RECAP: Sioux 4 Harvard 3 - Is it another Dartmouth turnaround?

Key to the Weekend

For me the key to this past weekend was the Sioux power play.  They were outstanding - 7 for 14 over the weekend series with Harvard.  This was an area the Sioux needed much improvement.  The best example of the use of the power play was Saturday night.  The Sioux were behind and it was a power play goal that tied the game in the third period.

I think we need to give Hak some credit.  In the third period he began to roll the lines with short shifts.  Harvard could not keep up with the change in lines and the speed of UND.  It turned the game around. 

Game Summary – UND Web site 

Is it another Dartmouth turnaround? 

As I sat in Bright Arena, watching the games this past weekend, I kept thinking about this series having a similar feel to the 2006-2007 Dartmouth Tournament.   

Overall record -- Like today, two years ago the Sioux were struggling and they were 7-10-1 going into Dartmouth.  Like this past weekend series with Harvard, the same could be said - the Sioux began the weekend struggling with a 5-8-1 record. 

Season struggles -- Like today, the Sioux two years ago were struggling with a key component of their game. Back then it was defense, specifically the goaltending of Lamoureux.  This year, it’s offense.  As in the case at Dartmouth, JP turned it around with some spectacular goaltending, and this weekend the offense was clearly working.   

The teams and the barns - two years ago the tournament was played at Dartmouth. Their arena is a traditional old time barn, small, cold and close to the action.  This could be said of Harvard’s arena, even with the addition of the new score board (although I found parking at Dartmouth easier).  And of course, both Dartmouth and Harvard are Ivy League schools playing in the ECAC.    

The Sioux fans - like in Dartmouth, there seemed to be an abundance of Sioux Fans. If it were not for the Harvard band (which doubles as the student section) it would have been a complete overwhelming dominance of Sioux fans.  This was exactly the way I felt in Dartmouth two years ago.  It was great!

Apology – There was no apology from the home team on the Sioux logo like two years ago.  But maybe there will an apology from the ECAC officiating over this past weekend (e.g. the mystery interference call on Hextall last night or the inconsistency of calls between the two teams).  Yeah that is not going happen!

The Results – After the Dartmouth Tournament, the Sioux went on a run, only to lose two more games during the regular season and go on to make the Frozen Four.  I hope this year's results will be the same as after the Dartmouth Tournament - for the Sioux to go on their infamous second-half run.