Four Years In Four Minutes For Maris

(Photo from UNDSports.com)

Back in November when I talked to University of North Dakota's goalie coach Karl Goehring about third-string goalie Tate Maris, I asked about whether or not we would see a "Rudy" situation with Maris getting into a late season game.

When chuckling about the notion of it, Goehring replied: "Not my call, but try to make sure we take care of Tate as much we can because we really appreciate what he does."

And that's what UND did on Sunday. With 4:08 remaining in a 5-0 game-- which would be the clinching game for UND over Michigan Tech-- head coach Dave Hakstol pulled Clarke Saunders and put Maris in-- his first regular season action in his four years at UND. While he only made one save, he shared a shut-out with Saunders in the game, the first for UND since 2003 when Jordan Parise and Jake Brandt recorded on against Yale.

"Easy decision," said Hakstol when asked about putting Maris in. "Tate means an awful lot to the guys in the locker room and a lot to the program. He's earned more than four minutes in his career. He's important in our locker room, he's a leader, and you can see how hard the guys played in front of him how much he means to the program."

While Maris is more known for his wit on the UND web-show Brad Miller Time, as well as his musical career-- the hard-work and upbeat attitude has made him a fan favorite and a favorite of his teammates in the room.

"You can't put a price on a guy like Tate Maris and what he does. He shows up to work everyday, loves being a part of the team, and has the most diffcult role on the team. When guys see his positive attitude and his approach, it rubs off on everybody," said Goehring in November.

As a walk-on to the team, Maris had the uphill battle-- especially for not playing in the 2008-09 season. He was suited up for five games in his freshman year of 2009-10, but didn't make an appearace. In fact, he didn't see any game action until his junior year of the 2011-12 season, stopping all six shots in an exhibiton against the Russian Red Stars. A smaller goalie at 5'9 also had Maris some disadvantage trying to get his spot and playing time from Aaron Dell and Brad Eidsness for his first three years, then Saunders and Zane Gothberg this season.

But Maris kept at it. He focused on his accounting major and was named to the WCHA All-Academic Team all four seasons. Also in his freshman year, Maris won UND's Most Improved Player award. As mentioned, it seemed his wit and joking manner provided an upbeat attitude for him. So much so that he is quite the follow on Twitter (where he documented UND getting stuck in Summit, South Dakota and talked about going to play goalie for University of Phoenix).

After the game, he got his first ever media scrum.

"It's indescribable. I'm kind of at a lost for words now. Four years pushed into four minutes, it's pretty surreal, to say the least" said Maris. "I tried to block them (the fans) out and try not to let it get into my head, but it was pretty exciting. I was very thankful for that."

When asked about if he was concerned having forward and Hobey Baker Award hopeful Corban Knight on defense, Maris quipped, "I was extremely worried. I was battling to help Knighter through the year."

Knight tried to turned the tables, asking Maris about bobbling his shot, "There was a huge screen in front of me, guy about 6'7-- but I fought the screen, fought the rebound to get the whistle and get a rest for guys like you."

Through and through, with hard work and determination and pretty much not letting anything get him down, Maris got a four-minute stint that will probably last a lifetime to him, those there, and to his teammates who saw four years culminate into one small stint.

"As a player it's awesome, as a friend it puts a lump in your throat to seeing that guy like him go in. He's one of the best teammates you could ask for" Knight said. "When he came in, it definitely gave everyone goosebumps on the bench and on the ice."

It was the last home game for Maris, one of the last in the WCHA for UND; Maris did get his save-- having his career GAA at 0.00 and his save percentage at 1.000%; a great stat line for a guy who wasn't sure if he was going to record any.

Towards the end of his scrum, Maris asked the inevitable question many first-timers seem to ask, "Am I doing a good job?? I'm new to this."

By the love that UND fans and those associated with the organization gave to him during his appearance-- I'd say he was doing just fine.

Quotes and stats provided by UNDSports.com and SID Jayson Hajdu.

The Branding Endeavor of the University of North Dakota

Photo: KFYR

On June 14th of 2012, the North Dakota Board of Higher Education voted to discontinue the use of the Fighting Sioux moniker for the University of North Dakota, ending a long-term debate on whether or not the school will go on with using the name. This came after the 2005 NCAA ruling of sanctions being laid to teams who still held the nickname of tribal people which the NCAA deemed to be hostile and abusive.

After numerous debates, injunctions, and lawsuits-- the ruling was laid down in June and UND would be without a nickname until 2015, by amendment on the BoE's ruling.

UND Athletic Director Brian Faison felt the craziness on going when it came to going without a nickname for the better part of 18 months.

"We were prepared to make the transition, stop the transition, make the transition, stop the transition four times in the last year and a half with lawsuits and legislations," said Faison when I sat down with him last week. "We had one of the great brand identification in college sports, but you just don't replace that overnight. It'll be a process that'll take time."

And time was something that UND needed more of in some aspect. While they did get an invitation to the Big Sky Conference in other sports aside from hockey, it was during the transition away from the Sioux name. Yet, when the debate started again-- the Big Sky members were worried about what the name could bring in a controversial way and raised concerns about UND being into their conference.

The Big Sky Conference is an important part to the UND athletic program, as Faison states, saying that without a conference, it could have been doom.

"I don't think we could have survived as independent. It's difficult enough in transitioning from Division II to Division I to get games anyway, especially from where we're located geographically, it was a very concerning time for us."

Below is the 14-minute interview I had with Mr. Faison in which we tackle the ins and outs of the name change and new branding to come, what it means for the Ralph Engelstad Arena, what it means for the school, the future of the name, and why it won't be called the school's old name-- the Flickertails.

Karl Goehring on Coaching College

In college hockey, you have a lot of goalies, most carrying three goalies just in case. For University of North Dakota's Karl Goehring it's an interesting season for him. With transferring Clarke Saunders and rookie Zane Gothberg complimenting the senior stalwart Tate Maris-- it's been quite the juggling act.

Goehring has done a great job with goalies in his previous three seasons with UND and has kept it going with his troops this year, adapting what he can to the style of play that these goalies bring to the program.

"You got to apply it to the individual and make sure your message is appropriate of who you're talking to."

Of course, Goehring himself brings a lot of experience to the team. A graduate of UND, Goehring guided the then Sioux to a National Championship in 2000 and to the title game in 2001. On top of holding a lot of records for UND in wins (80), shutouts (15), and win percentage (.765)-- Goehring also spent time in the AHL with the Syracuse Crunch (whom he also coached) and other various spots along the minor league path.

While some guys don't have the ability to actually move behind the bench, Goehring sees it as a learning experience.

"It's always an interesting transition as a player . You think you know a lot of things, then you go behind the scenes and do them. At least for myself, it opens your eyes. It's a blast. I've been very fortunate to have the opportunities I've had."

In the one-on-one below, Goehring talks about his team, coaching in a three-goalie system, the role of the third goalie, and the transition of playing into coaching.

Clarke Saunders on Transition and New Beginnings

Photo: UNDSports.com

"I don't think too many people know too much about Alabama. They're some people that do a lot of really good things for that program. I honestly wish them the best. They gave me two years of my life that I wouldn't trade anything for."

Despite leaving for the University of North Dakota, goalie Clarke Saunders has very fond memories when it comes to his time at Alabama-Huntsville, who became the darling of the college hockey world when they had been a contender and were put in conference limbo because of their location.

Saunders played for the Brockville Braves in the CJHL, finishing there with a 78-33-3 record over three-plus seasons-- not to mention scoring a goal, breaking a single-season win record, and setting a franchise win record. Yet, Saunders did have some struggles at UAH, playing in two years there with a 6-37-1 record in two seasons, though he would often get peppered with 40-50 shots a night, also setting a school record for most saves in regulation.

However, when UAH's hockey program was up in the air, Saunders and other players were given the green light to look for opportunities elsewhere in their college hockey career. During a road trip, Saunders went to the UND to affirm his commitment and was able to be eligible for the next season without missing a year-- which is where he's at now.

And it seems it's been a solid transition for Saunders going from Alabama to North Dakota.

"It's been unbelieveable. I was sad to leave (UAH), had a lot of good friends on that team and was treated very well down south. But the transition has been unbelievable, everyone has been amazing here and have treated me real well. How could you complain about coming here??"

It's been so far, so good for Saunders-- posting a 2-1-1 record this season with a 1.73 GAA and .933 saver percentage going into this weekend's action against St. Cloud State University.

The audio below is rest of the one-on-one with Saunders where we talk about the season so far, the nuances that UND hockey brings, and senior goalie Tate Maris's new CD coming out.
 

Back to School, Hockey Style

On Friday, November 2nd; I was able to take in a hockey game. However, this is something I hadn't experienced before, in that it was a college hockey game. Luckily for me, I planned a getaway around the University of North Dakota men's hockey team's schedule and decided to take in the weekend match-up between UND and Boston University.

Thankfully Jayson Hadju and his staff at the media office, I (along with the NHL History Girl, Jen Conway) was able to take in the game from the press box to get a bigger view of the scene...and what a scene.

Being in the Maryland area most my life, the college hockey scene was still blossoming, even though they were at a club level. They had some fanatical followers, but it was a very small sample size of people. The UND community embraces hockey as a life-blood and are very proud of the hockey stars they have groomed and have become champions after attending the school.

In my eternal ability and need to arrive to things early, Jen and I got to the rink about two hours before puck drop to get in and just have myself walk around Ralph Engelstad Arena, which is just impressive from the outside-- who knows what could be around each corner on the concourse. It had started snowing earlier in the day and created a nice slush by the time we trekked out to the arena. Even with the conditions, once we parked the car, we were greeted with throngs of UND student wrapping around The Ralph, braving the conditions in order to see UND take on Boston University in Grand Forks for the first time since 1996.

Once we got out of the cold and into The Ralph, it was just as marvelous as the people have said it was. There was plenty of stuff around the arena for alumnus who have played for UND in the past were honored and remembered in the halls and those who have won the Stanley Cup had a giant portraits hanging on the walls holding the Cup.

About halfway through the mini-concourse tour, the students came piling into the building since the section is general admission, which created for a hell of a stampede to get to the seats. Once we got around the concourse, we decided to make our way up to the press level and get situated in that aspect. The press boxes themselves are a little better than most NHL facilities I've been to, which added to the praise that the arena has gotten. Most of the arena interior is fantastic and top-notch with a bar for VIP members at each end of the rink-- adding a little class and comfortable nature to the setting.

The game itself was a hard-hitting affair with UND coming out on top 4-2 on the power of Connor Gaarder's hat trick and in spite of captain Andrew MacWilliam being ejected due to a shot to the head of BU's Ahti Oksanen (where Oksanen scored on the only shot of the five-minute PP).

More over, I was experiencing the student section, boosters, and hardcore UND fans that were chanting and singing along like it was a college basketball or European hockey game-- a very welcoming atmosphere and bringing everyone in the UND family into the game and getting lively....as in the video below.

Of course, UND is without a mascot until 2015, but that doesn't mean that the Fighting Sioux moniker and logo aren't around town. As the picture of the floor shows, the Sioux logo is still around the area and on the medallions on the seats. Even the fans shout, "SIOUX!!" when UND is introduced. While a name has yet to be thought about for UND, you can bet that people will be hard to forget the Sioux name.

As a first college hockey experience, it was a great one. It's something that will make me want to go back to it, as it seemed like something that could be an enjoy time for a weekend getaway and a cheaper alternative to whatever could be around. It's not the pros, but it's something that people could easily get into and start to follow a certain school-- for one reason or another. If you have the chance, leap at it and get to a game and soak it all in.