Showing posts with label Dillon Simpson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dillon Simpson. Show all posts

Monday, September 29, 2014

Copper and Blue Fillets Dillon Simpson



If you haven't seen this hatchet job, check it out. Apparently, Benjamin Massey of Copper and Blue doesn't think very highly of former UND defenseman Dillon Simpson. Meh! I guess they're entitled to their opinion. Free country, Canada and the USA.

Also, the staff at Copper and Blue seems to think that Simpson is an average player and nothing to get excited about. Whatever... In my opinion, Simpson was a very good hybrid defenseman that played well in his four season with UND. Simpson is a smart player that sees the ice well and looks to make the smart play, so maybe that can be interpreted as boring or average. Simpson also led the NCAA in blocked shots last season. Simpson was also one of the more consistent players in the NCHC last season.
Dillon Simpson is what I like to call "a chunk of hockey player." He isn't very big. He isn't very fast. He isn't very truculent. He doesn't generate much offense. He plays at a respectable level. He's gotten some results, but not many. After four years at the University of North Dakota, Simpson looks like a refined version of the player that went in. He even majored in "managerial finance and corporate accounting", just so we know that there's nothing to get excited about.

Our favourite average college defenseman/managerial financier and corporate accountant is starting his professional hockey career this season, having agreed to a three-year deal back in April. Good for him. He seems likely to play in Oklahoma City, a town just as interesting as everything else in this article. With hard work and good luck he'll have a career as a sort of Sven Butenschön, bouncing up and down between the A and the N, more in the former than the latter, before opening a used car dealership in Sherwood Park, retiring at 45 years old, and spending the rest of his days as a beloved local character deeply involved with charity and his community.
In my three season of covering the UND hockey team, Simpson is one of the nicest guys that you will ever meet. I also think he was one of the more consistent players to play defense at UND in the last 5-10 years. Just for the record Bruce McCurdy of the Edmonton Journal has a much better description of Simpson's play.
North Dakota will lose Dillon Simpson to graduation, and there is no doubt that his absence will leave a definite void. The senior captain appeared in 156 games in the North Dakota sweater, potting 16 goals and notching 59 assists. He led the nation in blocked shots this season (109 in 42 games) and was recently named to the All-College Hockey News first team. There is no way that UND can replace that type of leadership with just one player.

Sunday, April 13, 2014

Years End and My UND Men's Awards

In a season that looked like we were going to be where Miami ended up this season, this group of guys showed the NCAA you don't need an explosive goal scorer to have success.

Even though the season ended in a heartbreaking fashion, this UND team has a solid base for the future ahead.

Now for my team awards. I will be giving out awards for my team MVP, Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and this years Unsung Hero.

So here we go. For my team MVP, I give it to a kid who has battled in every single game he has played this season. I consider him the backbone of this very hard working team. My MVP is goaltender Zane Gothberg. Gothberg ended his season with a 1.99 goals against average after going on one of the most impressive runs a UND goaltender has put on in quite some time. He always seemed to be there to answer the bell whenever he was called upon to do so. I have a feeling many people will be agreeing with me on this one that Zane Gothberg is the most deserving for team MVP this season.

My Offensive Player of the Year isn't going to be quite as easy to pick out. There are a couple of deserving players on this team to earn this title. However, I am giving this award to Michael Parks. Parks has proven himself in every single game and has very few flaws to his game. He always goes hard on the forecheck and battles hard in the corners. It is also very hard to knock Parks off of the puck and especially inside the offensive zone. The master of the wrap around tallied up 30 points this season, and looks to be a team leader next season. Michael Parks is my Offensive Player of the Year.

For my Defensive Player of the Year I go with the obvious choice in Dillon Simpson. He was the Ryan Suter comparison for UND this year playing the big minutes and in important situations for this team. Along with his ability to block shots better than almost anyone in the NCAA, Simpson is also one of the best puck movers on the blue line as well, which is why coach Hakstol had him running things there on the power play. Dillon Simpson is the easy choice, for me, for Defensive Player of the Year.

For my ROY I go to another defenseman, and Grand Forks native, Paul LaDue. LaDue's highlight game of the season probably came in their 9-2 victory over Miami when he was an outstanding +6 on the game. LaDue also would be one of the top freshman in +/- this season, and his opponents would find it hard to score whenever he was on the ice. LaDue is looking to be a leader on the blue line for UND for the years to come making it easy for me to pick him as ROY.

Finally for my Unsung Hero. I'm sure you all can guess where this one is going. This walk-on laid it out on the line for every shift he was able to play giving it 110%. He would always make a play that seemed to get the guys fired up at key times, and either set up, or score, goals at key times in games. I give this to Edina, Minnesota's Connor Gaarder. The junior was on fire down the stretch run and into the playoffs. Gaarder would score the game winner against Western Michigan in the NCHC third place game, which ultimately sent them to the NCAA tournament. Gaarder would also score the 2OT winner against Ferris State to send UND to their 20th Frozen Four and 6th in their last 10 seasons. Gaarder could have been the poster child for this team because his play is North Dakota Hockey to a tee.

Well another season gone and another season of a lot of success, but still no big one for coach Hakstol. I see nothing but bright things in the future for this program and next season should be a fun one that's for sure.

Thursday, April 10, 2014

UND Season over.... Much to be thankful for

Seal of the University of North Dakota
Seal of the University of North Dakota (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
One of my friend on facebook posted this... I think this sums it up best. 
I'm so proud of University of North Dakota Men's Hockey. For how the season was going by Christmas break, did **ANY** UND fan think they'd even make the big tourney? Or even the 2nd round of the NCHCs? No way. Nobody saw this coming. I'll forever be as big of a fan as I've ever been. To the four Seniors, thank you so much. Clarke Saunders, Mitch Mac, Derek Rodwell, and Dillon Simpson... Thank you so, so much, and I wish you the best of luck in your future careers off and on ice careers. To the coaches and the rest of the team, thank you for being such great student athletes. I wish I could shake every single one of your hands.

Man... it's going to be a long 5 months and 3 weeks without Tim Hennessy and Steve Olsen echoing through my house. SIOUX FOREVER.
All in all, it was a good season, and I don't think we should hang our heads about this. #rolltribe and go UNION...
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Saturday, March 29, 2014

UND vs. FSU Lines (NCAA Midwest Regional)

North Dakota Forward Lines
9 Drake Caggiula–16 Mark MacMillan–15 Michael Parks
28 Stephane Pattyn–19 Rocco Grimaldi–27 Luke Johnson
21 Brendan O’Donnell–13 Connor Gaarder–11 Derek Rodwell
29 Bryn Chyzyk–17 Colten St. Clair–22 Andrew Panzarella

North Dakota Defense Pairings
18 Dillon Simpson–24 Jordan Schmaltz
5 Nick Mattson–6 Paul LaDue
4 Keaton Thompson–2 Troy Stecher

UND Goalies
31 Zane Gothberg
33 Clarke Saunders

Ferris Forward Lines
21 Justin Buzzeo–6 Kyle Schempp–16 Garrett Thompson
18 Andy Huff–8 Cory Kane–20 Gerald Mayhew
17 Jared VanWormer–11 Kenny Babinski–9 Chad McDonald
22 Matt Robertson–19 Justin DeMartino–28 Seth Adams
Ferris Defense Pairings
2 Scott Czarnowczan–3 Travis White
23 Brandon Anselmini–10 Ryan Lowney
25 Sean O’Rourke–7 Jason Binkley

Ferris Goalies

30 C.J. Motte
29 Charles Williams
31 Trace Pennoc
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Saturday, March 08, 2014

Saturday Morning Pontifications: Is there a Penrose Trophy in the Future?

Since November 30, 2013, UND goalie Zane Gothberg is 13-1-1 with a .936 save percentage and 1.59 goals against average. During that same time, UND is 16-3-2. Also, senior goalie time Clarke Saunders has a 3-2-0 record during the same time. UND started the season 4-7-2, they were going nowhere fast and they were sitting in the bottom of the NCHC Standings. In looking at the turnaround,  we might be able to credit the player's only meeting in late November. When asked about the turnaround, Gothberg was quick to give credit to the coaches.

“Obviously it starts with our coaching staff,” Gothberg said. “They’ve been through the ropes. They’ve been through everything, throughout the years. And I think it just kind of came down from them.”

Gothberg continued, “Once we figured out how to play our game, each guy bought in. It was a simple mentality change. Just a little bit before Christmas break. It was kind of cool to see what happened. You know what, we’re going out and proving ourselves every night, still. Proving to ourselves, and to our team that we can be even better.”

With the win last night, UND is either going to be playing Colorado College or Miami University. It’s just a matter of with team finishes number one, and which team finishes number two. UND is 2-0-0 against C.C. and 3-1-0 against Miami. Neither team is an easy out. So, we now have the four home teams for the NCHC playoffs, UND, SCSU, UMD and UNO. We'll know exact seeding at about 10:30 p.m.

It’s hard to believe that WMU is the sixth place team in the NCHC. Based on what I have seen, they’re a pretty good hockey team. It was fun to listen to former NHL coach Andy Murray after the game.

Here’s a few statistics to chew on. After finding it hard to score goals earlier in the season, UND is the third in the NCHC for goals for with 75. First is SCSU with 83 and second is Nebraska-Omaha with 78. Defensively, UND is second with 61 goals against, Denver is first with 56.

As I mentioned earlier in the season, I thought UND was a good hockey team that was trying to find their way. Some wanted to abandon the team. Early in the season, I went to a few practices and saw some of the goings on when the team was down. It was not all fun and games around the UND locker room, I can tell you that. You could feel the tension around the UND hockey team. I asked someone if it was stretch run was on already… Their response was, oh yeah. It's on.

That being said, there’s a lot of skill on this team. There’s also a lot of team speed. This is one of the fastest UND hockey teams that I have seen in a very long time. The play starts with the “D” and they lead the breakout, out of the defensive zone, in a lot of cases. If you can, focus on players like Jordan Schmaltz, Dillon Simpson or Paul LaDue, they’re very good with the puck. I think this team gets out of the defensive zone better than last year’s team, and that team had a lot of high-end offensive talent.

The UND hockey team is transforming from being a bruising team that checks you out of the building and takes a lot of penalties, to a team that can skate with the Boston Colleges. This is no accident. UND is changing like the NHL game has.

Tonight, UND will honor four very classy seniors, defenseman Dillon Simpson, forward Mitch MacMillan, forward Derek Rodwell and goaltender Clarke Saunders. If you haven’t seen it yet, go watch this week’s “Through These Doors”. There’s some very good stuff.

On my way to work this morning, Simpson was on “Hockey on Campus” and I just can’t get over the fact that Simpson isn’t even 21 years old yet. The senior defenseman came to UND as a young age of 17. There’s freshmen on this team that are older than him. Age is just a number.

Surprising result of the night: After being named NCHC Goalie of the week, Ryan Massa gave up four goals on 27 shots to the UMD Bulldogs. UMD would win the game 8-2. Tony Cameranesi and Justin Crandall paced UMD with two goals each.

Thursday, March 06, 2014

UND Hockey: Dillon Simpson talks to the Student Body


I can't believe that the season is almost over. An absolute gem, Dillon Simpson has been fun to cover over the past three seasons... One of the nicest kids you'll ever meet.
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Friday, February 14, 2014

UND vs. Miami game one

UND Forward Lines
28 Stephane Pattyn (A)–19 Rocco Grimaldi–27 Luke Johnson
9 Drake Caggiula–16 Mark MacMillan–15 Michael Parks (A)
21 Brendan O’Donnell–13 Connor Gaarder–11 Derek Rodwell
20 Gage Ausmus – 29 Bryn Chyzyk–17 Colten St. Clair

UND Defense Pairings
18 Dillon Simpson ©–24 Jordan Schmaltz
5 Nick Mattson–6 Paul LaDue
4 Keaton Thompson – 2 Troy Stecher

UND Goalies
33 Clarke Saunders
31 Zane Gothberg

Scratches: 7 Wade Murphy 22 Andrew Panzarella, 25 – Mitch MacMillan, 26 - Coltyn Sanderson, 30 Matt Hrynkiw.

Miami University RedHawks Forward Lines
95 Anthony Louis – 7 Austin Czarnik © - 11 Riley Barber
10 Alex Wideman – 9 Sean Kuraly – 12 Alex Gacek
14 Cody Murphy – 26 Justin Greenberg – 19 Max Cook (A)
18 John Doherty – 22 Kevin Morris – 15 Bryon Paulazzo (A)

Miami RedHawks Defense Pairings
8 Matthew Caito – 5 Chris Joyaux
4 Matt Joyaux – 28 Paulides
2 Taylor Richart – 55 Trevor Hamilton

Miami RedHawk Goalies
1 Jay Williams
35 Ryan McKay 


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Saturday, January 18, 2014

UND vs BSU Game Two Lines

UND Forward Lines
21 Brendan O’Donnell–16 Mark MacMillan–15 Michael Parks (A)
28 Stephane Pattyn (A)–13 Connor Gaarder–11 Derek Rodwell
9 Drake Caggiula–19 Rocco Grimaldi–27 Luke Johnson
29 Bryn Chyzyk–17 Colten St. Clair– 22 Andrew Panzarella

UND Defense Pairings
18 Dillon Simpson ©–24 Jordan Schmaltz
5 Nick Mattson–6 Paul LaDue
4 Keaton Thompson –  2 Troy Stecher

UND Goalies
31 Zane Gothberg
33 Clarke Saunders
30 Matt Hrynkiw

Scratches: 7 – Wade Murphy, 20 Gage Ausmus, 25 – Mitch MacMillan, 26 - Coltyn Sanderson.
Bemidji State Beavers Forward Lines
23 Markus Gerbrandt–13 Cory Ward –28 Brendan Harms
18 Radoslav Illo–12 Jeff Jubinville –16 Danny Mattson
29 Phil Brewer–27 Mitch Cain–22 Charlie O’Connor
9 Phillip Marinccio –6 Nate Arentz – 26 Bob Kinne

Tigers Defense Parings
14 D.J Joes –4 Sam Windle
25 Ruslan Pedan –7 Matt Prapavessis ©
3 James Hansen–11Graeme McCormack

Beaver Goalies
30 Andrew Walsh
33 Reid Mimmack
On-Ice Officials: 13 – Nick Krebsbach, 8 – Tom Sterns Linesmen: 70 – Andy Dokken, 49 – Mike Eslinger



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Monday, January 13, 2014

UND Hockey: Dillon Simpson named NCHC Defensive player of the week

UND defenseman Dillon Simpson was named NCHC Defenseman of the week. This is the second time this season, that Simpson has received the player of the week award.

DEFENSEMAN OF THE WEEK
Dillon Simpson, North Dakota, Senior Defenseman, Edmonton, Alta.

Simpson was strong at both ends of the ice to lead North Dakota to a sweep of Colorado College and extend UND’s winning streak to seven. In the series, he recorded three points on a goal and two assists, while also blocking five shots. In Friday’s 5-3 win, the captain assisted on North Dakota’s first goal while scoring the game-winning goal in the closing seconds of the second period to earn third star of the game honors. The next night, Simpson again assisted on the game’s first goal and blocked three shots. The Edmonton Oilers prospect finished with an even +/- rating in the series and leads NCHC defensemen with 11 points in league play. Simpson has now won NCHC Defenseman of the Week twice this year (Nov. 11).
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Saturday, January 11, 2014

UND vs C.C. game two

UND Forward Lines
9 Drake Caggiula–19 Rocco Grimaldi–27 Luke Johnson
21 Brendan O’Donnell–16 Mark MacMillan–15 Michael Parks (A)
29 Bryn Chyzyk–17 Colten St. Clair–Wade Murphy
28 Stephane Pattyn (A)–13 Connor Gaarder–11 Derek Rodwell

UND Defense Pairings
18 Dillon Simpson ©–24 Jordan Schmaltz
5 Nick Mattson–6 Paul LaDue
4 Keaton Thompson –2 Troy Stecher

UND Goalies
31 Zane Gothberg
33 Clarke Saunders

Scratches: 20 – Gage Ausmus, 22 – Andrew Panzarella, 25 – Mitch MacMillan, 26 - Coltyn Sanderson, 30 – Matt Hrynkiw.
Colorado College’s Forward Lines
18 Scott Wamsganz–21 Jeff Collett–12 Archie Skalbeck
16 Alexander Krushelnyski–9 Sam Rothstein–24 Jared Hanson
26 Zach Aman–10 Cody Bradley–17 Charlie Taft
11 Hunter Fejes–14 Jordan GiDiando–8 Luc Gerdes

Tigers Defense Parings
6 Peter Stoykewych–13 Gustav Olofsson
27 Aaron Harstad–5 Jaccob Slavin
3 Michael King–7 Eamonn McDermott

Tigers Goalies
39 Josh Thorimbert
29 Courtney Lockwood
On-Ice Officials: 13 – Nick Krebsbach, 33 – Brad Shepherd Lines: 83 – Justin Hills 36 – Brandon Schmidt.
Points of interest
Sophomore defenseman Jordan Schmaltz is smoking hot right now and currently on a five-game point streak (0g-7a—7pts).
Junior forward Conner Gaarder has at least a point in five straight weekend series (2g-4-6pts).
Boston College and North Dakota currently have the longest winning streaks in the nation at 6-0-0.
According to the UND SID, In 11 NCHC games UND defenseman Dillon Simpson is tied for the NCHC lead in assists with 7, and leads all defensemen in scoring with 10 points.
The C.C. Tigers are winless on the road this season (0-9-1).

From the UND SID, with five points tonight, UND’s defensemen are averaging 2.74 points per game, second-best in the nation behind New Hampshire (2.83).
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Friday, January 10, 2014

UND Hockey: UND vs. C.C. Game One Lines

UND Forward Lines
9 Drake Caggiula–19 Rocco Grimaldi–27 Luke Johnson
21 Brendan O’Donnell–16 Mark MacMillan–15 Michael Parks (A)
29 Bryn Chyzyk–17 Colten St. Clair–Wade Murphy
28 Stephane Pattyn (A)–13 Connor Gaarder–11 Derek Rodwell

UND Defense Pairings
18 Dillon Simpson ©–24 Jordan Schmaltz
5 Nick Mattson–6 Paul LaDue
20 Gage Ausmus–2 Troy Stecher

UND Goalies
31 Zane Gothberg
33 Clarke Saunders

Scratches: 4 –Keaton Thompson, 22 – Andrew Panzarella, 25 – Mitch MacMillan, 26 - Coltyn Sanderson, 30 – Matt Hrynkiw.
Colorado College’s Forward Lines
26 Zach Aman–10 Cody Bradley–17 Charlie Taft
16 Alexander Krushelnyski–9 Sam Rothstein–24 Jared Hanson
18 Scott Wamsganz–21 Jeff Collett–12 Archie Skalbeck
11 Hunter Fejes–14 Jordan GiDiando–28 Alex Roos
Tigers Defense Parings
6 Peter Stoykewych–13 Gustav Olofsson
20 Ian Young–7 Eamonn McDermott
27 Aaron Harstad–5 Jaccob Slavin

Tigers Goalies
39 Josh Thorimbert
29 Courtney Lockwood

On-Ice Officials: 13 – Nick Krebsbach, 33 – Brad Shepherd Lines: 83 – Justin Hills 36 – Brandon Schmidt. 


Looks like We have a split house hold

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Saturday, November 16, 2013

UND Hockey vs. UMD Bulldogs lines game 2

UND forward Lines
29 Bryn Chyzyk – 9 Drake Caggiula – 19 Rocco Grimaldi
16 Mark MacMillan –27 Luke Johnson – 15 Michael Parks (A)
28 Stephan Pattyn (A) – 13 Connor Gaarder – 11 Derek Rodwell
25 Mitch MacMillan – 10 Adam Tambellini – 7 Wade Murphy

UND Defense Pairing
18 Dillon Simpson © - 24 Jordan Schmaltz
5 Nick Mattson – 6 Paul LaDue
20 Gage Ausmus  – 2 Troy Stecher

UND goalies
33 Clarke Saunders
31 Zane Gothberg

Scratches: 17 Colton S. Clair, 21 Brendan O’Donnell, 22 Andrew Panzerella
26 Coltyn Sanderson, 30 Matt Hrynkiw.

UMD Bulldogs

UMD Forward Lines
11 Austin Farley–13 Tony Cameranesi–26 Adam Krause
8 Kyle Osterberg–21 Caleb Herbert–25 Justin Crandall

14 Alex Iafallo–17 Dominic Toninato–18 Joe Basaraba
24 Charlie Sampair–27 Cal Decowski–28 Sammy Spurrell
UMD Defense Pairings
5 Willie Corrin –7 Andy Welinski
16 Tim Smith–15 Willie Raskob
6 Derik Johnson – 22 Luke McManus

UMD Goalies
1 Aaron Crandall
36 Matt McNeely
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Friday, November 15, 2013

UND Hockey vs. UMD Bulldogs Lines

UND forward Lines
29 Bryn Chyzyk – 9 Drake Caggiula – 19 Rocco Grimaldi
16 Mark MacMillan –27 Luke Johnson – 15 Michael Parks (A)
28 Stephan Pattyn (A) – 13 Connor Gaarder – 11 Derek Rodwell
25 Mitch MacMillan – 10 Adam Tambellini – 7 Wade Murphy

UND Defense Pairing
18 Dillon Simpson © - 24 Jordan Schmaltz
5 Nick Mattson – 6 Paul LaDue
2 Troy Stecher – 22 Andrew Panzerella

UND goalies
33 Clarke Saunders
31 Zane Gothberg

Scratches: 17 Colton S. Clair, 20 Gage Ausmus, 21 Brendan O’Donnell, 26 Coltyn Sanderson, 30 Matt Hrynkiw.

UMD Bulldogs

UMD Forward Lines
11 Austin Farley–13 Tony Cameranesi–26 Adam Krause
14 Alex Iafallo–17 Dominic Toninato–18 Joe Basaraba
8 Kyle Osterberg–21 Caleb Herbert–25 Justin Crandall
24 Charlie Sampair–27 Cal Decowski–19 Max Tardy
UMD Defense Pairings
4 Carson Soucy–7 Andy Welinski
16 Tim Smith–15 Willie Raskob
5 Willie Corrin–6 Derik Johnson

UMD Goalies
1 Aaron Crandall
36 Matt McNeely
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Friday, October 04, 2013

My Ballot for the 1st Annual NCHC Blog/Web Media Preseason Poll

Here is the ballot that I submitted for the 1st Annual NCHC Blog/Web Media Preseason Poll. Feel free to tell me what you think.


Predicted Order of Finish:
Denver University - 3
St Cloud State - 4
Nebraska-Omaha   - 6
Western Michigan - 7
Colorado College - 8

All-Conference Team

F- Jonny Brodzinski – SCSU
F- Mark MacMillan – UND
F- Alexander Krushelnysky – C.C.
D- Dillon Simpson – UND
D- Joey LaLeggia – DU
G- Frank Slubowski – Western Michigan

Player of the Year   - Ryan Walters UNO
Rookie of the Year    - Adam Tambellini – UND
Defenseman of the Year - Joey LaLeggia – DU
Breakout Player of the Year - Zane Gothberg – UND 

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