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!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mike Eaves May be the Coach of the Year

Mike Eaves of the University of Wisconsin has been selected as one of 10 finalists for the Spencer Penrose Award, given annually to the top coach in NCAA Division I men's hockey.
The list of finalists for the award, presented by the American Hockey Coaches Association, includes the coaches of all four teams at the Frozen Four: Eaves, Enrico Blasi of Miami (Ohio), Wayne Wilson of the Rochester Institute of Technology and Jerry York of Boston College.
Eaves was runner-up to Blasi in 2006 for the award, marking the only other time he was nominated. No UW coach has ever won the award, which is celebrating its 60th year.
To be a finalist for the award, a coaches must either be voted Coach of the Year in his conference or take his team to the NCAA Frozen Four.
The Spencer Penrose Award is named in honor of the former Colorado Springs benefactor who built the Broadmoor Hotel Complex, site of the first 10 NCAA hockey championships.
The 2010 winner will be announced after the Frozen Four and presented at the American Hockey Coaches Association banquet on May 1 in Naples, Fla.
If he wins the award it will be great for Wisconsin. 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!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!