#-1: Timberwolves (Last Week: -5). I didn't factor in the upside to a tight race in the standings: It doesn't take too much to move up. The Wolves go 3-1, and so they go back up to fourth place in the West. Sure, they're only one Game from sixth place, but they're only 1 1/2 Games away from third. That's how congested things are over there.
The T-Wolves have won their last two Games, both at home, to Phoenix and Utah. And they won both Games without Anthony Edwards, who will be week to week because of his inflamed right knee. Frankly, they played great in those two Games without him. Hmmm, maybe those two things are related. ...
They finish up a three-Game homestand tomorrow/Friday night versus Portland, then they go to Boston Sunday, then host Houston on Wednesday.
#-2: Wild (Last Week: -1). ETTD, man, ETTD. They started their busy screening Week losing to three teams currently out of the playoff picture in The Eastern Conference, Philadelphia, The New York Rangers, and Toronto. And all of those humiliations were at home. They finally turned around their fortunes on the road, where they beat Chicago in OT on St. Patrick's Day.
So why are they up here after a 1-3 Week? Because they are still firmly ensconced in third place in The Central Division. They currently sit six Points behind The Team That Was Stolen From Us v.2.0., and 14 ahead of The Bastard Winnipeg Jets/Phoenix-Arizona Coyotes. Wins or Losses, no matter -- the Wild are going to be in the playoffs. From that point on -- that's when we'll start to care.
They finish their home-and-home with the Blackhawks tonight/Thursday night at the Gica. They then host said Bastard North Stars, then travel to Tampa Bay.
#-3: Gopher baseball (Last Week: 0). A low-scoring series to begin league play for the Gophs, but they dropped two-of-three, winning 1-0 in the first Game of a Doubleheader Saturday. (I am absolutely sure there was no scheduled Doubleheader when I previewed the series in last Week's survey. I see no announcement of it on the athletic department's website.) They then finished off their U. S. Bank Stadium schedule by losing to North Dakota St. in eleven Innings, 7-4.
I have a feeling sports is going to be really quiet around Dinkytown for the rest of the school Year. At Indiana for a trio over the weekend, then the club opens up Siebert Field for the season Wednesday against St. Thomas.
#-4: United FC (Last Week: -3). This takes me back to the expansion days for the Loons. On Sunday afternoon they got the absolute shit beat out of them by the Whitecaps in Vancouver, 6-0. Maybe this is a case where Vancouver is really, really good. But how much of this just bad players? And this is the time I finally get around to talking about their off-season and what message they sent from their transactions before the season started.
MNUFC was coming off a scintillating playoff series Win over Seattle, a franchise that historically has gotten their number. Sure, a 1-0 Loss in the Quarterfinals to San Diego was dispiriting, but there was nothing that indicated that changes needed to be made.
Alas, changes happened. Dayne St. Clair, who was named Goalkeeper Of The Year, was MNUFC's top signing priority because his contract expired. But while the two sides were negotiating, Inter Miami swooped in and said, "Hey, we want you," to which St. Clair responded, "Hey, I want you, too." Meanwhile, Hasani Dotson, St. Clair's teammate at Oregon St. who was also drafted in the same class as St. Clair, was thanked by the organization for his service to the Black and Blue; he signed with the Sounders.
Then, Robin Lod, a man who became a fan favorite up here, was not given a contract offer at a length to his liking, so he signed with Chicago, who did. Finally, for some inexplicable damn reason, the Loons traded hard-nosed Defender Joseph Rosales to Austin FC. Oh, and Head Coach Eric Ramsay moved after two seasons to West Bromwich Albion ... where he was fired after only eight Matches and 44 Days. Soccer coaches, man. ...
So anyway, that's four players, veterans and stalwarts, plus the Manager, all moving on. They're bringing in new pieces, and I know they're trying, but how good could they really be, and how good can they be this quickly? The signing of James Rodriguez is awesome. I don't know how in the fuck MNUFC was able to convince a soccer player of that caliber and popularity to come to Minnesota. But he only subbed in on Sunday. How often will he play? And remember that his contract keeps him here only through the summer, even though there's an option for him to stay the whole Year.
On top of all that, Major League Soccer is revamping its calendar. This is the last Year where they play from February to November/December. They will have what they call a "sprint" season from February to May 2027, then join up with the rest of the world when they begin their season in the late summer of 2027. Beyond
my grievances over The Flip, I can see MNUFC brass looking at the next year-and-a-half and punting. Maybe the James signing was just window dressing to appease the masses and keep the dollars flowing in. But it feels very possible they just want to suck for the next 18 Months in order to, hopefully, get better after May 2027 -- at which point I may not be a season ticket-holder.
United FC play a second consecutive Sunday Game, this one at home vs. ... well, whaddya know, The Seattle Sounders.
#-5: Gopher softball (Last Week: -4). Well this is fucking shit. The softballers lost all three of their Games of the Missouri Tournament held over the weekend in Columbia, Mo., to Iowa St., hosts Missouri, and South Dakota. Maybe another Head Coach might need to be on the hot seat. Playing at Iowa over the weekend.
#-Infinity (tie): Gopher women's hockey and Gopher men's hockey (Last Week, respectively: -6 and -Infinity). Well, fuck, that was swift. In back-to-back days, University of Minnesota Athletic Director Mark Coyle cleaned out the rinks in Dinkytown. An athletic program that sometimes feels stuck in inertia just fired up the coaching carousel in both women's and men's top-flight college hockey.
On Tuesday, Coyle axed Gopher women's hockey Head Coach Brad Frost. Well, the way I have it, Frost was on the last Year of his contract, and Coyle announced that he won't be offered a new contract, so I think the term "fired" that's been bandied about is inaccurate and a bit harsh. Also, Frost was here 19 Years, by all accounts he's a nice and good guy who ran a clean program, and he did bring Minnesota four national championships in a five-Year span.
Unfortunately, the last title was a Decade ago. Since then, it is a bona fide fact that both Wisconsin and Ohio St. are the best programs in top-flight women's college hockey, and Minnesota, for all their insular boasting, are a clear cut below. And Saturday's upset Loss to Northeastern at home -- and they didn't seem to be competitive as they allowed the Huskies to race out to a 4-0 lead before Abbey Murphy played Heroine Puck and scored twice in the Third Period -- was a blaring sign (if only to the fanbase) that things weren't trending in the right direction. I don't like it when good people lose their jobs, especially when they've been at that post for a long time. But I agree with this move.
So, if Minnesota clearly is The State Of Hockey, who do they turn to? There is one and only one top target that could revive the program's fortunes: Nadine Muzzerall, current Head Coach at Ohio St., who has the overall #1 Seed in this Year's tournament and who has won two championships under Muzzerall's helm. She is One Of Us in the sense that she played for the Maroon and Gold and was an assistant under Frost before the Buckeyes hired her away. The problem, of course, is money. I am always skeptical if the U. can pony up the funds necessary to pry the best away from another powerhouse school. And this is The Ohio St. University, who will not pinch any penny in order to hire and keep the best.
With that said, besides the pull of trying to revive her alma mater, there is one thing the U. has that Ohio St. doesn't have: A decent rink dedicated to the women's team. I hear that Ohio St.'s arena sucks. And the university has promised Muzzerall for years that they would build her a new arena that could stand alongside Ridder and Wisconsin's LaBahn Arena, but that promise has been delayed season after season. Does she get fed up? And if Muzzerall decides to stay, who then does Coyle go for? If not Muzzerall, I would take a top assistant from either the Buckeyes or the Badgers. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Bob Motzko I didn't see coming. Coyle actually did fire Motzko yesterday/Wednesday (after eight seasons here) because Motzko had one Year left on his contract. The U. announced that he and the school "had a mutual parting of ways," but I don't believe that at all. I don't think the men's program was trending in the wrong direction. What was troubling, even infuriating, was that Motzko never was able to deliver a title despite mostly having great teams. And he developed a reputation, unfortunately, as a choker. I just researched this fact to make sure it is true: In the last three NCAA Tournament Games where the Gophers and Motzko lost and were eliminated, they had a two-Goal lead and blew it. The One That Got Away surely was the 2023 title Game, where they had Quinnipiac on the ropes early, but let them off the hook so the Bobcats could win in Overtime.
I could see Coyle firing Motzko after another collapse in the NCAAs, but not in a situation like this, where everyone could foresee a rebuilding Year after all the talent they lost. Yes, their record this Year was the worst since the '71-2 season. But I thought that would put Motzko on the hot seat, where he would have one season to negotiate the transfer portal and see if NIL money could attract junior players from Canada and the like. Maybe, and similarly to Frost and the women's team, embarrassing defeats at home -- reportedly, during the last home series against Michigan St., people were booing Motzko -- forced Coyle to make a move now before fan apathy and antipathy became even more severe.
OK. So where does Coyle go with the men? One early name has popped up: Garrett Raboin, current Head Coach at Augustana, which is about to get into the NCAAs for the first time in only the Vikings' third season in existence. He was an assistant under Motzko at the U. and, before that, at St. Cloud St., Raboin's alma mater. And he's One Of Us; he's from Detroit Lakes. I think I've talked myself into liking this pick.
You know, I hate screwing over other people. But opting for a fresh starts feels very invigorating, doesn't it?
