T Web We Hardly Knew Ya
This is not good news for Gopher hockey fans:
With the start of hockey practice only five weeks away, the Gophers were blindsided Tuesday by the sudden departure of top goaltender Travis Weber.
Weber, a junior, has withdrawn from school and returned to his hometown of Hibbing for personal reasons. According to a family member, he has no plans to attend school or play anywhere else, and his decision is unrelated to hockey matters.
Last year when Weber and Justin Johnson were splitting time in the nets, with Weber get more starts, I wasn't a huge fan of his and wasn't sure if he had what it took to win the big game. But in the NCAA tournament he proved me wrong (the second consectutive year a Gopher goalie managed to do that):
Last winter, Weber emerged as the Gophers' leading goalie and commanded national attention as the team won its second consecutive NCAA championship. He made the all-NCAA tournament team by stopping 57 of 60 shots in the Gophers' semifinal and title-game victories over Michigan and New Hampshire. His career record is 24-8-7 with a 2.64 goals-against average -- second-best in Gophers history -- and an .896 save percentage.
Now the Gophers will be forced to go with Justin Johnson and freshman Kellen Briggs between the pipes in their bid to three peat as national champions. News of Weber's departure coupled with defenseman Paul Martin's decision to pass on his senior season to sign an NHL deal doesn't seem to bode well for the team's chance. But hey, I've been wrong before.
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