March 18, 2007
NCAA Tournament
West Regional Capsules | Denver, Colo.

Related Links

Tournament Brackets Tournament Info Regional Capsules East Regional Midwest Regional Northeast Regional

Pepsi Center
Saturday, March 24

3:30 p.m. ET: No. 1 Minnesota vs. No. 4 Air Force

7:30 p.m. ET: No. 2 Michigan vs. No. 3 North Dakota

Sunday, March 25

6 p.m. ET: Regional Final

NO. 1 SEED MINNESOTA GOLDEN GOPHERS

Location: Minneapolis, Minn.
Record: 30-9-3 (18-7-3 WCHA, first)
Qualified: WCHA tournament champions
NCAA Championships: Five (1974, 1976, 1979, 2002, 2003)
NCAA Appearance: 31st (most recent, 2006)
Head Coach: Don Lucia
Key Players: Jay Barriball, F, Fr. (42 GP, 18-23—41); Kyle Okposo, F, Fr. (38 GP, 19-20—39); Blake Wheeler, F, So. (42 GP, 18-20—38); Alex Goligoski, D, Jr. (42 GP, 9-28—37)
What You Need to Know: This will be the third time that the Gophers have gone to Denver for the NCAA playoffs and they’re 3-1 all-time there. In 1961, Minnesota finished third in the Frozen Four at DU Arena, losing to the hosts before beating Rensselaer in the consolation game. In 1976, Minnesota won the NCAA title in the now-demolished home of the Pioneers, beating BU and Michigan Tech in the Frozen Four.
How They'll Advance: Former Gopher coach Herb Brooks memorably told his 1980 Olympic players, “You don’t have enough talent to win on talent alone.” That might not be the case for these Gophers who are, in the eyes of NHL drafters anyway, the most talent-laden team among the 16 that are still playing. All of the pieces — goal scoring, size and skill on defense and good-enough goaltending — are in place for the Gophers to make their fourth Frozen Four appearance in the past six seasons. Spend 120 minutes doing the things they’re capable of, and the Gophers should be playing in April.
What Might Trip Them Up: The two games in St. Paul marked the first time in what seems like months that the Gophers have put together back-to-back efforts of 60 minutes or better. And inconsistencies, coupled with a less-than-full effort, are the reasons for that legendary 0-1 record that Minnesota had in the NCAA Tournament last season. With so many rookies (albeit über-talented ones) in key roles, the Gophers have got to get used to the awe and pressure of the one-and-done format fast. Having just come off the emotion of beating their two biggest rivals before huge crowds, the letdown of playing a lightly-regarded opponent in a quiet building (or a hostile building, if Air Force fans travel) could be trouble.

Most Recent Minnesota Line Chart
Left Wing	Center	Right Wing	Notes
29-R. Stoa	9-K. Okposo	19-E. Kaufmann	Okposo is a world-class scorer, but his line can also play a checking role, as it did vs. North Dakota in the WCHA title game.
13-B. Gordon	17-B. Wheeler	26-J. Barriball
12-T. Lucia	16-M. Carman	22-R. Flynn
21-T. Pohl	18-J. O'Brien	14-J. Bostrom
Defense	Defense	Goalies
10-A. Goligoski	15-M. Vannelli	34-K. Briggs	Goligoski is the top D scorer, but lately Vannelli has provided more offense.
5-D. Peltier	4-E. Johnson	1-J. Frazee
27-B. Schack	20-D. Fischer	35-B. Solei

NO. 2 SEED MICHIGAN WOLVERINES

Location: Ann Arbor, Mich.
Record: 26-13-1 (18-9-1 CCHA, second)
Qualified: At-large bid
NCAA Championships: Nine (1948, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1956, 1964, 1996, 1998)
NCAA Appearance: 29th (most recent, 2006)
Head Coach: Gordon “Red” Berenson
Key Players: T.J. Hensick, F, Sr. (40 GP, 21-45—66); Kevin Porter, F, Jr. (40 GP, 23-33—56); Jack Johnson, D, Fr. (35 GP, 16-21—37); Andrew Cogliano, F, So. (37 GP, 23-25—48)
What You Need to Know: The West Regional first-round contest pitting Michigan and North Dakota features a combined 22 players who've been chosen in the NHL Entry Draft, including seven first-round selections.
How They'll Advance: Even though fellow West Regional entrants Minnesota, North Dakota, and Air Force rank among the country's top 14 teams in terms of scoring offense, the Wolverines were the only team in the nation to average more than four goals per game. They've got four players — Hensick, Porter, Johnson, and Cogliano — talented enough to take control of a game single-handedly, and the team's supporting cast complements the headliners effectively.
What Might Trip Them Up: The high-powered offense has, on numerous occasions, masked the inconsistent play of goaltender Billy Sauer. He's been much better lately, but he's also been the beneficiary of more than a few decisions like an 8-3 win against Northern Michigan in the CCHA playoff quarterfinals in which he allowed three goals on 19 shots. Teams with firepower comparable to the Wolverines — Minnesota and North Dakota, for example — will take advantage of such generousity.

Most Recent Michigan Line Chart
Left Wing	Center	Right Wing	Notes
11-K. Porter	7-T.J. Hensick	16-D. Rohlfs	Get used to the digs: Hensick was taken by Colorado in the third round of the 2005 NHL Draft.
4-C. Summers	9-A. Cogliano	24-C. Kolarik
22-B. Naurato	18-T. Miller	10-T. Turnbull
14-B. Lebler	15-A. Ciraulo	26-D. Fardig
Defense	Defense	Goalies
3-J. Johnson	6-M. Hunwick	36-B. Sauer	Freshman forward Chris Summers has also played defense.
5-S. Kampfer	8-J. Dest	33-S. Jakiel
25-T. Cook	17-M. Mitera	30-M. Mayhew

NO. 3 SEED NORTH DAKOTA FIGHTING SIOUX

Location: Grand Forks, N.D.
Record: 22-13-5 (13-10-5 WCHA, third)
Qualified: At-large bid
NCAA Championships: Seven (1959, 1963, 1980, 1982, 1987, 1997, 2000)
NCAA Appearance: 22nd (most recent, 2006)
Head Coach: Dave Hakstol
Key Players: Ryan Duncan, F, So. (40 GP, 30-23—53); T.J. Oshie, F, So. (40 GP, 13-31—44); Jonathan Toews, F, So. (31 GP, 16-27—43); Philippe Lamoureux, G, Jr. (19-11-4, .915, 2.32)
What You Need to Know: Dave Hakstol never played in a Frozen Four during his time on the Fighting Sioux blue line, but he’s looking to go three-for-three in Frozen appearances as the team's head coach. The Sioux advanced two years ago by going to Massachusetts and beating two “home” teams (BU and BC). They did it at home last season, winning twice at Ralph Engelstad Arena. This season it looks as if Denver will be more like a true neutral site.
How They'll Advance: Since Christmas, the Fighting Sioux have been the hottest team in college hockey (15-3-4), and their top line is feared above all others by goalies and defensemen throughout the nation. The Toews-Oshie-Duncan triumvirate has combined for 140 points thus far and would have put up more had Toews not spent time recovering from an early-season injury and winning a gold medal (his second) for Canada at the World Junior Championship.
What Might Trip Them Up: Don Lucia spent part of last Friday night’s press conference pumping the Sioux tires, then directed his team to a surprising win over them a night later. By matching a true scoring line (anchored by center Kyle Okposo) rather than a checking line against North Dakota’s top offensive unit, Lucia wasn’t able to stop them totally (Duncan still scored a goal, his 30th), but he was able to slow them down enough to get a victory and another trophy after a fluky overtime goal. We don’t know if Red Berenson’s experience and ego will allow him to mimic the moves of a rival coach, but Lucia’s tactics may have provided a blueprint for how to slow, if not completely stop, North Dakota’s scary-good offense.

Most Recent North Dakota Line Chart
Left Wing	Center	Right Wing	Notes
16-R. Duncan	9-J. Toews	7-T.J. Oshie	Is the Duncan-Toews-Oshie line a case of all the eggs into one basket? Yeah, but it's a damn fine basket.
20-M. Watkins	29-C. VandeVelde	24-C. Porter
21-E. Fabian	17-R. Kaip	10-A. Kozek
26-K. Radke	11-D. Zajac	14-B. Miller
Defense	Defense	Goalies
4-T. Chorney	22-B. Lee	1-P. Lamoureux	There's very little dropoff from their first D pair to their third.
2-J. Finley	28-R. Bina	30-A. Walski
6-Z. Jones	5-C. Genoway	31-A. Grieco

NO. 4 SEED AIR FORCE FALCONS

Location: Air Force Academy, Colo.
Record: 19-15-5 (13-10-5 Atlantic Hockey, fifh)
Qualified: Atlantic Hockey tournament champions
NCAA Championships: None
NCAA Appearance: First
Head Coach: Frank Serratore
Key Players: Eric Ehn, F, Jr. (39 GP, 24-40—64); Andrew Ramsey, F, Sr. (35 GP, 22-25—47); Mike Phillipich, F, So. (36 GP, 16-27—43); Billy Devoney, D, Sr. (39 GP, 5-10—15)
What You Need to Know: The Falcons are making their first NCAA Tournament appearance, but it’s not like they lack in ties to the Frozen Four. The first coach in program history, Vic Heyliger, guided Michigan to six national titles between 1948-56, while the second AFA coach, John Matchefts, was a player on three of those Wolverine championship teams and was Frozen Four MVP in 1953.
How They’ll Advance: A year removed from the biggest upset in the history of the NCAA Tournament, one wonders whether what memories from the loss to Holy Cross linger in the minds of Minnesota’s players and what effect that may have this time around. Never has the tournament’s No. 1 overall seed faced as much pressure to win its first-round game. Air Force can take advantage by playing the loose, free-wheeling style it favors.
What Might Trip Them Up: Minnesota had a fair amount of success bottling up North Dakota’s high-scoring trio of Ryan Duncan, T.J. Oshie, and Jonathan Toews in the WCHA playoff championship by matching a line centered by freshman Kyle Okposo, an offensive threat in his own right, with Ryan Stoa and Evan Kaufmann on the wings. Will the Gophers take a similar approach to bottling up the Andrew Ramsey-Eric Ehn- Mike Phillipich triumvirate? Keeping that line off the scoresheet is the most effective way of neutralizing the Falcons.

Most Recent Air Force Line Chart
Left Wing	Center	Right Wing	Notes
8-A. Ramsey	24-E. Ehn	19-M. Phillipich	The line centered by Ehn accounts for 48 percent of the team's goals and 42 percent of its points.
20-J. Print	28-J. Schaffer	26-J. Hajner
11-J. Frider	10-T. Zacour	9-B. Reese
15-J. Medenwaldt	29-B. Nylander	12-M. Fairchild
Defense	Defense	Goalies
4-G. Flynn	2-B. Devoney	1-A. Volkening	Each of the Falcons' three goalies has had at least one start over the last seven games.
7-F. Schiavone	21-M. Charbonneau	23-P. Foster
6-B. Gineo	14-M. Mayra	30-B. Worker