Dogs Take 1st Place After Boring 1-1 Tie

Well, seven points in four games ain't too bad. We take sole possession of first place in the WCHA, stay undefeated, and possibly move up in the rankings due to Boston College falling to Merrimack last night. Some thoughts:

• Was it just me or was that game booorrring? Neither team's PP was clicking - we couldn't even score on a 5-3 - and the action seemed sluggish. I guess the two (non-goal) highlights of the game were Lamb blowing a guy up halfway through the first period (and subsequently getting booked for elbowing) and Dylan Olsen breaking two sticks on one shift. Man, he has a hard shot.
• The Gophers look back on track after sweeping Colorado College this weekend, including a 9-4 blowout on Saturday. Bummer.
• I appreciate the fact that PBS aired Saturday's game and all, but it felt like I was watching the game through a foggy window. After a year of hockey in HD I've been spoiled for life.
• Both nights the Bulldogs got outplayed by Bemidji during 3rd period crunch time. Crandall was good enough to save us on Friday, but the Beaver's late pressure Saturday allowed them to take a point from us. It's a trend worth monitoring.
• Brad Malone destroyed Jesse Martin on Saturday, garnering him a game misconduct. Say what you want about the legality of the hit, but there's a good possibility he might face a one or two-game suspension. That would be a big loss for the Sioux with our showdown at the Ralph looming this weekend.
• I meant to link this yesterday, but I really enjoyed RWD's rant against Tom Serratore yesterday. I heard Serratore on the radio with Bruce Ciskie this week and he was a huge sandbagger. His 'oh we're the new guys in town and I just hope we can keep up' shtick would wear thin real quick if I were a Beaver fan.

Huge series this weekend. Let's go get it. Weekly Links tomorrow.