December
14, 2006
2006-07 WCHA Mid-Season Report
By
Jess Myers
SURPRISE TEAM
The league’s coaches picked Alaska
Anchorage to finish in the basement again
this season. But if the WCHA playoffs started today,
there would be tickets for that event on sale at the
Sullivan Arena box office. More than a decade after
joining the league, Alaska Anchorage is a real threat
to finish in the top half of the WCHA for the first
time since the Seawolves got their Members Only jackets.
Offense used to be in as short supply as winter sunlight
in Anchorage, but at the midway point of the season
the Seawolves roster boasts five players with a dozen
points or more. Perhaps more importantly, they have
a winning record at home, and are re-establishing
visiting Sullivan as something no opponent wants to
do. Especially not in March.
SURPRISE INDIVIDUAL
Those living in the scarred and blackened
woods just northwest of Colorado Springs know that
forest fires wipe out huge, impressive tress, but
their absence gives smaller trees with potential a
chance to flourish. Last spring’s graduation
wiped out two of the biggest offensive names in Colorado
College history, but in the absence of Marty Sertich
and Brett Sterling, the goal-scoring potential of
Scott McCulloch is being realized.
A junior who’s been drafted by the Blackhawks,
McCulloch had just nine goals in his first two seasons
at CC, but has scored 14 already this season, helping
the Tigers go on a 8-2-0 run after a slow start which
had folks lamenting the end of the CC dynasty.
WHAT HAPPENED TO…
A few weeks ago we were wondering what
had become of the defending national champs, as Wisconsin
proceeded to lose six in a row. But there’s
wind in the sails, a three-game winning streak and
20 days off to get healthy in Madison, so we’ll
turn our sights north and inquire about the fate of
Minnesota Duluth. Three years ago
the Bulldogs made a surprising run to the Frozen Four,
and came back from Boston with the Spencer Penrose
and Hobey Baker trophies in tow. That team had one
NHL draft pick. This season’s Bulldogs have
10 players who’ve been drafted, but are struggling
for consistency at every position despite the influx
of talent. Since beating Denver on Oct. 27, the Bulldogs
are 2-9-1 and fighting Minnesota State to stay out
of the WCHA cellar. As the boisterous fans who populate
the UMD Penalty Box know, these are the times that
try men’s souls.
 |
| Kyle Okposo leads Minnesota
in points, goals, power-play goals, game-winning
goals and plus/minus rating. |
BEST NEW FACE
All Kyle Okposo has
done in his first 18 games wearing a college hockey
sweater is lead the nation’s top-ranked team
in points (23), goals (15), power-play goals (five),
game-winning goals (three), plus/minus (+16), shots
(63), shot percentage (23.8), and multi-goal games
(three). He’s already got two WCHA Rookie of
the Week awards in his campus apartment and has been
kept off the score sheet in just two outings thus
far. Okposo is the first African-American to skate
for the Golden Gophers, but the color of his skin
has been an afterthought for Minnesota fans, what
with that bright red light glowing behind the opponents’
net so often.
BIGGEST UPSET
Minnesota State 3, Notre Dame
2, OT: It might not have seemed so significant
on Oct. 14, when Jon Kalinski carried the puck into
the offensive zone, made a neat move and roofed a
backhander over David Brown’s glove, popping
the water bottle atop the Notre Dame net. But with
the Irish becoming the talk of college hockey, while
the Mavericks have played hard but struggled to find
wins, that overtime goal gave Minnesota State its
most impressive win of the season, and the league’s
most surprising win thus far.
TOUGHEST ROAD OUT
Denver is currently
four games above .500 and looking like a solid contender
for home ice in the playoffs despite a first-half
schedule that gives the Pioneers every right to feel
beat up and road-weary. After traveling to Ohio for
the emotional grand-opening of Miami’s new barn,
the Pios also had to visit St. Cloud State, Minnesota
Duluth, Wisconsin and Colorado College, and had an
emotional home weekend with RPI and their long-time
assistant coach, Seth Appert. After this weekend’s
trip to Anchorage, Denver will be at home for 13 of
its next 17 games.
TOUGHEST ROAD IN
Anyone still looking for proof about
whether St. Cloud State is “for
real” will get a definitive answer in the second
half of the season. Along with a holiday tournament
trip to Vermont, the Huskies will visit Denver, Wisconsin
and Minnesota in January and February, and host surprising
Alaska Anchorage, dangerous Colorado College and desperate
North Dakota. If the Huskies are still barking after
that run, look out for them in the playoffs.
MUST-SEE SERIES
Minnesota at Colorado College,
Feb. 16-17: Yes, the storylines about Don
Lucia and Kellen Briggs returning to Colorado Springs
have all been beaten to death. Instead, if current
trends continue, this one has the look of the surprising
Tigers’ last chance to catch the Golden Gophers
in the race for the MacNaughton Cup. Of course, if
Minnesota keeps playing like it has in the first half
(with an 18-game unbeaten streak) the Gophers might
have the Cup clinched long before Valentine’s
chocolates are being purchased.
BIGGEST QUESTIONS ANSWERED
Can Michigan Tech still compete
in the WCHA? Although the Huskies have hit
the wall in the past few weeks (they’re 1-7-2
in their last 10 outings), their sizzling 5-1-0 start
had fans buzzing and national polls re-discovering
Houghton as a college hockey destination. More offense
is a must, but solid goaltending from Michael-Lee
Teslak and Rob Nolan (and recent struggles by Michigan,
Michigan State and Harvard) has Tech fans dreaming
of the school’s first Great Lakes Invitational
title since 1981.
Will there be a new doghouse
in Duluth? On Dec. 12, Minnesota Gov. Tim
Pawlenty met with reporters at the State Capitol and
said that he’ll fulfill the promise he made
(and broke) last year to the people of Duluth, and
will provide the state’s share of money (roughly
$40 million) for a new waterfront arena. If construction
goes according to schedule, that means Minnesota Duluth
will no longer play in the WCHA’s oldest rink
starting in October 2009.
BIGGEST QUESTIONS REMAINING
Can the Gophers stay healthy?
Of all of the blessings Golden Gopher fans are counting
in this holiday season, health might be the most important.
While other would-be contenders for the WCHA and NCAA
titles (North Dakota and Wisconsin come to mind) have
dealt with myriad bumps and bruises in the first half,
the Gophers have kept their trainer bored and have
had more players miss time for team rules violations
than for health reasons. If the sick bay starts to
fill up in January, there may be trouble on the West
Bank.
Will a familiar face be seen
behind a WCHA bench next season? Since leaving
North Dakota for pro hockey at the end of the 2003-04
season, Dean Blais has had a tough go of things. He’s
dealt with a lockout, the tragic loss of his wife,
and philosophical differences with Columbus Blue Jackets’
since-dismissed head coach Gerard Gallant. Blais’
emancipation is forthcoming, as his contract with
the NHL team expires at the end of the season. With
at least one WCHA athletic director rumored to be
contemplating a coaching change, and with the Fighting
Sioux needing a new women’s team coach, one
wonders if Blaiser will bring his sizable collection
of WCHA and NCAA championship rings back to college
hockey.
| INCH's
First Half All-WCHA Team |
| Pos.
|
Player |
Of
Note |
|
G |
Glenn Fisher, Denver |
In a mediocre
first half for goalies throughout the league,
the Pioneers' cagey veteran put up some of the
best numbers, and won seven games for a good-but-not-great
team. |
| D |
Taylor Chorney, North
Dakota |
One note of consistency
on an otherwise inconsistent team has been Chorney's
defense. Relying on him less, and goaltending
more, is a key for the Fighting Sioux in the second
half. |
|
D |
Alex Goligoski, Minnesota |
All of that young
talent on the Golden Gophers roster needed a veteran
leader. Goligoski has filled that role admirably,
and has provided a nice dose of offense from the
blue line. |
| F |
Andreas Nodl,
St. Cloud State |
The speedy Austrian's
league-leading offense (23 points in 16 games)
is a big reason why the Huskies are in the hunt,
and why they haven't lost since before Election
Day. |
| F |
Scott McCullogh, Colorado
College |
Every good team
needs a consistent lamplighter. The Tigers are
a good team, and with 14 first-half goals, McCulloch
has shown the way to the back of the net. |
| F |
Kyle Okposo, Minnesota |
On a team filled with young talent,
Okposo's hard shot and dazzling moves have stood
out. He's tied for the league lead in points and
has Islanders fans (both of them) singing "someday
my prince will come." |
