UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

UNO's NCHC scenario for finishing in 2nd place (the best possible finish):

1. UNO must win.
2. Denver must lose or lose an overtime shootout.
3. Same with Miami. They must lose or lose an overtime shootout.
4. A UNO win would keep UMD behind UNO, no matter what UMD does, obviously.


Home ice scenarios?

1. Win and in.

2. UNO can get home ice if they lose, but, UMD then must as well. The teams in front of them wouldn't matter at all, then.

3. If UNO were to win a shootout tonight, DU & Miami could then both lose a shootout and still win their tiebreakers with us as they both would have more conference wins than us despite having the same number of points in this scenario. Then, if UMD won in this scenario, UNO would finish 5th since UNO would also lose the tiebreaker with them for the same reason. But, if UMD lost, UNO would then finish 4th and get home ice.

4. If UNO lost a shootout tonight, they'd need UMD to lose or for them to lose a shootout. And, if UNO lost a shootout tonight, it would make whatever Miami and DU does moot since they'd be tied or worse in points and we'd lose the tiebreaker against either one if we did tie either of them.

I think that covers it.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

O.K., we got the job done and, the end result happened in as stylish a way as could be possibly imagined as Austin Ortega nets the game winner with 1:55 remaining and sets the all time NCAA record for game winning goals in a season with 11, almost certainly the only all time NCAA D-1 record the school now holds in any sport.

http://www.omaha.com/uno/ortega-sets...62869bc71.html

That said, we really didn't play a lot better than we did last night. The effort last night or tonight are not going to strike fear into SCSU next weekend, who swept us up there weekend before last and against whom we got what was really a pretty lucky sweep against here at home earlier in the season.

I don't know what happened to Massa in warm-ups. I was there, and I saw him lead the team onto the ice for the warm-up, but, I didn't pay enough attention to see what happened to him thereafter. My understanding is that he took a direct hit to, as Steve Martin would put it, "his special purpose" and that was the end of his night. Doesn't the guy wear a cup?

Anyway, Thompson (who I can't see being the everyday goalie next season looking at his juniors numbers as well as his numbers this season) gave up a lousy goal but was otherwise pretty good and it was enough on this night as Thompson avenged his loss from the last time he played, to CC in Colorado Springs on January 16th.

Must have been a great walk-up tonight in very nice weather in Omaha as there were actually 21 more people in the building tonight than there was last night. 7,955 tonight as opposed to 7,934 last night, despite the fact that advance ticket sales on Ticketmaster for tonight paled in comparison to last night. Plus, Creighton was playing Minnesota in baseball right across the street from the Clink at TD Ameritrade at the same time. Made for a more congested than usual parking situation tonight.

Besides Ortega's game winner, the best moment of the night was the dust-up at the end of the 2nd period, after the horn, and Coach Blais actually coming out onto the ice and grabbing Grant Gallo and physically pulling him off the ice. That was an all time first. The only penalty that arose out of that, and, it was after the horn, was to CC. I have heard, vicariously, that Gallo is a locker room favorite but is also a hothead. This was far from his first pushing-and-shoving-in-the-other-guy's-face thing for him this season. FYI, he is also the biggest player on the current UNO roster.

UNO equaled it's best finish in (any) conference history tonight by finishing in 3rd. This, after being voted 6th in the coaches poll, pre-season, and, 7th, by the media.

The UMD final score was announced to the crowd when that game ended (and it was well prior to the end of our game) but I don't know how many people in the arena understood the significance of it since there was not a lot of reaction. I had to explain it to our seat neighbors who have held season tickets longer than we (me and Mrs. Red Cows) have!

We'll have to play much better than we did this weekend to take things any further in the NCHC. St. Cloud State is a Frozen Four team from last season with 16 upperclassmen and 7 seniors. 6th place or not, they are far from slouches. If we beat them we are going to have to earn it, home ice or not. And, beating us would get them off the Pairwise bubble, where they are currently ranked 16th. Ain't gonna be any kind of easy. I'll go so far as to say that if they prevail in our series, they get into the NCAA's. The kooky thing is, if they do, because they are 16th, I don't know that UNO still wouldn't be a tourney team as well, still. That scenario might even come down to UNO losing 2 out of 3 versus being swept, even. God forbid. Let's not go there.

On the flip side, a UNO sweep and at least one win in Minneapolis would certainly make UNO's Pairwise lot in life very interesting.

Let the games begin.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

If you are a UNO fan, as far as our NCAA aspirations are concerned, here's your wish list for tonight.

1. UNO to win.
2. North Dakota to defeat Miami.
3. Mankato to beat Bemidji State. (remember, we own a split with the Purple Cows)
4. Minnesota Duluth to beat Western Michigan.
5. Michigan Tech to lose to Northern Michigan.

Looking at the DU/SCSU game, that one is a tough call in this scenario. I don't know if DU losing to SCSU would lower DU's RPI enough to flip that comparison with us or not. I rather doubt it. Conversely, if it won't, them winning would help our RPI, BUT, it would also "taint" our losses to SCSU to some degree, as well. Too many other factors are involved to make this one an easy call.

If my list of 5 things happen, though, that would flip the UNO/Miami comparison that Miami is now winning. I don't know if a Tech loss to NMU and a win by us against CC would be enough to flip the comparison with them, but, it would be close. Item #'s 1, 2, 3, happening all would help our RPI and we aren't catching any of these teams in Pairwise tonight, period. An aside, BU doesn't play and I don't know if my little scenario gets our RPI high enough to flip the comparison with them, either.

So, I can see us jumping at least 1 spot in Pairwise, maybe 2, or even 3 if the math breaks right and this plays out the way I want. But, we gotta start by taking care of our own business.

If UNO loses tonight, they are going to fall to bubble-land. A loss to the #48 team in Pairwise at this point would be a big, big blow.

Well, we only got items 1 and 3 from my little list.

I was wrong about DU losing and our winning maybe not being enough to flip the comparison with them. It just does. Sure would have been nice had Miami lost because that would have for sure flipped that comparison with us, too, had they done so. Anyway, I am happy with moving up at all after playing and beating the now 51st ranked team in Pairwise.

Now, the question is: If UNO gets swept this upcoming weekend, would they still be "in"? My guess here is "maybe".

Or, if the lost 2 out of 3, would they still be in? My guess here is "probably".

If they go to Minneapolis, nothing that happens there is knocking them out, not even losing to CC or Western in the semi (and I have not yet looked at the brackets), a seemingly unlikely scenario, to say the least but, who knows in this league?

If we get to Minneapolis, then the question becomes, how high would at least one win there get us? It seems unlikely to me that we are capable of much more than that but, maybe not. We'd have to be playing pretty darn well to get to the title game so at that point almost anything is possible. I still think "just" getting a win in Minneapolis is going to have us in #1 seed territory.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

If you hate the polls and are glad that we at least have Pairwise (KRACH, where are you?) then UNO fan should be doubly glad today.

I find it amusing that DU is ahead of us in the poll, despite finishing behind us in the NCHC standings. And, let's not forget that we swept DU this season, too, to say nothing of the fact that we are also ahead of them in Pairwise.

Other than that, apparently, the voters think they are the better team. Maybe they are, but, on paper they aren't. To each his own, I guess.

Of course, I have just set in motion DU winning the NCHC tourney again by even bringing this up.

[MplsSioux]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

[QUOTE=Red Cows;6118445]

If they go to Minneapolis, nothing that happens there is knocking them out, not even losing to CC or Western in the semi (and I have not yet looked at the brackets), a seemingly unlikely scenario, to say the least but, who knows in this league?

[QUOTE]

Don't forget that there is a 3rd place game in Minneapolis so UNO could potentially lose 2 games in Minneapolis, although I believe UNO makes the tournament regardless of any outcome in the next 2 weeks. The 3rd place game was the saving grace for North Dakota last year as they needed the win(and Wisconsin and UMass-Lowell to win) against WMU to make the tournament.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

[QUOTE=MplsSioux;6119880][QUOTE=Red Cows;6118445]

If they go to Minneapolis, nothing that happens there is knocking them out, not even losing to CC or Western in the semi (and I have not yet looked at the brackets), a seemingly unlikely scenario, to say the least but, who knows in this league?

Don't forget that there is a 3rd place game in Minneapolis so UNO could potentially lose 2 games in Minneapolis, although I believe UNO makes the tournament regardless of any outcome in the next 2 weeks. The 3rd place game was the saving grace for North Dakota last year as they needed the win(and Wisconsin and UMass-Lowell to win) against WMU to make the tournament.

Thanks for reminding me of that, because I did forget.

Hope you are right about the next 2 weeks. The only thing that could potentially have outside looking in is a 2 game sweep at the hands of SCSU and hopefully are right that it would not matter.

I wonder when we are going to see calculators?

[vizoroo]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

If you hate the polls and are glad that we at least have Pairwise (KRACH, where are you?) then UNO fan should be doubly glad today.

I find it amusing that DU is ahead of us in the poll, despite finishing behind us in the NCHC standings. And, let's not forget that we swept DU this season, too, to say nothing of the fact that we are also ahead of them in Pairwise.

Other than that, apparently, the voters think they are the better team. Maybe they are, but, on paper they aren't. To each his own, I guess.

Of course, I have just set in motion DU winning the NCHC tourney again by even bringing this up.

Thank you.-thank you. RedCows. we♥appreciate it

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

I read with some relief tonight that Jim Dahl and Priceless are both asserting in the Bracketology thread that the top 8 teams in Pairwise are all going to be in the NCAA's no matter what happens to them in each team's respective conference tourneys (and, of course, 5 of those 8 are NCHC teams). Since UNO is #7, fat city.

The first team that would be "in trouble" if they got swept is #9, Providence, say they.

Since I think the only team that would have a "cakewalk" in the NCAA's (such as there is in college hockey--unless you are the Gophers playing Holy Cross ) is the team playing the #16 team in Pairwise (almost certainly the AHA auto-qualifier) I really don't care where UNO ends up unless winning the NCHC tourney would get them to #1 in Pairwise. Otherwise, as I said, I'd prefer to be in South Bend. Those tickets are going to be gettable and it is a reasonable 550 mile drive, too.

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

None of the NCHC's "Goals of the Week" (5 per week) this season was against UNO.

Not a one of them.

Thank you, Ryan Massa.

[5thYearFreshman]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

I read with some relief tonight that Jim Dahl and Priceless are both asserting in the Bracketology thread that the top 8 teams in Pairwise are all going to be in the NCAA's no matter what happens to them in each team's respective conference tourneys (and, of course, 5 of those 8 are NCHC teams). Since UNO is #7, fat city.

The first team that would be "in trouble" if they got swept is #9, Providence, say they.

Since I think the only team that would have a "cakewalk" in the NCAA's (such as there is in college hockey--unless you are the Gophers playing Holy Cross ) is the team playing the #16 team in Pairwise (almost certainly the AHA auto-qualifier) I really don't care where UNO ends up unless winning the NCHC tourney would get them to #1 in Pairwise. Otherwise, as I said, I'd prefer to be in South Bend. Those tickets are going to be gettable and it is a reasonable 550 mile drive, too.

If Michigan State wins the B1G tourney, that makes Phillip (Robert) Morris the #15 seed. Mankato has to like that

[SCSU Euro]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

None of the NCHC's "Goals of the Week" (5 per week) this season was against UNO.

Not a one of them.

Thank you, Ryan Massa.

First off, I'd take that the other way. If a goal of the week is scored on your goalie, not much he could've done about that. Sounds like Massa gave up tons of "defendable goals" (trademark: Bob Motzko)

Secondly, you just mean that none of the goals finishing in #1 for that week was against UNO, right? Not any of the top 5 period, correct?

[Red Cows]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

First off, I'd take that the other way. If a goal of the week is scored on your goalie, not much he could've done about that. Sounds like Massa gave up tons of "defendable goals" (trademark: Bob Motzko)

Secondly, you just mean that none of the goals finishing in #1 for that week was against UNO, right? Not any of the top 5 period, correct?

Correct, none of the top 5.

Full confession, this was tweeted on Mavpuck and I did not actually check for myself. I if am wrong, flame me.

[SCSU Euro]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

Correct, none of the top 5.

Full confession, this was tweeted on Mavpuck and I did not actually check for myself. I if am wrong, flame me.

I won't flame you, but I remember UND's goal where the guy hit it out of mid-air made it. And if UNO only gave up one goal that made the top 5, that's crazy. I could go back and look but that one I remember off the top of my head.

[gomavs#1]

Re: UNO '14 -'15 season thread. Will the sleeper awaken?

Obviously big game tonight. If the past is any indicator of our chances tonight, I would say they are slim to none.

[5thYearFreshman]

Obviously big game tonight. If the past is any indicator of our chances tonight, I would say they are slim to none.

Seriously, what is the major malfunction? This wasn't as bad as getting swept by Bemidji at home a few years back, but this is getting ridiculous