The WCHA championship game tonight between the University of Minnesota and the University of North Dakota was a joy to watch. It was especially fun for a fan of the St. Louis Blues as there were three players in uniform tonight that will one day wear the Blue note. Minnesota won the game 3-2 in OT on a highlight reel goal from Blake Wheeler.
Here is my take on the Blues-to-be:
TJ Oshie: Oshie had a great game tonight. His line was by far the most dominant line on the ice for most of the game. They were usually matched up against the top Minnesota line so there was a see-saw quality to the play. At one point the Gophers would have the edge, at others the Sioux. Throughout TJ was dangerous. He had an assist on one of the goals, and could have picked up a couple more if his forwards could get the puck on net. As a player he reminds me of (brace yourself) Craig Janney...and I mean that as a huge compliment. I never bought into Keenan's running down of Janney. Yes, he was more of a complimentary player, but so what? Lots of players play better when they are surrounded by talent. That is not a bad thing. It means they play UP to the cast. Have a decent cast and they will excel. Put a high scoring winger on a line with Oshie and he will get him the puck. Oshie might be ready to challenge for a spot in St. Louis next year, although a year at Peoria might be called for.
Eric Johnson: Eric had an eventful game. He had some opportunity to display just what makes him so exciting. His puck movement has done nothing but get better as the season has progressed, and it was ok to start with. Tonight he did a nice job on the powerplay point, and he picked up a goal on an opportunistic rush, beating the goalie five hole from a bad angle. The broadcasters thought it was a weak goal but I'm not too sure. The goalie had to protect against Johnson passing into the middle, and when he slid across to deal with Johnson he left himself open. Get the puck on net and good things happen, right? On the negative side, he took a needless penalty for delay of game. He was upset that a penalty wasn't called for some infraction against him so he picked up the puck and threw it out of the zone. That's a no-no. He also almost had a complete mental breakdown in the last 5 seconds of regulation, giving up the puck deep in his own zone that lead to a glorious scoring chance for the Sioux at the buzzer. He was a bit lucky. That is the sort of mental mistake that Blues fans will have to get used to as he makes his transition tot he pro game, but there is little doubt in my mind that he will be ready to make the jump next season.
Jay Barriball: Jay had a great game. He is just a pest. He gets rewarded with the assist on the OT game winner, although there was a lot of luck involved in that. If you see the goal you will know what I mean. On the other hand, Jay did a great job standing the North Dakota player up at the blue line to create the chance in the first place, so I won't quibble too much. Barriball did some good work on the penalty kill, and worked well defensively in general. He is very responsible that way, and that will translate well to the pro game. He also has some wheels, and broke in on net a couple of times when he caught the defense flat footed. I will o out on a limb and say that I think Jay will play at the next level. He should probably stay at Minnesota for at least the next season (if not the next two), and really become a cog on the power play. He could be a Theo Fleury type of player (without the drug use or the chippiness I hope), and who wouldn't need one of those?
The NCAA's promise to be awesome this year.
Here is my take on the Blues-to-be:
TJ Oshie: Oshie had a great game tonight. His line was by far the most dominant line on the ice for most of the game. They were usually matched up against the top Minnesota line so there was a see-saw quality to the play. At one point the Gophers would have the edge, at others the Sioux. Throughout TJ was dangerous. He had an assist on one of the goals, and could have picked up a couple more if his forwards could get the puck on net. As a player he reminds me of (brace yourself) Craig Janney...and I mean that as a huge compliment. I never bought into Keenan's running down of Janney. Yes, he was more of a complimentary player, but so what? Lots of players play better when they are surrounded by talent. That is not a bad thing. It means they play UP to the cast. Have a decent cast and they will excel. Put a high scoring winger on a line with Oshie and he will get him the puck. Oshie might be ready to challenge for a spot in St. Louis next year, although a year at Peoria might be called for.
Eric Johnson: Eric had an eventful game. He had some opportunity to display just what makes him so exciting. His puck movement has done nothing but get better as the season has progressed, and it was ok to start with. Tonight he did a nice job on the powerplay point, and he picked up a goal on an opportunistic rush, beating the goalie five hole from a bad angle. The broadcasters thought it was a weak goal but I'm not too sure. The goalie had to protect against Johnson passing into the middle, and when he slid across to deal with Johnson he left himself open. Get the puck on net and good things happen, right? On the negative side, he took a needless penalty for delay of game. He was upset that a penalty wasn't called for some infraction against him so he picked up the puck and threw it out of the zone. That's a no-no. He also almost had a complete mental breakdown in the last 5 seconds of regulation, giving up the puck deep in his own zone that lead to a glorious scoring chance for the Sioux at the buzzer. He was a bit lucky. That is the sort of mental mistake that Blues fans will have to get used to as he makes his transition tot he pro game, but there is little doubt in my mind that he will be ready to make the jump next season.
Jay Barriball: Jay had a great game. He is just a pest. He gets rewarded with the assist on the OT game winner, although there was a lot of luck involved in that. If you see the goal you will know what I mean. On the other hand, Jay did a great job standing the North Dakota player up at the blue line to create the chance in the first place, so I won't quibble too much. Barriball did some good work on the penalty kill, and worked well defensively in general. He is very responsible that way, and that will translate well to the pro game. He also has some wheels, and broke in on net a couple of times when he caught the defense flat footed. I will o out on a limb and say that I think Jay will play at the next level. He should probably stay at Minnesota for at least the next season (if not the next two), and really become a cog on the power play. He could be a Theo Fleury type of player (without the drug use or the chippiness I hope), and who wouldn't need one of those?
The NCAA's promise to be awesome this year.
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