Frozen Four - Minnesota Women's Hockey Complete Perfect Season & Defend National Title!

Congratulations to the the Minnesota Gopher Women's Hockey team on winning their second national title in a row and on completing the first perfect season in NCAA women's hockey history!

via Minnesota Women's Hockey Facebook page

I'll have a more in depth take along with some great pics from the weekend tomorrow (sorry, still have to drive all the way back to Madison tonight) but before I head out I want to share a few thoughts:

• This is a great hockey team. Not a great women's hockey team, a great hockey team period. They are without question the greatest women's team ever (certainly in college, maybe all levels) but you could easily argue the they are one of the greatest hockey teams ever (all levels, both sexes). To be perfect as they were, despite playing in the toughest conference in the country (all the NCAA women's hockey titles belong to WCHA programs) and getting everyone's best effort down the stretch is amazing enough. To do it while tying the NCAA record for fewest goals allowed in a single season is even moreso. To do it in a year where all 3 of the finalists for the national player of the year award came from the U? To do it while never allowing a team to score more than 3 goals (which only happened 4 times), while putting up 21 shutouts, and only playing two three 1 goal games? Dominant doesn't being to describe what this season was.
• The atmosphere in Ridder was ELECTRIC. The crowd was in it from start to finish and was loud and passionate both ways (seriously, the small number of BU fans and their band made their presence known). If you've never gone to a game here, go. It's a great venue, and this program deserves sellout crowds all season long (prior to about mid-season they were only averaging a little over 1K a game).
  
• With that in mind, the fact that this game wasn't televised anywhere is a complete and utter travesty. Think of it this way...if there was ever a game that deserved to be played as a "BTN Greatest Game" this was it. But it never will be. Thanks ever so much NCAA and Turner Sports Broadcasting.
• SKI-U-MAH! I could go with more, but just SKI-U-EFFING-MA. /drops mike
• Ok, maybe not the time for "/drops mike"
• I know a lot of folks are annoyed (or beyond annoyed) about basketball right now. So if you can, focus on the great things in Gopher sports like this hockey team and I guarantee you'll feel better.
• Just thinking about this game gets me wanting to type out all my thoughts about it, but I really can't because I do need to drive home. So thanks to everyone who participated in the Open Threads and on Twitter. This was a great experience for me in general, but having you all respond positively to it made it even better.
• And last but not least...

GO GOPHERS!