Tom Bardis, Ice Muskie

Apparently former Badger Tom Bardis is now an Ice Muskie. Or as TH might say, HE'S A FREAKIN' HOCKEY FISH. (I actually knew this last weekend but forgot to post it. Sorry!)

The Ice Muskies' website leaves a bit to be desired, as does the AAHL website. So I can't actually find Bardis on the roster. But I know he had an assist in their first preseason game on Oct 16 (9-3 win over Chicago) b/c it's mentioned in the recap, and I know he played in the first regular season game on Oct 23 (8-7 SO loss to Evansville) b/c bucky15 saw him play and mentioned it on uscho.

I was surprised that in the recap Bardis was referred to as a former Badger defenseman. I thought he was a forward at both SLU and UW. I know he practiced with the D during the year he sat out due to transferring, but I thought he played F during the few games that he played last season. (I know my memory stinks, but I can't imagine I'd screw that up.) I'm assuming he's playing at F for the Muskies and that the defenseman reference was an error, but what the heck do I know?

EDIT: On uscho, uwbadgers14 indicated that Bardis was moved to D in the middle of Friday's game because "the D was so brutal Friday night".

16 Forwards: Hickey's gone . . .

"He just thought there was a gut feeling that he could go some place and have a better shot to play more right away." -- Coach Mike Eaves regarding Chris Hickey

Entering this offseason with a glut of forwards for the coming year, I was going to do a little series of posts titled "19 Forwards", "18 Forwards", "17 Forwards", etc., because it seemed clear that something(s) had to give. But then Tom Bardis left the program and Tyler Barnes was delayed a year, and we were down to 17 forwards before I had a chance to write my 19 or 18 forwards posts.

But at 17 forwards, I actually thought things had stabilized. Yeah, 5 forwards seemed like an awful lot to be sitting each night, but I looked at the roster and didn't really see anyone else leaving. Admittedly, I didn't really think very hard about Hickey. My mistake.

And now, after hearing chatter over on uscho about someone (possibly Hickey) leaving the program, it appears that Hickey is in fact leaving.

You know, I liked Chris Hickey, and I know Gandalf liked him a lot, and I'm kinda bummed about the whole thing. (Well, bummed might not be the right word, but I'm trying to be diplomatic.) Good luck to Chris wherever he ends up.

By the way, Baggot's article also talks about the aforementioned Bardis and Barnes situations. I find Mike Eaves' quotes interesting. (Again, interesting might not be the correct word here.)

Regarding Bardis:

"[W]e just didn’t see him being able to play here with his skill set."

Which begs the question: wasn't the coaching staff familiar with his skill set before he became a Badger?

Regarding Barnes:

“I think we tried to manage it in the proper fashion,” Eaves said. “We met face-to-face and explained to him what our situation was and how it would affect (him). It’s not an easy thing to.

“They sensed we were trying to be up-front and honest. At first, I’m sure it’s an inital shock, then you try to take a look at it.

“That was a big part of our talk — would another year (in juniors) benefit him? In Tyler’s situation, we think that it will because he’s going to be in a lot more responsible situation with his junior team.”

Tom Bardis Released From UW Roster

There have been rumors floating around that Wisconsin and junior forward Tom Bardis have parted ways. Unfortunately I have to report that those rumors are true.

Bardis said, "I was very surprised by the news and also hurt because although hockey hasn’t gone my way the past couple years, it is still the sport that I truly love and will always be passionate about."

Bardis, who transferred from St. Lawrence, only played in three games for the Badgers this season after having to sit out 2008 due to NCAA transfer guidelines might not have gotten a fair shake for playing time. "I played only 3 games and to be honest the first two were quit nerve racking with combination of the year and a half without a game and the Kohl center atmosphere. I believe the one other game that I played in I played well and really started to feel my game again."

Regardless of his playing time, Bardis gave his heart and soul to the Badger program over the last two seasons. "This is The University of Wisconsin and I knew coming in here that it would be a battle everyday to break this lineup. Saying that, I came to the rink everyday and worked as hard as I could on and off the ice to give myself the best opportunity to do just that."

Bardis who says he will finish his degree at the University of Wisconsin also had nothing but great things to say about the staff and his teammates at Wisconsin. "My time at UW has been great so far and I still respect the coaches and my teammates in every aspect. It was an absolute honor to be a part of this team and I will cherish it for the rest of my life. I learned many things and had many wonderful experiences that I wouldn’t trade for the world."

I would personally like to thank Tom for his time as a Badger. He may not be able to wear the Wisconsin sweater any more, but once a Badger, always a Badger. Good luck in your future endeavors Tom.

Bendickson Back, Bardis & Hickey to make debuts

60 would probably cover this tomorrow morning, but I think it deserves its own post.

Todd is reporting in his blog today that Tom Bardis and Chris Hickey will make their debuts tomorrow night for the Badgers. I'm pretty excited to see Hickey play. In addition, Aaron Bendickson will center the new skaters as he returns from injury after being out of the line for 6 games. Its great to have Bendickson back. He is a great PK guy, and I think he is ready to add some offense for the Badgers.

Ben Grotting is still injuried, and Michael Davies and Josh Turnbull will be watching in street clothes. As Todd's blog post says (they) were being held out of the lineup because of a "50-50" combination of injuries and performance issues.

Makes sense to me, and hopefully it will be a wake up call to both players moving forward. I remember when Davies was benched last season, he played much more consistently afterward, but as a junior you shouldn't need a benching to motivate you.

Here are the lines:

Murray-Geoffrion-Bohmbach
Mitchell-Dolan-Gorowsky
P. Johnson-Thurber-Stepan
Hickey-Bendickson-Bardis

Smith-McBain
McDonagh-Goloubef
Gardiner-Little

Introducing Tom Bardis . . .

Ok, so Bardis has already been around for a year, but I don't think most Badger Fans know a whole lot about him. Luckily for us, Todd is on top of things . . .

Milewski (TCT): A new start for Bardis as practice begins

Bardis said that he transferred to UW because he wanted to play for a bigger and better program and that he appreciates Wisconsin's professional and serious approach. He also indicated that he benefited from having to sit out last season after transferring from SLU.

Todd notes that Bardis played in only 12 games his freshman season at SLU, with only 3 of those games occurring in the 2nd half. For what it's worth, I seem to recall SLU having a glut of forwards that year, sitting 5-6 forwards a night. Not that the situation is much better for Bardis here -- the Badgers will have 16 forwards, sitting 4 a night -- but the situation at SLU does indicate that his lack of playing time wasn't necessarily due to a lack of talent or ability.

I'm not sure what Eaves' plan is for Bardis. During practices last season, Eaves used Bardis on D in order to have 4 complete defensive pairings, despite Bardis being a forward and having an admittedly difficult time adjusting. And this makes me wonder whether or not Eaves sees Bardis as a serious contender for a spot at forward. But I gotta like Bardis's attitude about the competition to make the lineup:

"I tell myself I'm at the bottom so I can have the drive to get to the top. I like to work like I'm at the bottom, but at the same time, confidence-wise, absolutely, I'm in the top 12."

"I can only control what I can control, and whatever the coaches do, that's their decision," Bardis said. "But I'm going to make it real hard for them not to put me in, that's for sure.

Men's Player Previews: #6 Tom Bardis

Vitals:

Position: Forward
Year in School: Sophomore
Shoots Right
Height: 5-9
Weight: 186
Hometown: Alpharetta, GA
Previous Team: St. Lawrence (ECAC)

NHL Considerations: None at this time.

07/08 Stats: Redshirt after transfer
06/07 Stats: 12 games, 2-2-4

08/09 Role: 4th Line

07/08 Recap: Tom transferred from St. Lawrence last school year and by NCAA rules had to sit out the season. Tom did practice w/ the team, spending most of the season paired w/ Craig Johnson to even out the defensemen.

08/09 Thoughts: No offense to Tom, but I’m still trying to figure out why he transferred to Wisconsin. His father was an athlete at UW for a year (wrestling), so there are definitely ties from that angle. Wisconsin is loaded w/ forwards this season, and Tom didn’t stand out during his freshman season at St. Lawrence. I’m always up for a surprise, perhaps Tom will provide that for the Badgers this season.

Prediction: 6 games, 1-1-2

Photo from uwbadgers.com

Season Preview: Juniors

Last week, I previewed the senior class of the Men’s Hockey team, now it’s on to the juniors. With the changing landscape of College Hockey, having a large junior class is a huge bonus for any program looking to compete for a National Championship. With the best players leaving after their freshman and sophomore years, upperclassmen are at a premium. Wisconsin is fortunate to have 8 juniors suiting up in 08/09.

Of the 8 juniors, 7 of those young men are forwards, including Aaron Bendickson, Andy Bohmbach, Ben Grotting, John Mitchell, Blake Geoffrion, Michael Davies and Tom Bardis. I’m not actually sure if Bardis is considered a junior or a sophomore. Since he transferred and sat out a year, I’m not sure if that counted against his eligibility or not, but regardless I’m counting him as a junior for this discussion. Zach Bearson was part of this class until the recent announcement that he is no longer part of the team. The sole upperclassman blue liner is Jamie McBain.

Of all the offseason news, McBain’s return to Wisconsin was the biggest. As last season ended, I felt that if McB returned to Wisconsin’s lineup for 08/09 that the Badgers would be legitimate contenders for large trophies come next March/April. As an individual player, he is that important. Had McB left to join the Carolina Hurricanes organization, the Badgers would have been left w/ a huge lack of experience at defensemen. As it stands, McB is the only upperclassman on the blue line, and while not a captain, his leadership and experience will hold sway throughout the season.

McB was part of Wisconsin’s best pairing last season w/ Ryan McDonagh. Despite their youth, they gave the team the most consistent performance every night, shift to shift. Assuming that pairing remains the same to start this season, Wisconsin will arguably have the best pairing in all of College Hockey. For those who attended the Regional, McB’s play was nothing short of spectacular, especially on the PP, and when that carries over to this season, he will be a force to be reckoned w/.

As important as McB’s play will be to Wisconsin’s success this season, the large group of junior forwards is the first of two keys to Wisconsin’s 7th National Championship. Of the 7 returning players, 5 played in almost every game last season including Geoffrion, Davies, Bendickson, Grotting and Mitchell. When Josh Engel returned to the blue line, Bohmbach filled in the last forward spot during most of the 2nd half. Bardis practiced with the team all season, but sat out due to his transfer from St. Lawrence.

Geoffrion highlights this group. He made leaps and bounds during his sophomore season. On top of high expectations for this season, Geoffrion will serve as Co-Captain w/ Ben Street. Similar to McB, Geoffrion’s return to Madison was not set in stone due to his status as a Nashville Predators draft pick in 2006, but fans are happy to have him back. Goeffrion plays on the PP and PK, can score goals, work in the corner for the puck, and knock someone on their ass. Despite the departure of line mate Kyle Turris, Geoffrion’s point production should continue to rise, as he makes more things happen himself.

The most improved player on the team in 07/08 was Mitchell. Along w/ Grotting, they formed two-thirds of the most consistent line (centered by Sean Dolan) the Badgers had last season. Mitchell showed some scoring touch and due to his improvement and size, even had a few NHL teams calling on him. More will be expected of Mitchell this season, though I hope the coaching staff does not break up that line, since they worked together well and should be able to carry a little more of a scoring role this season.

Another player who definitely needs to step up his game in 08/09 is Davies. He is slowly developing into a consistent two way player, though his play in his own end is sometimes suspect. There is no doubt that Davies can score goals and should be a fixture on the PP this season. How much additional scoring burden can Davies fill? Will Davies take his game to the next level? A lot of questions surround Davies, and hopefully Coach Eaves doesn’t have to banish him to street clothes for a night to motivate him this season.

Grotting and Bendickson played in every game a year ago, and I expect that to continue this season. While Grotting isn’t going to provide Wisconsin w/ a lot of offense, he is an energy player who gets his job done. If he plays w/ Mitchell and Dolan again this season, that trio should continue to do good things that don’t show up on the score sheet, but often impact the outcome of the contest. Bendickson on the other hand is a player who I think is ready to make a dent in the offensive production of the Badgers. I first noticed Bendickson’s play during the second half of 06/07. He hustled every shift and that continued during 07/08. Bendy spent most of 07/08 on the 4th line, which limited his scoring chances, and he was a solid contributor on the PK. Somehow, someway, Bendy will take his game to another level this season.

Rounding out the junior forwards are Andy Bohmbach and Tom Bardis. W/ the strong incoming group of freshman forwards, both will likely be fighting for playing time this season. I don’t really know enough about Bardis to comment further, but what I saw from Bohmbach during late 07/08 impressed me. If he continues that this season he should see a lot of ice time. Similar to Grotting, he is not a scorer, but provides a “checking” line player who does some of the hard work that makes a team succeed.

I think in any class of players this big there are going to be surprises. For instance last season, as a sophomore Mitchell’s improvement was a huge surprise. As freshman, the play of Dolan and Patrick Johnson were not what I was expecting from them, they far exceeded it. How will it be this season? As I stated earlier, the play of the junior forwards is the first key to Wisconsin’s success this season. The Badgers lacked upperclassmen scoring from the forward position last season, w/ the exception of Street. These young men have been through 2 WCHA seasons, they know what to expect. While the sophomores and freshmen will contribute, if the junior class doesn’t show the way and put some goals up on the scoreboard, it could be another long season on offense.

Next week the attention turns to the veterans of one WCHA season, the sophomores. The other key to Wisconsin’s season will be discussed as this classes group of highly touted defensemen move into the spotlight.