Good luck to all of our Fargo Force alumni playing in the NCAA D-1 hockey tournament starting this weekend.
Here's to hoping this game goes better than the last one! A live blog for the second straight night, this time between the Tri-City Storm and the Fargo Force. Puck drops at 7:05pm and I plan to launch the blog around 6:55pm. We will be blogging about the Fargo Force game and probably some discussion about the SCSU vs. UND game as former Force goalie Mike Lee will be in net against the UND in the WCHA championship game.
Three Questions with former Fargo Force goalie Mike Lee | INFORUM | Fargo, ND
What was it like starting in two gold medal games in two years?
This one topped the last one a little bit, but it’s obviously very special, and I’m lucky to have had the chance. And winning two gold medals, and beating Canada both times to do it? You can’t beat that.
What was it like playing for Dean Blais again?
Anybody that has played for him understands right away what a special coach he is. We had an amazing year with him last year, and it was really nice to be able to play for him again.
How would you rate your first season playing at St. Cloud State?
It hasn’t gone as well as I would have liked it to, personally (4-5-3, 2.63 goals-against, .909 save percentage), but I always want to be doing better. As a team we’re satisfied with how we’ve been doing lately, and we want to get going into the second half.
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Former Fargo Force player Mike Lee and coach Dean Blais will be competing in the IIHF World Junior Championship Gold Medal game on Tuesday, January 5. What a tournament for two people from our organization to be a part of as they will be competing for the Gold medal on Tuesday. Team USA has not won this tournament since 2004. 2004 was also the last time that Canada has not won the Gold medal so there is another streak that can be snapped with a United States victory.
Mike Lee is 4-0 at the IIHF World Junior Championships and is likely to start against Canada in the Gold medal game after a solid performance against the heavily favored Swedes. Lee has put up some outstanding numbers to go along side the four wins. He currently has a 92.86% save percentage and 2.00 goals against average.
Former Fargo Force goaltender Mike Lee has made the preliminary USA roster for the 2010 IIHF U-20 World Junior Championships.
GOALTENDERS (2)
Jack Campbell, Port Huron, Mich. U.S. National Under-18 Team
Mike Lee Roseau, Minn. St. Cloud State University (WCHA)
DEFENSEMEN (11)
John Carlson, Colonia, N.J. Hershey Bears (AHL)
Matt Donovan, Edmond, Okla. University of Denver (WCHA)
Justin Faulk, South St. Paul, Minn. U.S. National Under-18 Team
Cam Fowler, Farmington Hills, Mich. Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
Jake Gardiner, Minnetonka, Minn. Univ of Wisconsin (WCHA)
Brian Lashoff, Albany, N.Y. Kingston Frontenacs (OHL)
Jon Merrill, Brighton, Mich. U.S. National Under-18 Team
John Moore, Winnetka, Ill. Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
Max Nicastro, Thousand Oaks, Calif. Boston University (HEA)
John Ramage, St. Louis, Mo. University of Wisconsin (WCHA)
David Warsofsky, Marshfield, Mass. Boston University (HEA)
FORWARDS (16)
Ryan Bourque Boxford, Mass. Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
Chris Brown, Houston, Texas University of Michigan (CCHA)
Jerry D’Amigo, Binghamton, N.Y. RPI ECACH)
A.J. Jenks, Wolverine Lake, Mich. Plymouth Whalers (OHL)
Tyler Johnson, Spokane, Wash. Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
Chris Kreider, BoxfordMass. Boston College (HEA)
Danny Kristo, Eden Prairie, Minn. UND (WCHA)
Philip McRae, Chesterfield, Mo. London Knights (OHL)
Jeremy Morin, Auburn, N.Y. Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
Kyle Palmieri, Montvale, N.J. University of Notre Dame (CCHA)
Vinny Saponari, Powder Springs, Ga. Boston University (HEA)
Jordan Schroeder, Prior Lake, Minn. Univer of Minnesota (WCHA)
Derek Stepan, Hastings, Minn. University of Wisconsin (WCHA)
Luke Walker, Portland, Ore. Portland Winterhawks (WHL)
David Wohlberg, South Lyon, Mich. University of Michigan (CCHA)
Jason Zucker, Las Vegas, Nev. U.S. National Under-18 Team (USNTDP)
Mike Lee is the starting goaltender as a freshman for the St. Cloud State Huskies. Lee has played in four games and has played very well. He is 1-1-2 with a 92.6% save percentage and a 2.18 GAA. Lee is expected to carry much of the load this year for SCSU and is a shoe in for Team USA at the upcoming 2010 IIHF World Junior Championships that former Force coach Dean Blais will be heading.
Luke Witkowski is playing defense for Western Michigan. Luke has played in four games with the Broncos and has registered 5 shots with a -2 rating. Western Michigan is currently 4-0 playing in the CCHA.
Keegan Flaherty is playing with the University of Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs. Flaherty has played in seven games and has registered one assist as a freshman. The Bulldogs are 4-2-1 on the young season.
According to this site, Oleg Lee was drafted in the 3rd round, 67th overall in the KHL draft by Atlant Mytischi. I wasn't able to find anything else for Oleg Lee.
Jake Areshenko is playing for Bemidji State. He has played in three games for the Beavers, but has yet to register anything statistically.
Former Fargo Force fan favorite, Andy Taranto, is playing for the University of Alaska-Fairbanks. He has one goal, two assists for a total of three points in four games for the Nanooks.
Josh Birkholz is playing for the University of Minnesota. He has played in three games only to register two penalty minutes. Birkholz is one of four freshmen for the Golden Gophers.
Steve Spinell is playing for the University of Miami (Ohio) Redhawks. The Redhawks are the top ranked team in college hockey right now and Spinell has seen action in two games registering two penalty minutes for the nation's number one team.
Did you know that the Fargo Force have two NHL draft picks playing on their team this 2009-10 season and a total of five NHL draft picks in their short two year existance?
Luke Witkowski was taken in the 6th round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning. Nate Condon was also taken in 2008 in the 7th round by the Colorado Avalanche. Josh Birkholz (Florida Panthers) and Mike Lee (Phoenix Coyotes) were drafted in the 3rd round in 2009. Nick Oliver (Nashville Predators) was also drafted in 2009 in the 4th round. His stock plummeted when he was injured during the 2008-09 season.
5 draft picks and counting in 2 years...
As for potential draft picks for the upcoming year in the USHL:
2010 NHL draft eligible players to watch from Team USA are: Jon Merrill (D), Jack Campbell (G), Stephen Johns (D), Luke Moffatt (F), Nick Mattson (D), and Matt Nieto (F). The Chicago Steel's Kevin Lind (D) and Des Moines' Yasin Cisse (F) are all players to watch out for as potential high NHL picks. Former USHL player, Stanislav Galiev (F, Indiana Ice) will also go high in the 2010 draft, some scouts have him listed with top 10 potential.
One player to watch on every list is Seth Ambroz (F) of the Omaha Lancers. He is a potential first round pick in 2011 and is creating the most NHL draft hype in the USHL.
Colten St. Clair (2011 Draft Eligible) and Eamonn McDermott (2010) have been mentioned in hockey prospect forums but nothing to get worked up about yet, not until more official scouting lists are released.
With the completion of the Fall Classic and the beginning of the new season, more scouting information will be released shortly, and it will be posted here as soon as it is released. Stay tuned!
