This Week is Andy Bohmbach Week

That's right boys and girls, the much anticipated "Andy Bohmbach Week" has finally arrived! This is a long time coming, as we had talked about doing this right after "Tom Gorowsky Week" but then never got around to it.

To start this week, let's take a look at when we first met our favorite forward from Hudson, WI:

Bohmbach was a late addition to the 2006 recruiting class, being added at the end of July after Joe Pavelski signed with San Jose. The process of being admitted to the UW and making it through the NCAA clearinghouse had to be accelerated to get him into school on time. Andy wasn't really worried about that process, though:

"I knew there was a pretty good chance of getting in," said Bohmbach, who will move to Madison Sunday and intends to major in consumer science. "I've been down to Madison a few times and I've talked to people down there. I have a pretty good idea how it works."

Bohmbach had been talking to the UW and other schools for the Fall of '07 and was a bit surprised to be offered a partial scholarship for the Fall of '06.

"Actually I was (surprised), because it was so late in the summer," he said. "It's a pretty late decision."

When asked about his anticipated role with the Badgers, Bohmbach said:

"I haven't talked to him a lot about it, but I'm kind of a goal-scorer so pretty sure that will be my job."

During his first 2 seasons with the Badgers, and during the beginning of this season as well, Bohmbach had filled more of a 4th-line grinder role, and he's been pretty effective at it. More recently, he's been skating on the Badgers' top line and has been scoring some goals, but at the same time he still plays the same gritty game we've come to love. DPlaya of HIW pointed out that scouting reports indicated that Bohmbach works really hard in every area of the ice, and I think that's a pretty fair assessment of his game as a Badger as well.

Andy Bohmbach was brought into the fold just recently with the departure of Joe Pavelski. He played with Zach Bearson for the Waterloo Blackhawks, and put up similar numbers to Bearson. Bohmbach recorded 13 goals and 19 assists in 59 games. Bohmbach recently described himself as a scorer, although scouting reports indicate he works really hard in every area of the ice. My guess is he will see limited playing time and need to use his Freshman year as preparation to compete for regular ice time next season.

Before joining the Badgers, Bohmbach led Hudson to the WIAA state title and was 1st-Team All-State in 2004, and he played 2 seasons with the Waterloo Black Hawks of the USHL. He had 1 goal and 4 assists in '04-'05, and he had 13 goals and 19 assists in '05-'06. About his increased productivity his 2nd season with Waterloo, Bohmbach said:

"It's a lot easier and more comfortable the second year. I improved a lot and took off last year."

In INCH's write-up of the 2005 Buc Bowl (yeah, yeah, I know it's just INCH), Bohmbach was listed as a standout player:

F Andy Bohmbach ('87/6-2, 175/Waterloo Black Hawks)
Bohmbeck was challenged to have a solid off-season in the weight room, and he responded with an excellent training camp, and an even better Buc Bowl. He skated hard in every area of the ice.

Bohmbach was also part of the gold medal-winning US U17 team at the 2002 Five Nations Tournament. Hmmm. I don't think I ever knew that.

When talking about the large '06 freshman class, here's what Andy Baggot had to say about Bohmbach:

Winger Zach Bearson and center Andy Bohmbach offer an intriguing mix of size, skill and edginess.

I regret that I can't seem to find any direct quotes from Mike Eaves regarding Bohmbach's joining the Badgers. If I stumble upon some later in the week, I'll make sure to post them.

(Photo courtesty of Redheat 15)