The recognition as the class of the WCHA could be stripped away from the Sioux by season’s end. Gone are three of the conference’s most feared scorers and two all-league candidate blueliners.
Most noticeably absent is senior center Jason Blake. The four-year standout’s 28 goals last season earned him the league’s scoring title with 69 points.
The Sioux, however, return with one of the WCHA’s most consistent goaltenders. Junior Karl Goehring is back between the pipes this season after posting 20 or more wins in each of his first two seasons. Goehring was second in the WCHA rankings to Alaska freshman Gregg Naumenko (2.33 goals against average) with 2.40 GAA and is the coaches preseason selection for the WCHA’sMost Valuable Player.