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H.S. Hockey: Who wins in 1A?

FELDY: First, a couple of notes. The Red Wing girls hockey team is on TV right now (Ch. 98, Rochester), playing in its state Class A semifinal against Warroad at the Xcel Center. And, two, the Fargo (N.D.) South boys hockey team -- the champions of the Kiwanis/Wells Fargo Festival, held at Graham Arena in late December -- is in the semifinals of the North Dakota state tournament after a 6-0 victory in Thursday's quarterfinals.

Now, on to the Section 1A tourney quarterfinals, which were pushed back to today because of yesterday's snowstorm. This section is even tougher for me to figure out than 1AA. Look at a team like Rochester Lourdes. The Eagles are the No. 3 seed in the 1A tourney. They have enough talent to compete with the best teams in the state (they essentially played No. 1-ranked St. Thomas Academy to a one-goal game, giving up two empty-netters), yet they've lost to teams they should not lose to (Delano comes to mind). ... No. 1 seed Red Wing has a hot goalie, while No. 2 New Prague and No. 4 Albert Lea each rely on one really talented line, which has been enough for both teams at times this season. And don't count out No. 5 Mankato West the defending section champion. So let's look at the top five teams, what they have to do to get to The X, and what could cause them to stumble.

No. 1 Red Wing Wingers (18-7-0)
They'll take the paved road to The X if ... they use the top seed to their advantage. As the No. 1 team, the Wingers have the last line change, meaning coach George Nemanich can match whichever forwards he wants against Albert Lea's Prihoda-Prescher-Stadheim line in the semifinals, and possibly against the Lapic line of New Prague or the Peterson-Funk-Voigt line of Lourdes. And when the Wingers get a mismatch, they have to capitalize. .. And it wouldn't hurt if they could talk sure-fire all-state defenseman Rosie Alleva to come over and play after the state tourney run ends for the WIngers' girls team!
The road to The X gets rocky if ... goalie Sam Amendolar comes down to Earth. The sophomore has only gotten stronger as the season has gone on. He's 9-1-0 in the past 10 games. He has a 2.33 GAA in that stretch and a 2.50 GAA for the season. The Wingers average about 4.1 goals per game, so they'll need Amendolar to live up to his GAA.
Tonight ... No worries: Red Wing 9, Northfield 0.

No. 2 New Prague Trojans (17-8-0)
They'll take the paved road to The X if ... DUH! The Lapics and Schyler Adams lead them that way! Schyler Adams and Tyler Lapic each have 65 points, and Darren Lapic has 50. No one else on the team has more than 20. If the Trojans are getting to state, those three are the reasons.
The road to The X gets rocky if ... they don't build a lead by the end of the second period. We saw in last year's section semifinal OT loss to Lourdes that, when you're a one-line team, it works against you the longer the game goes. Tyler Lapic, Schyler Adams and Darren Lapic won't be stopped, but they can be contained. They see so much ice time that, if a game goes to OT, against a team like Lourdes (that can roll three lines), the Trojans will have their work cut out.
Tonight ... La Crescent has a couple of nice forwards and a senior goalie who will be playing to keep his career alive, but the Trojans have too much firepower for the Lancers: New Prague 7, La Crescent 1.

No. 3 Rochester Lourdes Eagles (17-7-0)
They'll take the paved road to The X if ... they bury their good scoring opportunities. The Eagles have been outshot only a couple of times this season, so their talented and deep lineup is producing quality chances. If they convert consistently, they're the best team in this section.
The road to The X gets rocky if ... they give up too many odd-man rushes. Lourdes has some talented and aggressive forwards and defensemen, but at times this season they've got caught pinching or being out of position at the wrong time and given up some odd-man breaks (games against Breck and St. Thomas Academy come to mind), but if the Eagles can stay disciplined offensively, they won't put themselves and their goalie in tough situations.
Tonight ... Lourdes has lost some games this season to opponents it shouldn't lose to, but the Eagles are playing well right now, and they're scoring goals. Don't count Faribault out, but the Falcons would have to play an amazing game to win this one: Lourdes 6, Faribault 2.

No. 4 Albert Lea Tigers (17-8-0)
They'll take the paved road to The X if ... goalie John Wrolson continues to shine. Wrolson is 16-8-0 this season and 8-2-0 in his past 10 starts. In those eight victories, he surrendered a total of 15 goals, less than two per game. In fairness, he didn't face a lot of shots in those games, either, making more than 20 saves in just two of those eight wins, so it's equally important that the Tigers' defensemen continue to play well.
The road to The X gets rocky if ... The Tigers top line gets shut down or slowed. Tyler Prihoda, Jordan Prescher-Smerud and Grant Stadheim have combined for 129 points and 62 goals. That's 51.7 percent of the team's goals and 45.6 percent of theteam's scoring.
Tonight ... Albert Lea is simply playing better right now. The Tigers have won five of their past six, while West has won just once in its past four games. And A.L. has home ice: A.L. 6, West 4.

No. 5 Mankato West Scarlets (14-7-3)
They'll take the paved road to The X if ... they can play against the big boys the same way they play against less-talented teams. Just two of West's 14 victories this season are against teams with winning records (Winona and Holy Family Catholic). The Scarlets' statistics look good, and they've really only been blown out twice (both at Graham Arena, a 7-2 loss at Mayo on Jan. 27 and 7-0 at Lourdes on Feb. 12). They've also lost twice to Albert Lea already this season, and you know the old cliche about beating a rival three times in a season ...
The road to The X gets rocky if ...Their defense and goaltending can't hold up. In games against the top three teams in the Big Nine (Albert Lea, Century, Mayo), as well as Section 1 contender New Prague, the Scarlets have allowed 5 (vs AL), 4 (vs NP), 8 (vs. AL), 7 (vs. Mayo) and 4 (vs. Century) goals. That's 28 goals in five games. They won't make it through the section giving up more than 5 goals per game.
Tonight ... Albert Lea is simply playing better right now. The Tigers have won five of their past six, while West has won just once in its past four games. And A.L. has home ice: A.L. 6, West 4.

College hockey: Crunch time in the WCHA

FELDY: We haven't talked a lot of college hockey on here lately, and the regular season is rapidly drawing to a close, so let's take a look around the WCHA with two weekends to go before the league playoffs.

The league standings are a big jumble, with five points separating third place (CC, 29 points) from seventh place (Minnesota, 24 points). It looks like the race for the MacNaughton Cup will come down to North Dakota and Denver. UND and DU each have 33 points, and UND has a game in hand on DU. However, Colorado College could put itself right back in the conference title hunt this weekend, as it plays at UND.

Some of the potential first-round playoff matchups are quite intriguing. (I hate this phrase, but I'm going to use it anyway...) If the playoffs started now, the Gophers would be at Wisconsin for a first-round series. The Kohl Center might need police in riot gear for that one. Phersy's Mankato club would be at CC, St. Cloud would be at Duluth, Anchorage would go to Denver and frequent Faceoff poster Ray's Michigan Tech club would go to Grand Forks to face my Sioux.

Every WCHA series this weekend will have a significant impact on the conference standings:

UMD (10-8-6 WCHA, fifth place, 26 points) at Minnesota (10-10-4, seventh, 24)
* The Gophers veterans know how important this series is, especially if the U wants to avoid going on the raod again for a first-round league playoff series. And with how the PairWise rankings look (the Gophers are 19th), Minnesota could really benefit from sweeping its final four regular season games.

* FSN's coverage of the Gophers' series at CC last weekend was live, but Frank Mazzocco and Doug Woog were calling the games from the Twin Cities ... something FSN did not tell viewers.

* The Star Tribune's Roman Augustoviz notes that some Gophers fans are calling for a change in goalies ... apparently those fans haven't been watching the defense (or lack thereof) in front of Alex Kangas.

* Duluth News Tribune reporter Kevin Pates notes that the UMD-UM rivalry has cooled in recent years, due in part to the WCHA's restructured schedule.

* * * *

St. Cloud State (12-11-1 WCHA, sixth place, 25 points) at Denver (15-7-3, tied first, 33)

* It's too early for DU to think about hoisting the MacNaughton Cup.

* David Carlisle is St. Cloud State's dinosaur.

* * * *

Wisconsin (13-9-2 WCHA, fourth place, 28 points) at MSU, Mankato (9-13-2, eighth, 20)

* The Badgers need points this weekend because, realistically, they have a better chance of losing ground in the WCHA standings than gaining. A sweep, at best, could move them up one spot to third, while being swept could drop them out of a home-ice position. Wisconsin needed some psychological help -- literally -- after blowing a 2-1 lead with 15 seconds to go in the third in last Friday's 3-2 OT loss to DU, and following that with a 5-0 loss on their home ice despite putting 45 shots on goal.

* The Mavs can't drop below eighth place this weekend, as ninth-place Anchorage plays a non-conference series, and Michigan Tech has last place locked up. Still, Mankato needs wins to keep their slim hopes for first-round home ice alive.

* One of MSU's declining number of Canadian players, Geoff Irwin, has eight points in the past six games.

* Mavs fans, go to Mankato Free Press hockey reporter Shane Frederick's blog to vote for the MSU all-decade team. The Mavs are in their 10th season of WCHA play.

* * * *

Colorado College (12-8-5 WCHA, third place, 29 points) at North Dakota (15-6-3, tied first, 33)

* The Colorado Springs Gazette has a brief breakdown of the WCHA race for the MacNaughton Cup.

* Part of North Dakota's turnaround from a 5-8-1 start to first place in the WCHA has been the team's offensive balance and depth. The Sioux are getting a lot of scoring from players they didn't expect, including sophomore d-man Jake Marto. He is plus-20 since Thanksgiving.

* A Q-and-A with UND's Chris VandeVelde. The Moorhead native has been the WCHA Offensive Player of the Week the past two weeks.

H.S. Hockey: All Section 1 games ppd.

FELDY: In case you haven't seen it already ...

All Section 1A and 1AA hockey playoff games are pushed back to tomorrow, with Saturday's semifinals on as scheduled.

Tomorrow's schedule for Rochester teams:

4:30 p.m. -- Century vs. Winona (at Rec Center, this game had to be moved up as the Ice Hawks play a home game tomorrow night)

5 p.m. -- Mayo vs. Dodge County (Graham Arena; the winner of this one will turn around and play Century or Winona at 11:30 Saturday morning at the Rec).

7:30 p.m. -- Lourdes vs. Faribault (Graham Arena; the winner of this one plays at 8 p.m. Saturday, likely against New Prague).

High School Hockey: Who wins in 1AA?

FELDY: We’ll do Section 1A tomorrow, once those semifinals are set (or, even if they’re not, pending the alleged monster storm that's coming our way ... and as I type that, I see the snow starting to fall).

The Section 1AA boys hockey quarterfinals are scheduled to get going tonight and odds are in the favor of a Rochester school making it to the section final. Century was in the section title game seven consecutive seasons prior to last year, when it lost to Mayo in the quarterfinals. Mayo (the No. 1 seed) and Century (the No. 4 seed) appear to be headed for a Saturday 11:30 a.m. showdown in the section semifinals. Of course, Mayo has to get by Dodge County and Century has to beat Winona tonight to make it to the semis, but if/when that happens the Rec Center should be rockin’ on Saturday morning. That’ll be a nice wake-up call for yours truly, after what I’m sure will be a very late Friday night at the office.

 

Let’s look at the top four seeds in 1AA, what makes them strong contenders, and what could cause them to miss out on their chance to get to the Xcel Center.

  

No. 1 Rochester Mayo (16-8-1)

They’ll take the paved road to ‘The X’ if … They get the steady play from goalie Jordan Yaggy that he has given them down the stretch in the regular season. Yaggy has played all but one period in goal this year for Mayo, and his statistics have steadily improved. Yaggy will become even more important if the Spartans continue to allow the number of shots on goal they have against tougher opponents. He has faced 32 or more shots in five of the past seven games. The good news: Yaggy has been sharp. In practice earlier this week, Mayo assistant coach Dustin Hookom fired about 40 shots from the slot at Yaggy, who had just a regular stick. I think two made it in.

The road to The X gets really rocky if … The BAT line is the only line that scores. The BAT/No. 1 line (Brad Fisher-Alex Whitney-Tom Alexander) has produced more than 50 percent of the team’s points this season, and Mayo will need that line to continue to play at a high level offensively. A goal a game from the second and/or third line would be a huge plus, though. And the second line – Drew Block, Rick Weber, Myles Flott – really hasn’t received enough credit for what it has done offensively. Those three are the Spartans’ fourth, fifth and sixth-leading scorers, with a total of 60 points. These guys can play; they’ve all been around the varsity for three years. And now Weber has been shifted to center, which will allow him and Block to be the guys who muck it up in the corners, and Flott’s speed can be used more to Mayo’s advantage. Flott will be even faster now, flying into the zone without the puck. If Mayo wants to reach the state tournament for the first time since 2000, it will have to get scoring out of Weber’s line.

Tonight … The Spartans are clearly superior to Dodge County, but the Wildcats are an aggressive, physical team. Mayo’s speed might be too much for them, but DC isn’t afraid to come out and hit you in the mouth. Judging by what we saw Tuesday night, Dodge County won’t be intimidated going up against Mayo for the first time ever.  I’ll take Mayo as a 6-2 winner, but don’t be surprised if DC is within a goal or two (say, 4-2) heading into the third.

 

No. 2 Lakeville North (9-16-0)

They’ll take the paved road to ‘The X’ if … their goalie play improves in a hurry. Matt Arentz and Dylan Thomas have split time almost equally. Arentz has a 4.47 GAA and Thomas has a 3.55 GAA. Neither number is terrible, especially considering the competition they face in the Lake Conference. Arentz and Thomas will have to improve on their save percentages, though, of .862 and .875, respectively.

The road to ‘The X’ gets really rocky if … The Panthers’ scoring at their season average. North averaged 2.88 goals per game this season and they have just three players with more than 20 points (leading scorer Taylor Saunders has 28).

Tonight … I’ll take North, 5-1.

 

No. 3 Lakeville South (7-18-0)

They’ll take the paved road to ‘The X’ if … keep games close and put a lot of shots on goal. The Cougars have played seven OT games this season (they’re only 2-5 in those games, but, hey, at least they give themselves a chance by getting to OT). They outshot Mayo 39-17 in a 4-3 OT loss on Feb. 3, and they outshot Century 57-27 in a 5-4 OT win on Jan. 16. If they can do that again against either of those teams, or against Lakeville North, for that matter, South will repeat as section champ.

The road to ‘The X’ gets really rocky if … they can’t get steady play from a goalie. South has used four goalies this season, none of whom have played more than eight games. A hot goalie can never hurt you in the postseason; a cold goalie can sink you quickly. South coach Kurt Weber should pick a goalie and ride him through the postseason, however long that lasts.

Tonight … I’m tempted to pick an upset here, but I just can’t trust this Owatonna team. You never know which team will show up. Is it the club that beat Winona 8-2 back on Jan. 20, or the team that lost to Winona 6-2 last Friday? Is it the Huskies team that beat Albert Lea 5-2 on Jan. 27 or the Huskies team that got outplayed in a 6-0 loss to Albert Lea on Feb. 6? And I think the Lakeville schools play with a little added confidence (bordering on cockiness, at least from some of their fans) come playoff time. Gimme South, 6-3.

 

No. 4 Century Panthers (12-11-2)

They’ll take the paved road to ‘The X’ if … their depth shines through. It sounds like there’s a good chance the Panthers will have a couple of their three key injured players back by Saturday, if not tonight. If that’s the case, and Century has a completely healthy roster, their depth is as good as any team in the section, both up front and on the blue line.

The road to ‘The X’ gets really rocky if … They don’t protect their goalie in the defensive zone. It’s not that sophomore goalie Cam Sellnow can’t steal a game for the Panthers; he’s fully capable of it (he has had to make more than 25 saves in nine of his 17 games this season), but the Panthers can’t afford to allow 42 shots on goal (as they did against Roseville last Saturday) or 50 shots on goal (as they did in a 3-2 win at Duluth East on Jan. 23) or 57 shots on goal (as they did in a 5-4 loss to Lakeville South on Jan. 16). … Another big key for the Panthers: STAY OUT OF THE PENALTY BOX! Century’s (lack of) discipline has hurt it at times this year, but when they’re playing 5-on-5 hockey, the Panthers are as good as any team in the section.

Tonight … Posters on high school hockey message boards are calling ‘upset’ all over the place in this one. To which I say: You’re kidding, right? Century completely outplayed Winona in their regular-season meeting, winning 7-2. The Winhawks are a nice team, and will be a team to watch in the Big Nine next season, but right now they can’t match Century’s depth. Century 5-2.

College Hockey: Stoa likely leaving the Gophers

FELDY: It's been a while since we talked college hockey on here, so ... Don't get all wound up, Gophers fans, this isn't another in-season departure. Star Tribune Gophers hockey reporter Roman Augustoviz noted on his blog on Monday that junior Ryan Stoa will be honored with Minnesota's other two seniors on Senior Night this Saturday against Duluth. While coach Don Lucia says Stoa is welcome back next year if he would like to return, this seems like a pretty obvious sign that Stoa will bolt. He was a high second-round draft pick by the Colorado Avalanche in 2005. Stoa's departure is understandable; he's one of few Gophers who looks NHL-ready right now. He is the team's leading scorer (17-19--36) and has made the guys around him (Schroeder, Barriball) better.

And for any of you maroon-and-gold rubes who think Phersy and I have been out of line when we have questioned Lucia's coaching ability in the past, well, I won't say another word about it. Take this fan's word for it.

The Mount Rushmore of Rochester hockey

FELDY: ESPN.com is doing a "Mt. Rushmore of Sports" for each state in the country, and since I'm in full-blown hockey playoffs mode now (Section first-round games tonight!) it got me thinking about who would belong on Rochester's Mt. Rushmore of Hockey.

Is it the obvious four: Scott Lecy, Eric Strobel, Shjon Podein and Doug Zmolek?

What about the Johannsons? Guy Gosselin? Mark Stuart (a first-round NHL draft choice)? Does Alex Kangas deserve consideration, or do we need to see where his college and pro career head?

How about coaches Lorne Grosso (600 wins at Mayo) or Gene Sack (the coach of the only Rochester high school team to win a state title)?

I'm leaving off many, many other high school greats, too. Since I've only watched Rochester hockey for about five years, you Faceoff rubes help me out. Who else belongs in the conversation with the first four guys I mentioned?

Ice Hawks: We blew it!!!!!!!!!

PHERSY: After just about the best darn weekend in Rochester Ice Hawks history, the team laid an egg on Friday night.

The Ice Hawks suffered a 6-4 loss to the Minnesota Owls on the road Friday night up in Isanti. From what I've heard, it was ugly. Blown assignments, guys taking shifts off, etc. Much of the damage was done in the second period, when the Ice Hawks gave up four goals.

And this news gets even worse. The Lumberjacks lost on Saturday!!! That was exactly what the Ice Hawks needed. But losing on Friday means the Ice Hawks are still two points back in the standings!

I guess it's a valuable lesson for this team to learn. They can't take shifts off, they can't let up for even a half second, or they're going to lose. And losing, even one game, at this point is very, very costly. Hopefully that loss will be the perfect wake-up call, and the Ice Hawks will be skating at 100 percent the rest of the way.

There's still a chance this team could tie for the league title. The Lumberjacks play the Owls again during the regular season, so there's a good chance that will be a close game. If the Lumberjacks lose that one, and the Ice Hawks win out, they would tie for the league title.

Now here's a bit of crud from the league ... the league recently decided that if two teams tie for the regular-season league title, tiebreakers will determine the No. 1 seed in the playoffs but will not determine which team goes to nationals. If they tie, the two teams that reach the league playoff finals will advance to nationals. So technically, both co-league champions could miss out on nationals. In my mind, that's a load of garbage and the league should be embarrassed by this policy. The Ice Hawks would hold the tiebreaker over the Lumberjacks (first tiebreaker is head-to-head, which is tied at 3-3, and the second tiebreaker is number of wins, in which the Ice hawks would hold the edge). So the Ice Hawks could be co-league champions, win the tiebreaker, be the No. 1 seed in the playoffs, then get upset in the semifinals and miss out on nationals ... yeah, that sounds like a good plan.

Hopefully the league will see the flaw in this plan. The league playoffs should always be for ONE spot at nationals. The regular season should always determine another spot! That's my opinion, and I'm sticking to it.

At any rate, go Hawks. The Hawks are at home on Friday and then they close out the regular season on Sunday again at home. The Lumberjacks host the Northern Lights on Tuesday and then close their regular season Friday against the Owls.

Vikings trading for Sage Rosenfels

PHERSY: So Feldy's favorite professional football team is reportedly close to trading for Houston QB Sage Rosenfels. According to the Strib, all the Vikings would be giving up is a fourth-round draft pick. To me, that's a no-brainer. But I have a feeling Houston is going to want a little more for Rosenfels, so I wouldn't be surprised if that pick was actually a third-rounder.

While I agree the Vikings definitely need to do something at QB, I'm not 100 certain Rosenfels is the answer. He's an upgrade, but is he the dude who is going to lead this team into the Super Bowl? I just don't see it happening.

Again, for a fourth-round pick, who cares ... even if he isn't THE QB in Minnesota, he would be a very above average backup.

I'd still like to see the team make a play for Arizona's Kurt Warner. The Cardinals might make that impossible, but we'll see. Everyone agrees the Vikings need to do something, and it appears even the Vikings are on board ... finally! No matter what happens, it's a move that will make or break Brad Childress. So what do you think Feldy? You a big Rosenfels guy ... just an FYI, I'm biting my lip every time I type his name, just trying not to make  Fletch joke. If you're a Fletch fan like me, you know exactly what I'm talking about.

* * * * *

FELDY: I don't understand why Vikings fans are so upset about the team potentially making this move. Are the Vikings going to get their QB of the future with a fourth-round draft pick this year? No (and don't give me the "Tom Brady was a sixth-round draft pick" stuff because that's a once-in-a-GM's-career type of pick).

I've wanted to see the Vikings make a run at Jeff Garcia, but while Rosenfels doesn't have the starting/playoff experience that Garcia does, Rosenfels is nine years younger.

I heard a talk-show caller this morning complain about the possibility of Rosenfels starting for the Purple by saying, "Why do we have to keep doing this patchwork stuff at QB?" The talk-show host then asked the caller, "well give us a name of someone better who we could bring in." To which the caller replied, "Jeff Garcia." Guess what? Garcia would be far more of a patchwork approach than Rosenfels, who is a guy who could be the team's starter for the next 6-7 years.

Bottom line: I'd be fine with Garcia or Rosenfels quarterbacking my favorite club this fall. All I've been asking for for the past two years is for the Vikings to bring in just an average QB -- a guy who can make all of the throws some of the time and who is mobile enough to avoid trouble most of the time -- to run this offense. The Vikings have to do something to make their offense less one-dimensional; adding Rosenfels or Garcia would do that instantly. ... Anything other than the T-Jack/Frerotte combo would be an improvement.

Phersy, as for your guy Kurt Warner, I just can't see him as a legitimate option for the Purple. For one, he'd command more than $10 million for just one season. Warner thinks he deserves to be paid like a top-five NFL quarterback, which probably means something like $12-14 million a year. I sure wouldn't want to give him that kind of dough, especially with 340 pounds of lazy protecting his blind side and a turnstile (by the way, just let Ryan Cook go) at right tackle.

Whatever the case, if the Vikes can't find a QB to produce this season, we won't have to worry about Chili and his "kick-ass offense" anymore. ... Considering that, maybe a T-Jack/Gus combo wouldn't be so bad.

Hey Yankees ... we'll see you in the ALCS!

PHERSY: Well, it's been a while since I've checked in on the blog ... sorry, with high school wrestling now in the postseason, I'm up to my ears in cradles, wizzers and arm bars for another two weeks. Then I'm home free!

So, while I was "away" the Minnesota Twins made the move I've been asking/begging for. They signed Joe Crede to be their third baseman! I love it. And Crede came even cheaper than expected. He'll get $2.5 million guaranteed, and that contract could be worth more than $7 million depending on his plate appearances. In my mind, this is the way contracts should work. Crede's past performances make him worth the $2.5 million, and if he's healthy and on the field, he'll earn the rest of his money.

The best part is that if Crede can't stay healthy, the Twins have a decent Plan B in the Buscher/Harris platoon.

I'm starting to feel very good about the Twins lineup for this coming season. There aren't many holes ... and I'm starting to feel fine with them holding on to Delmon Young, too. If he comes out and struggles in the field like he did last year, the Twins can trade him during the season. If he comes out and produces and plays even average in the field, that's even better.

Now, I feel great about the Twins lineup and about the starting rotation, so that just leaves one area on unstable ground ... and that's the bullpen. The Twins can quickly quiet those concerns by finding a way to get Juan Cruz on the team. There have been talks about a sign-and-trade deal with the Diamondbacks. It's a situation to keep an eye on. Sign Cruz, and this team is ready to contend. Not sure if they can beat the Yankees, but I think there's enough on this team to do some serious damage in the American League, and certainly they'll run with the Indians at the top of the division.

* * * * *

FELDY: Heck, Phersy, why not just title this, we'll see you in the World Series! It's amazing how signing one guy has boosted the spirits of Twins fans significantly. Like you, Phersy, I've been begging for a signing like this, too.

Does the Crede signing make the Twins an instant World Series favorite? Probably not, but it definitely makes them the team to beat in the A.L. Central. And it's not like they have to get 160 games out of Crede; 135-145 would be great, maybe not even that many. If they give the Buscher/Harris combo 25-30 starts, that gives Crede at least one day a week off. Maybe they give Buscher/Harris more starts at third and use Crede as a DH. It will be a boost to the batting order, too, to put Crede's right-handed bat between the hot-hitting lefties in the middle of the lineup.

My question now is: Who doesn't make this team? They might have to keep 12 pitchers to cover their shaky bullpen, so who are the position players that are out? Can the Twins afford to keep both Buscher and Harris? What do you say, Phersy and other Twins rubes?

H.S. Hockey: Ben Hanowski, your new Johnny Pohl

FELDY: With two goals and an assist Thursday night against St. Cloud Apollo, St. Cloud State recruit Ben Hanowski of Little Falls became Minnesota's all-time leading scorer, and the Flyers closed their perfect regular season at 25-0. Heading into the postseason, Hanowski has 380 career points, one more than Johnny Pohl had in his career at Red Wing from 1995-98. Hanowski has 110 points this season (57-53--110).

Hanowski tied Pohl with a short-handed goal, while the Flyers were at a 3-on-5 disadvantage. He broke it with a nice wrist shot, picking the upper corner, glove-side.

The video of both goals can be seen here.