Wild – Page 60 – David Shama's Minnesota Sports Headliners

Blackhawks Still Target for Wild

Posted on February 7, 2017February 7, 2017 by David Shama

It will be interesting to see how the Minnesota Wild plays this week and throughout the month.

The Western Conference leaders are a confident team and have made fans wonder if this could be the best club since the franchise’s inception in 2000. Tonight the Wild play in Winnipeg against the Jets and then players won’t have much time to rest before they go on the ice at Xcel Energy Wednesday against the Blackhawks, the team tied with the Sharks for second most points in the Western Conference. Tomorrow night’s game is the first of eight consecutive at home and despite fatigue the Wild should be full of adrenaline facing the rival Blackhawks.

The Wild defeated the Blackhawks 3-2 in Chicago last month and Minnesota has won eight consecutive games against the famous franchise. The two teams also have remaining games in St. Paul on February 21 and in Chicago March 12. More wins over the Blackhawks can only add to the Wild’s collective confidence and momentum.

But the Wild has a history with the Blackhawks that makes some fans anxious. Chicago has often dominated the Central Division during the past several years and has been a playoff pest to the Wild and other teams. Just two years ago, on their way to winning the Stanley Cup, the Blackhawks swept the Wild 4-0 in their best of seven games playoff. In the second round series the Wild scored just seven goals.

However, this doesn’t look like the 2015 Wild team. New head coach Bruce Boudreau has brought leadership, including a calming presence, to his players. That leadership has helped make for a remarkably consistent team group that so far has been able to avoid long losing streaks while also winning close games.

Boudreau has a team playing effectively as a unit. That togetherness is exemplified by the Wild’s balanced scoring. The club has nine players with 10 or more goals. Mikko Koivu, Eric Staal and Jason Zucker are tied for the team lead with 16 goals each.

This is a roster with depth and Boudreau is able to use four lines. That fourth line sometimes steps forward to make big plays and take pressure off the other units. Every game the Wild can count on depth and it’s something that distinguishes the roster from rivals.

Goalie Devan Dubnyk is among the NHL’s leaders at his position. He ranks first in the league in wins with 28. He is second in save percentage at .932.

The Wild has made a fast start without a lot of help sometimes from Zach Parise, the 32-year-old forward with the 13-year, $98 million contract. Maybe Parise isn’t right physically but even if that is a problem expect him to contribute to the team’s success by mentoring younger players.

The Wild could get another psychological boost with an impressive win tomorrow night. Are they better than Blackhawks? “I think right now they are,” a hockey authority told Sports Headliners. “But the Hawks are battle-tested. They have so much experience playing in big games in the past and are proven winners.”

The Wild hopes in a couple of years people will be saying the same about them.

Worth Noting

Gophers goalie Eric Schierhorn has been named Big Ten First Star of the Week. Schierhorn held the nation’s top-ranked offense to three goals on 69 shots last weekend when Minnesota swept Penn State at Mariucci Arena. Schierhorn, a sophomore, was Big Ten Goaltender of the Year last season, and currently leads the Big Ten in wins with 17. That total is tied for second best in the NCAA.

The Wild’s TV deal with FOX Sports North ends after this season. Ratings are impressive and the two organizations are likely to make a new deal.

New Gophers coach P.J. Fleck will do the “Let’s Play Hockey” call at Friday’s Wild-Lightning game.

For those who missed or couldn’t get enough of Lady Gaga’s halftime show at the Super Bowl last Sunday, she is performing at the Xcel Energy Center August 21. Tickets go on sale Friday.

Rivals ranks the Gophers football recruiting class No. 51 nationally. That compares with a No. 51 ranking in 2016 and No. 53 in 2015.

Among the best Gophers recruits in this year’s class is Marshall offensive tackle Blaise Andries who has known since seventh grade he wants to be an actuary, according to Fleck who joked about not knowing what the noun means.

Another recruiting prize could be tight end Jake Paulson from Louisville, who turned down a visit to LSU and has special parents in two former Navy pilots, per Fleck.

Fleck believes the “sleeper” of the class could be under recruited defensive lineman Austin Schirck from Carroll, Iowa. “He is special,” Fleck said. “I don’t know how he got out of that state.”

Fleck headlines the Minnesota Football Coaches Association Clinic March 30-April 1. Other prominent speakers will include Pitt’s Pat Narduzzi, North Dakota State’s Chris Klieman and San Diego State’s Jeff Horton. More information is available by clicking on the MFCA advertisement on this page and visiting the organization’s website.

Look for the Gophers athletic department to host members of the 1967 football team later this year as part of a celebration for the school’s last Big Ten championship.

The 1967 team will be honored with the Murray Warmath Legendary Team Award at the Minnesota Football Awards event May 7. The event is organized by the Minnesota Chapter of the National Football Foundation and will be at U.S. Bank Stadium.

The Gophers basketball team could get its second home sellout of the season Wednesday night against Iowa. Minnesota’s win last Saturday over Illinois, combined with the Iowa rivalry and an 8 p.m. start, puts the Gophers in a potential sellout situation. The Wild and Timberwolves also have home games Wednesday night so there is box office competition.

Boys high school basketball fans could hardly find a more fun start to the week. Last night the state’s best team, Champlin Park, defeated (70-60) arguably the second best club, Maple Grove. Tonight prep powers Apple Valley and Lakeville North play at Apple Valley.

Mike Max said on WCCO Radio this morning that NBC TV’s Harry Smith is planning a feature story on Sid Hartman, the local radio and newspaper personality who turns 97 next month.

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Physical Teams Take It to Gophers

Posted on January 12, 2017January 12, 2017 by David Shama

The Gophers have surprised their critics this season with 15 wins in their first 18 games but there is a message in the three losses. Minnesota, winners of only two Big Ten games last season and now much improved, has lost those three games to more physical and aggressive top 20 ranked teams.

Michigan State, after last night’s drubbing of the Gophers in East Lansing, has now defeated Minnesota twice. The Gophers other loss was to Florida State, a team with big guards and four front court players 6-9 or taller including 7-1, 304-pound center Michael Ojo and 7-4 (not a typo) center Christ Koumadje.

Few teams, if any, can match the size of Florida State but Michigan State has bruising freshmen Nick Ward (6-8, 250) and Miles Bridges (6-7, 230). And what the Spartans may lack in inches and heft is made up for in aggression.

Last night the Spartans flummoxed the Gophers, shutting down driving lanes and contesting shots. When the Gophers did have decent looks at the basket they couldn’t make enough shots. The Spartans also beat up Minnesota on the boards and made more hustle plays.

“We just could not find a way to get an easy basket,” Gophers coach Richard Pitino said during his postgame interview on 1500 ESPN. “I thought we had a couple decent looks, but you know overall we’re not the toughest team, even from an offensive standpoint of screening, being strong with the ball. …”

It doesn’t help when Minnesota’s most physical player, 6-10, 260-pound junior center Reggie Lynch, is consistently in foul trouble and on the bench. Last night in the 65-47 loss Lynch fouled out for the fourth time in the last five games. He has fouled out of both games against the Spartans.

The Gophers were behind 39-17 at halftime and looked frustrated. Maybe there was a hangover feeling from the overtime loss to the Spartans in Minneapolis on December 27. Minnesota led 39-26 at intermission and was clearly the superior team in execution, if not effort. The Spartans, though, were by far the more assertive players in the second half. Among the telling final stats was MSU scored 12 more points in the lane than the Gophers.

The Gophers, now 3-2 in Big Ten games, face a momentum test Saturday at Penn State. Minnesota needs to stop its losing streak at one against a Nittany Lions team that has been at home all week preparing for Saturday’s game. With an 11 a.m. Minneapolis start time, the Gophers won’t have to wait long to see how things go against a 2-2 PSU group team that defeated MSU last week, 72-63.

Worth Noting

Tom Izzo has been Michigan State’s head coach since the 1995-1996 season. Early on he competed against Minnesota coach Clem Haskins, and he got to know legendary Minneapolis newspaper columnist and radio personality Sid Hartman. When Izzo was in town a couple of weeks ago he was asked about the 96-year-old Hartman, who is recovering from a broken hip.

“I get a kick out of Sid,” Izzo told Sports Headliners. “…He always was good to me. There were wars when Clem was here, when I first started, and Sid always had something to say. He wasn’t afraid to tell you how he felt, but I thought he listened and understood. There are a couple people up here (in Minneapolis) I really appreciate and he’s one of them.

“He’s still an ornery (guy). He still doesn’t belong in heaven yet. That’s why he’s not there, because God is negotiating the terms. But someday he’ll end up there and I just hope it’s not for a few years yet.”

Hartman wrote his first column for 2017 in today’s Star Tribune.

Ryan James, the prep basketball authority from GopherIllustrated.com, has watched both Isaiah Washington and Jamir Harris play. The two high school guards signed National Letters of Intent with the Gophers last fall, and James is impressed with their skills. Washington (from New York City) is among the nation’s elite point guards, while Harris (New Brunswick, New Jersey) is a combo guard.

“Isaiah Washington is a guy you describe as having New York juice,” James told Sports Headliners. “He has so much shake, so much burst with his initial attack. It’s matched by very few. He is one of the best players I saw all summer in transition. He makes the right decision in pushing the ball nine times out of 10, whether it’s a quick pitch, attack and dish, or if he goes at the rim.

“Outstanding pull-up jumper. Streaky shooter at the arc but he can be a good shooter out there. …He’s just an aggressive playmaker, and he has the capability of being a great defender. He just has to do it more consistently.”

James believes Harris could average double figures in points as a Gopher. “The first thing you think of is shooter. …He is really strong, high character guy—like he was looking at Stanford. He was looking at the Ivy League.”

James believes Washington definitely has all-Big Ten potential. He also said Harris could be an all-Big Ten academic selection.

In 13 home games this season the Gophers are averaging 9,091 in 14,625 capacity Williams Arena. In 10 games the Gopher women’s team is averaging 3,065.

Steve Fritz bobblehead (photo courtesy of University of St. Thomas)

St. Thomas will celebrate Steve Fritz Bobblehead Day Saturday during a home basketball doubleheader with Concordia College at Schoenecker Arena. Fritz enrolled as a student at St. Thomas in 1967, and he has worked at the St. Paul school since 1971, including 10 years as an assistant men’s basketball coach, 31 years as head coach and 25 years as athletic director. St. Thomas will sell the bobbleheads for $15 each during the 1 p.m. women’s game and the 3 p.m. men’s game against the Cobbers. Fritz, who is still the AD, will greet fans and sign bobbleheads (also available in the Tommie Shop in the Anderson Student Center as of next Monday).

GopherIllustrated.com publisher Zach Johnson talking about how the ultra optimistic and turbocharged personality of new Gophers coach P.J. Fleck could prompt media cynicism: “…I hope the media doesn’t beat him down—force him to create a shell around the program and around himself, and sort of try to protect himself from that (type of) media. I hope he just continues to be who he is. If he wins, he can make those columnists eat crow.”

Vikings linebacker Chad Greenway, who may announce his retirement this offseason, turns 34 today.

Vikngs defensive tackle Linval Joseph has been named to the Pro Bowl replacing the injured Aaron Donald of the Rams.

Bruce Boudreau, the Wild’s first-year coach who has directed Minnesota to the second best record in the NHL’s Western Conference, earns $2,760,000, according to Otherleague.com, a website listing compensation for league coaches. He is the first head coach in NHL history to lead three different teams (including the Wild) to win streaks of 11-plus games.

The Wild will play eight of their 12 games in February at Xcel Energy Center. After February 7, the team has only one game away from home during the month.

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Claeys & Gophers Prove Skeptics Wrong

Posted on December 28, 2016December 28, 2016 by David Shama

Tracy Claeys found the resolve to lead his Gophers to an improbable win last night in the Holiday Bowl against Washington State. A friend suggested several days ago Claeys was struggling with his spirits as the team prepared amidst the turmoil of 10 suspended players and sexual assault allegations. Odds-makers made WSU a double digits favorite and skeptics suggested it was easy money to place a fat wager on the “Air Cougars” and their expected route of the Gophers.

But Claeys and his team had the resolve to hold the pass-happy Cougars to a season low 12 points in a stunning 17-12 victory. The Gophers’ head coach showed leadership in directing his team to a long sought signature victory. After Claeys took over as Minnesota’s coach mid-season last year and continuing through this fall, the Gophers couldn’t earn a front page win in a rivalry game or against a top-25 team. However, last night the Gophers won a quality bowl game versus a Pac-12 team that fought for a division championship and four times scored over 50 points this season.

Claeys is a steady leader who avoids the highs and lows. He goes home at night and when his head hits the pillow, he is out. Well, last night he could have had the best of sleep and dreams. He deserved that experience and so did his players who had to support one another in practices and games to make up for the absence of starters and top reserves.

In mid-December I wrote that the Gophers might use the adversity of the suspensions to pull together for a bowl win. A former Gopher player called me out on what he said was an overly optimistic view. Nice to be right once in awhile.

Claeys is now 2-0 in bowl games after also winning the Quick Lane Bowl last season. That makes him the only head coach in Gophers’ history to win his first two bowl games. Minnesota’s bowl record is now 7-13.

Claeys, his staff and players put more pride back into Golden Gophers football last night. The Gophers won consecutive bowl games for the first time since 2002-2004 and finished with a 9-4 record. That’s the most victories since the 2003 team won 10 games. The four losses came against top 25 teams—Iowa, Nebraska, Penn State and Wisconsin.

The win last night that ranks with Minnesota’s biggest bowl wins ever.The greatest bowl win was in the 1962 Rose Bowl when the Gophers smothered UCLA 21-3 a year after losing to Washington in Pasadena. The Gophers also had impressive bowl wins under Glen Mason against Alabama, Arkansas and Oregon. But for drama and surprise, last night’s Holiday Bowl takes a backseat only to the 1962 Rose Bowl.

Worth Noting

Despite what you may have read, Washington State coach Mike Leach was never considered for the Gophers job. Leach was unemployed when the Gophers were searching for a successor to Tim Brewster in 2010. Leach was fired at Texas Tech in 2009 amid allegations he mistreated Adam James, a Red Raider player who had suffered a concussion.

Safety Antoine Winfield Jr., one of 10 suspended players who didn’t play in the Gophers Holiday Bowl game last night, was named to Athlon.com’s first team All-Freshman defensive unit announced last week. Gophers defensive end Tai’yon Devers and linebacker Carter Coughlin made the second team.

Fox TV analyst Troy Aikman criticized Vikings’ general manager Rick Spielman’s drafting of offensive linemen last Saturday. Aikman said during the Vikings-Packers telecast Spielman has drafted only two offensive linemen during the first three rounds since 2007, and has to do better. The Vikings selected tackle Phil Loadholt in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft and used one of their three first round picks in 2012 on tackle Matt Kalil.

Vikings’ trainer Eric Sugarman stays in touch with ex-offensive coordinator Norv Turner who resigned earlier this season. They are part of a local ownership group that has two race horses, Tiger D and Skol Sister. Other owners are Scott Turner (Norv’s son and the Vikings’ quarterback coach), and offensive guard Brandon Fusco, radio play-by-play man Paul Allen and goalie Alex Stalock who plays for the Wild’s minor league Iowa affiliate.

Vikings’ defensive back Captain Munnerlyn is an unrestricted free agent next offseason. “I definitely want to be here (with the Vikings), but at the same time I know it’s a business and we’ll see where it goes,” the 28-year-old told Sports Headliners.

How much of a factor will money be in his decision next year? “Come on, man. You play this game for the love of it, but there’s nothing wrong with being compensated for what you do on the field. I feel like I am one of the best at my position—one of the best nickels in the league. I want to be treated like one, so we’ll see how it goes from there.”

Munnerlyn’s base salary this year is $4.2 million, according to Spotrac.com.

A week ago yesterday was the 35th anniversary of the Vikings’ last game at Met Stadium. The Vikings lost 10-6 to the Chiefs on December 20, 1981 to close out a 7-9 season under coach Bud Grant. The next year the team moved into the Metrodome and drew 57,880 fans for the first preseason game after attracting just 41,110 for the Met finale.

It will be interesting to see if Minneapolis native Rashad Vaughn plays Friday night when he and the Bucks are at Target Center for a game against the Wolves. The second-year NBA guard, who is averaging 11.9 minutes and 4.4 points, missed Monday night’s game with the Wizards because of a left ankle sprain.

Nobody can say the Wild won’t be in the holiday spirit in coming days. New Year’s Eve the club continues the tradition of the old North Stars by playing at home on the final night of the year. The Met and its famous Observatory Club once was the place to be on New Year’s Eve. The Wild, who already are 2-0 this season against the Blue Jackets, play them at Xcel Energy Center on December 31, after a home game Thursday evening against the Islanders (0-1 so far). Next Monday the public can attend a free Wild outdoor practice starting at 10:30 a.m. at the Backyard Outdoor Ice Rink at Braemar Arena in Edina.

Cynopsis.com reported last week that a record six Major League Baseball franchises have been sent luxury tax bills, including the Yankees for a 14th consecutive season. CynopsisSports said the Yankees surpassed MLB’s payroll threshold of $189 million for last season and over the years have now been taxed $325 million.

Mike Greenberg, who is heard weekday mornings on 1500 ESPN, makes more than $6.5 million a year, according to Internet reports. Greenberg is co-host (with Mike Golic) of the Mike & Mike program heard on ESPN Radio affiliates around the U.S. and also has a televised simulcast on ESPN2.

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