Jeff Costello Commits to the Fightin' Irish

The USHL Blog is reporting what has been rumored for a few days, namely that Waukesha Catholic Memorial forward Jeff Costello has verballed to Notre Dame for 2010. I got a chance to see Costello play with Team Wisconsin Major on their opening weekend at the Kohl Center, and came away pleasantly surprised. My thoughts on Costello were that he was a very good playmaker, but he ended up with as many goals as assists in the Elite League-18 goals and 18 assists for 36 points, which was good for 5th overall.

Costello's verbal is, at least to my memory, the earliest a Wisconsin high school hockey player has ever committed to a Division 1 program. It used to be that players had to finish high school hockey in Wisconsin and play in the USHL before a Division 1 program would offer them a scholarship. Over just the past year or two, Wisconsin high school Seniors have begun receiving scholarship offers and making commitments (LaPoint, Erstad, Soley, Condon). Now, Costello is breaking new ground with a D1 offer and verbal commitment as a Junior.

Here's a nice article (but not new) on Costello from the Journal Sentinel.

Girls Hockey Photos & Article

Yout gotta love the Hodag. It actually smokes and roars...presumably when the home team notches a goal. The photo below the Hodag is the Rhinelander girls scoring one of their three goals last night as they skated to a 3-3 tie with the Lakeland girls, who has joined the WIAA for 2008-2009. For more photos from the game, compliments of Ricky Bassman, click here. For Ricky's main site, click here.

A reader was kind enough to forward this article on the Badger Thunder's personnel this year.

Sean Dolan

One more link before I leave for Madison: a nice article by Todd about Badger center Sean Dolan.

Tom Gilbert contract watch

Tom Gillbert's current contract with the Oil expires July 1, after which he'll be an RFA. Jim Matheson with the Edmonton Journal suggests that the Oil sign Gilbert before then to avoid the dreaded offer sheets.

Happy Birthday, Cody Goloubef

Loyal reader Gandalf pointed out that today is Cody's 18th birthday. Happy Birthday, Cody!

In honor of Cody's birthday, I thought I'd pull out this little tribute to Cody that I posted on Buckyville during the offseason after the draft.

Cody is too young to be in this year’s draft, and he’s always been just a little bit in Brendan Smith’s shadow. So he’s flying a tad under the radar, and we haven’t heard much about him lately . . . So, let’s go ahead and take a look at our young Mr. Goloubef . . .

Goloubef played with fellow Badger recruit Brendan Smith and and former Badger recruit Sam Gagner with the Toronto Marlies, where, like I said, he was always a bit in fellow-defensman Smith’s shadow. I don’t really have much info about this, except that his +/- was a crazy +117.

While Smith went off to St. Mike’s Buzzers, Goloubef went on to play for the Milton Ice Hawks for the ’05-’06 season. In 42 games, he scored 9 goals and 29 assists for 38 points. I don’t know what his final +/- was, but you can rest assured that it was very good. Regarding his +/-, he said “That’s something I’m particularly proud of.”

HERE and HERE are a couple of really nice articles about Cody from when he played for the Ice Hawks. (Edit: The first link appears to no longer work. I'll dig around and see if I can find the article again.)

One of the youngest players in the league and playing on one of the best teams in the league (they finished 1st in the regular season standing that year), he was one of Milton’s top defenseman. He sounds like a kid with a great attitude and a great work ethic, someone who’s always trying to learn how to improve his game. And he sounds like a smart defenseman. Before Goloubef added several inches and some weight (he’s 6’1, 195 now), Milton head coach/GM George Dupont said, “To be honest with you, I never questioned how (Cody) thought the game. But I always questioned whether he was going to have the size and strength to compete with the older players in our league.” Dupont also said, “Cody plays years beyond his age. He thinks the game at an elite level.” Goloubef’s blueline partner Jeff Caister added, "Sometimes you forget just how young he is. He's so calm out there, and because of that he makes smart decisions -- especially when he's got the puck."


Also during the ’05-’06 season, as noted by Heisenberg, Goloubef got a chance to step out of Smith’s shadow and did so “in a big way” by being named (along with Smith and Gagner) to Ontario’s U-17 team in the World U-17 Championships. Yay!

Cody then went on to play for the Oakville Blades of the OPJHL. He missed most of the season due to a hip injury, but in 9 regular season games he scored 5 goals and 5 assists for 10 points, and in 10 playoff games he scored 2 goals and 10 assists for 12 points.

In addition to Wisconsin, Goloubef was reportedly considering (in no particular order) Cornell, Notre Dame, BU, UNH, Maine, Miami, and Ohio State. Apparently Wisconsin wasn’t originally on his list, but he took an unofficial visit and liked what he saw. He narrowed things down to UW and BU, and obviously made the right decision.

He was also drafted in the 5th round by the Sarnia Sting of the OHL. But Cody decided that the NCAA route was better than the OHL route for him, saying “If I went to the Ontario Hockey league, when I was done playing hockey, playing pro, I’d have to go back and do university. The biggest pro for school was I could be doing those both at the same time, which was really attractive. ”

So ultimately, Cody chose the Badgers, saying he liked the UW coaches’ experience and track record. “Coach Eaves has played and coached at every level. Coach Eaves, Osiecki and coach Patrick have a history of getting you ready for the NHL and that's important to me." About committing with Gagner and Smith, he said, “We had an idea that we wanted to win the national championship together since we were younger. But we knew we had to do what was right for us. We all saw when we visited that Wisconsin offered what we needed to be successful individually, so that helped.” Of course, Gagner jumped ship, but Goloubef maintained his decision. At the time, his dad said, “Our decision was predicated on what's best for Cody. We reiterated that we were committed to Wisconsin.”

You can read a bit more about his committing to Wisconsin HERE, HERE, and HERE.

And last but not least, here’s what Mike Eaves has to say about Goloubef. “Cody is very solid. He sees the ice well and understands the game in terms of the reads that he gives you and is able to play with and without the puck very well.”

"It's Friday, I'm in Love"

Hurray, it's Friday again!

The Badger Women host the UMD Bulldogs, who Rachel Bible calls the Badgers' biggest rival.

The Badger men host the St. Cloud Huskies. Todd has the lines (Ford still out, healthy scratches are Gorowsky, Bearson, and C. Johnson) and shoot-out winner (Jamie McBain!).

The campus papers have a variety of articles today:
Badger Herald: Geoffrion keeps it simple
Daily Cardinal: Badgers trying to get on track
Daily Cardinal: Put up or shut up time for UW hockey

And, of course, the usual supsects have WCHA weekend notebooks:
USCHO
INCH
WCHA Blog


Edited to add: Oopsie, I missed a couple links the first time around. SORRY!! *hangs head*
CHN Tale of the Tape
Badgernation: Another ranked threat

Player of the Year Watch

So I've had this list of players, printed on the back of an envelope, sitting next to my computer for a few weeks (or about the time Seth Soley went to the USHL, since I pretty much figured he had it wrapped up had he stayed at Eau Claire Memorial). It's a list of players I think merit watching for high school player of the year. I've been trying to narrow the list down to either 8 or 10 players, but just can't quite come to a consensus. Since I've only listed a total of 12 players, I figure I might as well just throw them all out there for everyone to see.

The Wisconsin Hockey Coaches Association does not list their criteria for this award on their website, but judging by the fact that all 8 finalists last season were Seniors, I believe that is a criteria, and have made my list accordingly. These are roughly in the order I have them ranked.

F-Jefferson Dahl-Eau Claire Memorial
F-Nate Condon-Wausau West
F-Cody Lettau-Fond du Lac
D-Tim Smith-Superior
D-Ted Behrend-Oregon
G-Brady Sand-Eau Claire Memorial
D-Brady Keegan-Eau Claire Memorial
D-David Donellan-Eau Claire Memorial
F-Casey Kirley-Hayward
F-Trent Frey-River Falls
D-Tyler Sorenson-Edgewood
D-Ryan Tess Wanat-Fond du Lac

I could spend a lot of time rationalizing my picks, but everyone will probably want to tell me I'm wrong anyway....so, I'll save us both the time and just let you get to leaving your comments!

Jake Dowell Breaks Foot, Out 2-4 Weeks

Yes, I know I included this in the previous linkorama, but I wanted to add some additional info. Apparently Jake broke his foot during the game @ Edmonton 11/24. He finished the game with 17:21 of ice time, and went on to play13:52 @ Vancouver 11/25 and 11:45 v. Tampa Bay 11/28. As loyal reader Wojo (you are a loyal reader, aren't you, Wojo?) would say, "That's one tough Badger there, boys and girls."

By the way, Dowell started yesterday's game v. Tampa centering the 3rd line with Adam Burish on the right wing. However, early in the game Dowell was swapped with Perrault and spent most of the game centering the 4th line.

It's Almost Friday Linkorama

It's almost Friday, and thus the requisite linkorama:

Badger Men
uwbadgers.com: Badgers ready to face the Huskies
WSJ: Up and down start for Turris
Badger Herald: UW looks to break ice, pick up win
Daily Cardinal: Street leads young Badger squad through first year
Daily Cardinal: Scoring first key as Huskies come to town
Daily Cardinal: Wait until second half approach necessary in judging Badgers
Daily Cardinal: Assistants provide foundation for success

Badger Women
uwbadgers.com: No. 4 Wisconsin hosts No. 3 UMD
umdbulldogs.com: No. 3 Bulldogs to battle No. 4 Badgers for WCHA supremacy in Madison this weekend
Daily Cardinal: Badgers and Bulldogs square off in Frozen Four rematch
Badger Herald: Secret's out on sophomore

Men's and Women's Alumni/Recruiting Updates
TCT/Icehouse: UW Men's Hockey: Updating the Past, Future
Daily Cardinal: Badgers find place in NHL, along with early success
Chicago Blackhawks: Dowell breaks foot
uwbadgers.com: Women's Hockey Signs 3

Picture of the Day

Kylee Zalewski celebrates as he notches one of his two goals against rival Stevens Point Tuesday night. Antigo won the game 4-1, snapping a 7 year losing streak to Point.

Photo compliments of Ricky Bassman.

High School Hockey Updates

I have added links on the side bar to the right that will take you directly into Pointstreak for both boys high school hockey scores and girls high school hockey scores.

It appears the Onalaska girls have joined with Holmen and Melrose-Mindoro in order to have enough players to field a team this year. Here's a piece on their early season struggles, both on offense and overall.

I also stumbled onto this article about St. Croix Valley Fusion girl's fast start, which I had covered previously.

Here's some articles from boys hockey games played on Tuesday:

#1 Eau Claire Memorial shut out #9 Wausau West 7 to 0
DePere over Bayport/Pulaski 6 to 2
#2 Fond du Lac defeated Green Bay United 7 to 1
Waupun doubled up (at bottom of article) Neenah 6 to 3
#7 Appleton handled Beaver Dam 6 to 3

All the boys scores from Tuesday can be found here.

Here is a nice article on Brett Olson, Seth Soley and Jake Hauswirth's commitments to Michigan Tech for 2008-2009, including comments from Head Coach Jamie Russell on Olson and Soley.

The Coulee News has an article on Alex McRae's verbal to Army.

Former Fond du Lac Head Coach, and current Woodbury, Minnesota High School Head Coach Wes Bolin gets some publicity today in the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Tuesday Morning Badger Links

Per Todd Milewski, Aaron Bendickson is set to return to practice today, whereas Matt Ford is unlikely to return this week.

Todd has a nice article on Ben Grotting today, discussing how he uses his speed and physicality to create turnovers. The article also talks a bit about the upcoming selection of players for the WJC.

In the Badger Blog, Andy Baggot also discusses which players might be selected to play in the WJC.

The campus papers rehash yesterday's press conference with Mike Eaves: The Badger Herald, The Daily Cardinal.

Nothing much new on the Badger Women, although the Daily Cardinal has a nice recap of last weekend's series at Bemidji State. This weekend they host UMD, who currently sit at the top of the WCHA.

Some Badger Odds and Ends

A couple of items that I missed last week, as well as a couple of new items:

Jessie Vetter's family hosted Thanksgiving for some of Jessie's teammates who were unable to return home for the holiday.

Mike Davies and Ben Street have struggled at times with inconsistencies in their play but are working through it.

Coach Eaves would like to see more from the #1 line but tries to put a positive spin on this past weekend.

And given that it's Monday, Eaves addressed the media today is his weekly presser. He specifically mentions Ben Grotting as a player who has been playing well recently.

And once again, I can't seem to find Coach Johnson's weekly presser. (Doesn't he normally have one? Why can't I find it?)

The Polls

The USCHO/CSTV Poll can be found here. In it, the Badger men slide one spot to number thireen, while the Badger Women drop to fourth. UW-River Falls still rules the Division 3 men's rankings while UW-Stevens Point holds at third in the women's Division 3 Poll.

Sunday in the USHL

Lincoln needed overtime for the win over Ohio Sunday 4-3. Justin Cseter had two assists for Ohio and was even for the game. For Lincoln, Ross Henry was -1 while teammate Travis Erstad was even.

He Shoots, He Scores

"It's a great feeling," Dowell said. "I've worked hard, and it's finally paying off getting my chance here. "I know it's a cliche, but every kid dreams of being able to play in the NHL."
(Daily Herald: Hawks' pipeline to Rockford stays productive)

In his first NHL game on Thursday, Jake Dowell scored his first NHL goal as the Blackhawks defeated the Flames 2-1. Pretty cool. You can see the goal in the highlight video -- there's a link on the right of the Hawks recap page, or you can see it on yahoo sports. You can also see some game pictures of Jake here.

The Eau Claire Leader-Telegram has a fantastic article, and WEAU has a story including an interview with Vicki Dowell. The Hockey News also congratulates Jake on his first NHL goal.

EDIT: Can't believe I missed this at first, but here's another story by WEAU featuring an interview with Jake in which he talks about his first goal.

In his second NHL game, Jake was held off the scoresheet in Chicago's shootout loss to the Edmonton Oilers. Tom Gilbert, playing for Edmonton, was also held off the scoresheet, but he logged over 29 minutes of ice-time. Wow.

Speaking of Tom Gilbert, the Oilers' website has a lengthy interview with Tom in which he answered questions from fans. I haven't had a chance to listen to it yet because it's almost 30 minutes long!

High School Hockey Recap

Boys Feature Game of the Week:

Number One Ranked Eau Claire Memorial easily dispatched #8 Waukesha Catholic Memorial Saturday by a score of 5-0. The Old Abes outshot their opponent 49-17, and got a hat trick from Sophomore Shayne McLaughlin. Eau Claire Memorial played three forward lines throughout the game, even adding a fourth forward line to the attack in the third period.

Here's the link to Friday's boys high school hockey scoreboard compliments of Pointstreak.
Here's the link to Saturday's boys high school hockey scoreboard compliments of Pointstreak.

Wisconsin Prep Hockey also has some game summaries you may want to read.


Girls Feature Game of the Week:

The only game recorded into Pointstreak over the weekend was Fondy/Waupun 6 and Point/Rapids 2...so I guess that's the game of the week. I also managed to find a story about the Warbirds game against Superior Friday night that they won 5-2, and their game against Point/Rapids.

Here's a link to the Pointstreak girls high school hockey scoreboard compliments of Pointstreak.

Weekend USHL Update

Friday

Waterloo was defeated by Cedar Rapids 4-1. Wisconsinites Brett Olson had a goal and Blake Kessel had an assist for Waterloo. Olson was -1 in the game along with teammates Craig Smith and Scott Pavelski, while Keegan Meuer was -2 and Kessel -3. Brock Montpetit did not play in the game.

Tri-City handled Des Moines 5-2. UW recruit Chris Hickey had a goal for Tri-City with Wisconsinite Kyle Ensign notching the assist. Hickey finished the game even, while Ensign was a game-best +4.

Green Bay claimed victory over Omaha 3-1. Wisconsinite & UW recruit Ryan Little was held off the scoresheet for Green Bay. For Omaha, the three Wisconsin natives were held off the scoresheet. Jake Hauswirth and Matt Thurber finished even, while Seth Soley was -1.

In the battle of "fighting Sioux's", Sioux Falls doubled up Sioux City 6-3. Wisconsinite Jake Drewiske had an assist for Sioux Falls and finished even, while teammates and fellow Wiconsinites Eric Springer (even) and Sam Zabkowicz (+2) were held off the scoresheet.

Chicago blistered Indiana 10-3. For Indiana, Wisconsinite Brent Gwidt had an assist and finished even. For Chicago, Wisconsinite Aaron Schmit was held off the scoresheet but racked up 14 minutes in penalties.


Saturday

Ohio edged Lincoln 1-0. Wisconsinite Justin Cseter was even for Ohio, while Travis Erstad and Ross Henry were both even for Lincoln.

Indiana got past Cedar Rapids 3-2. Brent Gwidt was even for Indiana.

Sioux Falls downed Des Moines 4-2. Wisconsinite Eric Springer had two assists and finished +2 for Sioux Falls. Fellow Wisconsinites and teammates Jake Drewiske (-2) and Sam Zabkowicz (even) were held off the scoresheet. Springer was named Third Star of the Game.

Green Bay handled Sioux City 2-1. Ryan Little was +1 for the Gamblers.

Omaha needed a shootout in a 5-4 victory over Tri-City. Jake Hauswirth was the First Star of the Game netting two goals in regulation, and the only shootout goal. He finished +1, as did Matt Thurber who also had a goal. Teammate Seth Soley finished -1. For Tri-City, Wisconsinite Kyle Ensign was even as was UW recruit Chris Hickey.

Waterloo got the best of Chicago 4-2. For Waterloo, Blake Kessel had two goals, finished +1 and was named First Star of the Game. Teammates Keegan Meuer and Brett Olson finished +1, while Scott Pavelski finished even and Craig Smith was -1. Brock Montpetit was again not active in this game. For Chicago, Wisconsinite Aaron Schmit finished even.

Weekend Badger Update

The Badger Women continued their up and down season by defeating Bemidji State 7-0 Friday and then skating to a scoreless tie on Saturday.

The Badger Men did not play well, especially on special teams, in a 3-2 loss against Michigan. Saturday against Michigan State, Scott Gudmandson got his first road start in goal and second overall which resulted in a tie game thanks to a late Badger rally. With the tie the Badgers snapped their four game losing streak, but still have a five game winless streak intact.

Turkey Day in the USHL

Cedar Rapids snuck past Waterloo 2-1 in overtime. Brett Olson, who recently came off the 45 day Injured Reserve List, had an assist and Blake Kessel a goal for Waterloo, with both finishing even. Teammates Keegan Meuer, Craig Smith and Scott Pavelski also finished even. Brock Montpetit did not play in the game for Waterloo. In the shootout, Pavelski, Smith and Olson all failed to convert. Goaltender Michael Johnson had joined Cedar Rapids recently, but was apparently sent back to St. Louis of the NAHL after two games.

Sioux City handled Des Moines 4-1.

I'm Thankful for...Fighting in the USHL

Wednesday Scores

It looks like the Chicago Steel and Green Bay Gamblers got the holiday season started right with a bunch of fights, including one between the goaltenders. Chicago rolled 8-3 in the game. Future Badger goaltender and current Gambler Aaron Crandall got tossed for fighting in the contest, as did Wisconsinite Aaron Schmit, a defenseman for Chicago. Ryan Little, a Green Bay Gambler defenseman finished -2. EDIT: HERE'S THE FIGHT VIDEO

Wisconsinite and Omaha Lancer forward Matt Thurber got the cheer flowing in Sioux Falls as he served five for fighting in the first period. Sioux Falls eventually prevailed 6-4. Jake Hauswirth had a goal for Omaha and finished even while teammate Thurber had an assist and was -1. For Sioux Falls, Jake Drewiske had an assist and finished +1, Sam Zabkowicz had an assist and finished even, while Eric Springer failed to dent the scoresheet.

Bonus Clip....This video is Jake Drewiske fighting the Gambler's Bobby Shea this past weekend.

Lincoln blanked Tri-City 6-0. For Tri-City, Wisconsinite Kyle Ensign was -1 as was future Badger Chris Hickey. For Lincoln, Travis Erstad had a goal and an assist and finished +1 while Ross Henry was held off the scoresheet. Incredibly, there were no fights to report on........

Badger Defensemen: A couple of links

Todd Milewksi has a nice article today on the Coach Osiecki and the 3 freshmen defenders.

Tom Gilbert has been playing quite well for Edmonton lately, and he gets some love in today's Edmonton Journal from Oilers' Head Coach Craig MacTavish and from his teammates. The article begins talking about how Gilbert has yet to receive a penalty this season, but it continues to talk about how smart he is on the ice -- makes good decisions, rarely out of position, etc. And, of course, Gilbert has some nice things to say, too:

"I'm getting more and more comfortable every game I'm out there," Gilbert said. "Getting a lot of power-play time has helped me, too, and I'm getting time on the penalty kill. That's really benefiting me.

"I just have to keep working hard. I want to be that guy who they look at in those key situations. But I am just keeping it simple still, and that's what's helped me have success out there. I just move the puck when I can and not try to do too much."

More Jake Dowell

I found a couple more articles mentioning Jake Dowell's call up, and I've pulled out pertinent pieces:

Blackhawks Bits

On Wisconsin
Another call-up from Rockford, Jake Dowell, was a teammate of Hawks forward Adam Burish for three seasons at Wisconsin and they won an NCAA championship together in 2006. Dowell is expected to make his NHL debut Thursday alongside Burish on the Hawks' checking line and penalty-killing unit.

"I want to bring anything I can to the table," Dowell said. "I want to bring energy, play well defensively and try to be really good on the penalty kill."

Dowell's locker was placed next to Burish at the Hawks' practice facility in Bensenville.

"It obviously helps a lot having a familiar face to help guide me," Dowell said.

Goin' IceHog Wild

''I'm pretty excited,'' Dowell said. ''I've been waiting a long time, and there's no better place to play my first game than Calgary. There'll be a great atmosphere.''

Dowell had five goals, nine assists and a plus-1 rating, and he might have a better shot of sticking with the Hawks because he has been assigned to the fourth line. He'll join David Koci and Adam Burish, Dowell's teammate for three seasons at the University of Wisconsin. Koci is coming off the injured-reserve list now that his broken nose has healed.

The eventual return of Williams, who skated by himself the last two days, and Havlat, who will add contact work next week, makes Versteeg's survival with the Hawks a difficult proposition. The fourth line, though, recently lost its leader when Kevyn Adams went down with torn ligaments in his left knee. Dowell, 22, could find a long-term place on that line if he performs well.

''He's a solid two-way player with some grit, and he can also skate,'' Savard said. ''He fits there perfectly.''

I like that Savard says "and he can also skate", as I know that's something Jake worked on in the offseason. Nice to see his effort pay off. Here's hoping that Jake does in fact find a long-term place with the Hawks. I've heard that Jake's coach in Rockford told him he earned the promotion and "not to be back"! Good luck, Jake!!

Wednesday Morning Linkorama

The Badger men face Michigan and Michigan State in the College Hockey Showcase this weekend, and the campus newspapers have previews: Badger Herald, Daily Cardinal. The Badger Herald also had a nice article last week about one of my favorite freshmen, Cody Goloubef. And the Daily Cardinal had a nice article about Badger parents.

The Badger Blog has RLR rankings for current Badgers and Badger recruits eligible for the next NHL draft. And of course, Milewski has stat updates for Badger recruits and Badger Alumni.

The Badger women face Bemidji State and are looking to end their 3-game skid.

And in case you missed it, here's a link to Coach Eaves' Monday pressers. I didn't see a link for Coach Johnson's Monday presser on uwbadgers.com. If anyone has it, let me know and I'll add it here!

Mike Dalhuisen

This is not really a Wisconsin hockey-related post, but it's a good story and I hope you'll forgive me for this rare transgression. Ryan on the USHL blog has this story about Lincoln Star Mike Dalhuisen and his mother Romy. Romy has leukemia, and Mike is selling LIVEHOCKEY bracelets to raise money for leukemia and his mother. Ryan is taking orders for the bracelets (chances are you can order red ones), and he is also taking additional donation via paypal. To order a bracelet or to donate, click HERE.

Jake Dowell Called Up By Hawks

(Photo by Neil Ament)
Jake Dowell was called up by the Hawks on Friday. The move was precipitated by the reassignment of David Bolland to Rockford, recent injuries to Badger alum Rene Borque (out 4-6 weeks with broken thumb) and Jason Williams, and the continued injury to Martin Havlat. Hawks GM Dale Tallon says that Dowell has been one of the most consistent forwards in Rockford and that he provides "good penalty killing and grit".

The Hawks next game is Thursday night at 8pm in Calgary, and Dowell is expected to see time as the 4th-line center and on the penalty kill.

To hear what Jake has to say about all this, check out this video. The video is just background footage, but it includes a nice telephone interview with Jake.

Edited to add: Here's another interview with Jake.

I'm Back Linkorama!

Sorry for the lack of posts of late. It doesn't happen very often around here, but serious illnesses to blog contributors, serious illnesses of blog contributors' family members and chasing the elusive whitetail in Northern Wisconsin have all contributed to the lack of posts since Friday. Oh well, everybody needs a break now and then....

The Badgers got lessons early and often courtesy of Colorado College this weekend. The Badgers were swept in the series and may have lost some of their early season confidence.

With injuries to Aaron Bendickson and Matt Ford on Friday, the Badgers have had to juggle their lines. The result may not be permanent for this weekend, but for now are as follows:

Street-Turris-Engel
Gorowsky-Geoffrion-Johnson
Mitchell-Dolan-Grotting
Davies-Bohmbach-Turnbull

The Badger Men fell from #9 to #12 in the polls.

The Badger Women did the unthinkable and got swept by New Hampshire this weekend, losing both games 2-1. The sweep understandably put UNH in first in the polls this week and the Badgers in second.

Both Wisconsin's Men & Women's Hockey Teams should thank the Big 10 Network for the new practice facility that is planning to be built for them to utilize. The funds from the Big 10 Network are apparently going to pay for the new facility.

The St. Croix Valley Fusion girls hockey team is off to a fantastic start defeating the last two State Champions in the form of Fondy/Waupun (with a score of 6-3) and Appleton (with a score of 5-0) in Fond du Lac this past weekend.

Wisconsin Prep Hockey has their pre-season Top Ten Poll out for boys hockey.

With a 5-0-2 record Wisconsin River-Falls has claimed the top spot in the Division III Mens Poll.

As for the Division III Women's Poll, the best placed team is Wisconsin Stevens Point in third.

Beaver Dam native Nick Sirota is absolutely tearing it up for Northern Michigan on the scoresheet this season. The Junior forward has scored ten goals and 6 assists for sixteen points in just twelve games.

Girls High School Hockey Previews

Here is the Final Girls Hockey Top 5 for the 2006-2007 regular season:

1. Superior (was #1) (12-6-0)
2. Fondy/Waupun (was #2) (13-4-0)
3. Onalaska (was #3) (14-4-0)
4. Chippewa Falls (was HM) (11-2-1)
5. Point/Rapids (was #4) (13-5-2)

Honorable Mention:
Appleton (was #5) (10-5-2)
St. Croix Valley Fusion (was HM) (13-5-0)

You'll find the ranked teams previewed below, as well as Northland Pines, who advanced to the State Tournament.

Northland Pines

Players graduated:
D-Jamie Athens 27-21-48-First Team All-State
D-Julia Weber 4-4-8
F-Star Slade 2-6-8
F-Stephanie Zdroik 0-1-1
G-Rene Placek

12 returning skaters
1 Senior returning


St. Croix Valley

Players graduated:
Tracy Klinger-Honorable Mention All-State
Amy Pierce
Nicole Swenson
Megan Murphy
Betsy Ward-Second Team All-State

13 returning skaters
2 Seniors returning


Appleton

Players graduated:
F-Danielle McIntosh 13-9-22 Honorable Mention All-State
D-Kristina Westmark 9-3-12-First Team All-State; Player of the Year
F-Danielle Pickett 5-6-11

15 returning skaters
5 Seniors returning


Point/Rapids

No roster available
F-Emily Haluska will be a Senior and was First Team All-State last season
G-Caitlin Lacasse graduated and was Honorable Mention All-State


Chippewa Falls

Players graduated:
F-Aimee Brasseur 1-0-1

15 players returning
3 Seniors returning
Mikayla Hogan returns, she was First Team All-State as a Sophomore last season

Onalaska

Players graduated:
F-Nicole Hanson 24-28-52-First Team All-State
F-Amy Sibik 32-13-45-Second Team All-State
F-Sarah Lichtie 17-9-26
F-Hailie Meyer 10-15-25
F-Sarah Tyler 5-5-10
G-Ally Swanke-Antony15-5 record & 2.65 gaa

8 returning skaters
2 Seniors returning


Fondy/Waupun

Players graduated:
F-Amber Cmejla-Second Team All-State
D-Brittany Schleicher
D-Nicole Drews

12 skaters returning
8 Seniors returning


Superior

Players graduated:
F-Taylor VanDamme-Second Team All-State
F-Carise Hals
F-Alyssa Uotinen
D-Alicia Cummings
D-Erica VanDamme

15 returning players
7 Seniors returning


Finally, here is the list of players on Team Wisconsin this year. This gives some insight into how many upper level players made Team Wisconsin from their respective high school teams. The players and teams are pretty diverse....making the mystery of which team is going to come out on top this season even a little more cloudy....

Jersey # Name Grade Position Full Year Team
1 Ayla Jacobsen 10 G Badger Thunder Girls
3 Megan Cox 9 F/D New Richmond Girls
4 Keela Patterson 10 D Rapids Girls
5 Abbey Olejniczak12 F Northland Pines Girls
6 Sarah Suchla 12 F Menomonie Girls
7 Amy Knutson 12 F Fondy-Waupan Girls
8 Maxine Blohowiak10 D Bay Port High School Boys
9 Mikayla Hogan 11 F Chippewa Falls Girls
10 Lauren Gamble 12 F Fox City High School Boys
11 Lily Cranston 10 F St. Croix Fusion Girls
12 Joan Schumitsch 11 D Marshfield Blades
14 Hanna Turnbull 11 D Hayward Girls
15 Karlyn Sturtevant11 F St. Croix Fusion Girls
16 Danielle Cleveland12 D/F Cap City Cougars (Sun Prarie co-op)
18 Mallory Andrews 10 F Red Raiders
19 Josie Johnson 9 D Cap City Cougars
20 Abby Maier 11 F One of the Madison Girls Coops
21 Kaleigh Spickerman12 F Ashland 19u
30 Emily Engel 11 G Madison Metro Lynx

Tracking Wisconsin Born Talent

I (Chuck Schwartz) have been tinkering with a new website to track the progress of Wisconsin born hockey players once they leave the high school ranks. I have started a new site at this LINK. (Hopefully I can clean up that URL soon)

The goal of the site is to keep stats of almost all Wisconsin born players at the Junior level and above. As of right now I don't plan to track the smaller professional leagues or the smaller junior leagues. The leagues that I do plan to track as of right now (subject to change): NHL, AHL, ECHL, D-1 college, D-3 college, USHL, NAHL, OHL, and the MNJHL.

So far I have the NHL, AHL, ECHL, D-1, and D-3 updated. Hopefully I can update the junior leagues over the weekend.

If you find any players that have been missed so far or in the future, e-mail me at wisconsinstattracker@gmail.com

Thursday Updates

Senior Matt Ford is the next player to play right wing on the Badgers first line.

Mindoro native and current Fairbanks forward (NAHL) Alex McRae has given a verbal commitment to Army.

The Wausau Daily Herald has a piece about Nate Condon's verbal to Minnesota.

In the USHL last night, Indiana slid past Green Bay 4-3 in regulation. Wisconsinite Brent Gwidt scored a goal and was even for Indiana. For Green Bay, Wisconsinite and UW recruit Ryan Little was -1, while UW recruit Aaron Crandall did not play in this game.

Wednesday's Web Gems

Blake Kessel's "chat" answers have been posted at the USHL website.

Western College Hockey pointed out that the NHL has released their NCAA players to Watch list which includes Wisconsin's Cody Goloubef.

Tuesday Roundup

Shane Connelly has been named the WCHA Defensive Player of the Week.

Joe Finley must apologize to Bucky Badger for slashing him.

The Badgers are in the midst of a tough stretch of their schedule.

Don't expect any letters of intent during the early signing period for the Badger Men's Hockey team.

Mike Eaves discusses Connelly's mental preparation, Turris having a target on his back, a possible line change for the first line, and the big sheet of ice the Badgers will play on at Colorado College this weekend. This article goes into further detail on some of those same topics (which Eaves covered in his weekly press conference).

Badger Rankings

Both the Badger Men and Women's Hockey Teams moved up one spot in the USCHO.com/CSTV rankings. The men moved from #10 up to #9 while the Women regained the top spot after having been ranked #2 last week.

USHL Sunday Report

Sioux City took it to Omaha 5-2 on Sunday. Matt Thurber had an assist on a goal scored by Seth Soley. Thurber finished -2 while Soley was +1 for Omaha. Potential UW recruit Patrick Wiercioch was held off the score sheet.

Boys High School Hockey Team Previews-#1-#3

The teams that finished between first and third last season all had significant offseason losses, but also have a very talented core of players returning.


#3-Superior-They lost the most players of the top 3 teams, graduating 7 total. Two Honorable Mention All-State forwards in the form of Sean Graskey and Brian Pierpont graduated along with 4 other forwards and a defenseman. These players accounted for 46% of their goals last season. Returning for the Spartans is a very good core of players including senior defenseman Tim Smith, who was an All-State selection, a Select 17 National Development Camp participant and who is a member of Team Wisconsin Major this season. Also back is junior forward Pat Dalbec and sophomore defenseman Chris Bishop, both of whom are also playing for Team Wisconsin Minor. Throw in the fact that talent tends to regenerate itself in Superior annually (it must be the water) and it's not hard to see how they should be a formidable team once again.

GF 110 - GA 78

Losing 7 Seniors

(F) Sean Graskey: 15g-23a = 38 pts
(F) Brian Pierpont: 16g-16a = 32 pts
(F) Nate Hendry: 7g-13a = 20 pts
(F) Brian Crawford: 8g-7a = 15 pts
(F) Dave Smith: 4g-3a = 7 pts
(F) Nolan VanDamme: 0g-5a = 5 pts
(D) Matt Bombich: 2g-7a = 9 pts


#2-Eau Claire Memorial-Add together a small number of graduates from last season, a returning senior class of 11 players, and a large core of highly talented players and now you know why Eau Claire Memorial should again be considered one of the frontrunners for a State Championship this season.

Just three players graduated last season, totaling almost 18% of their offensive production. The biggest loss from the senior class was forward Isaiah Bennis, who was All-State.

My personal pick for Player of the Year this season would have been Seth Soley, the All-State forward who also played for Team Wisconsin. Unfortunately for the Old Abes, the Michigan Tech recruit opted to play in the USHL shortly after accepting his scholarship, on the very first day of high school hockey practice. Soley scored 24 goals and 26 assists for 50 points last season (going into the State Tournament) and will be sorely missed despite all the talent left on the roster.

Up front Memorial returns a senior All-State forward in Jefferson Dahl. Dahl likely would be a member of Team Wisconsin Major, but could not try out due to an injury. Another talented forward back for the Old Abes is Sophomore Shayne McLaughlin. McLaughlin is already 6'2" and 195 pounds, was a Select 15 National Development Camp participant, and is also playing for Team Wisconsin Minor. On the defensive side, senior All-State defenseman Brady Keegan and senior defenseman David Donnellan who is also a member of Team Wisconsin Major will be the anchors. If anyone manages to get past the first two layers of ECM talent, they'll have one more giant challenge to beat All-State senior goaltender Brady Sand.

GF 158 - GA 37

Losing 3 Seniors - 28 Goals (17.7% of offense)

(F) Isaiah Bennis: 20g-40a = 60 pts
(F) Mike Miland: 7g-8a = 15 pts
(F) Brad Hunsley: 1g-1a = 2 pts


#1-Fond du Lac-The Cardinals rode their depth and hot goaltending through the State Tournament last season. The depth should be back, but goaltending is a question mark. Three First Team All-State players graduated for the Cardinals, and five players overall graduated. All-State selection Ryan Smet is the only forward loss, while two defensemen inlcuding All-State selection Tyler Gross also graduated. Fondy also graduated two goaltenders including All-State selection Randy Willis. These players totaled just 20% of their scoring from last season.

The leading returning players for Fond du Lac are senior All-State forward Cody Lettau, Select 16 National Development Camp participant and Team Wisconsin Minor forward junior Sean Little, and Team Wisconsin Minor alternate sophomore Brent Martin. Fondy is also adding some firepower through two local players that are transferring in from other teams. Team Wisconsin Minor defenseman sophomore Brian Kemp is transferring in from Fond du Lac St. Mary's Springs (he played the previous season with the Capitols), while senior defenseman Ryan Tess-Wanat, who previously played with Wisconsin AAA and led the WHSEL U-18's in scoring this Spring will also be playing for Fond du Lac.

GF 128 - GA 34

Losing 5 Seniors

(F) Ryan Smet: 21g-25a = 46 pts
(D) Tyler Gross: 3g-10a = 13 pts
(D) Paul Biolo: 2g-8a = 10 pts
(G) Randy Willis: .932 Sv%
(G) Ryan Weber: .925 Sv%

Badger Men: The Aftermath

Andy Baggot talks about the aftermath of the North Dakota-Wisconsin Men's Hockey series, including the fact that Bucky Badger apparently took one for the team when North Dakota's Joe Finley slashed him in the leg as Finley was heading to the locker room. The most interesting part of the piece is that this is the first game in which Turris has not scored a point in almost 50 contests spanning 10 months. It figures that it happened at the very first game I went to see Turris play....I guess I better stay away from the Kohl Center.

Todd Milewski recaps the melee near the end of Saturday's game and points out that after a "quiet" night of penalties on Friday, Saturday's total probably brought the weekend series back towards a normal number of penalty minutes for a Wisconsin-North Dakota series.

Here's a link to the video of the skirmish between UW & UND.

Here's a link to the video of Mike Eaves exchanging pleasantries with Dave Hakstol & staff after the game.

Team USA Claims Bronze

Team USA managed to claim bronze at the World Junior A Challenge, winning by a margin of 9-6.

Potential UW recruit Derek Lee was held off the scoresheet as Team Canada West claimed gold over Team Canada East 4-1.

Women's Team USA at Four Nations Cup

The Team USA Women notched a 2-1 victory over Finland Saturday to advance to the gold-medal game of the Four Nations Cup on Sunday.

In the gold-medal game on Sunday, Team Canada defeated Team USA 2-0.

World Junior A Challenge Semi-Finals

Team Canada West defeated Team USA 5-1 in the semi-finals of the World Junior A Challenge. No Wisconsinites, UW recruits or potential UW recruits figured into the scoring. Team USA will now face Russia in the Bronze medal game on Sunday.

USHL Happenings

Friday

Indiana blanked Tri-City 5-0. Wisconsinite Brent Gwidt had 2 goals and finished +2 for Indiana. UW recruit Chris Hickey was again not in the lineup for Tri-City while teammate and Wisconsinite Kyle Ensign was -1.

Green Bay toppled Des Moines 3-1. Wisconsinite and UW recruit Ryan Little was even in the game.

Omaha doubled up Cedar Rapids 4-2. Wisconsinite and UW recruit Matt Thurber had a goal in the game and was +2 for Omaha. Teammate Jake Hauswirth was +1 while Seth Soley was even for the game. Michael Johnson, who played for the Madison Capitols and most recently St. Louis of the NAHL has joined Cedar Rapids and took the loss in this game while stopping 29 of 33 shots he faced.

Lincoln defeated Sioux Falls 6-3. Wisconsinite Eric Springer had a goal and finished -1 for Sioux Falls, while teammates Jake Drewiske and Sam Zabkowicz were held off the scoresheet. For Lincoln, Wisconsinite and UW recruit Travis Erstad had a playmaker (3 assists) and finished +1 while teammate Ross Henry was +2.

Waterloo downed Ohio 3-1. Justin Cseter was -1 for Ohio, while Keegan Meuer had an assist and finished +1 for Waterloo. Scott Pavelski finished -1 for Waterloo and teammate Brock Montpetit was even.

Sioux City edged Chicago 5-4. Wisconsinite Aaron Schmit was even for Chicago.

Saturday

Indiana handled Tri-City 6-2. Brent Gwidt had a goal and was +1 for Indiana while Kyle Ensign had a goal and was even for Tri-City.

Des Moines squeaked past Lincoln 3-2. For Lincoln, Ross Henry was +1 and Travis Erstad was -1.

Cedar Rapids took care of Ohio 3-1. Justin Cseter was even for Ohio. Michael Johnson was named third star of the game for Cedar Rapids stopping 26 of 27 shots he faced.

Chicago claimed a victory over Sioux Falls 6-2. Aaron Schmit had two assists and was +3 for Chicago. Eric Springer and Sam Zabkowicz were even for Sioux Falls while teammate Jake Drewiske finished -1.

Omaha outpaced Green Bay 5-2. For Omaha, Matt Thurber had a playmaker (3 assists) and was +1, Jake Hauswirth had a goal and was +1, and Seth Soley had a goal and an assist and was a game best +3. Thurber was named second star of the game and Hauswirth third star of the game. Ryan Little was even for Green Bay.

Badger Weekend Report

The Badger Men claimed a 4-0 win on Friday despite being outshot 43 to 24 by North Dakota. Shane Connelly was very, very good in the victory.

On Saturday the Badger Men were terrible in a 3-1 loss, with Shane Connelly being the only exception. I made the effort to get down to the game, and was shocked by the lack of "spark" by UW. There was a scuffle between all 10 skaters on the ice near the end of the game, and all 10 were sent to their locker rooms since they would not have a chance to get out of the penalty box before the game was over. Mike Eaves was not very happy about the scuffle, and had to be separated from Dave Hakstol during the handshake. Too bad the team couldn't have brought that same intensity to the game....

"It's Friday, I'm in Love"

This weekend the Badger men take on North Dakota. Milewski has the series preview, including a story about the 4 Sioux who declined pro offers to remain at North Dakota. The campus papers also have series previews: Badger Herald, Daily Cardinal.

Here are the projected lines:

Ben Street-Kyle Turris-Patrick Johnson
Josh Engel-Blake Geoffrion-Ben Grotting
Michael Davies-Aaron Bendickson-Podge Turnbull
John Mitchell-Sean Dolan-Matthew Ford

Davis Drewiske-Cody Goloubef
Brendan Smith-Kyle Klubertanz
Ryan McDonagh-Jamie McBain

Shane Connelly
Scott Gudmandson

The usual suspects have WCHA notebooks: USCHO, INCH.

The Badger women are off this weekend but are featured on USCHO.

Mike Haviland on Jack Skille

In an interview with Rockford head coach Mike Haviland, Hockey's Future asks about Jack Skille. Here's the pertinent part of the interview:

HF: How is Jack Skille doing? Is he trying to work on any specific aspects of his game to prepare for the next level and what kind of progress is he making?

MH: ‘Skills’ has made tremendous progress. He’s a true power forward. I had him at the end of last year and now this year. He has unbelievable speed and he’s great coming down the wing. He’s a big strong kid and he’s going to get bigger and stronger. He just needs to bring it every night. That’s what we’re working with him on. He needs to finish his checks, work hard on the forecheck and create turnovers, play the power forward game.

Cammi Granato

Cammi Granato received the Lester Patrick Award on Wednesday. Elliott Olshansky has notes and pictures from the luncheon, as well as a really nice article about Cammi. It's really too bad that Wisconsin didn't yet have women's hockey when Cammi played college hockey; she should've been a Badger.

Thursday Linkorama Part Deux

It looks like Lakeland's girls hockey team has been sanctioned by the WIAA. Unfortunately, it was not done in time for them to compete for the state title this season.

The Superior Telegram has an article on Brett Olson and his commitment to Michigan Tech.

Potential UW recruit Derek Lee scored a goal for Team Canada West yesterday at the World Junior Challenge, but it wasn't enough as they fell to Russia 4-2. Team USA notched a 3-2 victory over Team Canada East. Barry Almeida again had the game-winner for Team USA. Blake Kessel had a hand in every goal scoring one himself, and assisting on the two others. Team USA and Russia automatically advance to the Semifinals on Saturday by virtue of their victories.

Let's Play Hockey wraps up the Nike/Bauer NIT Tournament and recognizes the five Wisconsin players from the winning team.

Thursday Linkorama

The US lost to Canada 6-3 this morning. Jessie Vetter started the game but was replaced in the 2nd period after allowing 5 goals on 15 shots. Next up: Finland 11/10. I couldn't find results for Finland's game against Sweden today, so if anyone knows, please let us know.

Cammi Granato received the Lester Patrick Trophy last night for her outstanding service to hockey in the US.

Josh Engel, who may return to the lineup this weekend, is looking to pick up where he left off.

Matt Ford, who leads the Badgers in hits per game, is willing to do whatever it takes to help his team win.

Kyle Klubertanz would like to play better defensively.

Paul Capobianco has a blog that I stumbled upon last week when I found his live-blog entry from Saturday's game v. Tech. Today's entry discusses TSN's interview with Kyle Turris. Milewski also has some notes about TSN's interview.

Aaron Crandall talks about why he picked the Badgers.

Mike Eaves and Mark Johnson are on Sidelines tonight, and you can watch it here. (Thanks ricecloud9!)

More on Aaron Crandall

Read what Green Bay Gamblers Head Coach Mark Mazzoleni has to say about Crandall here.

Crandall was Goaltender of the Week last week in the USHL.

At the USA Hockey Select 17 Festival he was one of the top goaltenders statistically.

Central Scouting Service recently listed Crandall as a "B" prospect on their preliminary "Players to Watch" list for the 2008 NHL Draft. They had no goaltenders listed as "A" prospects.

I can't remember if it was posted in the comments section of the blog or on a message board, but someone had mentioned they saw Mike Eaves at a Gamblers game during the Badgers off week and he had mentioned he was there to see Ryan Little and a goaltender, which was figured to be Crandall as the opposing goaltender had already verballed to another school. Funny how that was true and how quickly Crandall became a Badger.

Aaron Crandall Picks Wisconsin

According to both Milewski and Baggot, goaltender Aaron Crandall has verballed to Wisconsin and is willing to wait until '09 for the chance to play for the Badgers. Todd indicates he'll have more in tomorrow's TCT.

Crandall currently plays for the Green Bay Gamblers, so hopefully some of our blog readers will get to see him play and share their comments here.

Edited to add: The Unofficial USHL Hockey Blog picked him as an early season all-star. (Brock Montpetit, Craig Smith, and Matt Thurber were also listed, by the way.)

World Junior A Challenge

Team USA needed overtime yesterday to defeat Belarus by the final score of 7-6. Blake Kessel is serving as an Assistant Captain and recorded a goal and two assists for three points total. Wisconsinite and UW recruit Craig Smith is also on Team USA, but was held off the scoresheet.

Team Canada West beat Germany 7-2 yesterday, but potential UW recruit Derek Lee was not able to dent the scoresheet.

Tonight Team Canada West faces Russia, while Team USA faces Team Canada East.

USA 4 - Sweden 0

Molly Engstrom had an assist and Jessie Vetter made 24 saves as the US began their play in the Four Nations Cup with a 4-0 victory over Sweden. You can find game recaps, video highlights, and game notes for the tourney here. Up next: Thursday morning the US faces Canada, who beat Finland 4-1 today.

Also, the Badger Herald talked to the Badgers currently playing for Team USA and has some nice quotes.

Edited to add: I almost forgot to mention this -- Kerry Weiland has a blog for the event!

Tuesday Linkorama

For those who have never heard or read the story about the accident that changed Adam Burish's life, this article is a must read.

What reactions do Mike Davies and Podge Turnbull have to being benched Saturday night? Click here to find out.

There's a new article out on potential UW recruit Derek Lee. He's talked in several articles about wanting to play in a wide-open system, which I thought was going to be a negative for UW until I saw UW unleash their offense this season! Thanks to Milzie for digging this one up.

Brett Olson to Michigan Tech

Michigan Tech continues to load up on Wisconsin talent adding Superior native Brett Olson. Olson is in his third season with the Waterloo Blackhawks of the USHL but is currently on injured reserve. He joins Wisconsinites Seth Soley and Jake Hauswirth in Michigan Tech's recruiting class for next season.

Soley to the USHL

Eau Claire Memorial forward Seth Soley has decided to forgo his final season of High School hockey and test his game at the next level. From what I know his rights which were owned by Green Bay, have been traded to the Omaha Lancers. Good move on his part in my opinion. Soley is a very, very good player and this can only help him in terms of player development.

Also as far as I'm concerned, Eau Claire Memorial is still the odds on favorite to win the WIAA State Tournament.

Monday Linkorama

Jake Gardiner is listed as the #26 prospect in McKeen's 2008 NHL Draft Preliminary Rankings. The entire list can be found here. Thanks to Wojo for the "heads up".

Western College Hockey has a recap on the Nike Bauer Elite League NIT Tournament from this past weekend. Team Minnesota Red, which featured players from Team Wisconsin, was the only team to finish undefeated. There is also information on UW recruits from Team Minnesota White and Shattuck St. Mary's in the linked post.

The UW Men end up holding tight in the rankings this week at #10 after going 1-1 on the weekend. The UW Women dropped a spot from #1 to #2 after going 1-1 this past weekend.

Todd Milewski has a report from UW's practice today, and reports the Badgers lines now look like this:

Street-Turris-P. Johnson
Engel-Geoffrion-Grotting
Mitchell-Dolan-Ford
Davies-Bendickson-Turnbull
Gorowsky-Bohmbach-Bearson

Drewiske-Goloubef
Smith-Klubertanz
McDonagh-McBain
C. Johnson-Bardis

Boys High School Hockey Team Previews-#4-#6

The teams that finished between fourth and sixth in the rankings last season all had big losses to graduation last season.


#6-Homestead-Nearly 77% of their goal scoring from last season graduated, lead by All-State forward Tedd Falk who recorded 32 goals and 35 assists for 67 points, and Honorable Mention All-State forward Spencer King who notched 27 goals and 33 assists for 60 points. Defensively their losses include Honorable Mention All-State defenseman Sam Wright and Honorable Mention All-State goaltender John Schroeder. All told 9 players graduated including five forwards, 2 defensemen and 2 goaltenders.

GF 116 - GA 58

Losing 9 Seniors - 89 Goals (76.7% of offense)

(F) Tedd Falk: 32g-35a = 67 pts
(F) Spencer King: 27g-33a = 60 pts
(F) Brian Gensrick: 18g-31a = 49 pts
(F) Ryan Bratt: 4g-7a = 11 pts
(F) Charlie Ritt: 3g-3a = 6 pts
(D) Chris Rausch: 5g-18a = 23 pts
(D) Sam Wright: 0g-11a = 11 pts
(G) John Schroeder: .910 Sv%
(G) Alex Hemke: .890 Sv%


#5-Stevens Point-They are the winners of the "Most Scoring Lost" award this season. A whopping 83% of their offense goal production graduated last season. If that's not bad enough, All-State senior defenseman Tyler Krueger, their best remaining player decided to play for the Madison Capitols this season and their coach left to take the reins at UW-Stevens Point. A total of 10 players graduated including 8 forwards, one defenseman and a goaltender. The biggest losses up front include Player of the Year and future Wisconsin Badger Travis Erstad, who was (as you might imagine) also on the All-State Team. Also lost was All-State forward Scott Pavelski and Honorable Mention All-State Alex Molski.

GF 165 - GA 45

Losing 10 Seniors - 137 Goals (83.0% of offense)

(F) Travis Erstad: 31g-33a = 64 pts
(F) Scott Pavelski: 28g-26a = 54 pts
(F) Alex Molski: 19g-25a = 44 pts
(F) Keith Clawson: 16g-23a = 39 pts
(F) Mike Gruber: 16g-21a = 37 pts
(F) Kyle Heck: 19g-11a = 30 pts
(F) Matt Gile: 6g-2a = 8 pts
(F) Tyler Ignatowski: 1g-3a = 4 pts
(D) Jordan Danielski: 1g-4a = 5 pts
(G) Steve Hamilton: .927 Sv%


#4-Tomah-They have key losses at forward, defense and goaltender. Eight total seniors graduated including Honorable Mention All-State forward Darth Denter, All-State defenseman Alex Gerke and All-State goaltender Nick Nicewanger. In all, 45% of their offense graduated.

GF 123 - GA 34

Losing 8 Seniors - 56 Goals (45.5% of offense)

(F) Darth Denter: 11g-27a = 38 pts
(F) Matt Rusch: 11g-10a = 21 pts
(F) Jordan Maternosk: 5g-12a = 17 pts
(F) Tanner Hubert: 6g-5a = 11 pts
(F) Oakley Moser: 0g-3a = 3 pts
(F) Ryan Moravec: 0g-1a = 1 pt
(D) Alex Gerke: 23g-29a = 52 pts
(G) Nick Nicewanger: .947 Sv%

Al Armour Update

Al Armour has continued to play very well in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League. He was recently named Goaltender of the Month and carries an overall gaa of 1.89 and sports a record of 10-2.

Saturday in the USHL

Indiana outscored Lincoln 8-4. Brent Gwidt was +1 for Indiana, while Ross Henry was even for Lincoln and Travis Erstad -1 for Lincoln.

Tri-City slid past Des Moines 2-1. Kyle Ensign and Chris Hickey were both even for Tri-City. I believe this may have been the completion of an earlier game that had to be called part of the way through due to ice conditions.

Tri-City blanked Des Moines 3-0. Chris Hickey did not play for Tri-City, but teammate Kyle Ensign finished +1.

Cedar Rapids got past Chicago 3-2. Aaron Schmit finished the game -1.

Sioux City destroyed Green Bay 6-0. Ryan Little was -3 for the Gamblers.

Sioux Falls downed Ohio 5-3. Eric Springer had a goal and an assist and was even for Sioux Falls. Teammate Sam Zabkowicz had an assist and was +1. Jake Drewiske was held off the scoring columns of the scoresheet but finished +1.

Friday USHL Roundup

Indiana blasted Lincoln 5-1. Ross Henry finished -1 for the Stars while teammate Travis Erstad was -3. For Lincoln, Brent Gwidt was +1.

Waterloo slipped past Cedar Rapids 3-2. Keegan Meuer, Craig Smith, Blake Kessel and Scott Pavelski all finished even for Waterloo, while Brock Montpetit had an assist and finished +1.

Omaha destroyed Chicago 8-0. Jake Hauswirth had a goal and was + 1 for Omaha. Matt Thurbe had a playmaker (3 assists) and was also +1 for Omaha. Aaron Schmit was not active for Chicago.

Des Moines doubled up Tri-City 4-2. Kyle Ensign was -1 for Tri-City while teammate and UW recruit Chris Hickey did not play in the game.

Sioux City outscores Green Bay 6-4. Ryan Little had an assist in the game for Green Bay, but was -3.

Sioux Falls got the best of Ohio 4-2. Jake Drewiske had a goal and was +1 for Sioux Falls while teammate Eric Springer also had a goal and was +2. Sam Zabkowicz was kept off the stat sheet for Sioux Falls, as was Justin Cseter for Ohio.

Badger Recaps

Friday night the Badger Men fell to Michigan Tech 4-2. The Badgers inexperience cost them, as well as their penalty-killing, giving up two shorthanded goals and another just as Kyle Turris stepped out of the penalty box.

Saturday the Badger Men reversed the score with a 4-2 victory. Michael Davies and Podge Turnbull were not active for the game as Mike Eaves elected for more grit instead playing Andy Bohmbach and Zach Bearson.

Kyle Turris was named the Rookie of the Month by the Hockey Commissioner's Association.

The Badger Women blanked Minnesota 3-0 on Friday but did not play very well. On Saturday, the Gophers managed to squeak out a win 3-2. Four current Badgers left for Europe following the game to represent the U.S. Meghan Duggan, Erika Lawler, Jessie Vetter and Jinelle Zaugg headed to Leksand, Sweden to compete in the Four Nations Cup being played Nov. 7-11.

Badger Game Day

The Badger Herald and the Daily Cardinal both have game day articles about the Badger men. The Badger Herald also has a game day article about the Badger women.

Todd usually has a game day post; I don't see it yet, but I'll try to link it here when it comes up.

And as always, USCHO and INCH both have WCHA notebooks. CHN has a college hockey notebook.

Jack Skille Interview

In an interview with McKeen's, Jack Skille talks about his experiences with the Blackhawks organization, the University of Wisconsin, and international play.

A Few More Thursday Articles

The Daily Cardinal has an article about the Badger women's team that discusses the Wisconsin-Minnesota rivalry and Alycia Matthews' play so far this season.

Andy Baggot's column today talks about Paul Hickman and Bonnie Olein. Hickman is the director of hockey operations and equipment manager for the Badger women, and Olein held a similar position with the Gopher women. Olein died from colon cancer on Oct. 25.

Moving along to men's hockey, Brad Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald says that the WCHA is stronger than ever, despite multiple early departures. And Eric Levine of the Daily Cardinal tends to agree.

Also, The Daily Cardinal has an article about the senior leadership of Drewiske, Klubertanz, Engel, and Ford, as well as a series preview.

Thursday Article Roundup

The Wisconsin State Journal has a game preview out today for the Badger men vs. Michigan Tech. Not to be outdone, the Capital Times has an article on the similarities between Kyle Turris and Hillary Knight, who are both highly touted Freshmen for the Badger Men and Women's teams. Todd Milewski from the Capital Times also has some notes from Thursday's practice including the fact that Zach Bearson, a name we haven't mentioned very often, won the shootout at the end of practice and goaltenders Scott Gudmandson and Shane Connelly wrestled in the center circle at the end of practice (as they had been instructed to do by Goalie Coach Bill Howard). Heck, even ESPN got into the act today with a chat featuring Inside College Hockey where the Badgers were mentioned several times.

The Badger Women got some love from the Daily Cardinal today touting their weekend series against the Gophers.