Positive Numbers: Wild (Last Week: -3). Wow. Fucking wow. I thought the Wild would slow down now that they started a five-game road trip out west. They haven't. This week they were in California to play that state's three teams -- and they won all three. They are now on a six-game winning streak, and they remain the best team in the National Hockey League. Jesus bleepin' Christ, they beat Los Angeles Thursday with their third-string goaltender, their main guy from AAA Houston -- and they won 4-2.
What's the difference? There may or may not be a lot of new guys (I don't follow the team that closely), but it's not as if they totally remade their roster. I guess it's the new coach, Mike Yeo. Somehow, being the Aeros' Head Coach has inspired all the players, the major league ones as well as the ones that have been called up, to play his way. And it's working. From the street to the suite because of the coach? Maybe it really was all Todd Richards's fault.
Let's see if they can keep this up. They finish the road trip at Phoenix tonight and at Winnipeg Tuesday, then they come home for a game against Chicago the next day.
(By the way, I am energized about news the league is realigning back to four conferences. That means Minnesota will no longer be an interloper in a division with Colorado and the three western Canadian teams. They will properly be grouped with three of the four teams from the old Norris Division: Chicago, Detroit and St. Louis. If getting that means I have to tolerate the Team That Was Stolen From Us is in the same division [or conference, I don't know what the new "grouping" will officially be called], I'll take it. Now they just have to go back to Norris, Patrick, Adams and Smythe. That would be so sweet.)
#0: Gopher men's basketball (Last Week: -6). They have yet to lose since Trevor Mbakwe came down with that ACL injury that ended his college career. Has the team come together, or is it a sign of addition by subtraction? A 14-point win over Appalachian St. and a 22-point immolation of St. Peter's mean nothing -- they could probably win with their subs -- but it's better than losing. They play Central Michigan (as part of a six-game homestand, their second long one; their only away games before conference play begins were in that neutral-game tournament in Orlando where Mbakwe got injured) Tuesday.
#-1: Gopher wrestling (Last Week: -1). It'd be nice that one day, the local sports scene would be rocked by news that a non-revenue sport upset the top-ranked team in the country. It didn't happen Sunday. The Goofs grapplers went into Stillwater, Okla., and were soundly defeated by #1 (or at least they were the previous week; I just saw that they were #2 last week?) Oklahoma St., 23-14. They rebounded last night by whipping 13th-ranked Iowa St. at Williams, 34-6. But #3 looks to be the plateau for this team.
They are off till New Year's Day, and the Southern Scuffle in Chattanooga, Tenn.
#-2: Gopher women's basketball (Last Week: -7). It didn't happen for the U. lady ballers, either. For the second year in a row, Baylor (this year the clear #1 team in the land) came into the Barn and crushed Minnesota, 89-60. Both this team and the U. wrestling team lost to a really good team in their respective sports Sunday, but I put this team under because this team has much lower prospects for postseason success. Destroying the Air Force by 35 doesn't make them a tournament team, sadly. They host the Best Buy Classic this (against Harvard) and tomorrow (Alcorn St.) afternoon, then they go on their first real road game of the season, Wednesday at Denver.
#-3: Gopher men's hockey (Last Week: -5). I am starting to have my doubts about this team now. They are 2-2-1 in their last five games, finishing a sweep of MSU-Mankato Saturday with an overtime 3-2 loss to lowly Michigan Tech at Mariucci last night. And the Huskies didn't waste time; it was over 33 seconds into OT. They won't be ranked second after this weekend. After tonight's game, they are off until the 30th.
#-4: Vikings (Last Week: -8). The Vikes become the next fucking victims of Tebowmania. I dont' know how in the hell this happy-feet, bad-mechanic God boy does it ... well, I know that Tim Tebow isn't the only reason they beat the ViQueens Sunday. They have a great defense and a solid running game that managed to run up 100 yards against us.
But, more like the Oakland and less like the Atlanta game, I am less down on this team after this loss than others. The game came down to a field goal at the gun. And the main reason they lost is that Christian Ponder threw a silly interception. He's a rookie. It doesn't matter. Let him make those mistakes. Now, I don't like that we're coughing up halftime leads again, and at 2-10 Leslie Frazier has to feel the heat. But let the youngsters learn the game. If we're 2-10 again next year, that's when I'll get mad.
They play at Detroit tomorrow.
#-Infinity: Gopher volleyball (Last Week: -2). Well, it turns out that right after I posted last week's WMNSS, the team was able to come all the way back from a two-sets-to-none deficit to beat Washington. Fantastic effort by the girls.
But then I was at last night's Sweet Sixteen matchup at the Sports Pavilion where they were eliminated by pesky nemesis Iowa St. If there was one thing that decided the four-set loss, it was blocking; the Cyclones were able to set theirs up and turn back many U. attacks, while the Goofs weren't and the 'Clones were able to drive through them. Iowa St. finished with 16 blocks to the U.'s eight.
The Goofs came on like a bat out of hell in winning Set 1 at 18, but then Iowa St. was able to win a contested second set 25-23. The tide turned in the third when the Cyclones turned up the defensive intensity. They lost it 25-15, and at times it looked like they were going to be ran out of the Pavilion, and I felt like this was the end for the team. But a blocking change in the fourth set brought the team back into it. Unfortunately, a Steffi Sooter set went long (the last of 11 service errors, compared to ISU's eight), and back-to-back Cyclone points ended the match, 31-29.
The guy sitting next to me said that all year they've been a poor blocking team. This is the first time I've seen them all year, and because of blocking, it'll be the last. And even though they repeated their Sweet 16 appearance from last year, I still feel that the program is in a vulnerable state. Interim Head Coach/Lame Duck Laura Bush will be in the second of her two-year stint keeping the seat warm for Hugh McCutcheon once he's done with his National Team duties. Will she be able to convince recruits to come to the U. knowing she'll be gone in a year? And how do we know McCutcheon can coach in college when he's never done it before?
I'm scared for the program, I really am.
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