Holl from Minnetonka commits to the U?

[Saywhat?03]

Havent heard much if anything about the kid. Anyone have any information. D or F. Maybe it was a typo on Heisenbergs list?

[Love4Hockey]

I read the same thing somewhere

[bananastick]

Western Collegiate hockey blog reported he committed to Minnesota. I saw Minnetonka play 2 times last year, no idea who he is. Obviously over shadowed by Gardiner, Coaata and others who logged a lot of ice time.

[mngopherfan]

Western Collegiate hockey blog reported he committed to Minnesota. I saw Minnetonka play 2 times last year, no idea who he is. Obviously over shadowed by Gardiner, Coaata and others who logged a lot of ice time.

He is a big kid who is very solid in his own zone. Not great numbers but is a great skater. i think he's going to be slated for a year or two in Omaha before he lands at the U. Solid pick up, he'll develop into a nice player.

[bananastick]

Western Collegiate hockey blog reported he committed to Minnesota. I saw Minnetonka play 2 times last year, no idea who he is. Obviously over shadowed by Gardiner, Coaata and others who logged a lot of ice time.

He is a big kid who is very solid in his own zone. Not great numbers but is a great skater. i think he's going to be slated for a year or two in Omaha before he lands at the U. Solid pick up, he'll develop into a nice player.

Just to be clear, I'm not ripping the kid. He just doesn't grab your attention. He must be solid if Minnesota is interested in him.

[mngopherfan]

Western Collegiate hockey blog reported he committed to Minnesota. I saw Minnetonka play 2 times last year, no idea who he is. Obviously over shadowed by Gardiner, Coaata and others who logged a lot of ice time.

He is a big kid who is very solid in his own zone. Not great numbers but is a great skater. i think he's going to be slated for a year or two in Omaha before he lands at the U. Solid pick up, he'll develop into a nice player.

Just to be clear, I'm not ripping the kid. He just doesn't grab your attention. He must be solid if Minnesota is interested in him.

I'd agree with your assessment. As a defensive D-man at the HS level you really don't stand out a whole lot, but he can skate well. I think he'll develop nicely.

On another note, it is being reported that hopkins HS forward Travis Boyd committed to the Gophers.

[dzonecoverage]

and the Reilly twins

[GR3343]

So let's see, the Gophs now have about 35-40 recruits that are in th '90-'92 range? Wow, they should start a jv program again

[east hockey]

So let's see, the Gophs now have about 35-40 recruits that are in th '90-'92 range? Wow, they should start a jv program again

They do. It's called St. Cloud State.

Lee

[bananastick]

He is a big kid who is very solid in his own zone. Not great numbers but is a great skater. i think he's going to be slated for a year or two in Omaha before he lands at the U. Solid pick up, he'll develop into a nice player.

Just to be clear, I'm not ripping the kid. He just doesn't grab your attention. He must be solid if Minnesota is interested in him.

I'd agree with your assessment. As a defensive D-man at the HS level you really don't stand out a whole lot, but he can skate well. I think he'll develop nicely.

On another note, it is being reported that hopkins HS forward Travis Boyd committed to the Gophers.

I spoke to some family friends of Boyd tonight, they confirmed he is going to Minnesota.

[Saywhat?03]

So let's see, the Gophs now have about 35-40 recruits that are in th '90-'92 range? Wow, they should start a jv program again

That is interesting, they do seem to have alot of kids signed that are expecting to play for them in the next couple of years. Who plays when and why?

2010?

2011?

2012?

[Gopher Blog]

So let's see, the Gophs now have about 35-40 recruits that are in th '90-'92 range? Wow, they should start a jv program again

Let's see... you do realize that a roster size of roughly 25 players turns over at least every four years, right?

They have 11 recruits lined up to begin college hockey from anywhere between 2010 to 2012. That's really not all that much.

[MNHockeyFan]

So let's see, the Gophs now have about 35-40 recruits that are in th '90-'92 range? Wow, they should start a jv program again

Let's see... you do realize that a roster size of roughly 25 players turns over at least every four years, right?

They have 11 recruits lined up to begin college hockey from anywhere between 2010 to 2012. That's really not all that much.

With all of the early departures the Gophers have had lately - mostly to the pros - the turnover rate is a lot higher than it used to be! It's gotta be tough trying to plan your roster very far ahead, as you're never quite sure how long both your current players and the kids you're recruiting will be around. And you always need a few extra because of injuries, illness and possibly eligibility issues.

[starmvp]

So let's see, the Gophs now have about 35-40 recruits that are in th '90-'92 range? Wow, they should start a jv program again

Let's see... you do realize that a roster size of roughly 25 players turns over at least every four years, right?

They have 11 recruits lined up to begin college hockey from anywhere between 2010 to 2012. That's really not all that much.

With all of the early departures the Gophers have had lately - mostly to the pros - the turnover rate is a lot higher than it used to be! It's gotta be tough trying to plan your roster very far ahead, as you're never quite sure how long both your current players and the kids you're recruiting will be around. And you always need a few extra because of injuries, illness and possibly eligibility issues.

Exactly....

[Papa Bergundy]

If Holl develops in to a WCHA caliber defenseman, this will be one of the U's best recruits. The Gophers problem is that they have no defensive oriented defenseman. Lofquist is probably the closest. Otherwise guys like Fischer, Ness, Leddy, Fairchild and so on are all offensive defenseman. Holl has potential to be a solid man up defenseman that the program actually needs. Just my take on it though, and of course our roster and his talent level will change significantly in the next couple years.

[High Flyer]

If Holl develops in to a WCHA caliber defenseman, this will be one of the U's best recruits. The Gophers problem is that they have no defensive oriented defenseman. Lofquist is probably the closest. Otherwise guys like Fischer, Ness, Leddy, Fairchild and so on are all offensive defenseman. Holl has potential to be a solid man up defenseman that the program actually needs. Just my take on it though, and of course our roster and his talent level will change significantly in the next couple years.

...and Marshall, another offensive defensemen.

I agree with Papa Bergundy, Holl should fill that hole in the U line up, assuming he continues to progress over the next couple of years.

[BodyShots]

If Holl develops in to a WCHA caliber defenseman, this will be one of the U's best recruits. The Gophers problem is that they have no defensive oriented defenseman. Lofquist is probably the closest. Otherwise guys like Fischer, Ness, Leddy, Fairchild and so on are all offensive defenseman. Holl has potential to be a solid man up defenseman that the program actually needs. Just my take on it though, and of course our roster and his talent level will change significantly in the next couple years.

I somewhat have to agree with you Papa. Losing Stu Bickel was a big loss in the defensive zone. The Gophs need more D like that. Although calling Fisher an offensive defensemen is a long stretch.

[Observer85]

I somewhat have to agree with you Papa. Losing Stu Bickel was a big loss in the defensive zone. The Gophs need more D like that. Although calling Fisher an offensive defensemen is a long stretch.

Fischer was an offensive defenseman in high school. Saw him play every game of HS career.

While many seem to be down on his collegiate career, I see it differently. He has become more of a 2 way defenseman. If he were to be paired with a real defensive defenseman who could actually stop a 2 or 3 on 1, I believe he would put up some bigger numbers. However, being paired with a Ness or Fairchild (and Peltier the year before) is really scary as neither of those 2 players has a clue how to play defensive hockey. Therefore, his defensive responsibilities have come at the expense of his offensive numbers.

[hockeyfan77]

If Holl develops in to a WCHA caliber defenseman, this will be one of the U's best recruits. The Gophers problem is that they have no defensive oriented defenseman. Lofquist is probably the closest. Otherwise guys like Fischer, Ness, Leddy, Fairchild and so on are all offensive defenseman. Holl has potential to be a solid man up defenseman that the program actually needs. Just my take on it though, and of course our roster and his talent level will change significantly in the next couple years.

Seth Helegson?

[MNHockeyFan]

Seth Helegson?

Have never seen him play but it will be interesting to see how much playing time he and the other incoming frosh defenseman, Nick Leddy, will get. The Gophers have 6 of their D from last year returning - here are their +/- and point totals from last year:

David Fischer.....+8...13
Kevin Wehrs......+6.....6
Cade Fairchild....+5...33
Sam Lofquist..... -6.....4
Brian Schack..... -7.....1
Aaron Ness........-9....17

I would expect Leddy to step in and get lots of playing time right away. I also expect Schack to be getting only part time duty or not even suiting up for many of the games as the season progresses. Don't know about Helgeson but it would seem his main competition to play on one of the top three pairs will be Lofquist. I'm sure Lucia is expecting much better things from Ness this year, both offensively and defensively, and will be given every opportunity.

[BodyShots]

Seth Helegson?

Have never seen him play but it will be interesting to see how much playing time he and the other incoming frosh defenseman, Nick Leddy, will get. The Gophers have 6 of their D from last year returning - here are their +/- and point totals from last year:

David Fischer.....+8...13
Kevin Wehrs......+6.....6
Cade Fairchild....+5...33
Sam Lofquist..... -6.....4
Brian Schack..... -7.....1
Aaron Ness........-9....17

I would expect Leddy to step in and get lots of playing time right away. I also expect Schack to be getting only part time duty or not even suiting up for many of the games as the season progresses. Don't know about Helgeson but it would seem his main competition to play on one of the top three pairs will be Lofquist. I'm sure Lucia is expecting much better things from Ness this year, both offensively and defensively, and will be given every opportunity.

I've never seen Helegson play either, but I would think if he is good, he would step in for Wehrs, with Leddy taking Schack's spot. That gives you three big de (Fisher, Lofquist, and Helegson) and three finesse de (Ness, Leddy, and Fairchild).

[Gopher Blog]

Sorry for going on this path since this isn’t the college hockey section of the board but…

Potential injuries aside…

Lofquist was a true frosh that played better as the season went on and he is a right handed shot (which gives him an edge in a defensive group since he and Fischer are the only right handed d-men this year). I’d expect him to be in the lineup most of the time this year.

Leddy will definitely be one of the top six d-men. No doubt about it.

The reports I have had on Ness in the off-season have been very good. Noticeably bigger/stronger with the off-season workouts (which is the thing that hurt his transition early on last year).

Fischer and Fairchild are locks.

My personal feeling is Wehrs could be the guy that faces the toughest battle to get in the lineup most weekends. I think he is a decent player but he just doesn’t bring anything to the table that is really better than what some of his teammates can do (offensively, he isn’t as good as four other d-men and his defense/physical play won’t make up for it).

[The New One]

Gopher Blog man, very good assesment of where I think it is going. My guess at the end of the year. Fairchild, Fischer, Ness, Leddy, Helgeson, Lofquist. The interesting piece could be Power Play time 1st and 2nd units. I believe it will be Fairchild and Ness on number 1 and Fischer and Leddy #2. It could be tricky to keep Ness and Leddy happy if they are not on the first pp. Remember Ness is a draft pick of the Gophers favorite NHL team the Islanders and Leddy is a first round pick of our beloved Wild while Fairchild will be the captain of the power play, no question.

[east hockey]

"Gophers favorite NHL team, the Islanders"

Now that is funny. Especially to a Bulldogs fan.

Lee

[breakout]

Gopher Blog man, very good assesment of where I think it is going. My guess at the end of the year. Fairchild, Fischer, Ness, Leddy, Helgeson, Lofquist. The interesting piece could be Power Play time 1st and 2nd units. I believe it will be Fairchild and Ness on number 1 and Fischer and Leddy #2. It could be tricky to keep Ness and Leddy happy if they are not on the first pp. Remember Ness is a draft pick of the Gophers favorite NHL team the Islanders and Leddy is a first round pick of our beloved Wild while Fairchild will be the captain of the power play, no question.

Fairchild was the D captain of the power play last year. Schroeder played up top with him and was the other D man. I am guessing Schroeder will play a more traditional role on the pp this year.