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This is The GPL Podcast from gopherpucklive.com.
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Thank This podcast is sponsored by Jerry Peters and First Class Mortgage.
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Visit us at firstclassmortgage.com.
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Now, here's Joop and Vego!
1:02
Good evening, and welcome to The GPL Podcast, episode number 216.
1:12
Well, there he is, Mr.
1:13
Vegoe.
1:14
We doubted him last podcast, but sure enough, the boys have made it to the Frozen Four.
1:22
Pretty amazing run this team has been on in the second half.
1:26
We've been well-documented with our question marks.
1:30
I feel like every time Bob goes in front of media right now, he goes, you know, all these people back in Minnesota, they were worried about us getting splits early in the year.
1:40
And we were, we were clearly concerned about all this talent coming back and not having the pieces quite fit right, but they're fitting right now.
1:52
Well, we both predicted that they would not make it to the Frozen Four.
1:58
They would not make it out of the regional.
2:02
For me, it was more of history.
2:04
They had not gotten out of a regional outside the state of Minnesota in 20 years, since 2002.
2:13
And, you know, we had been still seeing the Jekyll and Hyde, you know, we looked at the Big Ten Championship and we're like, oh boy, that was just kind of a downer.
2:27
But this team, you know, we'll just start off with, you know, the UMass game, the UMass game down two to nothing, down three to one, no panic, no worry, come back, tie it, win it, and over time.
2:44
Something we have seen this year is comebacks, but it just seems like the worst you and I, I know, especially me, there was just some doubt there.
2:55
Well, I think there's some doubt during the game as well.
2:57
The way the game started, how physical UMass was against Minnesota, how they fell behind.
3:04
And you wonder, oh, are they going to start trying to go for home runs?
3:08
Because that has been what has happened to them in big games for the last couple of years.
3:14
And every time that situation presented itself, Minnesota had a hard time rising to the challenge, but against UMass, they stuck to it.
3:23
And I think a big reason for that is Ben Myers and Matthew Nyes play the kind of game you have to play to be successful in these tournament situations.
3:35
And having guys like that that they could lean on really paid off.
3:40
So let's kind of look at the game situation.
3:42
We had an interesting situation about a long goal review for UMass.
3:49
I'm still not clear on how that was called a goal by defined as the rules.
3:55
He was in the paint.
3:56
He was in the way.
3:58
Yet the goal counted.
4:00
Did we ever get any?
4:01
I mean, they tried to clarify it, but I'm still not convinced that that was the right call.
4:09
It's always hard to know because sometimes these refs just make it up as they go.
4:14
You know, and I agree that I don't like the rule as it's written.
4:20
Whereas if there's a player, if there's a player who happens to be in the crease and he doesn't impact the play, then should be a good goal.
4:32
I think that should be the rule.
4:33
That's not quite how it reads, but there's also kind of that nuance to it that does that player impact the play?
4:42
And apparently, the refs decided he didn't.
4:46
Good hockey goal.
4:48
The UMass team gets another goal off a skate, which, you know, I don't think it was a kicking motion, by the way, Mr.
4:57
Wade, I don't think it was a kicking motion, but there was definitely a movement of the skate that redirected it into the net.
5:04
So two tough breaks for Minnesota.
5:08
But you just kind of wonder, yeah, you did just kind of wonder, is it going to be like that Michigan game where they get a couple of bad breaks and then they just kind of fall into the cycle of feeling sorry for themselves and trying to create plays when they should just stick to their game plan.
5:25
And they didn't.
5:26
They did stick to their game plan, which is something we have not seen.
5:30
And maybe that's the benefit of having an older roster that has been through these elimination games before and knows that you just can't do it on your own.
5:41
You have to stick to what works.
5:43
And we saw that throughout the night.
5:44
And I was impressed that Minnesota stepped up to the physical play that UMass was handing out and they met them right back with it.
5:53
Coach Mautz was definitely not happy with the third goal they gave up to get that another two goal lead.
5:59
But like we've been saying, they stayed strong.
6:02
They came back.
6:05
They really shut down that physical team the whole second half of the game.
6:11
Got within one goal.
6:14
Nice!
6:15
Gets the tying goal.
6:16
And then, of course, we know Ben Myers in overtime.
6:21
It just seemed to keep building and they just kept shutting down.
6:24
The defending national champions, yes, missing some players, but still that experience counts.
6:30
That was just a huge eye-opener for me, Biggs.
6:33
It was very satisfying.
6:35
It was kind of satisfying to see Minnesota come out on top in a game like that.
6:40
And Huglin has been a perfect fit.
6:44
He has been a perfect fit on that line with Nives and Myers.
6:47
He plays the same style.
6:49
You watch them go from shift to shift and they win shifts.
6:54
It's not always like they're trying to hit the home runs.
6:58
They know that they will wear down the opponents and it's a lot of fun to watch.
7:03
I believe that we had seen Huglin with Nives and Myers at the end of the Michigan game.
7:10
Not as noticeable because really that game was out of hand.
7:14
The first roster comes out Friday afternoon, two hours before the game.
7:17
Huglin is not with them.
7:19
Don't know if that's a mistake, but it was a mistake.
7:23
It was a mistake.
7:24
There's a little miscommunication happening between Bob and his staff.
7:28
So they had been practicing that way the whole week with the lineup that we eventually saw.
7:33
But then when the change happened, I'm like, I really love that change.
7:38
And, you know, when the game winning goal happened over time, it was kind of in between some shift change.
7:44
I know what was it that Nelson got down there when the puck got dumped, started causing issues.
7:50
He hands it over to Huglin.
7:52
Huglin busts his ass behind the net, keeping control of the puck, protecting the puck.
8:00
You see Nelson staying on board.
8:01
He's like, okay, this is a good time.
8:03
I'm going to go off for a change.
8:04
He does.
8:05
Who comes on?
8:05
Myers.
8:06
He sees that Huglin's in a little trouble, kind of breaks up the whole play.
8:12
Giving the puck to Huglin.
8:14
Huglin feeds him.
8:15
And boy, that was just an overall blue collar play, blue collar goal to win the game.
8:24
And that's what's been missing.
8:26
You saw the connection between the Nelson shift and the Myers line taking on the next shift.
8:32
You need lines that can connect like that and can put pressure on your opponents.
8:38
And it's just so key in these games to do that.
8:41
It's going to be important for them as they go on.
8:44
And I think it was important in the Western Michigan game.
8:46
The same kind of philosophy of just keep the chain moving.
8:51
Well, they get the victory, of course, in overtime.
8:55
What a fun game.
8:57
But now here comes the big challenge.
8:58
We've got Western Michigan and I've got the score up on the screen there for people watching live.
9:04
Three to nothing win by the Gophers.
9:07
Solid defensive game.
9:09
They shut down Western Michigan really well.
9:11
Another big kind of imposing team likes to impose their will on you.
9:16
But it was more of the second half of that UMass game for the entire game against Western.
9:26
That game against Western is probably the most complete intelligent hockey game I have seen the Gophers play maybe ever.
9:35
There was really only one moment where you kind of got on edge and go, Oh, I don't think that was the right smart play.
9:42
And that's when Western Michigan got the puck and got the rush player.
9:47
Luckily goes offside and it looks like Western tied it up there.
9:51
One one.
9:51
That was probably the only moment of the game where I went.
9:54
Oh, and it's because they got three forwards trapped below the dots and they gave up speed coming the other way.
10:01
Other than that, they played pretty much a flawless game.
10:06
And we've been talking about what's percentage hockey that game.
10:10
Yes, it was perfect.
10:13
And I think that game also was kind of a notice to all the national media.
10:21
How good Brock Faber is because Frank leading goal scorer in the country, Western Michigan, NCHC top goal scorer.
10:31
He was invisible the entire game.
10:35
I don't know if he got any chances the entire night.
10:38
And I think a big part of that is Brock Faber.
10:40
And just being physical, closing gaps, closing out plays really quickly, no odd band rushes.
10:47
It was a tremendous performance.
10:50
Well, I was definitely satisfied with that game.
10:54
Definitely the good team we wanted to see all these years showed up for regional away from the state of Minnesota.
11:02
And like you said, for the first time in 20 years, they advanced Vegoe.
11:08
I'm not sure what else to say about that game.
11:10
I was just, it was a very happy situation for me.
11:14
I think Justin Close was another player who rose to the occasion.
11:18
He is such an intelligent goalie that he makes the right read almost all the time.
11:25
Like he knows where to go and where to challenge.
11:29
He knows where to put his rebounds when he knows he can't freeze it.
11:33
And he does a great job freezing the puck.
11:35
You know, when I talked to Jack LaFontaine early in the year, he commented that, you know, I don't like freezing the puck all the time.
11:41
I want to keep play moving.
11:43
Justin Close, he knows that there are times when it's good for the goalie to freeze the puck, and he can do it.
11:49
And he really controlled that game against Western.
11:52
I don't really think the whole weekend there was a lot of concern about go for goaltending.
11:58
The goals that did get in were kind of these change up tip type situations where I think, you know, being a little bit smaller goalie, you know, if it's not a clear, clean shot, you know, he's not big.
12:10
It's hard for him to close up the net and, you know, that read and react.
12:14
Anticipation stuff kind of goes out the window on those.
12:17
But I think all the shots that he saw, he did a great job on.
12:22
Quick question, or actually we want to get your thoughts on this.
12:26
Ice was terrible all weekend.
12:28
I hated it for both teams.
12:29
I thought it was a shame.
12:30
I think that play when Western was off sides would not have been off sides if it was just some decent, just decent ice.
12:42
You know, and then I was, you know, someone, people on Twitter saying they're going back there in a couple of years.
12:48
A couple of other places have some terrible ice as well.
12:52
I think it's a shame.
12:53
You know, I don't care who you're rooting for, for Western, Minnesota, you know, whoever's playing to play on that kind of crappy ice for an NCAA regional, it's embarrassing.
13:10
I don't know if it's embarrassing.
13:11
I'm not going to quite go that far, but I think it's a clear mistake.
13:14
It's a mistake to have the biggest games of your season being played in front of these crowds.
13:20
You know, what did UMass do to earn that home ice advantage?
13:23
Basically, you know, Gophers got last change, but UMass had the fan base there to keep them energized and respond to their their physical play.
13:32
And then the ice sheets we saw with the goals that were being reviewed.
13:38
You know, when the clock is out of sync and the green lights not in sync with the clock and you have that mess with Notre Dame, that stuff just shouldn't be happening at this time of year.
13:49
And I was listening to College Hockey News podcast, talk about the regional and Josh Fenton and Don Lucia were with Adam Ward on at that moment and Don goes, well, at least we're no longer on the front page for embarrassing video reviews.
14:06
That whole North Dakota, Notre Dame thing was goofy.
14:11
I have never seen clocks that far off before.
14:16
And what threw me off as well is that, you know, the overhead clearly showed a good second and a half that it was over.
14:25
What still kind of threw me off a bit, what confused me is that, you know, the horn still went after the clock that we all thought was synced.
14:38
So the horn probably went, what, two seconds after that.
14:43
That's one thing that just kind of threw me off a bit, Veegs.
14:46
I'm like, yeah, maybe people didn't hear the horn because of the excitement.
14:50
But I'm thinking the horn would have gone off before the shot would have even happened.
14:59
It was just a weird situation.
15:00
Yes, the referees have to go by that clock, but something was not, something was fishy, Veegs.
15:05
Something was downright fishy.
15:07
Well, you know, there's the clock management of the guys, maybe, you know, run the clock early or late or something to figure things out.
15:14
I have no idea what happened.
15:17
I buy the explanation that that's the official clock that they have to go to with the burned in thing.
15:22
But it's just baffling that College Hockey continues to have these situations in the biggest games at the end of the year.
15:29
And it's because we have this ridiculous need to have these neutral sites that some coaches think is an advantage to them.
15:37
I would much rather see them play in nice buildings or campus sites in front of good crowds than have this neutral site thing that some teams think helps them.
15:47
It's just not right.
15:50
Well, I think just the thing with me, you know, they came back and the announcers were saying that, yes, the TV clock is not the official clock.
16:00
We know that.
16:02
The funny thing is that the TV clock is usually tied directly in to that clock.
16:10
And I have personally never seen it that far off before.
16:16
I mean, if it's off, it's like a tenth of a second.
16:18
I mean, it's nothing.
16:20
And, you know, it was just odd for me.
16:23
It was frustrating.
16:24
Luckily, Notre Dame did come back and took care of it.
16:30
And won 3-1 in overtime as someone said on GPL.
16:34
They won 3-1 in overtime and they did eliminate North Dakota.
16:38
Then they ended up facing Minnesota's appointment coming up, Minnesota State.
16:44
It was kind of a black guy, but I did really laugh when Adam Wodon tweeted out, you know, how Don standing right next to him, at least we're off the front page.
16:52
I was just rolling.
16:57
Yeah, it was a great weekend.
16:59
I like the format of the weekend, being able to watch every game.
17:02
I thought that was great.
17:04
You're not having to worry about trying to flip back and forth.
17:07
You know, some people are taking pot shots about the Gophers getting that extra day of rest.
17:12
I don't know if you caught it in the postgame, but somebody asked him, like, what are you going to do with that day of rest before the next game?
17:20
And Bob's like, I got this one.
17:22
It's like, I don't want the players to answer that question.
17:27
But I thought it worked out great.
17:28
We had great games.
17:29
I thought it was great.
17:32
It left my Saturday a little thin.
17:35
You know, Saturday was usually the big day.
17:37
Saturday was the sixth game day.
17:41
And I kind of missed that only having the...
17:44
What do we have for it?
17:47
No, we have only the two games.
17:48
Two games.
17:50
It's obviously the Thursday and Friday.
17:52
We're super busy with four games each.
17:54
I love that.
17:56
I do like the new format.
17:57
I do like giving teams a day off in between because, you know, I always think of what happened to North Dakota last year.
18:05
I'm not a North Dakota sympathizer, but they did have to play a game the night before, and Duluth didn't have to do anything because Michigan got kicked out due to COVID.
18:18
And then they played five overtimes.
18:19
I mean, if everyone remembers, the Gopher game that weekend in Loveland was supposed to be after North Dakota's game on that same network.
18:30
Minnesota's game moved over to ESPN News.
18:34
Minnesota's game stays on it because their game ends, and then I go back and that North Dakota game is still going.
18:45
I do love the new format, and I think that some of the teams had a legitimate beef, just because it was weird how they put some number one seeds as the early game.
18:56
They put some number one seeds as the late game.
18:59
There just wasn't consistency there, and adding this day removes that.
19:05
I think it sets it up to maybe have a super regional format sometime in the future.
19:10
I know we've heard some coaches say that even though they've set sites for the next couple of regionals for the next four years, there is a chance that they could change how it's going to be, and I would love to see an East super regional and a West super regional.
19:26
I mean, how great would it be to have one NHL building have six games for you to go to over four days?
19:37
And they can handle the amount of teams.
19:40
They're in bigger cities that can handle the hotels, and the ice is the best in the world.
19:46
Yeah, the ice would be good, so that would be nice.
19:50
We can keep dreaming, can't we, Vic?
19:52
We can.
19:53
I mean, if we're not going to get campus sites for first round and things like that, that's my next dream is the super regional.
20:00
Because I think it would be good for coverage, too.
20:03
ESPN would just have to worry about two sites.
20:06
Maybe they could have studio shows at the rinks and things like that.
20:09
I think it would open up a lot of things that would be fun.
20:14
All right, keep your mind on that.
20:16
But now we need to hear from our sponsor, Jerry Peters at First Class Mortgage.
20:22
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20:23
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21:21
Of course, we always thank Jerry for sponsoring the GPL Podcast again this year.
21:30
Veegs, you might have noticed we had a new intro theme on the podcast tonight.
21:35
And if people have noticed, you know, I've introduced kind of a new theme on gopherpucklive.com.
21:41
Cleaning things up, not quite all the way there.
21:43
The message board will get moved over in a few weeks.
21:46
But, you know, we got a new theme, kind of tweaked the logo a bit.
21:50
Thought I would update the podcast graphics a little bit, add some music, and it's an exciting time.
21:58
I'm making changes here and there, and hopefully we'll get it completely completed in the next couple of weeks.
22:02
I know it wasn't fun for you when you were trying to log in to the site earlier today, but we'll get through those and get through those headaches.
22:10
Just making the community even better.
22:12
I'm blessed all the time for our GPL community.
22:15
They do a pretty good job on the board.
22:17
Well, you were talking earlier, you know, you wanted to make a change on the website, and it was a recruiting change that you noticed, which is why you wanted to get on to GPL and make an update.
22:32
Yeah, Nate Warner no longer listed as committed to Minnesota.
22:36
I think that was something that people had kind of been expecting.
22:39
He's been injury prone and had issues, you know, finding a team to play with this year and all that.
22:46
So when he took it off his social, that's when we would take him off the commit page for GPL.
22:52
I hope something works out for him.
22:55
Who knows, he's very connected to the Motzko family, which went through some interesting news this week, as James Blue agreed to a plea deal for the car accident where he killed two young men.
23:09
And he didn't, they kind of got him off on the murder three, but I think it was a great choice by both the Motzko and Schueneman families.
23:23
It's already been tough enough.
23:25
Do you really need to go through a court case?
23:29
I mean, nothing's going to bring back those two young men, and James Blue will have to live with what he did.
23:38
It's sad.
23:40
It's really hard to stomach.
23:44
Well, Veegs, Frozen Four.
23:48
I'm excited about this one.
23:50
It's Denver and Michigan on one side of the bracket.
23:54
We've got Minnesota, Minnesota State renewing their rivalry.
24:01
Frankly, the Mavs have dominated Minnesota recently, and they dominated them last year in the regional final.
24:09
We'll get to that in a little bit.
24:12
Michigan looked like they were going to cruise against and get straight to the final.
24:18
They gave up a lot of goals, Veegs.
24:20
I know they're an offensive team, but that was a little unlike Michigan against AIC and Quinnipiac.
24:28
Something wasn't quite right, at least for me.
24:31
It's almost kind of what I'm expecting from Michigan right now.
24:35
They are not a very good structured team.
24:38
I know in some of the matchups with Minnesota, they would give up double-digit odd man rushes one night, and then the next night, there are no odd man rushes.
24:48
And it's not because of talent, it's not because of coaching.
24:54
It's just they choose to play how they want to play sometimes.
24:57
And when they get up to those big leads, you know, maybe they lose their focus.
25:02
We saw that happen in the Big Ten title game, as Minnesota kind of started to get things going there in the third period.
25:08
You know, they lean on Portillo pretty heavy in games from their head because they're not going to lock it down.
25:15
So that makes the game against Denver really interesting because Denver is going to be able to score goals and I think they have better team defense.
25:25
So while Michigan has the talent and the ability to beat whoever, they also have the ability to give the other team plenty of opportunities to take a lead or to come back.
25:37
So we'll see what happens.
25:38
I think it's going to be fun hockey to watch as the matinee game.
25:42
So I'm really looking forward to it.
25:45
How many people are rooting against Michigan though?
25:47
I mean, I'm hearing it all over the place, Veegs.
25:53
I'm not sure if it's more Michigan or if it's more Mel.
25:57
I think it's Mel right now.
25:58
I think the way Mel's handled all the COVID stuff and the emails and canceling games and just his attitude right now has rubbed people the wrong way.
26:10
You know, it's interesting.
26:11
He's in the last year of his contract.
26:15
Who knows what's going to happen there?
26:17
I don't believe anything that I'm hearing publicly that they want to do it this way.
26:24
If it wasn't a place like Michigan, there would be some recruiting issues, but people don't really care who the coach is at a place like Michigan, I think.
26:33
I think Bill McCult would do a fine job if he took over the job there, but I think we might be seeing Mel's last weekend behind the Michigan bench.
26:43
I still can't believe it until it actually would happen, Veegs, especially if they win a title.
26:53
I don't know.
26:53
We've just seen it so many times in so many other large schools, Veegs.
26:58
I mean, not hockey as much, but you look at basketball.
27:04
We've seen national champions, little slap on the wrist, no title lost.
27:10
I mean, I'm even hearing, you know, Kansas has got major issues.
27:15
You think they're going to lose their title?
27:18
Basketball is different.
27:20
Yes.
27:21
But I just, I just have this mentality.
27:23
I just kind of need to see it first.
27:26
Well, Michigan does seem to hold themselves to the Michigan man standard, whatever that is.
27:33
So I think it's a different ethics and morality at play there.
27:38
And I don't think he'll get away with what he's gone through and how he's behaved through the whole ordeal.
27:44
So it's going to be great hockey.
27:47
It's going to be a lot of fun to watch.
27:49
Yeah, I think Michigan is in great shape as a program overall.
27:53
You know, the top two recruiting classes in college hockey next year, Michigan and Minnesota.
27:59
So I don't think this rivalry is going away anytime soon.
28:02
And I think the Big Ten has some big pieces in play now.
28:07
And we got Ryan K.
28:08
They'll just let the inquiry expire and bury the report, leave the investigation unfinished.
28:14
I doubt that.
28:17
No, I think that's exactly what's going to happen, is they're going to let it expire and they're just going to close the case with Mel.
28:26
I think they'll just let it go.
28:28
And just get rid of them?
28:29
Well, non-renewed.
28:32
Just like the St.
28:34
Thomas Academy Hockey Coach got non-renewed this week.
28:39
Trynagyar I think is who it was, and Mike Randolph might be the coach there now.
28:45
Just let it go.
28:49
So his contract actually expires?
28:53
I thought it was like people were saying that he should work on his final year, but this is it.
29:01
When's the last time you had a coach who let their contract get to this point?
29:07
Most coaches want their contracts renewed, so it can't be used against them in recruiting or anything like that.
29:17
Bob just had his renewed earlier in the year.
29:21
Lindsey Whalen just had hers.
29:22
PJ Fleck gets extended I think every November.
29:26
Tony Granado gets his renewed every year pretty much.
29:30
And when coaches don't get their contract renewed, something's up.
29:35
Okay, Gator posted some odds here.
29:38
Denver and Michigan over under six and a half.
29:43
Denver plus 130, Michigan minus 160.
29:45
What does that mean, Veegs?
29:47
It means if you had a bookie somewhere and you said, I want to bet $100 on Denver and you gave them that $100, if Denver won, you would get back $230.
29:58
So you get your $100 bet and then you get plus 130.
30:02
If instead you wanted to bet on Michigan and you wanted to win $100, you'd have to give your bookie $160.
30:10
And then if they did win, you get $260 back.
30:13
So that's what that means.
30:15
And then over under six and a half, that's pretty high for a hockey game.
30:19
It is, but there's two high scoring teams.
30:22
On two teams that don't play a ton of defense, at least on Michigan's end.
30:27
So it's a scary over under for me, but I do like Denver in that game.
30:34
Like Denver, huh?
30:37
That will make a lot of fans happy because I have some Mankato friends who hate Minnesota, but they even said if Minnesota beats Minnesota State Mankato and would end up playing Michigan, there is no way in hell they were going to root for Michigan.
30:54
No matter what.
30:56
I just assumed too many, too many weaknesses.
31:00
Bruce Siskie, who hates the Gophers, said he would even root for Michigan.
31:05
I mean, I think Michigan got kind of lucky in their regional with who they played and how those games ended up.
31:11
But I think they're going to get beat here by a Denver team that's battle tested.
31:15
I mean, Denver shut out UMD, who plays a tight style.
31:19
And Denver looked good in that game.
31:22
As much as I'm not sure about Bobby Brink and what he can bring, he's going to get chances to score against Michigan.
31:29
Yeah, he hasn't really shined like some of the other superstars in the tournament.
31:35
I mean, you look at our little man, Cato Goley down there, gets the shutout, looks good.
31:43
Even Smith, doing his thing, scoring that one goal against Notre Dame.
31:49
Brink has been a little quiet lately.
31:53
He's a little quiet, you know, he's not quite all year, though, too.
31:56
Well, he's scored a lot of points.
31:58
It breaks the leading scorer in the NCHC and, you know, he's up in the the Hobie hat trick here, right, with McKay and Myers.
32:09
I don't know.
32:10
I know he can put up the points and I know Denver's a great team.
32:13
But you just when you watch a game with him playing, he doesn't flash flash to you.
32:20
You know, his skating, his size, his puck skills aren't there.
32:24
It's his hockey IQ and maybe a little bit of that can go away at times like this when you're playing the best of the best in these high pressure games or everybody's, you know, systems heavy.
32:35
So we'll see.
32:35
You know, I think Chris is right here.
32:41
Wait, someone made a comment and now, yeah, this is the one I wanted to show.
32:48
The more I think about it, the more I think Myers is Hobie.
32:51
I kind of think he's got a really good chance because I don't know.
32:57
McKay's got kind of that lifetime achievement award, but hasn't been announced.
33:05
It was announced by Friday.
33:08
Friday is the announcement for Hobie and for the Richter Award.
33:11
I think they did that before Richter.
33:13
They did before the Frozen Four started last year.
33:16
Right.
33:19
So it'll be interesting.
33:20
I think Myers has a really good chance.
33:25
A lot of people will complain if that happens.
33:27
Oh, he doesn't have the points.
33:30
He also is.
33:31
And honestly, it is more about the entire package that he went to the Olympics, that he was successful.
33:39
Yes, it wasn't college hockey, but he still did it.
33:45
He plays a 200 foot game.
33:46
You know, it's not just points with him.
33:48
You know, we were talking earlier about Faber getting kind of passed over for some of the awards for USCHO and CHN.
33:57
You need to watch him to really appreciate his game and how good he is.
34:01
There's a reason why he goes to the Olympics, and he's the number one defenseman.
34:05
There's a reason Ben Myers goes to the Olympics and is counted on to be a big time center.
34:11
There's a reason 32 NHL teams want to sign this guy as soon as the Gopher season is over.
34:16
He plays the game the right way, and it's not just points.
34:22
I don't know, I still think McKay's got a really good chance.
34:25
I mean, he's the shutout leader.
34:30
Didn't he just take the lead in victories or he's tied with victories?
34:34
Something along those lines.
34:38
I won't disagree with people when they say, he's got a great defense in front of him.
34:43
Yes, he's facing less shots.
34:45
But you know what?
34:45
You still got to save the pucks.
34:47
And he's still putting up a ton of goose eggs, Veegs.
34:52
He's very, very good.
34:53
And he got Minnesota last year.
34:56
And I'll be curious to see how he performs tomorrow because I think Minnesota plays a better game right now.
35:03
They play a ground game where I think they're going to get more dangerous shots, more pressure, be able to move the puck laterally and force him to cover more ice.
35:13
One of the things that makes McKay so effective is just like Closer is he reads the play really well and he's aggressive.
35:20
So if Minnesota has the ability to have some space, maybe it's a different game for him tomorrow.
35:29
So anyway, you know, with the Hobie hat trick, I'm guessing one or two people know because these votes are tabulated.
35:37
The final top ten, it's the top three, are the three guys who go.
35:42
But they already know who that top voter is.
35:44
Or maybe only Wally Shaver knows who runs kind of that whole thing.
35:48
But very few people know.
35:51
It's a weird process because there's like a committee who discusses it and awards it.
35:57
It's not really like one of those things where everybody just submits their vote and they tally them.
36:03
And this is the guy who wins.
36:04
There's kind of a discussion.
36:05
It's kind of like that NFL Hall of Fame thing, where they kind of have a committee and they talk through candidates and they kind of give them the A&A situation.
36:17
So we'll see.
36:19
I think Myers has helped his case a lot.
36:22
Good luck, Ben, on that.
36:23
Definitely good luck, Ben.
36:24
Well, let's move to the big game here, Veegs.
36:26
Minnesota taking on Minnesota State.
36:28
Minnesota State ended Minnesota season last year with a convincing 4-0 victory.
36:34
Frustrated the Gophers.
36:35
Took them out of their game.
36:37
I think for the most part of the game, it was a 2-0 game for most of the game.
36:41
And then a couple third period goals.
36:42
It was just over.
36:43
But I was talking with that same Mankato friend last year.
36:47
We were watching the game.
36:49
This person was so nervous.
36:50
I'm like, you don't need to be nervous.
36:52
That team last year wasn't a comeback team.
36:55
That game was over once.
36:56
It was 2-0.
36:59
What's different this year, Veegs?
37:00
I know what the answer is, but tell us what's different.
37:04
I think Minnesota is playing smarter hockey.
37:08
They got away with it a little bit in the second half of the Big Ten season where teams would let them in the games at times and give them odd man rushes.
37:16
But I think the team we saw in the regionals is peak Bob Monsko hockey.
37:23
Hard, percentage plays, ground game, special teams, the power play for Minnesota that Myers unit has looked great on the power play the last couple of weeks and those are the keys for them.
37:37
I don't think it was like last year where they were so dependent on rush scoring and they were so dependent on their guys to get free and get odd man rushes.
37:47
This is a different team.
37:48
They're scoring goals in many, many different ways.
37:52
And I think they've been very consistent with their hockey and this blue line core for Minnesota.
37:57
So, so good.
38:00
Is this a case where Minnesota will be throwing Minnesota State's game right back at them?
38:06
I don't think they're going to be throwing the game at Minnesota State.
38:10
I think this is a game where Minnesota is going to forecheck and they're going to be aggressive.
38:15
This isn't a team that sits back and traps.
38:18
Minnesota has good enough skaters where when they're on their game, they're putting pressure on defensemen and they're getting offensive zone time.
38:25
This isn't a team that sits back, plays a 1-3-1, waits for a turnover in the neutral zone and tries to counter.
38:32
That isn't the style they're playing.
38:34
Will they set up like that sometimes if they don't have the timing to get on the puck and pressure it?
38:40
Yes, but that's not what they're trying to do.
38:43
They're trying to play fast.
38:44
They're trying to play aggressive and they're trying to put pressure on the other team so they can create chaos in the offensive zone.
38:52
Mike Casings has built a juggernaut down there.
38:55
Veegs, he's really gotten that team into prominence.
38:59
Obviously, he has more victories over the last 10 years than any other team coach, whatever you want to call it.
39:05
No one's even close really.
39:07
I think it was Quinnipiac was within 30 games or something like that.
39:11
Ridiculous like that.
39:13
But one thing he has really done, he has instituted recruiting older guys.
39:21
And you had an interesting tweet this afternoon showing the average age of, you know, Minnesota State versus Minnesota.
39:27
I actually was surprised how old Minnesota was.
39:30
You know, we're actually a little older, but we've been trying to get to.
39:33
But Minnesota State was still, I believe, close to a year and a half older.
39:39
Yeah, I was just pulling up the tweet now.
39:41
Maybe I'll try to do this fancy thing where I share my screen.
39:46
We'll see if this works.
39:49
I'm going to give it a shot.
39:52
So if we look here, you know, the makeup.
39:55
Zoom in on that.
39:56
Zoom in on that.
39:57
You got the makeup of the Horns Up team and the Gophers.
40:00
Minnesota State's average age right now is 23 years old from their commits that they've recruited.
40:07
So I took out transfers when looking at this stat because I want to see who are the guys that they're recruiting and how does that impact their age?
40:15
Whereas Minnesota, age 21 and a half, basically.
40:20
So a year and a half older for Minnesota State.
40:24
And that's intentional.
40:25
You know, the Mavs average age of their commit is over 19.
40:30
So Mike Hastings is looking for guys toward the end of their junior career.
40:36
And that's when he's getting them to commit.
40:38
Minnesota, a very different roster.
40:41
You look at the 14 NHL draft picks.
40:44
You know, those kids typically commit early.
40:46
Even though Bob has been trying to hold back some of his scholarships to offer guys later, you know, the average age is still under 18 of a commit.
40:55
So that's what you can look at there.
40:57
We look at Minnesota when players start.
41:02
This was a big thing for Bob as he wanted older, more experienced players.
41:06
You look at the guys that made up this freshman class.
41:09
All of them pretty much played two years of post high school hockey.
41:14
And that means that their average age that they start is 20 and a half.
41:18
And that's, you know, I've looked back at some of the Don Lucia teams that he was putting together and they were almost always more around that 19, 18 and a half average starting age.
41:30
Yes, there'd be a few guys who would be older, but the vast majority of them, if they went and played USHL or if they went and played development team, they weren't playing that extra year.
41:41
You know, they were leaving school early, playing that year junior, and then coming to Minnesota.
41:46
So what that does is you're a much younger team.
41:48
So that's kind of been changed a little bit.
41:50
And then if you look at Mankato, yes, they do have some younger commits, like Zmulek and Sandlin and Malowski.
41:59
You know, those are kids who committed at, you know, 16, 17, you know, strong ties to the program.
42:05
But look at all these other guys, 19, 20, almost 21 when they commit.
42:12
And then when they start, only one player on their roster played a game in college hockey before they turned 20.
42:23
Almost the average is 21.
42:26
So when we talk about 21 year old freshmen, yeah, it happens sometimes with Minnesota.
42:31
It happens with Minnesota State all the time.
42:34
What's the average?
42:35
20.97 according to your stats.
42:38
Yep.
42:39
And one NHL draft pick.
42:42
So they have made it a decision for them that they're going to go older.
42:48
And that means that they know what they're getting.
42:51
Maybe they have a little bit more of a mature player who can play more systems hockey and can buy into that kind of stuff.
42:58
You know, they know what it takes to be successful in junior hockey, and then they apply it in college.
43:04
So we have a real difference in style of building your program in this game.
43:09
You know, Denver and Michigan, those numbers are going to look a lot more like Minnesota, maybe even a little bit younger because they don't have the methodology of trying to get a little bit older.
43:21
But Minnesota State, Minnesota, two contrasting stats about how to build a program.
43:27
And we can see why Don Lucia was about five, six, seven years ago, wanted to implement an age restriction.
43:36
Yep.
43:36
Kind of prevent this from happening.
43:38
Well, you'd have like a third of the roster for Mankato who already would have aged out because his idea was that, you know, if you're over 20, you should only get three years.
43:50
Yeah, you should only get three years eligibility.
43:53
And even with this Mankato team, you've got a couple of people who are in their graduate year.
43:58
So they're in their fifth year.
43:59
You know, Reggie Lutz and McNeely, they're 25 already.
44:05
It's a different age.
44:07
It is.
44:09
Okay, Veegs, we've been talking about these guys all season.
44:13
I see a little post from Chris Doll here.
44:17
How big does 9, 27 and 22 need to be tomorrow night?
44:25
I think it's okay if they're almost invisible at times.
44:30
They just can't make glaring mistakes.
44:33
I think the things that make 9 and 27 super effective is their ability to put pressure on the other team.
44:40
So use their speed.
44:43
Especially the penalty kill.
44:44
When 9 and 27 are aggressive on the kill and use their energy there, they can really make an impact in the game.
44:53
And I think we saw that this past weekend against UMass and against Western.
44:58
If they buy into that for this weekend, Minnesota is going to be in good shape.
45:03
The issue is I see them in these games against in-state rivals.
45:07
They just want to win so bad that they kind of lose themselves.
45:11
They're like the puppy that sees the lake.
45:14
You know, they just want to go, go, go.
45:16
It's playing smart, Veegs.
45:17
You got to play smart against whoever you're playing.
45:21
You got to keep that out of their head.
45:23
So if they play like they did last weekend, I think things are good for the Gophers.
45:29
You could kind of tell in the press conferences when they were asked about, you know, what's different this year and things like that.
45:36
You know, they know what they're supposed to be doing.
45:40
Now it's time for them to do it on the ice.
45:42
Of course, our guy, Drew Cove, listening in as long as 39, 89 and 7 continue to dominate play.
45:52
Our boy, Drew, he's so smart.
45:55
I mean, how nice is it for them to have that line to throw out there for any D-Zone faceoff?
46:00
You know, any power play, you can start with those three and a couple other stud defensemen and you're going to be all right.
46:07
I thought Jackson Nelson played a really nice game between Pitlick and Broz this past weekend.
46:16
He's an effective player with those guys because he holds the puck a little bit better than than Huglin maybe.
46:23
So it gives some space for Broz and Pitlick to make plays because he holds on to it better than I think Huglin does at this point.
46:31
So I think that's a good fit.
46:33
Then, of course, I thought Purbecks looked good as another center.
46:36
You know, he knows his role and he's going to play smart hockey.
46:40
Can Minnesota State get into Minnesota's head like they did last year?
46:45
I mean, you know, even Bob talked about it today last year through two periods.
46:51
What was it, eight or nine shots?
46:56
Obviously not ideal if you can keep them from scoring and you're still in that situation, obviously is much better.
47:03
But that even if it happens, you know, getting towards the end of the second period, they don't have very many shots, Figs.
47:10
That's going to get into a kid's head.
47:13
It will.
47:14
And if that's the situation, I play the Myers line as much as possible, because I don't think the Myers line is mentally capable of just going into that mode the whole night.
47:26
They'll write the ship and they'll figure things out.
47:29
The other lines, I could definitely see that as a scenario, but having that Myers line the way it is can kind of change it.
47:36
It's like kind of having a number one starting pitcher.
47:39
You know, if you get into a losing streak, you can just know you're going to go to your number one starter if they're a true ace, and they can win a game basically by themselves.
47:48
Minnesota does have that ability with that line and the number of defensemen they have that can extinguish pressure.
47:55
So I think it's a little bit different, but I could definitely see a scenario where the other lines get lost and it becomes a real tight game.
48:03
I see Kristall asking any word on Lucius, and it looks like done for the season.
48:08
You can't put him back in this weekend.
48:10
And that's another thing too.
48:11
He hasn't played.
48:12
He hasn't played as much of a talent and goal scorer he is.
48:16
That's not what they need right now.
48:18
They have what they need, and it's not goal scoring.
48:22
They've got enough goal scoring right now.
48:23
I hope that everything that's gone on this second half gets resolved, and he's back and he gets an offseason to train because he is a talented player.
48:34
You know, he's just had some injury issues the last couple of years.
48:37
And I'm sure that there is a hesitancy to play through some of this stuff because he's got a long road ahead where he's, you know, this is not the end of his hockey career.
48:48
This is a step.
48:49
And as much as fans don't want to hear that kind of stuff, you know, I've talked to some medical people.
48:55
And, you know, when you have issues like this, that if you play through them and you make them worse, they could change the trajectory of your career.
49:04
So as frustrating as it is for an old school guy to accept that, that's just where they're at.
49:10
And they seem to be playing just fine.
49:15
All right, Veegs, what happens tomorrow afternoon?
49:19
It looks like you've got Denver already in the afternoon game.
49:23
And then the evening game, we've got our Gophers against the Mavericks.
49:28
I'm guessing you probably feel a little more confident than you did two weeks ago before the regional.
49:33
I definitely feel more confident.
49:35
Like the way that they played those two games shows to me that even if there's some adversity, they have enough pieces in place to break through.
49:46
When you have defensemen like Brock Faber, Mike Kester, Jackson Lacombe, Ryan Johnson, you have the skill back there to really calm things down.
49:57
Johnson has really stepped up lately too.
50:00
Well, he's just so solid a skater.
50:03
I don't think he tries to do anything too fancy.
50:07
He just shuts down plays and he gets the puck in the forward hand.
50:11
That's what you asked out of your defensemen.
50:13
Now they've got a power play that looks dangerous as well.
50:17
Those are some big differences.
50:19
I didn't like the penalty kill against Michigan, but they're not going to be playing Michigan tomorrow.
50:28
As good as Nathan Smith is.
50:30
No, Ken Kato is really good on the power play.
50:32
They're good.
50:33
I don't know if they're really, really good.
50:36
I think some of that stat that you see from them is that competition that they play.
50:41
It makes it look better.
50:45
But I think Minnesota's penalty kill, you know, with Myers and Nelson being able to win draws and then Walker and McLaughlin able to pressure on the change.
50:54
I think that's a good unit right there.
50:56
The big question for me is how they're going to handle the size and traffic in front of the net in those situations.
51:01
You know, close is a smaller goalie.
51:04
You know, some of those goals against are getting tipped.
51:06
They're traffic.
51:07
They're not clear shots.
51:09
So we'll see.
51:14
Bless you, by the way.
51:16
Yes.
51:17
On the steeze.
51:18
But I think Minnesota is going to win.
51:21
I think it's going to be a low scoring game.
51:23
I can see it.
51:24
Low scoring with Mankato shocking.
51:26
Yeah, I could see it being like a 2-1, maybe with an empty netter to make it 3-1.
51:30
I don't think we're going to see like a 4-1 type game.
51:33
I don't think, even if a team gets some goals early, I don't think a team is going to run away with it.
51:38
I think it's still going to be key.
51:40
Minnesota gets a first period goal, Veegs.
51:43
They're in good shape.
51:45
Even if they're down 1-0 and tie the game at 1, I think getting that first goal behind McKay is going to be huge.
51:54
Even for, you know, especially for the older guys who went through it last year.
51:59
It's literally okay.
52:00
McKay is no longer shutting us out, like he has for over a year now in their head.
52:07
And I don't think McKay is an unstoppable goalie.
52:10
He's good.
52:10
He's very good.
52:11
But I think he's a little bit closer to closer than he is to some of the elite, elite goalies, athleticism size-wise out there.
52:20
So it's going to be a phenomenal game.
52:22
I'm excited for it.
52:24
I do think the only, like, if I was to say what's the worst case scenario, you know, Ben Myers takes a five-minute major check and move behind or something like that.
52:31
That would be the only way that I would say they're going to get out of this.
52:36
I don't think that will happen.
52:37
I hope not.
52:39
I'm hoping for a great game.
52:40
I'm with you on that.
52:42
I'm trying to stay confident.
52:46
Trying to believe.
52:50
I'm not so sure on your Michigan Denver thing.
52:52
It's so hard to predict that.
52:54
I do believe Minnesota gets through to the championship game.
52:59
What's next, Veegs?
53:00
You have them against Denver.
53:01
Denver.
53:02
Wow.
53:03
Solid team.
53:06
I think Minnesota has more grit.
53:08
This is the Minnesota team that's had the most grit that we've seen.
53:14
And they're putting the pieces together right now.
53:17
I think the Gophers are going to win a title.
53:20
I think they're going to get number six.
53:23
But if somehow Minnesota State comes out of this game, I think Minnesota State wins too.
53:28
And the better teams are in the evening game tomorrow.
53:36
There you go, folks.
53:37
Vig's picked them.
53:38
National title.
53:39
Let's go.
53:42
Let's go.
53:43
I'm with you, Vig.
53:44
I'm on the bandwagon.
53:45
I'm on the bandwagon.
53:48
Last weekend sold me.
53:49
Like that regional, that's the best I've ever seen Minnesota play.
53:54
It was the toughest region.
53:56
It by far was.
53:57
I think there are a lot of other easy paths into the Frozen Four.
54:01
Minnesota got the hardest one and they came out of it with great A's.
54:05
Especially against the hostile crowd against the reigning national champions.
54:09
Yes, now it's good of a team.
54:11
And come from behind in a hostile crowd.
54:14
Because there was no hostile crowd Saturday or Sunday afternoon.
54:19
Friday night, there was.
54:21
They overcame it.
54:21
They came down by two goals twice to win.
54:26
I was just like, whoa.
54:28
And then obviously the shutout of Western, shutting down the top scorer in the country.
54:35
I'm kind of with you on that.
54:36
But I think for both you and I, we kind of still needed to see them prove that.
54:42
I wasn't expecting that in the regional.
54:45
I came to that weekend going, I don't know if they're going to be able to put it together.
54:48
But we've seen flashes of that kind of team though this season.
54:52
I mean, all season long, we've seen them, you know, sometimes maybe blow out a team.
54:56
You know, we got a little, was it a 5-1 game against Michigan?
54:59
They did the same thing at North Dakota.
55:02
But like you said, that second game, it wasn't a blowout, empty net goal, but it was methodical.
55:11
They shut them down.
55:13
They just couldn't do anything.
55:15
And like you said, that was the most impressive game you've seen them play in recent years.
55:21
Let's do it again tomorrow, folks.
55:23
That was a UMD-like performance, a Sandlin-like team, almost, with a little bit more skill.
55:30
And if they can boot that this weekend, look out.
55:35
Let's go, folks.
55:36
Let's go.
55:39
Let's get another national championship.
55:41
I wish I was there.
55:43
I know you do, too, but I started looking at some of those prices.
55:49
It would cost more than my vacation for my 50th birthday, which is a week, and hopefully a ruba.
55:56
Kudos to all the fans that had the two grand plus to get out there and enjoy the weekend.
56:00
It's going to be a heck of an opportunity.
56:03
And kudos for those who plan to do it every year and spent probably half or two, maybe two-thirds of that.
56:10
Yeah.
56:11
And I hear some people say, you know, they got a room for 160, but then they saw what the rooms are going for, 300 or 400 a night.
56:17
Yeah.
56:18
Wow.
56:19
Plan ahead for Tampa next year, because I think Minnesota is in a really good spot right now.
56:23
I actually may do that, but that's not so bad for me because I have relatives down there that live across the bay out in the peninsula there.
56:30
So I have a place to stay, which is the tough part.
56:34
So, yep, the pride is back in the Pride on Ice right now.
56:39
All right, Veegs, this is our second to last show.
56:42
We're going to wrap it up next week, no matter what happens for the team.
56:46
You got any other thoughts?
56:49
This is the benefit of building an older roster, is that you can compete in the playoffs.
56:54
And we've been waiting for this for a long, long time, and it's finally in place.
57:00
And it's fun to watch.
57:02
Unfortunately, everyone got older, too, because of, you know, the transfer portal and extra years.
57:07
But we only have one of those players on our team now, and that would be Crookshank, wouldn't he?
57:13
Yeah, I think he's still a true senior.
57:15
You know, he didn't get in an extra, extra year.
57:18
And Bob did the right thing by saying goodbye to some guys and bringing in all the freshmen that he's brought in because this team would not be as good as it is without those young freshmen contributing.
57:32
Sounds good to me.
57:33
Let's hope National Championship, folks.
57:36
Let's do it.
57:38
Well, that's going to do it for this episode of the GPL Podcast.
57:42
We'll be back next week with our season finale to wrap up whatever happens this weekend.
57:49
For those of you watching live, we'll have a bit of overtime coming up next for the rest of you.
57:55
Thanks for listening.
57:56
We'll see you next week on the GPL Podcast.
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