UDN: Series Split, AGAIN

After 6-1 Loss to Gophers, Bulldogs Bounce Back with 6-2 Win

Off the most recent split by the Bulldogs, this time at UMTC Gophers, we have our latest Up, Down, Neutral:

• Power play, a long time staple of the Sandelin Bulldogs, is back after going four of seven opportunities in Sunday’s game.  The test will be if it keeps up because the game prior was a zero for seven effort.
• Resiliency continues to be an up with this season’s UMD team.  On the road for six straight games and finding a way to come back after Friday losses at UND and UMTC for wins demonstrates the mental toughness of the young team.

• Penalties!  The numbers are staggering after a slight down tick in the minutes, they spiked again all the way up to 19.0 minutes per game and a tie for third nationally for the most.
• Still on the penalties, another major was logged this weekend when Andy Welinski was shown the gate Sunday for facemasking.  In the same vein, Caleb Herbert took three minors Friday and according to Bruce Ciskie, he should have had to pay rent for the space.  It just can’t happen if the team is going to reach even near their goals.

• Split, split, split.  The splits get tiring, but at this point, they are good enough.  As the season progresses they have to step up to some sweeps to step up in the NCHC.
• Goaltending at UMD is a “who’s hot” kind of deal.  As long as one of them, A Crandall or McNeely, is on, the team can always bounce back.

Bold prediction alert, UMD will end up 17-16-1 going into the playoffs.  The regular season is just over one-third completed and the Bulldogs have five splits in six series.  The remaining series was a Bulldog win and tie against MTU.

The opponents so far have been good teams for the most part.  In some cases, like this last series, a split is good.  But in others, CC and Ohio State, more than a split is expected. 

But winning some and losing some inexplicably is a symptom of a young team.  So is the way they win and lose.  The scoring is coming in streaks.  Plentiful scoring in one game followed by a drought and not necessarily in that order.  It is not a first game/second game of the series thing as UMD has a two game winning streak and a two game losing streak.

Up next is another weekend off and time for Thanksgiving.  The following weekend brings NCHC league play to Duluth for the first time as Saint Cloud State comes to town December 6 and 7.

UMD salvages Split at CC with Domination Saturday

UMD Splits with CC 1-3 and 5-1

Friday brought some worry.  Three games for UMD and not much to show, four goals, a 1-1-1 record, and concern.

Concern was alleviated for now with the superior play Saturday night, both offensively and defensively, in the Bulldog's first win in the NCHC.

Newsworthy was the output of scoring from the second and third lines and the shutdown play by the defense limiting the Tigers to 14 shots on goal...for the game.  Yeah, a big deal!

So now for the Up, Down, and Neutral (UDN) for the weekend:

The Offense emergence is definitely up front especially Alex Iafallo, Justin Crandall, and Caleb Herbert who all scored multiple points and are on the second and third lines.  Defense also stepped up big with Aaron Crandall getting his first start in net.

 The Power play continues to be a struggle going 2 for 22 on the season.  Chances came especially on the Friday game, and the team just could not convert when the foals were needed.

            Neutral is the word on effort.  The team is young and their potential is evident.  The turn around from Friday to Saturday is likely a symptom of being young, hopefully they have turned a corner and we will  see more of that soon.

The next step is a big one as the upward rising Notre Dame Irish come to AMSOIL for a pair of games this next weekend.

NCHC Blog/Web Media Preseason Poll

Miami Tabbed for Tops

The first annual NCHC Blog/Web Media Preseason Poll is now up.  With little surprise Miami occupies the top spot with UMD coming in at 5th in the new eight team league.

Our ballot looks like this:

Order of finish:

1. Miami
   
2. North Dakota
3. Denver
4. Saint Cloud State
5. Minnesota Duluth
6. Western Michigan
7. Colorado College
8. Nebraska - Omaha

All Conference Team:

F:  Riley Barber - Miami

F:  Austin Czarnik - Miami

F:  Tony Cameranesi - UMD

D:  Joey LaLeggia - Denver

D:  Andrew Prochno - SCSU

G:  Ryan Faragher - SCSU

Player of the Year: Barber

Defensive Player of the Year: LaLeggia

Rookie of the Year: Toninato - UMD

Breakout Player of the Year: Caleb Herbert - UMD

Our pick of Herbert as a "breakout" maybe a mislabel, but after the season that he had, a turnaround would be a breakout. 

UMD's Second Intermission Report Card

A Report Card on UMD's Second Period of the 2012-13 Season

The second third of the 2012-2013 UMD Bulldog’s season is in the books. In following with our past precedent, we are issuing our second period report card that takes a look at the second third of the season only.  Each third of the season is 12 games this season.

Offense: C. The offense is getting better and turning up the heat.  But most of the time, it is just good enough.  The amount of one goal wins shows a gritty team, but also is alarming that the team cannot score more to win decisively.

The goal production has increased from 29 goals in the first 12 games to 35 goals.  That is an average of 2.42 and 2.92 respectively.  That is largely the reason the Bulldogs went 7-4-1 in their last 12 after a 3-7-2 start.

As UMD pushes for home ice in the first round of the WCHA playoffs, the offense needs to keep making strides and put less pressure on the defense.

Of note:

• Top three scorers for the Bulldogs remain the same as the last report.  They are Mike Seidel (12-11-23, up 9 points), Tony Cameranesi (10-12-22, up 10 points), and Austin Farley (8-9-17, up 7 points).  
• Pleasant surprises: Joe Basaraba and Jake Hendrickson.  We singled out Basaraba as a surprise last report with three goals.  He scored four more for a total of seven equaling his total from last year.  Hendrickson upped his goal total from one to four during the last 12.  He is an integral part of the upperclassmen and his leadership on the score sheet is great to see.
• Farley and Cameranesi continue to be the freshman standouts.  Right now Camreanesi has the upper hand in the race for biggest impact from a freshman.

Team Defense: B-. The defense has really come around and is leading the way to wins for the team.  For offense it was noted the amount of one goal games.  A big part of those wins is the defense holding to win the games.

Over the period, UMD has allowed 31 goals, an average of 2.58 goals per game.  Prior, they allowed 37 games for a 3.08 average.  Just the GAA over the last 12 games is good and couple that with scoring more than allowing on average, it is a recipe to make a run.

Defense will be the key to keep the team close enough to pull out wins in the home stretch.  The offense has not shown they are not able at this point to score multiple goals to come from behind.

Of note:

• Wade Bergman has stepped up to take a senior leadership role in this second period of the season.  His offensive output has increased and his plus/minus rating is just a tick better going +1 in the last 12.
• Andy Welinski is still the freshman leader on the blueline, but he really has been the only freshman defenseman getting regular playing time.

Special Teams: B. UMD is still going strong in the special teams department.  The Bulldogs again have the nation’s 8th best power play just as last report, but their percentage fell from 23.7% to 22.4%.  Still a great number and a good success rate.  The penalty kill is getting better up from 81.4% to 83.7%, 25th in the nation.  But just like last reporting period, they are on the ice too much.  UMD has the second highest penalty average in the nation at 16.5 minutes per game.

Of note:

• Seidel is tops on the team with 6 PP goals followed by Cameranesi with 5 and Caleb Herbert surging into third with 3, all in the last 12 games.

Goaltending: B-. McNeely has emerged as the number one goalie especially with Aaron Crandall getting hurt at the end of 2012.  Mcneely's numbers are good, but rank in the middle of the pack of the WCHA.  He has a 2.60 GAA and a 0.898 saves percentage.  Again, not great, but solid enough when needed to put up some one goal wins.

Crandall has been struggling through the season with a 3.21 GAA and 0.878 saves percentage.  We look for him to get healthy and be able to be a viable alternate to McNeely when needed.

Of note:

• McNeely posted UMDs only shutout this season, a 1-0 win over Michigan Tech.

Coaching: B. Coaching is solid and reliable for the Bulldogs.  The start was terrible, but the system is coming around and UMD has a chance to do something in the last third of the season.  Work still needs to be done on discipline on the ice with penalties.  it was good to see that discipline off the ice is happening too with a one game sit for key players when needed.  The end of the season is when Sandelin seems to get the best out of his teams, so we look forward to seeing how this team ends.

Overall Team: C+. Average is a very appropriate label for this Bulldog team in this second report.  They moved from 11th place to 6th place before falling back to 8th this last weekend when they were idle.  Home ice is the hope and most likely reachable goal for this team.  If they get there, it will be an accomplishment based on how they started.

Looking Ahead. The next report will be the final at the end of the regular season.  During that 12 game stretch, UMD travels to only Minneapolis and Bemidji.  They host Denver, Minnesota State Mankato, Alabama - Huntsville, and Omaha.  It is nice to be at home most of the time, but there are plenty of challenging games in that stretch to the end of the regular season.

Of note:

• UMD is 2-5-1 against fellow future teams of the NCHC so far this season.  The Bulldogs have four more games against future NCHC teams remaining.

Bulldogs Night and Day, or Friday and Saturday

Two Very Different Results in Split at Colorado College

Expectations.  High, low, or somewhere in between, they play a part of life, especially for the lives of sports fans.

After the Saturday dismantling of the Bulldogs, I made a comment to the effect that I did not expect the Bulldogs to win, but I thought it was very possible.  I also added in a follow up that it was a disappointing game.  Very disappointing.

Right or wrong, I did not expect them to win, but there is enough talent on the team to make it happen.  But this is the 2012-13 Bulldogs we are talking about and they have not given much hope for multiple wins in a row.

Friday’s 3-2 win at CC was a great one for this team.  They trailed into the second before tying the score.  In the third, UMD took the lead, allowed a tying goal late in the game, and then gutted their way to take the lead.  The game winner was a Caleb Herbert goal just over a minute after CC tied the score and with 1:43 left in the period.

It was a great win for the Bulldogs because they had to come back after a game tying goal and respond.  But that was also the key to the game, UMD didn’t fall behind in the third.  And that is the key it seems this season.

Disappointing was the key term thrown about after Saturday’s loss.  Disappointing because this team seems to have a problem when they are down on the scoreboard at the end of the second period.  In other words, if they are down after two, the score is going to get nothing but worse.

It has happened multiple times over the season.  Most recently at CC and prior in Florida against Ferris State.  It is alarming and tough to take for fans who are looking for the bright side in times when it looks like it can’t get any worse for the Bulldogs.  As a fan, they want to see the team fight and show signs of life.  They want to see consistent effort.

The bottom line is the one sided games that just keep going downhill through the third period have to stop.  Fans want to believe that UMD is worthy of home ice for the WCHA playoffs and they want to be able to have an expectation of Bulldog wins.

First Intermission: Bulldogs One Third Through Season

A Report Card on UMD's First Period of the 2012-13 Season

The first third of the 2012-2013 UMD Bulldog’s season is in the books. In following with our past precedent, we are issuing our first period report card, the first third of the season

Bulldog fans look for more Cameranesi and Farley connections
in the future. (CollegeHockey HighHorse: Andrew Craig)

Offense: D+. There was concern over the offense entering this season with so many high scoring players leaving and freshmen filling the gaps. So far the freshmen corps have looked good and have been the driving force of the offense.  That is good, but also bad because the upper classmen, for the most part, are not pulling their weight.  The lack of offense has put unnecessary strain on the defense creating a developing train wreck as the season progresses.

Of note:

• Top three scorers for the Bulldogs have been linemates for most of the season.  They are Mike Seidel (8-6-14), Tony Cameranesi (5-7-12), and Austin Farley (4-6-10).  Their points are 47% of the team total and their goals are an alarming 59% of the team total.
• Pleasant surprises are few.  Closest is Joe Basaraba who has three goals on the season, close to half of his output of seven last season.
• Strong freshman presence is noted from Cameranesi and Farley, as noted above, along with defenseman Andy Welinski (1-5-6) who is fifth in team scoring.
• We want to see more from last year's freshman scoring leader Caleb Herbert.  Herbert is currently goalless with four assists.

Team Defense: C-. This was supposed to be UMD’s strong suite for the season to get past the freshman learning curve of the forwards.  In reality, it is one of the most frustrating aspects of the team.  The defense has struggled at times with basic positioning, keeping leads late in games, and keeping possession of the puck.  As a result, UMD has given up an average of 3.08 goals per game.  Not horrendous, but close to horrendous and not what was expected.

Of note:

• None of the defenseman corps is in the positive range for plus/minus rating.  Of all players, only Farley, Dan DeLisle, and seldom used Max Tardy are positive with +1 each.
• Strong freshman presence from Andy Welinski who is providing a great offensive presence from the blue line.
• We want to see more from last year's defensive stronghold Wade Bergman.  Bergman was held goalless until last weekend and has logged a team low -8 in the plus/minus rating.

Special Teams: B-. This is the brightest spot of the team.  UMD has the nation’s 8^th best power play that is connecting at 23.7%.  The penalty kill is also decent at 81.4%, but they are on the ice too much.  UMD has the highest penalty average in the nation at 18.7 minutes per game.

Of note:

• Seidel, Cameranesi, and Farley lead the team in power play goals with 10, 71% of the team's total.

Goaltending: C+. Goaltending has not been stellar, but it has been good enough that UMD should have more wins.  Newcomer Matt McNeely is playing well for a freshman behind this team defense.  McNeely is currently at a 0.888 saves percentage with a 2.95 goals against average.  Aaron Crandall again this season is there, but not excelling with 0.889 and 3.15.  The stats the UMD netminders have put up place them above only three tenders in the WCHA.  

It is still unknown as to who is the number one, but McNeely looks to be a solid goaltender for the future and a good one for the current season.

Of note:

• UMD is without a shutout this season.

Coaching: B. The struggles are there, but they are likely growing pains that must be endured as the team matures.  Coaching will expedite the process and Sandelin is a great coach to have.  What is at issue is the number of penalties and penalty minutes.  The team plays undisciplined hockey and that can be helped from the top.  What is most alarming is the number of 10-minute misconducts the team has taken that are not associated with another penalty.  That is the sign of frustration, which is understandable, but it more a symptom of undisciplined play.

Overall Team: D+. We didn’t and don’t expect a top three WCHA team, but we do see more than 11^th place from this team.  The pieces are there, but they are not working together for a common goal.  Small gains in one facet are usually coupled with a step back in another facet.  The team has time to come together, but will it be for the better of this season or seasons in the future?

Looking Ahead. The next “period”, or third of the schedule, brings some favorable games for UMD.  They play Michigan Tech twice, Bemidji State, and Alaska – Anchorage, all teams just above or below UMD in the WCHA standings.  These games will show just where UMD willfinish at the end of the season.  Splitting these series will probably not be enough for UMD to make any significant moves in the standings.  

The other games include the Florida College Classic and a pair of games at Colorado College.

Of note:

• UMD is 1-4-1 against fellow furture teams of the NCHC so far this season.  The Bulldogs have six more games against future NCHC left.

The next grading period will end after playing at Colorado College on January 19, 2013.

Bulldogs to Host Huskies of SCSU

UMD Plays Third Straight Series Against Future NCHC Team

There is a lot of talk about the importance of the upcoming series when Saint Cloud comes to Duluth.  It all isn’t necessarily true, but doors can start to shut with each loss tacked onto the six already.

The problem is the regular season is one third complete after the weekend and the conference schedule is about one fourth complete.  Time is ticking, but it is never too late.

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves and take a look at this weekend against the Huskies.

Penalties Abound.  UMD is the most penalized team in the nation with the average of 20.6 minutes per game.  The counter to that is opponents average 20.1 minutes in all games.  Does UMD bring the worst out of teams or is there something else going on?

It may be the latter as the conference disparity is larger where UMD averages 21.3 minutes and opponents average 15.8 minutes.  Bottom line is UMD needs to stay out of the penalty box.

Scoring.  The Bulldogs are in an interesting position as far as time they are playing in the lead.  UMD is 2-6-2 but have equal percent of time in the lead as trailing, 31.9%.  So UMD has been in some close games or when they go the wrong way, it goes fast.

The only period UMD has the advantage in scoring is the first period.  That fact is not lost on most who tuned into last Saturday’s game when the Bulldogs held a 3-1 lead after the first only to lose 4-3 OT.

Young and Old.  The disparity of freshman/senior scoring versus sophomore/junior scoring continues to grow.  This week scoring is 50 to 17.

The player who is definitely missing from the scoring sheet is sophomore Caleb Herbert.  He was the leading freshman scorer last season and is 0-4-4 for the season.  He currently is on a seven game pointless streak and is a good player that UMD needs to be successful this season.  Kick the sophomore slump, Caleb, and get in on the scoring.

StatPack.  Huskies and Bulldogs by the numbers in this week's StatPack.

Images via Wikipedia: Bulldog, WCHA, SCSU

Of note.

• Penalties may not be the achilles heel as UMD holds the advantage in PP and PK.
• Both Crandall and McNeely have career saves percentage similar to the team average, 0.889 and 0.888 respectively.
• This is UMD's first home series in 4 weeks.

Around the WCHA and Picks by Fiskness.
Last weekends games didn't go exactly as UMD fans had hoped, but there was some signs of encouragement.  We did learn that the Bulldogs can skate with anybody, however if they continue to take penalties at the current rate they will be one of the bottom teams in the league.  We also learned that the Bulldogs have one good line and three number 3 lines.  Earlier we at the C3H had speculated that UMD was the only team in the nation with four number 3 lines.  I think it is safe to say the Seidel, Farley and Carmanisi is an actual number 1 line.

WCHA Conference.

Saint Cloud at Minnesota Duluth:  The Huskies come into this series well rested and UMD is looking to get their first win in conference play.  The Dogs get home ice, only problem is with Thanksgiving it will likely be a split crowd.  I am going with a split based on the glimmers of prosperity shown last weekend in Grand Forks. 

Minnesota State Mankato at Wisconsin:  This should be a really good series.  The Badgers with home ice will play better, but without Zengerle they will only be able to get a split. 

Alaska - Anchorage at Bemidji State:  Last weekend was disappointing for the Beavers getting swept at home by MTU.  The Seawolves managed to get a point at home against the much favored Gophers.  Both teams are looking for consistency and scoring.  This should be two good games.  I will go with a split.

Non-Conference.

Minnesota Twin Cities at Vermont:  Vermont appears to be much improved over last season, but are currently in the bottom half of Hockey East.  The Gophers have not put together two really good games back to back and have had difficulties on the road.  The Gophers have more talent but willnot be able to get the two win, win and a tie.

Yale and New Hampshire at Denver:  Denver is hot and will be playing two good teams on their home ice.  Yale is #9 in the Pairwise and UNH is #2 right behind Denver.  I don't think the Pioneers will be able to keep the win streak going through both of these teams.  The Bulldogs have not played the strongest competition, whereas the Wildcat have played good teams and handled them without any problems.  I will go with a Denver win and a UNH win. 

New Hampshire and Yale at Colorado College:  The Tigers got swept by the Pioneers last weekend and will definitely be playing with an edge.  As much as I like the Wildcats this season, CC will bounce back and get a win.  However, the jubilation will be short lived as the Bulldogs will get a win over the Tigers the following night. 

North Dakota at Notre Dame:  UMD has played both of these teams and they are really well matched for this series.  Look for UND to cause the Fighting Irish to be more physical.  These should be a split. 

Alabama - Huntsville at Nebraska - Omaha:   The chargers come in having gotten their first win of the season last weekend against the Lakers, while the Mavericks were resting.  The Mavericks will remember their games against the Chargers last season in Nashville and will not have a problem winning both games.

Sunday Thoughts on a Monday

UMD Swept Out of Omaha

What was thought to be a reloading season has quickly moved to a big time rebuilding season for the Bulldogs.  The pair of losses to Omaha displayed the struggles and inconsistencies for UMD.

The now frequently maligned defense was thought to be the stronghold for the young front liners and they are.  Yes, turnovers have lead to goals, some of which were really bad turnovers, but giving up two or three goals per game should not be a killer in college hockey.  In the five UMD losses, they have allowed two goals twice and three goals once.

The main problem coming to light with UMD is the lack of scoring from the upperclassmen.  Mike Seidel was expected to be a leader and he is tops in scoring for the team.  Players that the Bulldogs are waiting to get on track are surprises like Herbert, Flaherty, Hendrickson, and team captain Cody Danberg.

The Bulldogs have dug themselves a hole and they really have nowhere to go but up…or maybe stay at the same level.

Up Next.  North Dakota fresh off a split at Saint Cloud is the next opponent for UMD in Grand Forks.  North Dakota is a team with lots of talent and firepower that has yet to sweep a series this season.  This weekend may be their next best chance.

Run in Saint Cloud.  The Huskies are night and day better than last year.  That is what getting good, experienced players to return will get you.  SCSU is a team that is playing at a high level this year after going 17-17-2 a season ago.  Look for the Huskies to stay in the top half of the league and do well behind the play of upperclassmen Hanowski, LeBlanc, and Dowd.  

Oh and UMD hosts the Huskies after playing in North Dakota.

2012-13 UMD Pre-season Player Picks

UMD Players to Watch. Pre-season picks for end of season awards from the staff.

MVP: Caleb Herbert may be the most unconventional pick on our list, but we expect a lot out of him this year.  It is usually offense that garners the most attention and may have the biggest impact and that is what brought us to Herbert.  This Bulldogs team may have some trouble consistently finding the net on offense, but a leader must emerge.

Honorable Mention: Wade Bergman who will anchor the defensemen corps.

DarkHorse (our breakout player of the year): Last year’s pick:

It may be unconventional and break the rules, if there are any, but we look to Cody Danberg. Returning for a second senior season, he should use his experience and wisdom to help lead the forwards. His 16 points in 99 games should be easily doubles this season.

This year we will go with the same pick now in his third senior season.

Rookie to Watch: Andy Welinski has garnered much praise for his play and the Bulldogs can really use the offense from the blueline.  While winning the USHL Defenseman of the Year award last season with Green Bay, Welinskii amassed 15 goals and 22 assists.

Honorable Mention: Austin Farley and his potential scoring numbers if he can carry his game from the USHL to the WCHA.

Key players to UMD’s success this year:

Aaron Crandall in net is key the team to having success.  If Matt McNeeley is the answer in stead of Crandall, it probably means some losses along the line before he is declared the #1.

Jake Hendrickson will have to step up as the one of two non-freshman centers on the team and the only one with significant playing time last season.  If he is not up to the task, it will likely have to come from a freshman (see below).

The trio of freshman centers, Tony Cameranesi, Charlie Sampair, and Austyn Young will be counted on to play well and score to make this team successful in the end. 

WCHA Blogger/Website Poll Results

3rd Annual Preseason Poll

The bloggers and other writers have weighed in and the results have been tallied.  Our ballot is below and the dull results can be found at A Tradition of Excellence.

Of note, there are no Bulldogs on the all conference selections or the individual selections.  Andy Welinski and Austin Farley both received votes for Rookie of the Year and Caleb Herbert received votes for Breakout Player of the Year.

Our picks:

1. Minnesota Twin Cities
2. North Dakota
3. Denver
4. Colorado College
5. Minnesota Duluth
6. Wisconsin
7. Saint Cloud State
8. Nebraska - Omaha
9. Michigan Tech
10. Minnesota State Mankato
11. Alaska - Anchorage

All Conference Team

F- Mark Zengerle - UW

F- Nick Bjugstad - UMTC

F- Ben Hanowski - SCSU

D- Joey LaLeggia - DU

D- Derek Forbort - UND

G- Juho Olkinuora -UNO

Player of the Year                           - Zengerle

Rookie of the Year                          - Austin Farley -UMD

Defenseman of the Year                 - Forbort

Breakout Player of the Year          - Clarke Saunders - UND

4th Annual College Hockey HighHorse Awards

Jack Connolly is MVP for Second Straight Season

The college hockey season is well over.  This post should have been done almost a month ago, but sometimes life gets in the way.  That being said, we would not forget to honor those UMD Bulldogs who stood out this season.  And we will honor them with our 4th running of the College Hockey HighHorse Awards.

A quick look back at the season includes UMD taking 2nd in the WCHA en route to their third trip to the NCAA Tournament in four years.  And in those four years one of the constants in a Bulldog jersey was Jack Connolly who was the fifth UMD player to win the Hobey Baker Memorial Award, college hockey's highest individual honor.  That leaves UMD again alone at the top as the school with the most winners of the Hobey.

Unlike last year, the Bulldogs did not get out of the Regional round being beaten 4-0 in the Northeast Regional Championship by eventual National Champion Boston College.

The awards as decided by the staff:

Huffer Christiansen Award (MVP): Jack Connolly.  The 2011-2012 season end for UMD with the 5th Hobey Baker award winner in school history. It is pretty hard to look past a Hobey Baker award winner when picking the team MVP. Jack Connolly is again the HCA winner for the second straight season. This past year's team produced three players that had over 40 points, two players with more than 50 points and two players that were All-Americans one might think that it would be hard to pick out a MVP, but a Hobey does trump all. 

Runners-up: Travis Oleksuk and JT Brown who had 53 and 47 points respectively.

Rookie of the Year: Caleb Herbert. This past season had good play by several Bulldog freshmen, but the best was Caleb Herbert. Chris had 2 goals, 11 assists for 13 points, pretty good for a freshman defenseman. As a forward Caleb Herbert had a terrific year 14 goals 19 assists for 33 points in 41 games. He also showed his strength in keeping the puck and getting to the net and the ability to checks. His development should continue also assuming he will be able to take on a bigger leadership role with the team. Caleb showed that he could be star in the college hockey in the coming years and is this years Rookie of the Year. 

Runner-up: Chris Casto who had a strong freshmen year on the blueline for the Bulldogs and looks like he should have a great college career.  Casto played in all 41 games this past season.

Most Improved Player: Travis Oleksuk. Is it possible to have the same player win it two years in a row? Travis Olesuk finished the season with 21 goals 32 assists for 53 points and he had six game winning goals. He was also and absolute monster on face off, arguably the best I have ever seen in a UMD jersey.  If Travis had another season of eligibility, he very well could be a Hobey candidate with the way he has played progressed.

Runner-up: Scott Kishel went from playing seven games as a junior to 35 games as a senior while scoring three goals and 15 assists for 18 points. Scott stepped up early in the season and played very well.  He did see his ice time drop at the end end of the season; however he was still a very important player to the team overall.

7th Defensemen: Scott Kishel. Given to the defenseman who steps up, becomes a regular player for the team and makes an impact.  Scott Kishel as stated above provided offense when we honestly thought we would not see much from him this past season.  Kishel is the type of defenseman we had when we instituted the 7th Defensemen Award.

Runner-up: Tim Smith who will be relied upon next season.

#29 Award: JT Brown. This past season leading goal scorer was J.T. Brown with 24 goals. Brown also added another 23 assists for a total of 47 points. He had two hat tricks on the season, one of which was a 4 goal game against UAA. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs J.T. has signed and played with the Tampa Bay Lightning, so his 2nd team All-WCHA and 2nd Team All-American honors will definitely be missed next season.

Runner-up: Travis Oleksuk with 21 goals.

There they are, the 2011-2012 College Hockey HighHorse Award winners.  As we move towards the normal down time for college hockey, we will have articles dealing with expected announcements of more details of the NCHC.  Otherwise, we look forward to the fall when Bulldog Hockey commences a new season.

My All-WCHA Ballot

Below is my ballot for the WCHA bloggers All-WCHA Teams.  Look for the results on A Tradition of Excellence site Friday.

No secret that these honors teams are a center point for debate and disagreement. These are my picks and I welcome discussion below on my picks.

Thanks to A Tradition of Excellence for putting this together and thanks to everyone who supports WCHA Hockey.

All-WCHA First Team             All-WCHA Second Team

F – Jack Connolly – UMD         F – Brock Nelson – UND
F – Mark Zengerle – UW          F – JT Brown – UMD
F – Travis Oleksuk – UMD        F – Drew Shore – Denver
D – Ben Blood – UND             D – Nate Schmidt – UMTC
D – Justin Schultz – UW         D – Gabe Guentzel – CC
G – Kent Patterson – UMTC       G – Josh Thorimbert - CC

All-WCHA Third Team             All-WCHA Rookie Team
F – Matt White – UNO            F – Kyle Rau – UMTC
F – Ben Hanowski – SCSU         F – Caleb Herbert – UMD
F – Nick Bjugstad – UMTC        F – JP Lafontaine – MSUM
D – Joey LaLeggia – Denver      D – Joey LaLeggia – Denver
D – Brad Hunt – BSU             D – Andrew Prochno – SCSU
G – Kenny Reiter – UMD          G – Juho Olkinuora - Denver


Those left out because there just isn't enough room: 

• Forwards Rylan Schwartz, Jason Zucker and Jaden Schwartz
• Defenseman: Nick Jensen
• Rookies: Jayson Megna and Ryan Faragher

Again, please comment below becaue this is usually a good discussion.

WCHA Player of the Year – Jack Connolly

WCHA Defensive Player of the Year – Justin Schultz

WCHA Rookie of the Year – Joey LaLeggia

WCHA Coach of the Year – Mel Pearson

*WCHA Goaltender of the Year will be the First Team Goaltender