sports

Tubby Smith has been busy recruiting and wrapping things up in Kentucky, so the new Gophers men's basketball coach was in town for only one day during May. The NCAA permits some limited workouts during the offseason, so Smith and his assistant coaches did have a chance earlier to get some idea of how much talent they will have to work with this season.

" I think they're all gonna be good players. We've got a good nucleus back," he said.

New Gophers football coach Tim Brewster had a lot to say after he was hired, but Smith hasn't been as talkative, although he has sounded optimistic when he did talk about the team.

"I think in [Spencer] Tollackson and [Dan] Coleman I think we got some skilled big men that can do some things," Smith said.

"I think Lawrence McKenzie has got some talent. I think we got some guys that could help us. Those are the three seniors, and the underclassmen, the guys that are back, like the Bryce Websters and the Jonathan Williams, the Kevin Paytons, just need to believe. They need some encouragement and they need somebody to give them some hope."

Smith said he feels good about the situation at Minnesota.

"You take a job and you do the best you can," he said. "I think we got some players. I think we can compete in the Big Ten. Obviously, last year is a tough transition when you lose a coach [seven] games into the season. "That's tough to do. I think Jim Molinari did good job keeping them together."

The Gophers have one scholarship available, and Smith didn't rule out signing somebody for the coming season.

"We're always recruiting. We could, I'm not going to say no, but I'm going to say yeah, because I don't know," Smith said. "We're involved. We're recruiting guys still that could possibly play. People are always calling us about this guy who could help you. So were evaluating all those calls when people say there is somebody that can help you now."

Smith said, as far his staff is concerned, that he might be interested in hiring a film and video coordinator.

Asked if the Gophers will have a Midnight Madness to start the season, Smith said:

"We're going to do something to promote basketball. We'll do something, I don't know if it will be that but we'll do something along those lines."

There are a lot of pluses to the hiring of Smith, but one big thing he gives this program is credibility. And that will help recruiting. And let's face facts: you win with good players.

Johnsson will play

Wild President and General Manager Doug Risebrough said defenseman Kim Johnsson, who was the victim of a cheap shot in the first-round playoff series against Anaheim and suffered a serious concussion that could have ended his hockey career, underwent some medical tests recently and said the results were very favorable. Now there isn't much doubt the defenseman -- who signed a four-year, $19.4 million contract last offseason -- will play this coming season.

The hit on Johnsson by the Ducks' Brad May in Game 4 of the first-round playoff series resulted in a three-game suspension for May.

Some 100 high school and college hockey players who are considered potential high NHL draft choices are in Toronto this week for various tests and workouts. Among this group are seven players from Minnesota. They are: Mark Guggenberger, a goalie from Richfield; Jake Hansen, a right winger from White Bear Lake; Mike Hoeffel, left winger from North Oaks who is with the USA under-18 team; Ryan McDonagh, a defenseman from Cretin-Derham Hall; and centers Jim O'Brien of the Gophers, Nico Sacchetti of Virginia, Minn., and Patrick White of Grand Rapids.

Kyle Okposo, the Gophers hockey star selected in the first round by the New York Islanders in the 2006 draft, will decide in the next two weeks whether he will sign a pro contract or remain playing college hockey.