New Hockey League is Taking Shape

Another major shakeup is on the horizon for NCAA men's college hockey.

Four months after it was announced that the Big Ten Conference would sponsor the sport starting in 2013-14, an affiliation that includes the University of Wisconsin, multiple reports Thursday say another league will debut in that same time frame.

In a story first reported by the Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald, five Western Collegiate Hockey Association schools will join forces with Miami (Ohio) out of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association to form a new partnership.

Citing unnamed sources, the Herald said Colorado College, Denver, defending NCAA champion Minnesota-Duluth, Nebraska-Omaha and North Dakota are leaving the WCHA, which has existed since 1951 and produced 37 national champions.

It's possible that Notre Dame and Western Michigan also could join the new league, which is expected to be officially unveiled next week in Colorado Springs, Colo.

The development comes in the heels of the Big Ten's announcement in March that UW and Minnesota from the WCHA and Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State from the CCHA would hook up with Penn State to form a new league.

Thanks to an $88 million gift from billionaire alum Terry Pegula, Penn State is introducing men's and women's hockey in 2012-13, giving the Big Ten the six members on the men's side needed for NCAA sanctioning.

Such a mass exodus - seven teams leaving the WCHA, six leaving the CCHA - would leave the two established conferences with five members apiece, which isn't enough to maintain NCAA sanctioning. It's expected that they would join forces in some fashion.  

It will be interesting to see how things shake out.  GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Big Ten Hockey?

Before delving into details of the newest University of Wisconsin men's hockey schedule, circumstances almost beg that we first look further down the road.

The schedule for 2012-13 will be the last for UW in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association before the new Big Ten Conference makes its debut in 2013-14.

In addition to playing their final set of WCHA games, the Badgers will be expected to accommodate as many future Big Ten opponents as possible.

That includes Penn State, which is scheduled to play its inaugural season in NCAA Division I in 2012-13, as well as Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State, which are leaving the Central Collegiate Hockey Association to join the Big Ten for hockey.

Of course, Minnesota, which will join the Big Ten after being a member of the WCHA since 1959-60, will be on the schedule.

UW coach Mike Eaves acknowledged those new priorities exist but said his scheduling canvas for 2012-13 has a ton of white space.

Let's hope that Bucky can make the adjustment.  GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Badgers are losing confidence

It's no secret that the No. 18 Wisconsin men's hockey team has fallen on hard times. The Badgers are 0-5-1 since their bye week, and have been steadily dropping in the national polls and conference standings all month. A month ago, home ice in the WCHA playoffs and a berth in the NCAA tournament seemed a certainty. These days, not so much.

With the way the past month has gone for the Badgers you would expect the confidence level in the locker room to be dampened, but Wisconsin head coach Mike Eaves said that what his team is going through right now isn't all that unexpected.

"The confidence level isn't what it has been at other times during the year, I would be lying if I said anything different," Eaves said. "But by the same token what we're going through is what most teams will go through at some point in a season."

For those looking for precedent in this situation, Eaves pointed to the 2006 national champion team, who went through a similar situation as this year's squad.

"Relating it to the story about '06 when we lost [former goaltender] Brian Elliott. Brian came back and we lost two games against Mankato and we were kind of going through the same thing," he said. "We were able to gather ourselves then, win the next series and get on a roll."

"Our hope is that we can do the same with this group," Eaves added.

"They are a young group that has played very well at times. They know they can beat anybody. It's been a tough stretch but we have to gather ourselves like the '06 team did and see if we can get ourselves on a roll."

Eaves refused to label the Badgers' current situation as desperate or crisis-like, instead choosing to remain optimistic by seeing it as a chance for this young team to grow and come together.

"Sometimes when you go through things like this what seems like a negative becomes a positive," Eaves said after Saturday's 7-3 loss to St. Cloud State. "It's how you handle these moments and how you try to right your ship. This is a big growth opportunity for this team."

For Eaves, choosing to be negative in the face of adversity doesn't result in positive results moving forward.

"I don't think being negative in any situation has any benefits," he said. "We can be truthful with one another, we're not going to skirt issues. It's about perspective, and the perspective of the coaching staff and our captains is one of moving forward and figuring this out together, doing the things we need to do and get going again."

A good analogy for what this team is going through, and how it will end positively, is marriage, according to Eaves.

"The value of marriage in real life goes up when you go through hard times," he said. "The value of a team concept becomes more real when you go through hard times. This is part of us becoming closer as a team. It's a good thing to go through and we hope to see the benefits as soon as this weekend."

Let's hope the Badgers can turn it around in time.  GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Badger Hockey Roster Set

Near as University of Wisconsin men's hockey coach Mike Eaves can tell, his roster for next season is set.
In addition to the signings Thursday of two freshmen — defenseman Joe Faust and winger Gavin Hartzog — junior winger Jordy Murray has told Eaves he intends to return.
Murray, the top returning goal-scorer for the Badgers with 12, had weighed the possibility of leaving school to play professionally in Europe. His older brother, Brady, took a similar career path in 2005 after two seasons at North Dakota.
"I don't foresee anyone else leaving (early)," Eaves said.
Faust and Hartzog are byproducts of a volatile offseason that saw four underclassmen leave UW for the NHL teams that own their rights: sophomore center Derek Stepan (New York Rangers) and junior defensemen Cody Goloubef (Columbus), Ryan McDonagh (Rangers) and Brendan Smith (Detroit).
Faust was added after McDonagh signed, but not before he backed out of an oral commitment to attend Princeton. Faust, listed at 5-foot-11 and 190 pounds, was a standout the past two years at Bloomington (Minn.) Jefferson High School and was a fourth-round NHL draft pick of New Jersey in June.
Hartzog, from Pewaukee, was added after Stepan's somewhat surprising decision to turn pro. Hartzog, listed at 6-3 and 210 pounds, played last season with Fargo (N.D.) of the U.S. Hockey League and Bismarck (N.D.) of the North American Hockey League.
Faust (uniform No. 24) and Hartzog (No. 13) are part of a 10-member freshman class that includes center Tyler Barnes (No. 7), winger Jason Clark (No. 29), center Jefferson Dahl (No. 14), defenseman Chas Drake (No. 5), winger Sean Little (No. 18), winger Mike Mersch (No. 25), defenseman Frankie Simonelli (No. 27) and center Mark Zengerle (No. 9).

Lets hope Bucky can return to the Frozen Four. GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-11 Badger Hockey Schedule

There are all sorts of new faces, places and formats to embrace when it comes to the University of Wisconsin men's hockey schedule for 2010-11, which was released Thursday.
It all starts with the fact the Badgers will have two more challengers for the MacNaughton Cup, given annually to the regular-season champion in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.
Bemidji (Minn.) State and Nebraska-Omaha make their debuts in the 12-team league, having been absorbed from College Hockey America and the Central Collegiate Hockey Association, respectively.
The Beavers play at the Kohl Center Dec. 10 and 11, while UW travels to Omaha Feb. 11 and 12.
Bemidji State is one of two schools on the home schedule that have never played in Madison, much less the Kohl Center. The other is Canisius, an Atlantic Hockey entry which skates here Jan. 7 and 8.
The Badgers will open the 38-game regular season Oct. 8 and 10 in St. Louis facing Boston University, the 2009 NCAA champion, in the Ice Breaker Tournament.
UW, fresh off advancing to the NCAA title game, will make its home debut under odd circumstances. The non-conference series with Alabama-Huntsville Oct. 15 and 17 is a Friday-Sunday affair to accommodate a Big Ten Conference night football game at Camp Randall Stadium between the Badgers and Ohio State Oct. 16.
UW coach Mike Eaves apparently likes the balance of the schedule, which includes five home series before final exams and five after.
"And for one of the rare years, we are at home for the last series of the (regular) season," he said of a meeting with Colorado College that marks the third time in the past seven years the Badgers have finished up at home.

Let's hope the Badgers can continue thier winning ways. GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Badgers crush RIT to advance to National Championship

Just days before the Badgers played their first Frozen Four game a few players said that it would be natural to be a bit nervous in the opening moments on such a big stage.
But when the puck dropped not a single player in Cardinal and White seemed to have the slightest case of nerves. Instead they simply dominated.
Wisconsin keyed its 8-1 win over the Rochester Institute of Technology with a scorching start and near picture-perfect execution of its offensive philosophy. The early burst of energy helped carry them past the Tigers and into Saturday’s title game.
“It was one of our emphases to get off to a great start, and we wanted to just take time and space away quickly and see how they would handle it,” Wisconsin head coach Mike Eaves said. “We did what we needed to do, and we were able to get an early lead ... getting a good start was paramount.”
The Badgers came in waves in the first two minutes, throwing the puck into the corners and simply outracing RIT to establish possession.
Wisconsin completely controlled the puck for the first minute-and-a-half, from the initial seconds to the moment when senior forward John Mitchell banged home the first UW score on a rebound.
The onslaught continued as the Badgers kept pushing and generating scoring chances (lighting the lamp for a second time). Despite only holding a 10-6 lead in shots, they held complete control through the period and ultimately through the game.
Lets hope the the Badgers can take it to Boston College and win the National Championship. GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!

Badgers are headed to the Frozen Four

Ben Street knows it. Mike Eaves and Brendan Smith do too.
The Wisconsin men’s hockey team has had a charmed season in making its run to the Frozen Four — and possibly the program’s seventh national title. Lots of little things happened that added up in a big way: players staying, opportunities to play in big games and maybe most importantly, a lack of injuries.
“It’s not wood, but it will do,” Street said with a chuckle, as he tapped the practice rink boards in reference to the Badgers’ health this season.
Aside from senior tri-captain Blake Geoffrion missing a game early in the season and a two-game series at Michigan Tech at the end of February, Wisconsin has been lucky to avoid the injury bug. The fact he was able to return from the concussion with no ill effects is a big reason the Badgers are one of the last four college hockey teams standing, as the Brentwood, Tenn. native had two goals and three assists in Wisconsin’s two West Regional games.
“Any coach will tell you that you need a little bit of lady luck on your side, and having good travel and having people that are healthy makes a big difference,” Eaves, UW’s head coach said.
“The biggest thing I think is people not getting hurt,” Smith said. “That comes along in the season when your top players go down and it really affects — because somebody else has to step up and maybe they don’t do the exact same job.”
WCHA tournament champion North Dakota knows the pain of injury — the Sioux lost former All-WCHA defenseman Chay Genoway to head injury in November and UND struggled until a second-half surge.
In addition to staying injury free, the Badgers have also stayed, well, for lack of a better term, the same team. UW’s seven-man senior class is the Badgers’ biggest since the groups that won it all in 2006 and fell one overtime goal short of the Frozen Four in 2007.
Lets hope the Badgers can win another National Championship. GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

NCAA Hockey Tournament

On paper, it looks like a mismatch.
Wisconsin, which owns a 25-10-4 record, is the No. 1 seed in the West Regional in St. Paul after spending most of 2010 ranked third in the nation. The Badgers’ opponent, the fourth-seeded Vermont Catamounts, are three games above .500, with a 17-14-7 mark.
UW scores the second-most goals per game in the nation; UV is 32nd out of 58 teams. Wisconsin is in the top 13 in both power play and penalty kill; Vermont is 45th and 32nd, respectively. Two Badgers are among the 10 finalists for the Hobey Baker Award, given to college hockey’s most outstanding player; the other eight finalists include zero Catamounts.
It seems like Wisconsin should have no trouble winning its first game of the NCAA tournament, and the numbers back it up.
But don’t expect the Badgers to take the game lightly.
“First seed, four-seed… I look at their record, they’ve only got five or four more losses than we do. That’s not a big difference,” UW head coach Mike Eaves said. “Our belief as a coaching staff is any team can beat anybody because it’s one day, one-game and you’re in or out.
“We have a huge amount of respect because they’re at this point of the season with us.”
Despite its overall mediocrity, Vermont is one of the just 16 teams in the NCAA field. And now that the season has reached the “win-or-go-home” stage for every team, UW can’t afford to take the game lightly.
Lets hope the Badgers can go far in the tournament. GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Badgers Shine at Camp Randall Classic

Wisconsin junior defenseman Brendan Smith entered Saturday’s Culver’s Camp Randall Hockey Classic leading the team with three game winning goals, but his fourth is going to be tough to top.
Smith converted on two power play goals in the final five minutes, including the winner with 1:22 left, to lead the Badgers past Michigan 3-2 in front of 55,031 people—the second highest game attendance in college hockey history.
Both of the goals came after Wisconsin made an adjustment on their power play set, allowing Smith to find some breathing room at the top of the slot and get in position to snap off two blistering one-timers that beat junior Wolverine goaltender Bryan Hogan.
“I have to give credit to the power play, Michael Davies threaded that pass through the lane so perfectly,” Smith said. “The first one was more of a ‘close your eyes and shoot.’ The second one I had a little bit of a lane and got a hold of it a little bit more.”
The Badgers jumped out to an early lead when sophomore forward Jordy Murray collected a bouncing puck right in front of the net and had plenty of space to finish at the 3:04 mark. Michigan tied the game with just over a minute to play in the first and seemed to carry momentum in to the second period as the teams tried to get used to the elements and the ice.
“I felt like a freshman again out there,” said senior center and captain Blake Geoffrion. “I had the butterflies going and everything.”
Neither team developed much rhythm in the second period, which featured a lot of back-and-forth possessions and neutral zone play. Freshman forward Kevin Lynch put Michigan ahead with just under nine minutes to play in the third period, and threatened to send the crowd home cold and disappointed.
However, with the help of some football tradition in the form of ‘Jump Around’ and the late-game heroics of Smith, a night that started at 21 degrees ended with a much warmer feeling for UW fans and players alike.
“We were cold, but I think the goose bumps were because of how loud it was,” said senior center and captain Ben Street.
The game also served as an energy boost and a bounce-back after last Saturday’s performance against Minnesota-Duluth. A week after taking 13 penalties against the Bulldogs, the Badgers committed just two and got great work on the penalty kill by tenacious senior forwards Aaron Bendickson and Andy Bohmbach. On the other side of the puck, the Badgers went 2-4 on the power play a week after finishing 0-5 on Saturday and 1-10 for the series.
Many of the players talked about how playing outside took them back to the old days of playing out on the neighborhood rinks. In front of a huge crowd that produced an absolutely electric atmosphere, the late-game heroics that always seem to work their way into childhood competition became a reality for Smith.
“When a young player is out on the backdoor rink, all they think about is winning the Stanley Cup.” Smith said. “This is pretty damn close.”

It was great to see the Badgers pull it out for such a special game. GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!!

Frozen Four Preview?

For hockey fans who just can’t wait until April’s Frozen Four, heading to the Kohl Center this weekend might not be a bad idea, when No. 1 Denver takes on No. 3 Wisconsin. Both teams could find themselves earning No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament come late March.
The Pioneers (14-5-3, 10-3-3 WCHA) are riding a four-game unbeaten streak. But more important than the current unbeaten streak is DU’s recent domination of UW in Madison.
Denver is 11-2 at the Kohl Center since 2002 and only one of those losses was in the regular season. Although UW is 8-2-2 at home this season, DU plays well on the road, with a 6-3 mark. The Pioneers currently have a five-game winning streak over the Badgers, including a 3-0 victory in the WCHA Final Five last March.
Lets hope Bucky Badger can sweep the Pioneers. GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Team USA visits the Badgers

With a record crowd in attendance Tuesday, the Wisconsin women’s hockey team welcomed the U.S. Olympic National Team to the Kohl Center for an exhibition matchup.
The Olympic squad, comprised of six current or former Badgers and lead by sabbatical Wisconsin head coach Mark Johnson, left no doubt about who was the best team in the land by delivering a 9-0 victory over the Badgers.
It was a special night in the Kohl Center as four graduated Badgers were welcomed back as well as current UW athletes Hilary Knight and Meghan Duggan, who elected to take a year off to participate in the approaching Olympics in Vancouver.
“Honestly it was the highlight of my career,” Wisconsin interim head coach Tracey DeKeyser said. “I’m such a sucker for the Olympic games, and I cry every time it’s on, and for some reason I found myself kind of teary-eyed during the national anthem.”
After a ceremonial puck dropping to mark the occasion, Johnson’s crew wasted no time taking the speed of the game to a level the Badgers were not accustomed to.
“It was really fast. They dumped the puck in and they were on you right away,” junior Geena Prough said. “You had to really think on your toes.”
Senior Alannah McCready occupied the net for the Badgers in the first period while former Badger and Patty Kazmaier award winner Jessie Vetter stood her ground for Team USA.
From the looks of it to me Team USA will do well in the Olympics. GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Badgers Win Hockey Showdown

When the Badgers’ old winning formula of outshooting and outscoring their opponents by a wide margin was slowed, the Wisconsin men’s hockey team found a new way to win: be resilient.
Facing a No. 9 ranked Yale team that outshot the Wisconsin Badgers Hockey team 42-22, a depleted Badgers team hung on to win the final Badger Hockey Showdown in a shootout. Senior tri-captain Blake Geoffrion got the winning shootout goal as UW overcame a shorthanded roster, sloppy first period and a game misconduct to Jordy Murray to hang on to a 2-2 tie through overtime to force the shootout.
UW head coach Mike Eaves said he was happy with what the Badgers showed him during the tournament.
“Well, I am, because I think we were a resilient group this weekend,” he said. “I mean, we played this game with five defensemen and basically five defensemen last night too. I think the fact that we had to mix our lines up and try to find chemistry as we ran along… but I think the resiliency of this group was something that I think showed up.”
Holding on to a 2-1 lead in the third period, Yale’s Brian O’Neill scored a power play goal with 2:37 to play to tie the game. The Badgers missed opportunities earlier to take a bigger lead when Ben Grotting fired a shot off the post on what should have been an easy goal, as well a botched breakaway by Aaron Bendickson.
So with three of its young guns missing due to the World Junior Championship, it was two seniors who stepped up to push Wisconsin (13-5-2) to a six-game unbeaten streak. Seniors Michael Davies and Geoffrion scored in the shootout, while Yale’s third shooter, Denny Kearney was the only player to convert for the Bulldogs.
I was great to see the Badgers return to championship form. In fact, I am going to purchase some Badger Hockey Tickets right now. GO BUCKY!!!!!!!!!!!