyball-it has been decided that Mitch's Misfits will remain Mitch's Misfits. However, Mitch's Misfits is a part of Husky Hysteria. Also a part of Husky Hysteria will be the Painted Bandits, who are working on becoming a student organization here at Tech.

Any promotions that the MTU Athletic Department does will be about "Husky Hysteria," not Mitch's Misfits and not Painted Bandits. From talking to people, this seems like an acceptable solution.

Rivalry Weekend: Head to Head with NMU

This past weekend, the Michigan Tech Huskies played a home and home series with their favorite opponent: the Northern Michigan University Wildcats.

Before the season had started, Coach Russell often talked about the theme for this year being "more aggressive." He used the phrase "more aggressive" when describing pretty much everything. After Friday night's game at the MacInnes, it was evident that he really meant what he said.

The Huskies came out with the determination, heart, and energy that it took to get the job done. This team was PREPARED for the game. Though they didn't get the results they should've right away, they were still an amazing team to watch. It is the opinion of this writer that ALL of the lines were outstanding and everyone contributed in one way or another. "More aggressive" is probably the best phrase to describe the Huskies' play on Friday night.

NMU struck first at 7:09 in the second period. The Huskies dominated the puck for most of the game, and that NMU goal didn't change anything but the score.

Finally, in the third period, Tech senior Tyler Skworchinski tied things up at 4:35. The MacInnes was rocking all night long, but it got more intense during the third period. And just when you thought it was OT time, with *THREE SECONDS* remaining, Justin St. Louis knocked one right by NMU goaltender Bill Zaniboni. The MacInnes then got loud. REALLY loud. I cannot remember a time when it had been louder. The Huskies would get their deserved results, a beautiful "W."

Shots on goal Friday night strongly favored the Huskies... 41 to NMU's 20.

Saturday night was a little different story, not much, but a little. Unfortunately, the Huskies took an early penalty, which the Wildcats were able to capitalize on 45 seconds into the game. The Huskies never fully recovered. There were over 100 Mitch's Misfits and Pep Banders that took over Section 7 and much of 6. Even Gong Wang was able to take time out of his empty schedule and join us at the game.

The score would remain 1-0 up until the end. For the second night in a row though, the Huskies had many more shots on goal. They had 22, while they held NMU to only 14.

The good news is, I think the skating treadmill is doing its job... and we have really good defense this year. From watching the two games, the offense is there, but it can be difficult when shooting at brick walls named Zaniboni.

Next weekend, the Huskies will be going to Vermont, to take on and beat the Catamounts, whatever those are.

And on one final unrelated note, the THB staff would just like to say hello to a loyal reader, Steve V. Steve, you're a great man with a HUGE heart who is funnier than hell. It was a very enjoyable experience meeting you this past weekend.