 |
| The UND Fighting Hawks fell 6-4 to Penn State in Nashville, but the story of the weekend was the Green and White faithful supporting their team. Photo Credit: Russell Hons |
While DDC was definitely disappointed with the loss, there were too many good things to come out of the weekend to call this road trip anything but an absolute blast.
So, let's take a look at the weekend that was from Nashville, Tennessee and the 2021 U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame game. If you're looking for a lot of hockey analysis in this article, fair warning, this isn't DDC's focus on this one. But, if you're looking for a laugh and a good story or four, check it out.
Roses
1) Overall Experience in Nashville
It's really hard to quantify how this whole trip went down because, yes, it was about hockey, but in so many ways, the 6-4 loss became an afterthought. Yes, DDC understands, UND lost and that sucks, but this weekend was just another showcase of what this program is to the college hockey world. The little town of Grand Forks, North Dakota is the pivot point of the sport. Like it or not, no other college hockey fanbase brings the amount of fans to a neutral site like UND did. The sheer numbers of this experience was flat out insanity.
Whether it was the Wildhorse Saloon, the pregame event in front of Bridgestone, or on every single rooftop bar in Nashville, the Green and White faithful turned out in massive droves. DDC was waiting in line at Hattie B's Hot Chicken on Saturday afternoon and three comments were consistent by passerbys in the nearly hour-long wait -- 1) "Wow, look at the line" (it was wild)... 2) "This line isn't worth it, the chicken isn't that good" (PROPOSTEROUS! BLASPHEMOUS! It was phenomenal and well worth the wait) ... 3) "Where the hell are all of these Sioux/North Dakota fans coming from?"
Personally, this weekend was such a blast for DDC. On Thursday, DDC rode on The Nashville Tractor and it was so damn fun. Partaking in a few adult beverages while chugging up and down the streets around Broadway, which hosts the party bars in Nashville (think third street in Grand Forks times 5.5 million), DDC was floored by the sheer amount of people walking around. Every time one of those clad in green and white saw us, an immediate cheer went up. What a blast. The ride then led to a five-hour, late-night convo with some of college hockey's premier minds (not kidding 😃) on the rooftop of Tootsie's. Just an all-timer night.
Simply put, the trip to Nashville was incredible. What a terrific showcase of what UND means to the college hockey world and what the Fighting Hawk faithful mean to UND. So happy to have been there.
2) The Atmosphere at Bridgestone Arena
Sea of green. That actually feels like an understatement. An ocean? A galaxy? Whatever, DCC believes you get the picture -- the rink was LOADED with UND fans and my goodness did that place explode when we scored. Take a listen:
3) Dayn "Not Ed" Belfour
 |
| For comparison sake, Ed is on the left, Dayn the right. Photo credit: Dallas Morning News |
So, to many, this young man definitely shared a striking resemblance to his father, but when looking at the two side by side, this was clearly not Ed. Dayn rode the waive as the crowd went bananas, from what DDC perceived, as most of the crowd realizing it wasn't Ed, which made it funny, but more so because Dayn went nuts. This young man was waiving his arms, jumping up and down, laughing, pointing at the screen -- just having a ball. This would have been a funny story as is, but got way funnier later. That night at one of the Nashville establishments, DDC ran into the Belfours and he had to ask -- Dayn, what were you thinking when that happened. With a belly laugh that lasted several minutes, Dayn simply said... "I was four seats away and I was just dying laughing. It's as famous as I'll ever be." A heckuva former goaltender in his own right, Dayn Belfour became his father, for just a fleeting moment and soaked it up. It's been a long time since DDC laughed that hard for that long.
Thorns
1) The Game
The only thorn of the weekend (well, other than hangovers and horse throats) comes from, unfortunately, the most important part. After falling behind 2-0 early and giving up three power play goals, throughout the game, North Dakota just didn't get it done. DDC is not one who thought that UND got dominated in this one like many scattered throughout the internet, as that was absolutely not the case. The game on Saturday night was up and down, high-paced, and for the most part, fairly even. DDC would go as far to say that North Dakota controlled play in the second half the game (UND outshot PSU 32-23). But, as has been the case essentially all season, the Hawks lacked cohesion. The Green and White had turnovers, missed passes, and added silly mistakes that cost them goals. This team has really yet to gel and until that happens, UND will be an average team. On the plus, the power play was absolutely clutch in this game, going 3-for-6 overall and buried two massive, late goals in both the first and second period to keep the game close. However, the Green and White just couldn't overcome a the quick, first period hole and were never able to tie the game. Like DDC said earlier, the crowd at Bridgestone Arena was just begging for the tying goal, but North Dakota could not finish when it mattered most.
DDC believes this team is talented and that the pieces are there for this team to make a run at home ice in the NCHC playoffs and eventually at the national championship, but right now, this team just hasn't reached that level. With the NCHC schedule coming heavy, the Hawks need to right the ship. Will this team be a second-half, Hakstol-type squad that comes together down the stretch to make a run? We'll see. Work needs to be done and it frankly needs to happen soon.
Spinning back to a more positive note, this was a fantastic weekend and DDC is glad to have gotten a chance to share his experience with you. Thanks for the read and check back later this week as the hated Denver Pioneers travel to The Forks for UND's first NCHC action of the season.
