Even the Losers Get Lucky Sometimes
Hello, everyone! The season is almost here! Glory hallelujah!
I’d better get blogging I guess. Sorry if you see ads on this site. I’m not very happy about it, but I also don’t want to pay $29.97 per year to WordPress for the privilege of not generating revenue for them.
I am often reminded by sad, bitter, jealous Luftwaffe fans about how they beat us 5-0 to open our arena. That is very true. We’re also raising a banner on October 7th, and they can’t even enjoy their successful season.
So here’s to the losses! Here’s to the character-building, hair-tearing-out, garment-rending, breast-beating defeats! How else would we have gotten to the big win, the one that counts, the one that finally, finally got this team a national championship? The Bulldogs faced adversity along the way: bad losses; the mid-season departure of a star defenceman; the serious illness of their friend and equipment manager; Jon Campion; negativity from the opponents, media, fans, even from me; injuries to key players; a coaching change… I don’t think I need to continue here.
Here we are, on the cusp of the season, and THE UMD BULLDOGS ARE THE DEFENDING NATIONAL CHAMPIONS. Fancy that.
Resurrection
As Mark Twain said, rumours of the Penalty Box’s demise have been greatly exaggerated.
The site is down right now as DHG is planning to move to a new host, but hasn’t had time to do it yet. It will be back soon, so let’s hope nothing major has happened.
The Dogs did get their rings this weekend, which we all know as it was more publicized than many of the games are even though fans were not invited. (Bruce is grinding his teeth at this statement, but really, if it’s private, just make it private and post pictures later…) The roster has not been updated yet but we can chat about that once it’s up and make sure no one has changed numbers. Oh yeah, and maybe someday I’ll put those pix up from the Wild prospect dealie from a few weeks ago.
So far no Bulldogs have been poached to major juniors. Yay!
More Summer Hockey!!
Folks in the Twin Cities, are you desperate for more hockey? Do you like helping people?
Defending the Blue Line, a non-profit organization that assists children of military families with the costs and other needs associated with playing hockey, is holding a benefit game TONIGHT at 7 PM at the Cottage Grove Arena. The tickets cost $35. You can read more on the DtBL site.
Former Bulldog and My Guy Michael Gergen and current Bulldog Aaron Crandall are both playing in this game. TJ Oshie, Brent Burns, Blake Wheeler, Alex Goligoski, Taylor Chorney, Nick Leddy, Jay Barriball, Jordan Schroeder, Erik Johnson, Chris Porter, David Backes, Chay Genoway, Derek Stepan, Paul Martin, Kyle Okposo, Thomas Vanek, Jamie McBain, Ryan Carter and Zach Parise will also be there, among others.
I know it’s short notice but if you need to cool off and support a good cause, head out there! Thanks Michael and Aaron for participating, you guys are class acts! (As are all Bulldogs.)
Salute Your Shorts
Well, I suppose I should post about this weekend.
I went to both days of the Wild prospect camp. It was fun. The end.
Kidding!!!! Except I didn’t make any specific notes. I do have some pictures I can upload later. I didn’t take them so I can’t vouch for their quality. I am sure they are poor.
Saturday we showed up just as the gates were opening and there was a ginormous line. This is in direct contrast to last year when we just walked right in. I did not get a free t-shirt but once I was in and saw Bruce’s, I was not sad. I was starving and stood in line for a hot dog until practically the puck drop.
The best improvement of this camp over last year’s was the nameplates on the back of each jersey. I really struggled last year to figure out who was who and gave up and just watched Fonz. This year everyone had a name in addition to their number and I could keep track of the players better. Justin Fontaine and incoming Bulldog Derik Johnson were on the white team and Captain Jack Connolly and Bad, Bad JT Brown were on the green team. Other college notables included former CC Tiggies Chad Rau and Kris Fredheim, DU’s Jason Zucker and David Makowski (who I continuously forget is a defenceman), Gopher turncoat Sam Lofquist, future UNO Maverick Nick Seeler, former Catacheat Kyle Medvec, recent UND grad Chay Genoway, Princeton Tiggie Mike Kramer, D-3 Superstar Kyle Thomas, and current and future Golden Domers Sean Lorenz and Mario Lucia. (See what I did there?)
Saturday I sat with Bruce Ciskie & family and we conversed. Mostly about how good Jason Zucker was. I mean, dang, please just sign and be with the Wild and not with DU. Jack and JT got some good looks at him and JT has the speed to match him, but that young man is going to be the WCHA Player of the Year. Count on it. (Barring injury.) He was also very nice. We talked about how he got a hat trick at the DECC. He said it was “lucky” or “flukey” or something, which it was, but it still scored points for Team Coug! Although I forgot to tell him that. Now Jason will be a trivia question for future Bruce Ciskie radio events: “Who was the last men’s D-1 college player to record a hat trick at the DECC?” I can win more prizes.
Jack played on a line with Mikael Granlund and Johan Larsson on Saturday. So, two top prospects for the Wild and Jack Connolly. I take that as a very good sign. Sunday he was paired with JT and Kris “Pendulum” Foucault. Jack and JT looked great together and made some quality plays. They had some great scoring chances. This should end any questions as to whether they play on the same line together next year. An emphatic Kyllä! (Finnish for yes.) Jack had a shootout goal Saturday and JT had one Sunday. We had a small chat in line on Sunday but nothing of consequence. The Aaahj said it was a much better wait than the last time we got their autographs. I thanked them once again for staying until every last fan had been through the line.
The venerable Nate Wells had this to say:
Jack Connolly: Did exactly what I expected him to do after watching Connolly play against the Gophers for years and that is to be a thorn in the opponent’s side. Alongside J.T. Brown (who also was a great grinder although didn’t really get the opportunity to show his shot besides the shootout), Connolly was the leader of the second line. Almost scoring off of a tip to open the second half, he was always in the right position creating offense and really made his mark by forechecking like a madman. After years of being a Wild fan, it was great to see some of that speed and hustle put to good use; at one point Connolly created two giveaways on one shift. A free agent (and a Minnesotan), it wouldn’t be surprising to see Chuck Fletcher give Connolly a look after the Bulldogs finish their season (especially if this person [me] has anything to do with it).
Derik Johnson looked… I don’t know. Worst analysis ever, yes. He was paired with Sam Lofquist, Gopher defector. According to the incomparable Dan Shrader:
Lofquist was EVERYWHERE on the ice. And not necessarily in a good way. He actively joined the rush, but also wandered chasing the puck carrier, which put his defensive partner, Derik Johnson, in a bad way at times.
So while that isn’t really about Derik, it does show that he was maybe not in a position to show off his best abilities. I didn’t keep any +/- stats but I think he was a minus overall.
Sunday I did not get a shirt either, which is fine, because I detest Dany Heatley. There was no line to get in though, which was good, as it was very hot and humid. Ciskie was not there so instead I enjoyed the game with one Don Lucia. Mario got a shootout goal and tDon totally didn’t even cheer. What a jerk. J/k. He was wearing shorts and a very bright blue shirt. Like Crayola bright. Sort of like this colour. On Saturday I talked to Mario and gave him a hard time because his comment that Notre Dame would “probably go to the new Super League” was somehow turned into fact. He laughed. He seemed to really be having a fun time. Probably because he was.
It sounds like things went well for Jack and JT. Fonz didn’t have the camp I think he wanted to, but he certainly didn’t look terrible. He played on a line with Charlie Coyle and Jason Zucker, two lovely young men who will probably be his teammates in Houston in a year or so. Fonz is typical Fonz and I hope he can break out of that or he’s not going to get too far. Every game, every shift, Justin.
I’m sorry this is really disjointed but I’ve been writing it for about 7 hours, off and on. So let’s just hit publish and see what happens.
Oh, PS, congratulations to Kyle Schmidt on his recent marriage. The most well-publicized marriage in college hockey, probably ever.
PPS, hah, I totally forgot a title.
A Deluxe Apartment in the Sky
Hello there. Here we are, at the cozy new abode. Please update your links accordingly. And I’ll one day get rid of the “greater than” operators running rampant through my posts.
Where were we?
Well, Scott Sandelin is safely hired. Whew. More recently, Jason Herter was hired by the Bulldogs to replace the dearly departing Brett Larson. Oh Brett, how could you leave me? And for SIOUX FREAKING CITY. Coach Larson will be the head coach of the Sioux City Musketeers next year. Jason Herter is a former Luftwaffe defenceman and was the head coach of the Fargo Force last year. Hello, Coach.
Jack Connolly has been named captain of the 2012 NCAA Championship team (if DU and UMTC can go back to back, tUMD surely can), with Brady Lamb and Cody Danberg as assistant captains. Danberg will be returning from a red-shirt season and is no longer allowed to play in any of the reindeer games that led to his unfortunate injury. 2/3 captains are My Guys! Exciting.
Austin Farley of the Fargo Force committed to tUMD yesterday. He is another mighty midget, at 5’6″, but he is 17 years old, so he still has some hope for a growth spurt. Unlike MEg and me.
Intrepid journalista that I am, I attended the NHL draft last weekend. I won’t call it a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” because I hope to still be alive next time the draft rolls around to St. Paul again (or “Minneapolis” or the “city of Minnesota,” as NHL reps were heard to remark.) I tweeted during the draft, which reminds me that you should all be following me on Twitter, unless you don’t like swearing. I’m @runwiththedogs. Do it.
Friday night the Wild drafted a Swede and a Canadian and traded Brent Burns for Devin Setogouchi. Collegians Jamie Oleksiak (Northeastern) (Yes, really, Northeastern) (I know, right?), JT Miller (Luftwaffe), Connor Murphy and Tyler Biggs (both heading to the DYNASTY of Miami) were selected in the first round. I sat with my friend Britt and we kept up a steady stream of random commentary.
Saturday I arrived in Bulldog attire because I am a straight up loser and also because future Bulldogs were expected to be selected. Of course this meant I ran into Brett Larson and Luke McManus. Oh, and I still have my horrible hair from the whole Frozen Four solidarity thingy. So I’m sure they were like “Oh, look out, mental hospital escapee coming this way,” but as they are both kings amongst men, were very polite and kind and didn’t even flinch when I shook their hands.
The Wild drafted Son-of-Hedgehog after trading away their 3rd and 4th round picks. Barf. Andy Welinski was drafted by Anaheim in the 3rd round and Tony Cameranesi was drafted in the 5th by Toronto. Matt McNeely went undrafted. IDIOTS! I believe he is draft-eligible next year, so the idiots can redeem their idiocy. McNeely will be in Cedar Rapids next year. I went out to Bennett’s after the game, known as the bar when tUMD went to celebrate their victory. Vaunted bloggers from Hockey Wilderness and First Round Bust were present and accounted for.
I know I didn’t do the All-Hottie team this year, but I probably won’t do it at all. I said that I’d be hanging up the All-Hottie list after next year, but it is a ton of work and I’m lazy. It’s a shame as it’s one of the more popular posts on RWD (ok, one of the only popular posts on RWD) and a little bit of turnabout for the hundreds of female athletes who are judged solely on their appearance (either positively or negatively).
Rumour has it Jack Connolly, JT Brown and Derik Johnson will be joining Bulldog alumnus Justin Fontaine at the Wild prospect camp in a few weeks. I’ll attend and report back. [edit 7/5: Now I’m hearing JT will be going to the Flyers camp.] [Edit 7/7: JT is on the Wild’s roster as well. WHATEVER, INTERNETS.]
Don’t forget to update your link sidebar with the new address. The Little Blog That Could is all grown up now!
>Silent Spring
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>Spring Awakening
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A week ago we were still floating on air. The weather was gorgeous and sunny and I zipped up to Duluth for the little celebration thingy they had at AMSoil Arena. (Every time I type AMSoil on this site I get a bunch of spammy emails asking about AMSoil as a product. Dude, it’s got mad viscosity. Anyway, their $25 million was well spent on all the mentions they get on RWD.) Yes, I used a whole tank of precious gasoline to drive up for a nice, sweet, touching little speechytime and then THREE AND A HALF HOURS OF LINE-WAITING.
I’m very dedicated.
I did have a little kissy-kissy session with the trophy. Wheeee!! With my horrible hair.
Yikes. Scariness. Good thing it’s a little blurry.
So things went well in the line, once we FINALLY got to the team. I had a nice conversation with Montgomery where we talked about graduating and how excited he was to get his degree and then he complimented me on my sartorial selections. As you can see above, I had on a Nirvana t-shirt that I bought at Target in the men’s department for like $10. Monty is like one of the only guys on the team old enough to actually know who Nirvana is, possibly. They were my favourite band in junior high. I love grunge.
So, I felt really great about how things went. My horrible fear of making a giant ass of myself was assuaged. The only thing we have to fear is fear itself, yo. Then I had totally normal conversations with MCON, Fonz, Basaraba, Oleksuk (ok maybe that was a little geeky but well within my tolerance level) and possibly others, and then some of the guys just sort of said hi and signed. I asked Grun for some pizza. He told me Flaherty got pizza sauce on some posters.
Then I started talking to Ginger Goalie Gaffy about his hair and somehow that ended up as a discussion of my horrible hear and how it was breaking off. Which it is, I really ruined it, whatever, that’s not the point, who the heck wants to actually hear about that? It’s like talking about picking scabs or foot fungus or something.
Then I had my final chance to talk to Faulk and get him to sign the WJC jersey I got. So I tried to tell him the story of how I had to bid on the white jersey while Hoffman bid on the blue jersey and I got the story all twisted round and somehow in the middle of it he was saying that he didn’t think one of the jerseys he got was game worn because he got one and then I said “Well, you can smell it.”
I should not be let out in public.
I also tried to make a mockery of the actuarial joke made by the chancellor during the speeches and instead my story of another awkward actuarial joke (or rather a series of them) by someone called Uncle Pete ended up being such a bad story that I looked even more like an ass to Kyle Schmidt than I did with Justin Faulk. Maybe. I’m not sure. I would take a poll but there were few witnesses.
In short, I should really not be let out in public.
Justin Fontaine has finally signed with the Wild. Just as I implored back in July or whenever, because I’m brilliant.
And we are potentially facing college hockey Armageddon. Though I really don’t think it will be as bad as the word doomsdayers think. We’ll talk more later, but it is incredibly depressing to follow up the national championship with the imminent loss of a coach and the far-fetched but still pesky rumour we may lose our conference as well.
>Take Good Care of My Babies
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>The Game That Was
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As you can tell, I (second from the left) am getting burned by Yager (far left) for the 700th time. But that’s ok because in the rest of the pictures I’m standing around like a fatty. You can tell it’s me because of the horrible bright yellow ponytail. Also something quite strange happened in the locker room afterward but you’ll have to ask me about that on your own time.
Of course, once we were in the car heading to the Xcel, the PANIC! PANIC! PANIC! alarm was going off inside my head. It was like 7 fire alarms, 3 tornado sirens, the horrible monthly test of the emergency broadcasting system noise and an air raid siren ALL AT ONCE. Plus a panic attack, brain aneurysm, freefall from 10,000 feet and ADHD. Oh my.
We sat at McGovern’s for awhile, everyone but me acting totally normal and watching golf. Why, I don’t know, because who freaking cares? It’s not even interesting. Eric Stromgren from the Bemidji Pioneer stopped by to say hello. Randomly he happens to be friends with this person who bought a bee jersey last year and was standing in line with me when we were buying them.
FINALLY I convinced everyone to go over to the UMD event at the River Center. We sat there for awhile until I couldn’t stand it anymore and ditched the rest of my group to go to my seat (which is good because they didn’t arrive until puck drop, and the also stole a UMD flag from somewhere) and I sat there alone until Dirty showed up.
When Michigan scored, it was like Thursday all over again, and I thought I was going to vomit. Rather than vomiting, Travis Oleksuk scored a goal. Michigan started taking all these penalties and then Max Tardy banged home his own rebound and made a believer out of me. Then something weird happened and My Jacky was lying on the ice and the puck was in the net behind Kenny and I thought “Oh my god we’re not going to win” even though it was tied. My gal Britt came up during the intermission and helped me pass the time without having a nervous breakdown.
In the 3rd period Michigan was given a power play for… running into Brady Lamb (who had an assist on all three goals, FYI), I guess. I mean, really, whatever. Then JT Brown made an incredible play to bring the puck up the ice for a shorthanded scoring chance and Merrill had no choice but to haul him down and we were at fours. JT drew about 3 penalties and could have drawn a few more. It was so funny to watch him frustrate Michigan. Well, it’s funny now that I can relax and breathe.
When the game went to overtime I wanted to… I don’t even know. I felt like I was going to pass out. I walked around the arena and found Biddco and we just sort of panicked together. I talked to a Sioux fan friend of mine and I also saw the Maroon Loon blogger who claims that I said “Don’t worry, we’ll be celebrating soon,” as he walked away from me. That’s so unlike me. I’m more likely to say “Don’t worry, we’ll be committing mass suicide soon.”
I walked back to my seat in a daze, and to be honest I probably should have stayed in my seat. I felt like I was going to faint. Then I heard the crowd start to roar just as I rounded one of the pillars in the corner and I went RUNNING for the nearest stairway just in time to see Mike Connolly with a great scoring chance.
The only reason I can tell you how the winning goal went is because I’ve seen it so many times in replay. All I know is the puck was in the net and my brother practically pile-drived (pile-drove?) me and I was screaming and crying and the Aaaahj was screaming “We’re #1! We’re #1!” and I fell over on to the seats and someone kicked my soda and it spilled everywhere and I called Schmidt’s mom and screamed nonsensically into her voicemail and I don’t even know.
I am amazed that for nothing more than the price of admission I could feel so amazing. But it’s not the price of that ticket. It’s years, and dozens of admissions, and hundreds of miles and thousands of words. All for something that, for someone who doesn’t get it, seems so meaningless and insignificant. And if I think too hard about what it means to be a sports fan, it is completely ridiculous and I’m totally overly obsessive and I don’t really care. If I cared what other people thought I wouldn’t be writing RWD, ya know.
And really, what else in life can give a person the high highs without the low lows. I could never feel the way about a sports team that I do about, like, a death. But yet I was screaming “THIS IS THE GREATEST MOMENT OF MY LIFE!” as we celebrated, high atop the upper deck, the ultimate victory after fifty years of almosts, could have beens and not a prayers.
I feel like in a way the window of opportunity for writing this post has probably gone. I should have written it Saturday night, if I was really dedicated, but I chose to go out and party like a puck star with my friends. We watched the game again at Tom Reid’s and cheered the game all over again and sang the Beer Song and sang Don’t Stop Believin’ even though I’m still having a hard time believing that the Bulldogs are National Champions. I could have written it a dozen times this week but I had to get it just right and now I think the moment and the feeling have slipped through my fingers.
But it really happened, and no one can take that feeling away from us. To see the first national championship by my team? I don’t think there are many Gopher fans, or Michigan fans, or UND fans who can say that. But when I’m 800 million years old (next year) I can tell all the young Bulldog fans in the student section what it was like to watch Kyle Schmidt do snow angels on the ice and see the players come flying off the bench and watch the fans, young and old, absolutely lose their minds as tUMD won the national championship, in overtime, in our home state.
Thanks for the memories.
>Hail to the Victors
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Let’s talk about our victors.
We fans are never going to know what it’s like to be out there, playing in the game, being on the team, actually doing what was necessary to put the puck in the net or keep it out of our own net.
But they got what we were feeling. They knew what we needed, they knew how much it would mean to us, and I’d like to think they did it for us as much as they did it for each other and for themselves. (And there is nothing wrong with winning for one’s self, as long as it’s for the good of the team.) Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU. OH MY GOD, THANK YOU FOR WINNING.
So, a few words for each of you, though you all deserve epic poems. Right now, you’re all My Guys.
Joe Basaraba
You’re making things happen on the ice and I can see the playmaker you’re going to be. You’ve got grit and size but I know scoring is going to come too once the trainer’s gotten through with you. You’re a hell of a player and no one would know you were a freshman.
Wade Bergman
You are the league’s most underrated defenceman. You go out there night after night and do anything you can to keep the puck out of the net and away from the opponent, whether it’s blocking shots, the hip check from hell, or good old fashioned hustle.
J.T. Brown
Most Outstanding Player in the NCAA tournament. As a FRESHMAN. Looks like I might not have been so crazy back in October. YOU DROVE MICHIGAN CRAZY. I mean, OUT OF THEIR MINDS CRAZY. They HATED you. And I know you loved it. You probably drew three penalties and could have drawn a few more. They couldn’t match your speed and your skill.
Jack Connolly
There were hundreds, possibly thousands of us crying along with you when you were holding your trophy. Come back next year and win the Hobey Baker, as you are the epitome of that award. Thank you for bringing the trophy home to Duluth where it belongs, and where one should have been 27 years ago.
Mike Connolly
You controlled the ice for prolonged periods every time you touched the puck. You easily stood out as the best player on the ice and you almost won it in overtime, which I almost missed. You’re a true talent and a deserving All-American, and they’d better have a mural of you in the DECC next fall. A Camrose fan told us you were better than Raymond and we didn’t know that was possible, but you showed us that it was.
Aaron Crandall
We would not be here without the ten wins you gave us, which included two shutouts. You outperformed what any of us could have imagined and you stepped into a void we were terrified we couldn’t fill. Again, let me say, we could not be here without your play and it was totally awesome to see how you ate up Wisconsin.
Cody Danberg
A fluke injury kept you out of the lineup but that doesn’t mean you didn’t influence your teammates. You’re a hard-nosed gritty guy who gets the ugliest goals I’ve ever seen and I can see that same work ethic in the guys with similar games. We’re privileged to have you play next year.
Dan DeLisle
You are a physical force on the team and the wussy Eastern players and refs would not have been able to handle it. Your game has improved leaps and bounds over the past year and it’s going to be exciting to see you light up your opponents next year. You did your uncle Joe proud this weekend, I am sure, and you looked absolutely pumped out of your mind during the celebration.
Justin Faulk
You’re a freshman, and you totally got what this meant to the city of Duluth and to the tUMD fans. I suppose we have your cousin Marco to thank for that, and I’m sure he’s unbelievably thrilled that you were able to finish his business for him. You wowed everyone watching this game with your talent, your poise and your composure, and the fans in Carolina are salivating at the prospect of your arrival. We are lucky to have you for this year and if that’s all we get, it was one hell of a year.
Keegan Flaherty
Another hometown boy who will go down in history on the first team to bring a championship to Duluth. Every time you stepped on the ice I could see your determination, even from the very tippy top of the Xcel, and I hope you don’t think your efforts have gone unnoticed. Our near-perfect PK is thanks to you and your merciless defence.
Justin Fontaine
I heard a funny joke on the broadcast: that you are overshadowed by your linemates. Hardly. If the MN Wild management have brains in their heads then we’ll be seeing you in the Twin Cities for a long time. We are privileged to have watched you blossom over the last four years from a kid with a bright future into an elite player in the league. Thank you for staying this year to bring us this incredible gift.
Christian Gaffy
I can’t even imagine what your hair is going to look like as it grows back. tUMD was in a bad spot looking for another goalie when you came along. With McNeely coming in this might be your only year on the team and what a year it’s been. What a ride you’ve been part of, and though we never saw you in action I know that it’s our loss and it would have been darn fun to cheer you on in at least a period or two of hockey.
David Grun
You swore on national TV! That in and of itself is awesome. You’ve played every possible role on this team except goalie, it seems. And you’ve done every role you’ve played justice. You’re a total ass-kicker on the PK and you’ve got a scoring touch when it’s needed.
Jake Hendrickson
You were ALL OVER the ice on Saturday. You have great hands; I’m pretty sure you’ll be finding the back of the net a LOT next year. You helped ensure that Michigan had to worry every single second of the game, there were no shifts they could take off as our “energy” guys have a heck of a lot of skill in them.
Chad Huttel
You’re crazy, kid. Straight up crazy and I love it, because that’s just passion for the game. You’re ready to step up for any of your teammates and you leave it all out there on the ice. I loved seeing you skate around like crazy on Saturday night during the celebration, and I am glad you gave us four years of mad intensity.
Scott Kishel
You stepped in when we needed you to play and looked like you hadn’t missed a beat. We’re ready for your steadiness and your puck moving skills next year in our back to back quest starting next October. It’s great to see yet another Iron Ranger get a piece of a national championship.
Brady Lamb
You had a hand in every goal Saturday night. Incredible. THREE ASSISTS IN THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME, that’s unreal. With a couple great chances for a goal as well. We all know the penalties that were called on you were b.s.: apparently a guy running into you when you’re going full speed and get tangled up is considered hitting after the whistle? Come back next year, Brady, we want four years from you!
Luke McManus
We still get four years out of you, and though there’s no doubt you would rather have been playing, we are all looking forward to what you can bring to our blue line next year. When we raise the banner next year I hope you are suited up in your gear and in the lineup, but know you are every bit as much a part of this win as any other guy who will be receiving a ring.
Mike Montgomery
So you walked onto this team a forward and you are walking out of here as one of the league’s top defencemen, and if you don’t have an NHL contract then there are a few dozen general managers who all need to be fired. You are an amazing player and an example of how hard work and perseverance pays off. You’ve stood tall for the team through on and off ice adversity and you have shown true dedication by sticking it out for four years to honor your commitment even when the pros were calling.
Travis Oleksuk
You did what people were starting to think was impossible: score on Hunwick. You lit up the crowd and ignited the team. You are the first son of a Bulldog to come here and play and if every Bulldog had a kid like you we’d never lose another game. You were a beast on the face-offs, too.
Drew Olson
You only have one mode: beast. You’re great defensively but you know when to turn on the jets and step up into the play to make things happen. You have stepped up your game for the team when they needed you the most and you’re a brick freaking wall. Getting hit by you must feel like a freight train.
Trent Palm
Sometimes guys talk about dedication using hyperbole, saying “I’ll play on one leg,” and such things. But for a couple years you actually did play on one leg. Just to keep playing hockey for the Bulldogs. Your brothers are completely insane, I should mention. But we can all stand to learn a few lessons from your heart, grit and determination to be the player we knew you could be.
Kenny Reiter
YES YOU DID! We were chanting that at Tom Reid’s after. Holy crap did you stand tall throughout this whole tournament. You are so calm and collected and on the uncommon occasion where the defense broke down you rose to the occasion and made some spectacular saves. You won the biggest of the big games for us. KENNY REITER! YES HE DID!
Kyle Schmidt
When tUMD won the Final Five in 2009, you weren’t in the lineup. When tUMD opened AMSoil Arena, you weren’t in the lineup. I hope those disappointments were somehow erased by scoring THE BIGGEST GOAL IN BULLDOG HISTORY. How fitting that it would be a local boy to seal the deal for us. How perfect that it would be our “Unsung Hero,” a role model on and off the ice, and a senior leader ending his college career in the most amazing possible way.
Mike Seidel
You certainly impressed some people on the national stage. Barry Melrose absolutely loved you and your intensity. What a stacked team we have that a player of your caliber is on the third line. It took three Michigan players to hold you back and they took a penalty to do so.
Max Tardy
What a time to get your first goal. And what a beauty of a goal it was, too. The commentators noted you were executing exactly as your counterpart on the first PP unit were. I may have questioned why you were on the power play, but you proved me wrong, and you are just now getting to show off your talents. I should have known better as Sandy did the same thing two years ago with T.O.; we had a fresh guy with skill playing in the tourney.
Runnin' With the Dogs 
