Runnin' With the Dogs

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[Extensive baseball discussion]

RWD: How long have you been a St. Cloud fan?

WT: Well, I grew up near St. Cloud and went to college at St. Ben’s. I learned hockey by watching the St. John’s team (D3) [coached by tUMD’s own Bah Harrington!] who played at the NHC, and I went to one SCSU game in college and I was hooked! They were so fast and aggressive! The hits and the fights and the great shots!! No comparison to D3 (though I enjoyed St. John’s games a lot). My parents decided to get season tickets (SCSU has a big season ticket group of “locals”) [I think she means “yokels” here.] and I started going to more and more games. I learned a hatred for the Gophers. [This should be taught starting at birth!] The rest is history. So, to answer your question, about 10 years or so. I’m more of a fan now then I was then, but I’ve kept up with them for about 10 years.

RWD: Did you get your first snowmobile before then, or after?

WT: Hey! I had my first snowmobile before I even took snowmobile safety class at age 12!!

RWD: LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, please take note of this FINE specimen of St. Cloud fans we have here. As far as fashion is concerned, what labels do you like? Polaris? Carhart?

WT: I KNEW that would be your next question. I’m sorry to say I don’t own a single piece of snowmobile brand or Carhart gear. We’re not that big of rednecks in my family.

RWD: Do you feel out of place at the NHC then? [The only girl without a big 3 decal on her vehicle!]

WT: Not anymore out of place then I do anywhere in St. Cloud! Most of the fans there just wear their SCSU stuff and leave their Polaris jackets in the car, I think…

RWD: Or rusted out pickup truck…

WT: With the gun in the back window…

RWD: And the confederate flag back window cling thing?

WT: Yeah! Oh, and very few RUSTED pickups. The people in St. Cloud treat their pickups better than their kids!! Shiny, jacked up on lifts, straight piped… [I didn’t know what that meant, until WT explained it to me. I thought “straight-piped” was… like… an alternative to Donald’s spliffs that he twisted.]

RWD: Indeed. How do you feel about the rest of tWCHA’s perception of St. Cloud’s fanbase?

[Extremely long pause in which I had the time to start (and finish!) War and Peace.]

WT: Sorry, thinking about how best to phrase this…

RWD: Oh, bring it all out. The internet is a safe place to tell things you don’t want others to know.

WT: I go to games and the student section is rowdy (but certainly not rowdier than other arenas), the season ticket holders are quiet (except me when I sit in my parents’ seats), and everyone’s really into seeing their team win. Based solely on that, it seems that SCSU is judged very unfairly. However…

[I ran a marathon during this pause, busted lungs and all.]

WT: I’ve spent enough time on hockey sites, blogs, and message boards to know that this stuff isn’t what we’re judged on. Every team has those people that you’d rather NOT be associated with and the internet is where you find the really “great” SCSU fans. I’ve come to the conclusion that because these people are the loudest (or express themselves the most), these are the people that we are all judged by. That’s unfortunate. My parents go to every game and they’re not in any way disrespectful to the other teams’ fans or players. For god’s sake, my mom claps for the other team sometimes because she feels bad for them if they’re losing! The loudest people get heard, though and that’s why we are seen in the light we are. Does that make sense?

RWD: Your mom is so cute, I love it.

WT: I know, I just laugh at her…

RWD: I hurt for losing goalies.

WT: I do too, because inevitably, it’s all their fault. [Oh, that cheer. So accurate, so cruel.]

RWD: So you would say that “people” on CERTAIN MESSAGE BOARDS in the United States that are devoted to college hockey online are making a bad name for Husky fans?

WT: Um, yeah… I think I’ll leave it at some “people” on “message boards in the United States” give Husky fans a bad name. That sounds about right.

RWD: It’s my belief that some of this bad blood on that message board in the United States for college hockey online has actually intensified the rivalry between St. Cloud and tUMD, which is actually a good thing. Thoughts?

WT: I agree, I was reading… that message board in the US for college hockey online this week and there really is a good rivalry. Also, after the first round of the playoffs last year, I think it’s apparent that these two teams are well-matched and exciting to watch. I’m really looking forward to this weekend. Unlike some “people” I’d never underestimate UMD and assume we were going to win. It’s a fun series. I wish I could go up for it!

RWD: I think it is good for both schools, as there is nothing worse than a one-sided rivalry, as we know both schools consider UMTC to be a big rival, but they don’t really care.

WT: I know! That drives me crazy. They’re so great that they just don’t have any rivals?? I still get excited to play UMTC because I love it when we win, but in-state rivals are fun and the schools in MN should get “up” to play each other. Fans are able to attend the away games and that always makes it more fun. I’ve gone to a lot of UMD/SCSU games at the NHC and they’re SO fun! Lots of UMD fans…

RWD: The other reasons this rivalry has been intensified are the Bulldog Rejects that St. Cloud has welcomed onto their roster. Let’s talk about The Kronick: ugly or… beyond ugly?

WT: BEYOND!! That chin was a nightmare. It also freaked me out the way his tongue was too big for his mouth and kind of rolled around in there when he was interviewed…

RWD: How could his tongue be too big for his mouth, with all that room?

WT: I don’t know, but did you ever see him talk on TV? His tongue seemed to get all weird and rolly and then his speech got more and more garbled… Not pretty. But, he played well against his former team. That’s his Husky Claim To Fame…

RWD: But, he’s gone this year. Also gone: BOBBY!!!!!11!!!!!1!!!!

WT: Yep, we had some losses this year.

RWD: Is Jase really going to step up and replace him? Or are people in denial?

WT: I don’t think anyone honestly thinks Jase can single-handedly replace BOBBY[!!!!!11!!!!!1!!!!]. I was getting annoyed with the “people” talking about how much we were going to suck this year with Jase, because I think he’ll do well. (FYI, the “people” are all on the bandwagon now). [And when she says “people” in quotation marks, I think you know what she’s getting at.] Motzko has said he’ll use the first weeks of the season to determine what combination of Jase, BJ O’Brien, and Dan Dunn will do the best job of replacing BOBBY[!!!!!11!!!!!1!!!!]. I’m excited to see Dunn this weekend [I am excited to “Sieve!” him this weekend!]; he’s spoken of very highly. Jase had a good year last year with the exception of the disappointing loss to UND after not seeing game time for 2 months. Playing weekly, he should do okay…

RWD: I guess we will learn if Motz can recruit the goalies as well as the foreigners. The OBVIOUS formula here is, RECRUIT FOREIGN GOALIE. [I am a genius. I should be a recruiter. It’s so easy! But, I shouldn’t be telling my plans to the enemy!]

WT: Yep, he seems to have a knack for those foreign kids!! Hey, that’s a GREAT IDEA!! I’m also excited to see if Luca Cunti gets cleared this week. I was disappointed we didn’t get to see him in the opening weekend.

RWD: Oh him. His name is bleeped out on the aforementioned message board. I find myself uninterested in making [jokes about his name]. I mean, it’s really beneath me.

WT: How mature of you!!!

RWD: I once yelled “Hey Chucko, you sucko!” And I was like, “Did I just say that?” It was like the lowest common denominator. I’m not saying I’m better than that in the sense that I don’t like to insult people. [Because I do!] But really, I could think of something more creative.

WT: I understand completely!

RWD: But the police were standing behind me.

WT: Good call on the “clean” insult in THAT case!!

RWD: The whole game.

WT: Darn, I hate it when that happens!

RWD: I was in Mariucci. I think they were shocked someone was cheering.

WT: Oh, that explains it. They’d never heard cheering before so they were entertained by you!

RWD: It was doubleplus ungood for them.

WT: They probably thought you were one of those fans they had to watch out for – didn’t want you running out onto the ice or throwing anything onto the ice … oh wait, that’s St. Cloud fans!! [This is great, she’s doing all the work for me!]

RWD: Who from Da Huskies is going to light it up this year?

WT: I’m kind of excited by some of the freshman this year. Garrett Roe looked great this weekend, as did Tony Mosey. I thought Andreas Nodl looked slightly off, but he and Li’l Ryan Lasch should have good years as well, this year. Brent Borgen, our little transfer from UMTC looked like he had ADD, skating around in the pre-game, but got it together during the game. He might be a contributor. This will be a make or break year for St. Cloud boy John Swanson. He needs to get it together. So far, in two games, he’s been really aggressive and has been great on the PK…

RWD: Tell me who the hottest Husky is. Other than Motz, who I know you love. [In his Guess? jeans!]

WT: Hmmm, I think Brett Barta is the closest to my type on the team. The pic on my freshman blog post is HOT!! Garrett Roe is a cute guy, but LITTLE! Of course, I found when I did my previews that both Ryan Peckskamp AND David Carlisle have been mentioned on RWD All-WCHA postings… Jase is cute too. But, HOT?? Tough sell!! [Well, they don’t all have to be hott.]

RWD: I don’t see the Motz Appeal.

WT: I don’t think Motz is HOT, but for an older guy, he’s good-looking. And, he just seems like an all-around good guy. Plus, he’s done wonders for our team…

RWD: It’s reverse-cougarism. [Just… you don’t want to know.]

WT: Hmmm, I guess it is!!

RWD: Is [Craig Dahl] better or worse than Juttz?

WT: Oooh, tough question! I’ve heard they are/were very similar. Jutting might be slightly uglier, but Dahl made a habit of belittling his players, much as Jutting is rumored to do. He had a “my way or the highway” mentality, also similar to Jutting. I think Jutting is worse because he’s actually good (bad?) enough to have the AD on his side, making his firing/forced resignation much less likely. And, Dahl is gone and distance makes the heart grow fonder. [Or, you know, fond at all?] I haven’t seen him at a game in a while… thank god. My dad always had to shush me when he’d be sitting behind us. [How cute that he still goes to the games!]

RWD: What do you expect to see this weekend?

WT: I think that the guys are going to come out fast and play aggressively. We have a couple new freshmen who are hard hitters! Fun! The Huskies will win Friday night with Jase in goal, in a close game, 3-2. Saturday night, I’m not sure, since I’ve never seen Dan Dunn play, but I’m hoping for a win, of course. It should be interesting. Going into this series, it would seem we have a defensive team against an offensive team. What does this mean? Either a 1-0 game or a blowout. We’ll see. I think last Saturday was good for the Huskies. They now realize BOBBY[!!!!!11!!!!!1!!!!] is gone. They aren’t at liberty to slack on the D with the confidence of having BOBBY[!!!!!11!!!!!1!!!!] stopping everything behind them. If they can step up the D, and the power play (obviously), this weekend should be the start of a very nice season! BUT, I like the Dogs, so a tie or ONE loss wouldn’t kill me as much as if we were playing, say, the Gophers or Sioux!! Is that a stupid thing to say in the Gauntlet?? [Or in general? But no, it’s always easier to lose to a team that you otherwise like.] Oh well! Go Huskies!

RWD: We have a very strong defencive team this year. [Shout-out to my Canadian homies! I’m spelling in your language, eh?] And those defencemen are very capable of scoring.

WT: So, anything could happen. I’m not deluding myself that Jase can blank everyone since he had a shut out against Canisius [WE had a shut out, too, against Northern Michigan, a much stronger opponent!], but he’s capable of stopping shots and our team is very capable of scoring some goals, so it should be interesting to see how it all pans out.

RWD: Do you have a prediction for this weekend, score-wise?

WT: Friday SCSU 3, UMD 2; Saturday SCSU 5, UMD 3. I type this hoping you realize that I SUCK at predictions!!! [I concur, this prediction does suck.]

RWD: I’m hoping that you just jinxed your team.

WT: I’m sure you are! I couldn’t possible act like I thought they’d LOSE though. What kind of fan would I be??

RWD: Yeah, I mean, this isn’t an NCAA playoff game or anything. Oooh! Got it in just under the wire!

WT: OUCH! How did you possible wait 2 hours and 9 minutes to throw that in?? [Little known fact: tGauntlet starts out three, four, maybe five times longer than the final product. I am chatty.]

RWD: One final question: what should I be for Halloween? I was thinking Don Cherry, but no one would get it.

WT: Oh, no idea on the Halloween thing. I’m still not sure what I’m going to be!! [Suggestions welcome, comrades!]

And, the Wild just lost in the shoot-out, so I think it’s a good time to go to bed. Ugggggggggggh.