Commitment. Passion. Integrity.

We really are lucky to have a guy like Mark Johnson around. Let's not fool ourselves.

While reading Baggot's piece about Johnson being offered the job at Penn State, one quote from Barry Alvarez stood out to me.

"He was always very transparent when he talked to people"

I know that we would like to think that that would be a given: that a coach would be honest and transparent with his employer when he's being courted by another program. But I have my doubts that it works that way very often, and I think you can tell that Alvarez speaks with such respect for Coach Johnson because he knows that Johnson treats him with that same respect.

It reminded me of something I read in a book that I highly recommend to all of you: The Boys of Winter by Wayne Coffey. It's a book about the 1980 "Miracle On Ice" olympic hockey team. It frames the story of that team around the famous medal round game against the Soviets, and it also includes many long passages telling the stories of every player on the team.

The passage about Mark Johnson (about 1/4 of the way into the book) goes on for about 13 pages, and it goes on at length about some issues that are pretty relevant in the light of Coach Johnson's courtship by Penn State. Some sporadic excerpts (emphasis added) follow. I'd like to include more, but I'd much rather not incur the wrath of a published author. Lord knows what he could have his publishing company do to a little old Blogger page if he thought I was posting too much. Here goes:

Johnson has been the Badgers' head women's coach since June 2002, a career move he neither expected nor contemplated. Six weeks after the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team lit the caultdron to open the 2002 Games in Salt Lake City, Johnson was passed over for the Wisconsin men's job, a position most people assumed would be his. ... But athletic director Pat Richter opted to go with Mike Eaves, Johnson's teammate on the Badgers' 1977 national championship team.

Across four decades of a charmed hockey life, Mark Johnson had always been a star. ... Rejection was something altogether new. ... This was different, personal, for the first time Mark Johnson had in effect been told, "We like the other guy better." Richter delivered the news to Johnson in Sauer's office. Later Johnson cried.

"Did it hurt? Oh yeah, it hurt," Johnson said. "But life teaches you that you have to move on, and you try to do it in a fashion that you can walk away with your head held high."

...

Johnson assured [the UW Women's Hockey] team when he took over that this was not just a stopover until he could get a men's job. Six months later, his words were put to the test. Tony Granato ... asked Johnson if he would be interested in joining his staff as an assistant. ... After a few days, Johnson called Granato, expressed his gratitude, and said no thanks.

"I don't think I would've had the courage to walk into the locker room and tell those players I was leaving," Johnson said. "I've got signs on the wall that say, 'Commitment, Passion, Integrity.' If I am going to be a good coach and people are going to listen and respect me, I have to walk the walk, as they say."

That is the man coaching our women's team. Just like with the Granato job, I would not be shocked to hear that Coach Johnson gave Penn State his ear out of respect. And, also like the Granato job, it doesn't surprise me that he would refuse it on principle. This man loves Madison, loves coaching some of the best women's hockey players the world has to offer, and he does it with Commitment, Passion, and Integrity.

There are still a lot of people who think he should be coaching our men's program instead of Coach Eaves, but I think those people should just step back and think of what a remarkable thing we have with Coach Johnson and the Women's Program. We really are lucky.

Johnson Could've Gone To Hockey Valley...

... but he didn't.

Per Baggot (per Alvarez):

University of Wisconsin women’s hockey coach Mark Johnson officially turned down the chance to be the first men’s hockey coach at Penn State, Badgers athletic director Barry Alvarez confirmed Friday.

Johnson has not commented since it was announced last Sunday the Nittany Lions hired Guy Gadowsky from Princeton.

“As I understand it, (Johnson) was offered the job,” Alvarez said after the monthly UW Athletic Board meeting.

Johnson formally interviewed for the job last week after guiding the UW women to their fourth national title in the past six years.

...

Alvarez admitted he couldn’t compete with what Penn State was able to offer a men’s coach. “You can’t keep good people from looking,” Alvarez said. “He was always very transparent when he talked to people.

“First thing I told him, ‘I cannot compete with a men’s job at Penn State financially. I can’t do that.’ We were able to make some adjustments, but not to that extent.”

Some more in a moment.

Mark Johnson staying in Madison

When the architect of arguably the most successful program in the Wisconsin athletic department (certainly over the past 10 years) starts to flirt with leaving the school for another position, many start to search for the panic button. Take a rest Badger fans, Mark Johnson is coming back.

World renowned hockey analyst Bob McKenzie from TSN in Canada is reporting that Princeton coach Guy Gadowsky, not Johnson will be named the inaugural head coach at Penn State. The Nitany Lions will start varsity D-1 competition as an independent for the 2012 hockey season before joining up with Michigan, Ohio State, Minnesota, Michigan Sate, and Wisconsin to form the new Big 10 hockey conference for the 2013 season.

The concern set in when Wisconsin State Journal beat writer Andy Baggot first reported a few months ago that Penn State asked permission to speak with Johnson after Badgers season was completed. The conclusion of the season saw Mark Johnson and the Badgers capture their fourth National Championship in school history, all on Johnson's watch.

After multiple reports of Minnesota-Duluth head coach Scott Sandelin being the front runner for the Penn State position surfaced last week, Baggot reported on Friday that not only did Johnson interview for the job, but that he was possibly at the top of their list of candidates.

With the news that Johnson won't be taking the job at Penn State, Wisconsin fans can look ahead at the possibilities next season. While losing Patt Kaz winner Meghan Duggan and fellow seniors Mallory Deluce, Kelly Nash, Geena Prough, Ann Dronen, Maria Evans and Carla Pentimone will no doubt hurt, the Badgers will be the favorites to repeat. They will return two of the best forwards in the country with Hilary Knight and Brianna Decker and also rock solid netminder Alex Rigsby. Oh yeah...and that guy behind the bench certainly has a little magic in him as well...

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Photo by Michelle Stocker, The Capital Times

Johnson Interviews for Penn State Job

One of the greatest fears for Wisconsin Women's hockey fans is becoming dangerously close to reality. Andy Baggot is reporting that UW Women's head coach Mark Johnson was in Happy Valley this past week to interview for the head coaching opening for Penn State Men's hockey program which is set to start varsity competition for the 2012-2013 season.

As a head coach for the Badgers he has led the program to four national championships (2006, 2007, 2009, 2011). Johnson has been named the WCHA coach of the year five times and the AHCA Division 1 coach of the year four times.

It's not certain whether or not if offered the position at Penn State if Johnson would accept the job. On top of obviously spending a large chunk of his life living in Madison, he also has two daughters who are still in the k-12 system in Madison. Johnson told Baggot, "I'm in limbo right now."

It's also not clear if Johnson is the top candidate at Penn State. Minnesota-Duluth head coach Scott Sandelin, who won the NCAA Men's title with the Bulldogs this season was in Happy Valley late this week to interview. Many have speculated that he is the top candidate for the job. College Hockey News on Friday reported that Penn State will announce their new head coach on Monday.

According to Baggot's report, Barry Alvarez and the UW athletic department will pony up to make Johnson the highest paid women's hockey coach in the country and tell him, "that we want to keep him, that we don't want him to leave, that we appreciate him." Alvarez did note that there is no way they can get into a bidding war with the Nittany Lions for a men's job at Penn State.

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Some BTHC Talk (and more) From Coach Eaves and Barry Alvarez

For those of you who live in Madison, the On Wisconsin radio show/podcast featuring Brian "The Voice of Badger Hockey" Posick from The Big 1070 (Madison) might be a major part of your sports radio experience*.

Last Wednesday's edition of On Wisconsin featured some quality discussion about the two biggest stories to strike Badger Hockey in the last few weeks: the Big Ten Hockey Conference and the Lady Badgers' newest title. Coach Mike Eaves and Athletic Director Barry Alvarez both had some chances to comment on those stories.

* Disclaimer: OR if you live in the suburbs of Milwaukee, have a normal 9-5 type job, and are an amateur blogger (in more ways than one), then you might find out about Coach Eaves and Alvarez's comments when you ask someone from the athletic department if they have made any formal statements about the BTHC, and he kindly respond to you with an e-mail linking to this podcast...

The link to the audio is here, you can also access the podcast for download here.

A general timeline for those who want to skim the podcast:

00:56-2:32 Brian Posick mentions the women's hockey title.
2:46 - 3:17 BP introduces the BTHC news
3:17 - 5:43 Coach Eaves' comments on the BTHC
18:03 BP's interview with Barry Alvarez begins
19:33 - 22:05 They discuss the women's hockey team, Megan Duggan, and Coach Johnson
22:06 - 24:18 They discuss the BTHC
26:02 - 28:26 The issue of the facility improvements at Camp Randall

Now, I'm a total hack of a journalist (you know... because I'm not one and this is an occasional hobby for me), but here's my lame-duck attempt at transcribing the comments:

Mike Eaves on the BTHC:

"In the first place, Brian, it needs to be said there's a lot of work to be done. This is just the first step ... getting the presidents and the ADs to get on board and back this. This thought process is real powerful. And I think that... in lieu of the BTN going into effect... it was just a matter of time before this type of thing happened.

"In my mind, a lot of things in our society are driven by dollars and cents and this is one of those things. The Big Ten, once they got up and running and the money they are providing to each institution... the Big Ten is big time bucks. And once they got football and basketball going, the next revenue or income sport is hockey, men's ice hockey. And I think it was just a matter of time before they were looking to get them on there. And with that being the case right now, and Penn State getting finances to get the men's and women's program there, this was a natural progression in my mind, it was just a matter of time.

"The positives of it I think are the fact that you are going to create an unbelievable conference in men's ice hockey. It's going to be on TV. People, if they want to watch college hockey, are going to know where to go to watch it on a regular basis so i think that exposure to college hockey will be tremendous. I think that will be a great thing.

"I think the conference itself, having at our league meetings everybody speaking the same language in terms of what their needs are, and the things they have to deal with i think will be very much a positive because we all speak the same language.

"The negatives... you know, people can speculate as to what some of those might be, they could say that its either going to hurt college hockey and that we're gonna lose some programs, or because of the stimulation of what's going could create some programs. So i only think that time will tell if that's going to become an issue and *laughs* time will tell what other positives and what other negatives are going to come up."

Barry Alvarez on Mark Johnson:

"Well Mark, what a... just a tremendous leader he is. Just the way he manages his team, how he builds the team. And how... you know, he's so consistent. And that's the thing I see about him. His players know exactly what he wants. He's never too high, never too low. The consistency that he shows and the great job that he does teaching and building a team is very impressive"

Barry on Meghan Duggan:

"There are certain people that have a presence, and she's one of them. She walks into a room, and she has a presence. She steps on the ice, she has a presence. Every great team has a leader, someone just like her. And you can just sense that and you can feel that. When she speaks... you can look at the people in the crowd last night and everyone listened to her and every one of her teammates that spoke mentioned her by name. And [she's a] very impressive lady"

Barry after Brian Posick noted that some places, like Penn State for their men's program, might be interested in Coach Johnson:

"Absolutely. You've got the best women's coach in the country. What he's accomplished speaks for itself. You certainly don't want to lose him. But anytime you have a successful coach, there are always people that are looking at him, you know, and people that will try to get them to move and come and run their program. that's part of the business that we're in."

Barry when asked if he thinks Coach Johnson could have the same level of success in men's hockey:

"You know Brian, I'm not a hockey guy. But I mean... I'm sure the fundamentals... he coached men's hockey before he took over the head job at the women's program." (BP: "Assistant with Jeff Sauer, yeah...") "Absolutely. And I don't see why he wouldn't be successful."

Barry on the BTHC:

"I think everyone looks at their own situation. Everyone is concerned about their own situation. I think for a number of years now, people have been concerned by us having a league it will hurt college hockey. I don't agree with that.

"I think hockey needs to be regionalized. Hockey is a very expensive sport, and when you're traveling, criss-crossing the country playing your schedule, it gets more expensive and it limits how many people can play. You take a look at the east coast schools, it's basically a bus league, they can bus to everything they don't have to fly so its less expensive.

"What the Big Ten will do for our fans... it's name recognition now. You're playing teams that you recognize. You're more aware of a Michigan, Ohio State, you have a built in tradition and rivalry already. Plus the BTN has committed to about 40 games right off the bat. so i think that it sells and it promotes college hockey and maybe educates a lot of people in areas where there isn't hockey about college hockey"

(Brian Posick: And, no disrespect to other schools in the WCHA or the CCHA, but it also, these six schools in the Big Ten, it puts them on the same academic standing as the other schools. There's no doubt that theres a disparity in the WCHA.)

Barry Alvarez's response:

"There's no question.. You're dealing with DIII schools in some cases and some DI schools and standards are a little bit different, what you're accustomed to is a little bit different, I sensed that in the meetings that i've gone to that its much different than sitting in a Big Ten meeting."

On to Lake Erie: Women Advance to Frozen Four

The Men’s season might be done, but the Women’s season still has much to cheer about.

On Saturday evening, in front of several thousand Badgers fans, the UW Women advanced to their 5th Frozen Four in the past six seasons with a 2-1 victory over the Duluth Foreign Legion (DFL). Overall, it was one hell of a good hockey game, even though there was no checking!

The first period was pretty even and the Badgers failed to capitalize on a few nice chances. The DFL was able to change the scoreboard first, w/ a goal late in the period. It came after a penalty ended for the Badgers and was one of those cases where they struggled to clear the puck and you just knew something bad was going to happen.

There was a lot of nervous tension in some of my friends heading into the second period. In case you weren’t aware, the DFL was the last team to beat the Badgers this season, way back in November 2010, and after the NCAA Committee decided that earning the #1 overall seed meant nothing, fans knew the DFL would be a tough out. Instead of getting Dartmouth the actual #8 seed, the Badgers were handed their old rival and defending NCAA champions.

The momentum quickly shifted back to the Badgers in the 2nd period, early on their second PP, Hilary Knight launched a shot from the point, which made it through traffic and past DFL goalie Comrade Kim Martin. Credit the players screening the goalie. Mark Johnson also shifted his lines late in the 1st or early in the 2nd, and put all three Patty Kaz finalists together, creating a dominate line of Knight, Meghan Duggan and Briana Decker. Those three created a lot of nice chances the rest of the game and were complimented well by the 2nd and 3rd lines which overall, the DFL worked hard to keep up with.

The Badgers controlled play through the 2nd and into the 3rd period, when 7:34 in Decker to Knight to Duggan for what would eventually be the game winner. The DFL mounted a late attack and pulled their sieve, but it was too little too late. The Badger Women cleaned up the defensive lapses they were having two weeks back in Verona, Alex Rigsby continues to play well in net, and while the score sheet doesn’t show it, forwards like Madison Packer, Mallory Deluce and Carolyne Prevost had great efforts.

One other event to point out, in the third period after a pileup in front of the DFL net, Comrade Jocelyne Larocque grabbed Knight’s facemask and ripped her helmet off. Not only did Comrade Larocque not get ejected, there wasn’t a single penalty called. I haven’t seen such a bogus officiating job since Randy Schmidt didn’t know how to run a video review at Magness arena costing Matt Ford a tying goal as time expired against Denver in 2008. Unacceptable.

Regardless, the Badger Women are headed back to the Frozen Four. There are A LOT of new faces since their last trip in 2009 where they blew out Mercyhurst, but some of the key kogs to that team are still around and I expect nothing less than #4 being brought home next Sunday. I’m bold enough to say that the Badgers might have faced their toughest game in the quarterfinals. The east coast teams might have nice records, but nothing compares to the top end of the WCHA, and UW is the best of the best. BC, BU and Cornell better be ready to get beat down in Lake Erie, because Duggan/Decker/Knight are ready for the big show.

Besides the games, Meghan Duggan should be in line to become the school’s third Patty Kaz, national player of the year, winner! She certainly has the resume. I won’t lie, I’m a little confused how Kelly Stack was a hat trick finalist instead of Hilary Knight. Knight has 9 more goals than the next closest player in NCAA hockey, and 20 more points than Stack. I know I’m biased on this one, but the stats don’t lie. Next season Knight needs to get her community service and charitable work in line, and should be the Badgers 4th Patty Kaz winner, but this year Duggan deserves all the accolades. She is truly the definition of an all around player, and a Badger Great. Duggan, Knight, Decker might not just be a nice line combo, but the next three Patty Kaz winners, if East Coast Bias doesn’t thwart the effort.

I’ll be enjoying the games in some form from my buddy’s condo in Honolulu, Hawaii. To those who are making the trip, enjoy the games and cheer hard for the Women to bring home #4!

Photos from life.com and hockeyjournal.com

Miracle on Ice: 30 Years Later

With the 30th anniversary of the Miracle on Ice passing us by during the Olympics, I had intended on writing a little post about the occassion. I didn't, and the reasons are pretty simple to understand. 1) It's not like I do this for a living, so when I get caught up with work stuff, or the excitement of the Olympics, these sorts of things slip my mind, and 2) What the hell am I ever going to say about the Miracle on Ice that hasn't been said 1,000 times already?

So instead, I'll offer a belated tribute with three simple items:

This wonderful item from Mike Lucas, culled from his columns during the Lake Placid games, that was posted on the 24th. It focuses on Badger Bob's conflicting desires to head out to Lake Placid instead of staying with the Badgers for their series at CC that weekend, and his regrets for not taking Mark with him to Innsbruck in '76.

Anyone who wants to read a good book about the Miracle on Ice, I highly recommend The Boys of Winter by Wayne Coffey.

And, because it never gets old:

USA Takes On Canada For GOLD Tonight

I'll be the first one to admit that I do not get into women's hockey. I have however really enjoyed watching the United States women at this Olympic Games and it has really piqued my interest in the women's game. I am really excited to watch the USA women take on Canada tonight for the Gold Medal.

If you are not already aware, coverage for the game starts at 5:00 PM and the actual game starts at like 5:30 I think. The game can be found on MSNBC. Nicole from the Cute Sports Blog will once again be helping us out doing a live blog of the game. She should be starting the live blog by 5:15. If I'm feeling ok, I will also be helping out when I can.

There will be 9 current or former Badgers playing in the game and obviously the United States men's coach is Mark Johnson, no introduction needed. 6 of 7 United States players are pictured to the left. First Row L to R: Erika Lawler, Jessie Vetter. Second row L to R: Hilary Knight, Meghan Duggan, Jinelle Zaugg-Siergiej, and Molly Engstrom. Missing from the photo is Kerry Weiland. Canada also features some former lady Badgers. Defensemen Meaghan Mikkelson and Carla MacLeod.

Stats for the ladies Badgers so far:

USA
Hilary Knight: 4 GP, 1 G, 7 A, +8
Molly Engstrom: 4 GP, 3 G, 4 A, +13
Meghan Duggan: 4 GP, 4 G, 0 A, +5
Erika Lawler: 3 GP, 0 G, 2 A, +6
Jinelle Zaugg-Siergiej: 4 GP, 0 G, 0A, +3
Kerry Weiland: 4 GP, 1 G, 1 A, +6
Jessie Vetter: 3 GP, 0.33 GAA, .976 Save %

Canada
Meaghan Mikkelson: 4 GP, 0 G, 0 A, +10
Carla MacLeod: 4 GP, 2 G, 3 A, +13

Image Credit: David Stluka Photography (Awesome, awesome photo)

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Olympic Preview: Team USA Women

The Olympics start soon, 2 weeks from now I'll be glued to the TV watching Team USA both the Men and Women. I'm a huge fan of biathlon for some reason too, but I digress. I'm going to start w/ the Women's team, because I'm A LOT more interested in them due to the numerous Badger ties. Yeah the Men's team has some too (included the beloved Joe Pavelski), but I'm really excited about the Ladies in Red, White & Blue. Hopefully get to the Men later in the week.

I've had the opportunity to see these fine women play 3 times in the past 2 months (twice in person, once on NHL Network). Thursday night on the NHL Network will be the last warm up, as Team USA takes on Finland, check it out at 8 PM.

Canada got the better of them during their pre-Olympic matches. Canada looks good, but I think Team USA has all the pieces to upset the lady canucks on their home soil. Team USA has 7 former/current Badger players and the 1980 Olympic Gold Medal winner Mark Johnson as their coach; 21 gold medals are waiting to be hung around these women's necks.

Team Canada needs to get some love as they feature former Badgers Meaghan Mikkelson and Carla MacLeod. Hope you are ok w/ silver.

NBC is once again our hosts for the Olympic games. Coverage is being supplemented by USA, MSNBC and CNBC. During the Olympics, MSNBC will likely get more viewers than in the rest of the year combined.

Below is the schedule for Team USA's and Team Canada's preliminary round games (all times CST):

Feb 13th: Canada vs Slovkia 7 PM (CNBC)
Feb 14th: USA vs China 2 PM (USA)
Feb 15th: Canada vs Switzerland 4:30 PM (MSNBC)
Feb 16th: USA vs Russia 4:30 PM (MSNBC)
Feb 17th: Canada vs Sweden 4:30 PM (MSNBC)
Feb 18th: USA vs Finland 4:30 PM (MSNBC)
Feb 22nd: Semis 2 PM (USA) & 7 PM (CNBC)
Feb 25th: Bronze 1 PM & Gold 5 PM both on MSNBC (DVR the latter, USA vs Canada, book it!)

NBC's Olympic website also has some nice profiles of all the Women's Team, I'd definitely check it out.

For easy reference the links to the Badgers:

Jessie Vetter
Jinelle Zaugg-Siergiej
Hilary Knight
Erika Lawler
Meghan Duggan
Kerry Weiland
Molly Engstrom

Hilary Knight is the youngest player on the team, and IMHO the best. I'd love to see her lineup w/ Erika Lawler, they dominated last season. Come on Ladies, bring home the GOLD!!!

USA Women's Olympic Team @ KC Tomorrow 7 PM

Be there or be square?

Tomorrow night Mark Johnson and 7 former or current Badgers (along w/ 14 Olympic teammates) are coming to the Kohl Center. Five former Badgers include Erika Lawler, Jessie Vetter, Jinelle Zaugg-Siergiej, Kerry Weiland and Molly Engstrom. Two current Badgers are redshirting this season to play in the Olympics, and Hilary Knight and Meghan Duggan will rejoin the Badgers next season.


Both Duggan and Knight have blog posts at uwbadgers.com about the upcoming game. Both are very excited to be back in Madison, in front of the home crowd.

I tagged along to St. Paul last wednesday when the Olympic team played Canada at the Excel Energy Center. Canada was a 2-1 winner, but the US played better than they did earlier in the month in Denver. They have some work to do to gain Olympic gold, but they have the talent. Erika Lawler always give 100% (I don't buy into the 110% thing) and kept the puck alive in gaining an assist in USA's only goal. It was great to see Hilary Knight play again; I'm biased but I believe she is the greatest female hockey player in the world, and can't wait for her to light up the box scores in Vancouver. Jessie Vetter was not in net, but I'd guess she will be tomorrow.

If you aren't busy tomorrow, come to the Kohl Center, you can afford $5. If you are veteran, police officer, EMS or firefighter, you can get in for $1 as UW is celebrating local heroes. When will you get another chance to see an Olympic team play in Madison or Wisconsin no less? There is something special about seeing our fellow citizens in the Red, White and Blue representing our country.

For the Badgers, both Brooke Ammerman and Brianna Decker were invited to the evaluation camp this summer and will likely be Olympians themselves 4 years from now.

Lastly, in a day where sports role models are hard to find, 21 good ones will be on the ice tomorrow night. Bring your kids, have them watch 20 to 30 year olds who bust their ass, not for phat contracts following college, but for a chance to represent their country and reach their life long dreams.

Monday morning odds & ends

• Todd Milewski is trying out a new weekly installment on his USCHO From the Press Box blog, and I gotta tell ya, I like it. In this week's "What I Think", Milewski talks about minnesota being shutout in 2 consecutive games for the 1st time since 1930 (0-0 tie w/ Tulsa Athletic Club and 2-0 loss to Wisconsin), defending national champ BU's opening season losses to Notre Dame, George Gwozdecky's 500th win, Wisconsin's terrible CFBs, Michigan Tech's brutal PK (60% overall), and his Top 20.

• Andy Baggot covers some of the same ground in his "The weekend that was in the WCHA" blog post. Baggot chose to look at the bright side of things regarding Tech's brutal PK and their being swept by CC this weekend. CC converted on 8 of 14 PPs, but hey, at EV, Tech outscored CC 5-2. Go TECH?
  

• The campus papers have some coverage of the Men's and Women's games this past weekend:
  Gabriel (Daily Cardinal): Penalties cost Badgers chance at road sweep
  Donohue (Badger Herald): DeKeyser's squad continues to struggle in 1st game
  Hager (Badger Herald): Wisconsin splits weekend series with Ohio State
  Skurzewski (Daily Cardinal): UW continues trend of splits against Buckeyes

• I missed a couple of Jake Dowell and Jack Skille blurbs over on the Rockford Icehogs blog last week:

  10/21/09
  Lead By Example: Since being named team captain on Friday, centerman Jake Dowell has taken over the team lead in points and assists, a spot the third-year pro is not used to being in. In the last two games, Dowell has factored in on 71% of Rockford goals, recording two helpers on Friday and three on Saturday. Before this season, Dowell had five career multi-point games (one in 2006-07, two in 2007-08 and two in 2008-09). The Eau Claire, Wis. native now has three in 2009-10.
  
  Jack Skille will also go tonight for Rockford and he’ll be my first intermission guest. Some interesting stuff and for a sneak peak, click here. Say what you want about Skille, he’s been great through this whole up and down process with the Blackhawks and is carrying a great attitude.

• Baggot has an article about Mark Johnson's sabbatical from the Badgers this year. Dang, I really need to do an update of the Women's National Team and the Qwest Tour, don't I?
  

• Back in September, Baggot had an article about the plans for the new UW hockey rink being in jeopardy. And the same topic is in the news again this month. (Thanks to DPlaya for the heads-up on the 2nd link.)

• I've been AWOL in my coverage of TW because I simply don't have time. But DPlaya and Walby have been terrific (thanks, guys!), so I wanted to take this opportunity to remind you to check both of their sites for TW Major and TW Minor updates. Go TW!
  

• Speaking of DPlaya and Walby, they are also in the process of previewing HS hockey teams, so check that out. DPlaya also has Fri and Sat USHL updates from this past weekend, Wisconsin players on the NHL Central Scouting list, Wisconsin players in the USHL, and Wisconsin players in the NAHL.
  

"First practice", Derek Lee, Ben Street, Kelters and more . . .

• Yesterday, The Badgers took the ice @ the KC with the coaching staff for the 1st time this season. Per Andy Baggot's blog post, practices officially start 1 week before the season opener, but the NCAA allows 2 hrs/wk of instruction by the coaching staff starting Sept 15.
  
  Baggot tells us that Derek Lee can't skate with the coaches until a paperwork snafu is resolved, and he also gives us a preliminary look at line combinations.

  P. Johnson-Street-Davies
  Bohmbach-Geoffrion-Turnbull
  Murray-Stepan-Smith
  Mitchell-Dolan-Grotting
  Meuer-Thurber-Bendickson

• I've been waiting for quite sometime for Madison Newspapers to have an article about any random Badger and what they've been doing in the offseason / their outlook on the upcoming season, and yesterday Andy Baggot obliged with an article on Ben Street.
  
  About his summer and rehabbing his knee:
  

  Earlier this summer, Street spent four weeks working out with other college and pro players in Vancouver, looking to measure his rehabilitation.
  
  "The (athletic) trainers basically said, 'We're going to beat the hell out of your knee and then you'll start to trust it,'" he said. "After the first two weeks there, I felt like I was pretty much back."

  About the upcoming season:

  "On paper, I think we look pretty good and stack up as good as anyone else, probably," Street said.
  

  About the first look at line combinations:

  "There's a competitive air kind of laying over everything," Street said. "(Eaves) put some lines up (in the dressing room) so guys could sort of see where they're fitting in.

  "I'm guessing he'll change (the combinations) about 94 more times before the season starts, but it helps guys (see) where they're starting off and who they might be playing with and who's ahead of them."

• I completely missed this last week (sorry!) -- the Badger Herald had an article about the Kelters' playing both soccer and hockey. (Thanks to Boscacci for pointing it out.)

• Good ol' DPlaya found this complimentary article about Brad Winchester.

• DPlaya also found this article about Ron Vincent's ownership of the Penctincton Vees.

• And while I'm stealing from DPlaya, let me refer you to his coverage of Wisconsities in the NAHL Showcase, the NAHL's Future Prospects Tournament, and the USHL preseason. TW Minor is playing in the Future Prospects Tourney.

• Jonathan Willis calls San Jose a winner, Dany Heatley a winner for now, and Ottawa a loser in the blessed end of the Dany Heatley Saga. (Hey, congrats on the new gig, Jonathan!)
  

• BadgersWHockey tells us that Mark Johnson competed in the Ironman again this year.

• NCAA president Myles Brand has passed away from pancreatic cancer. You can find more articles about Brand here.

• Patick Kane traded Badgers Adam Burish and Jack Skille for almost-Badger Sam Gagner in NHL '10. Hmmm. [Thanks, IC.]

• Here's a nice article on Patrick Eaves with the Red Wings. [Thanks again, IC.]
  

A few US Women's National Team links

• The US Women's National team will be at the Minnesota State Fair tomorrow, marching in the State Fair Parade and signing autograpsh. (Thanks to brookyone for the link.)

• The Salem News has an article about Meghan Duggan making the team. (Thanks to BadgersWHockey, a fan-based twitter feed, which was nicely pointed out to me by a reader. I'm adding a link on the left of the blog.)

• Boscacci tells us that Mark Johnson will be one of Brian Posick's guests after 2PM on "On Wisconsin" on WTSO 1070. Hey, it's about 2PM right now, I'd better head over there! EDIT: BadgersWHockey says Johnson will be on around 2:20.
  

Video: Badger Women's season outlook

Similar to the Men's season outlook videos, uwbadgers now has an outlook video for the Badger Women. Here are the questions asked to Mark Johnson, as well as a brief synopsis of his answers.

Describe the 2009-10 coaching staff.
MJ has lots of nice things to say about Tracey DeKeyser, Peter Johnson, and Jackie Friesen -- he's very comfortable with and excited for his staff. DeKeyser has been with the program since it's inception is very qualified and he's excited for her to get the chance to run the program. Johnson was an assistant for the Badgers Men, as well as at Cornell and BG. He's won NCAA championships as a player and a coach, and Mark is very comfortable with him as an addition to the staff and helping DeKeyser. As a student assistant coach in her 5th year, Friesen got to see how practice plans were put together and see decision-making. He's really excited about her, and she's excited to be on board as well.

How will you be involved with the Badgers while you are coaching Team USA?
He says starting in September he'll basically be a fan. But that he will keep in touch with the 3 coaches on a regular basis to help them out in any way he can.

What does it mean to you to be coaching the 2010 Olympics?
He talks about the enjoyment, excitement, and challenges that come with representing one's country as a player and as a coach in international play. He calls the Olympics the biggest venue that sports provides, and he's looking forward to working with and challenging his players and making them the best team they're capable of becoming.

What does it mean for the UW to be hosting the Camp Randall Hockey Classic?
He says he always tries to make each year special for the seniors and mix in an event that's special that they can carry with them, and that this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the players.


* In other W-WCHA news, the Duluth Foreign Legion has given Shannon Miller a 2-year extension, extending her contract through the 2012-13 season.

Today in Badger Hockey History: Mark Johnson

From uwbadgers.com:

8/1/1996

Mark Johnson was named an assistant coach for the Wisconsin hockey program.

He became the third Johnson to coach Wisconsin hockey, along with his father, Bob, and his brother, Peter. Johnson played three seasons for the Badgers from 1976-79, leaving the UW as the school’s second all-time scorer.

Coach Johnson makes Top 15 Badger Moments

As you know, uwbadgers.com is listing the Top 15 Badger Moments of 2008-09, and Mark Johnson's being named head coach of the Team USA 2010 Women's Hockey Olympic Team puts him #7 on the list. (He shares the spot with Men's Basketball Head Coach Bo Ryan, who was named head coach of Team USA's men's basketball team for the 2009 University Games.)

That's back-to-back Badger Hockey moments, as Jamie McBain's performance from the blueline put him #8.

Speaking of Mark Johnson . . .

Del Scanlon of WSN has a 2-part interview with Coach Johnson, and Part 1 was posted today.

In other Badger Women's Hockey news, Mercyhurst F/D Geena Prough is transferring to Wisconsin. The articles says she has "transferred to Wisconsin for the 2009-10 season", but I'm assuming she'll have to sit out for a season. (Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.) Sounds like a nice pick-up for the Badgers. Welcome to Wisconsin, Geena!

EDIT: WHKY Blogger tells me that you only have to sit out a season when transferring to a WCHA from another WCHA team. Thanks, Blogger.

Mark Johnson to return for Camp Randall Hockey Classic?

Excuse me... the CULVER'S Camp Randall Hockey Classic.

WKOW, Madison's ABC affiliate, is reporting that Mark Johnson is hoping to be able to come back to Madison for the event. Exactly what that means (coach for one game? observe from the bench? check it out from the AD boxes with Barry?) isn't specified, but considering that opening ceremonies is a week later (and that Team USA has an exhibition game the same day as the CCRHC), it might be a little tough for him to get the time to do it.

Mark's quote from the article:

"I don't know yet. I want to be back for it. It's a once in a
lifetime opportunity and I want to see the hockey rink on our football
field. To walk out and be a part of it would be special. I just need to see if
we can change our[Team USA] game on February 6," Johnson said.

National coverage of MJ's selection

These links are courtesy of Paul Capobianco's Badger Hockey Insider. (If you haven't yet signed up, I highly recommend.)

Los Angeles Times
USA Today
Associated Press
Globe and Mail
Colorado Springs Gazette
Google search of Mark Johnson Olympic articles

Also, UW Assistant AD Justin Doherty has a nice piece on uwbadgers.com: USA Hockey choice in on the mark

More Mark Johnson . . .

I'm pretty excited about Mark Johnson being named head coach of the Women's US Olympic team. In addition to the articles linked yesterday, I have a few more links for you:

Milewski (Icehouse): How the team heard
Baggot (WSJ): Special journey ahead for Johnson
Donohue (Badger Herald): Johnson named coach of 2010 Games

And lookie, the news even made NHL.com!
Former Devil Mark Johnson tapped to coach US Women's Olympic team in 2010

One of the most interesting parts of yesterday's press conference was listening to Natalie Darwitz talk about how excited she was that Johnson was named. And you could tell that she really was excited. I thought that was pretty cool.

Gandalf was listening to the radio yesterday, and he tells me that if Hilary Knight and Meghan Duggan make the team, they'll miss the whole season next year but won't lose any eligibility. Which is what I would have expected; I just hadn't thought about it until he mentioned it to me.

With having the Blaine Residency all this year for post-collegiate players, and with having all of the collegiate and post-collegiate players in Blaine all next year, USA Hockey seems pretty committed to having a good showing in the Olympic Games.

It's all in the announcement and various articles, but I thought I'd go ahead and list what Mark Johnson and Team USA will be up to leading up to the Olympics.

April 4-12, 2009: IIHF World Women's Championship (Hameenlinna, Fin)
August: Olympic tryouts (Blaine, MN)
Aug 31 - Sept 6, 2009: National Women's Invitational Tournament
Nov 2-8, 2009: Four Nations Cup (Fin)
Sept 25, 2009 - Feb 4, 2010: Qwest Tour

I've heard that the preliminary roster for the April WW roster usually comes out in the end of January or the beginning of February, with the final roster being set 3 to 4 weeks later. So I'd expect that we'll hear about the prelimiary roster soon.

The National Women's Invitational Tournament is a test event for the Olympic games.

The Qwest Tour includes games against Team Canada and Finland, WCHA/HE/ECAC All-Star teams, and 3 WCHA teams -- including the Badgers in January 2009 (date TBA).