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This Finger has claws
 Media Credit: Blair Schlichte SCSU junior defenseman Jeff Finger has become one of the toughest players in the WCHA. He’s become notorious for his bone-crunching checks and physical play. Right now Finger is playing with a broken right hand.
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It’s fair to say that the WCHA is the roughest conference in college hockey.
It houses some of the toughest players in the nation. It’s also fair to say that out of all of them, SCSU’s junior defenseman Jeff Finger may be the toughest.
“He is the toughest guy in the WCHA by far,” sophomore teammate Brian Schuster said, who is also Finger’s roommate.
In fact, there is a valid argument that would link Jeff Finger’s name to the definition of a tough guy. Need examples? Try breaking a hand and going right back out in the jungle of the WCHA with just a playing cast protecting it. If that isn’t enough, now fracture a foot bone and skate around supporting a 215-pound frame with pads.
“Fings” did all this last weekend against Mankato and still laid the smack down, although it wasn’t that easy. Finger’s broken right shooting hand has obviously led to discomfort.
“I can only hold on with two of my fingers and my thumb, so it’s not like I can get a very good grip, but you make do with what you’ve got,” he said.
Although Finger’s limbs may not be in the best shape, he still has his steel heart that may be impenetrable. He hasn’t missed a game in his two plus seasons at SCSU.
“I don’t think there is any fear in the guy,” head coach Craig Dahl said. “He’s a very physical player and he’s not afraid to lay a thump on anyone. He’s got a very competitive attitude and the size to go with it. I’d stack him up there with anyone in our league.”
Finger has certainly earned fame at the National Hockey Center with his body-crunching checks and fearless physical play. Nevertheless, it’s also earned him some extensive minutes in the penalty box. Finger set a team record for the most penalties in a season with 51 last year.
“I’m always kind of playing on the edge of where I’m going to get a penalty or where I’m not,” Finger said. “It’s pretty much up to the ref’s discretion. A lot of times, just because of the reputation I have, I won’t get the benefit of the doubt on a lot of calls.”
Though being a tough guy isn’t always the easiest or most rewarding job, it has been needed on a SCSU defense that has been hounded by injuries and ineligibility.
“He has to play like that. That’s his game,” Schuster said.
But there is certainly more to the blue liner than his physical play.
“A lot of people probably think that he’s a one-dimensional player, but he’s also got great hands and a lot of offensive talent that people aren’t aware of,” Schuster said.
That offensive talent was shown last weekend against Mankato Friday night in overtime. Finger received the puck at the blue line, but instead of taking an outside shot on goal, he faked a slap shot. This got the defender to dive by and Finger sidestepped around him. Keeping his head up, he waited until forward Mike Doyle came around the left backside of the net. Finger fed him a perfect pass that Doyle poked home for the game winner.
“He’s made a tremendous amount of improvement since he first got here,” Dahl said. “That was a real heads up play by Jeff to not just keep his head down and try and blast the puck at the net, but to keep his head up long enough to see (Doyle) on the back side.”
Last season, Finger led the Husky defenders with 20 assists and was tied for the team lead among blue liners with 26 points. He did all this even though he was weakened by a three-week battle with the flu towards the end of the season.
Finger was the Defenseman of the Year and the top scoring defenseman in the USHL in 1999-00. This earned him recognition and eventually he was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche. It was love at first sight, though, (or the closest thing to it in hockey) for Finger and SCSU.
“He was our kind of guy,” Dahl said. “He wasn’t a big city primadonna. He’s a St. Cloud kind of guy. He’s a hard-working, tough, hard- nosed type of kid.”
Finger had originally committed to Michigan Tech to stay near his hometown of Houghton. But due to academic questions, Tech stringed him along for about a year-and-a-half, which was too long for him to wait.
“It was getting to the point where it was ridiculous and I had to get something done,” he said. “Then I talked to St. Cloud and it took them four days to figure out what Michigan Tech couldn’t figure out in a year-and-a-half.”
“The Michigan Tech Huskies really don’t have any liking for me and I feel the same way about them.”
The recruiting of Finger has led to some bad blood between him and his hometown team. More physical games have been played recently between SCSU and MTU, and now it may not be a bad idea for Tech players to wear some extra padding on their helmets come Jan. 31 when the two teams meet for the first time this season.
In the end, Finger has been more than happy with his new home in St. Cloud.
“Obviously I was wanted more here, and this place has turned out to be all I had heard it was. You can’t beat it,” he said.
The Huskies are thrilled with Finger’s presence.
“I’m thankful he’s on my team,” Schuster said. “The only bad thing is practicing against him.”
Around the Rink
-Matt Hendricks fractured a bone in his left wrist against the boards last weekend, but should play with a cast against RPI this weekend.
-Schuster, who scored the Huskies’ only goal in Mankato last weekend, won’t be so lucky. A dislocated shoulder he suffered in that game will leave him out for two weeks.
-A source on the team indicated yesterday that x-rays showed a fractured bone in Finger’s foot. Ryan Malone’s hip pointer has left him doubtful for this weekend. It looks as if captain Jon Cullen’s shoulder has healed enough for him to play.
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