Well, after a long layoff I'm back. It's looking like a repeat of last
year in the WCHA with several teams fighting for the McNaugton Cup.
North Dakota, St. Cloud, Colorado College, and Wisconsin all have an
excellent chance at winning the league at this point. The rest of the
league will be fighting for one home playoff spot, and that will include
Mankato State. The second year D-I program will be a part of the league
playoffs. It is possible that the Mavericks will be seeded higher than
10th, but it's a little too early to speculate. There's a lot to talk
about, and we'll get started with the latest "Unvarnished Truth" WCHA Poll
and the updated "Unvarnished Truth" Cummulative Rankings.
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UNVARNISHED TRUTH WCHA POLL (1/8/98)
TEAM (FIRST PLACE VOTES) POINTS PREVIOUS RANKING
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1. St. Cloud (2) 26 1
2. North Dakota (1) 25 2
3. Colorado College 19 3
4. Wisconsin 18 4
5. (tie) Michigan Tech 12 5
Minn-Duluth 6
7. Minnesota 11 8
8. Alaska-Anchorage 9 7
9. Denver 3 9
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UNVARNISHED TRUTH CUMMULATIVE RANKINGS (1/8/98)
TEAM POINTS
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1. North Dakota 57
2. St. Cloud 56.5
3. Wisconsin 47.5
4. Colorado College 46.5
5. Minn-Duluth 30.5
6. (tie) Alaska-Anchorage 24.5
Minnesota
8. Michigan Tech 15.5
9. Denver 12.5
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There wasn't much change in either Poll. Now, let's look at the first
half of the WCHA Season.
BIGGEST SURPRISE: ST. CLOUD.
The Huskies were picked to finish 7th in the league, mainly because of
the loss of Matt Cullen and Mark Parrish to the NHL and David Paridise to
graduation. But the Huskies have proven almost everyone wrong, and
currently are in First Place ahead of teams such as North Dakota,
Colorado College, and Wisconsin. Several weeks ago, the Huskies traveled
to Grand Forks and earned a split against the defending NCAA Champions
on the road. St. Cloud has done it with great goaltending (Brian Leitza)
and solid, positional defense. St. Cloud will need both of these parts
of their game to keep producing if they hope to win the WCHA Title. Even
if they don't, it looks like the first NCAA birth for this program is at
hand.
BIGGEST DISAPOINTMENT: MINNESOTA.
The Gophers are having one of their worst seasons ever, and there are
more than a few people around the league shaking their heads, including
myself. Yes, the Gophers lost Mike Crowley, last year's league MVP.
Yes, they lost Eric Rasmussen, a physical force up front. But most
people figured that they would finish second or third, or even make a
run at North Dakota for the league title. This team started the season
with 4 straight series splits, but then lost 9 straight games. They
swept Mankato last weekend, but it may be too late for this team to even
get home ice. This looks like a lost season for Doug Woog.
A TEAM TO WATCH: WISCONSIN.
The Badgers are finally having a good year after several seasons of
losing. Coach Jeff Sauer has gotten some players back from injury, and
is getting good goaltending from Mike Valley, who replaced Kirk "The
Stone Wall" Daubenspeck this season. This team will have to be watched
down the stretch, although it is unlikely that they have the talent to
win the league. Look for the Badgers to finish third or fourth and get
home ice.
RIGHT WHERE THEY SHOULD BE: NORTH DAKOTA, CC, DULUTH, DENVER, ANCHORAGE,
MICHIGAN TECH.
No surprises here. The Sioux are winning at about the same pace as last
year. CC has been a little up and down, but remain dangerous. Duluth
is about what I figured, a team with talent but lacking disipline and
heart. Denver lost a ton of talent to graduation and wasn't expected to
do much. They haven't. Anchorage is showing signs of improvement, but
are still a second division team. Poor old Michigan Tech is right near
the bottom as expected, but has won a few games as of late.
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THIS WEEKEND'S MATCHUPS!
COLORADO COLLEGE (7-4-1, 12-5-2) AT NORTH DAKOTA (8-3-1, 12-3-1)
This is a big match-up for both teams. The Sioux need a sweep to stay
within striking distance of red-hot St. Cloud. The Tigers need at least
one game to stay in the league race. North Dakota's young defensive unit
will have to be sharp to contain the Tiger's dangerous offensive attack.
Likewise, the Tigers will have to keep UND's offense from getting on a
roll, or it will be a long weekend. Look for two close games, with the
home team winning both. PREDICTION: SIOUX SWEEP (6-3, 7-5).
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ALASKA-ANCHORAGE (4-8-2, 4-11-3) AT MICHIGAN TECH (5-8-1, 10-9-2)
This series can be described in one word: BORING!!! Both teams will try
and "out-trap" the other, which will result in two "sleep-fests". Tech
seems to be improving, while Anchorage still lacks any offense
whatsoever. Since the games are in Houghton, I'll go with the Huskies.
PREDICTION: TECH SWEEPS (2-1, 1-0).
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MINN-DULUTH (5-7-0, 10-10-0) AT WISCONSIN (9-3-0, 12-6-0)
The Badgers are contenders for the WCHA Title, and need two wins this
weekend to keep pace with the other top teams. The Bulldogs have been
inconsistent and need to play better. Brant Nicklen is one of the top
goalies in the league, but don't look for him to steal any games this
weekend. PREDICTION: BADGERS SWEEP (4-1, 6-3).
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NEB-OMAHA (5-13-0) AT ST. CLOUD (11-2-1, 12-4-2)
The first-place Huskies get a break from league action as the upstart
UNO Mavericks come to the National Hockey Center for two games. After a
good start, UNO has fallen on hard times. If the Huskies don't look
past this weekend, they should sweep. PREDICTION: HUSKIES SWEEP (4-1,
6-2).
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Well, that's all for this week. Later!
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