TOM-TASTIC!

I was going to title this post "He Shoots, He Scores", which would've been fitting, but I thought good ol' Tom deserved something a little more dramatic. After all, he rescued the shootout. (Ok, so I'm being a bit over-dramatic now, but stay with me here.)

After a low-scoring scrimmage (Red and White tied 1-1), I was pretty excited for the shootout -- but then, as several shooters failed to score, I thought "Perhaps a shootout wasn't the most well-thought-out idea by Mike Eaves". Because a poor shootout showing would put a bit of a damper on the festivities, not to mention reinforcing the already present concerns about the ability of the Badgers to score.

But then Tom Gorowsky took the ice. And scored a beautiful goal. BEAUTIFUL. You might even say it was Tom-tastic! Admittedly, I'm not exactly unbiased, but nubeetle said it was beautiful, too, and I think most would agree that it was a pretty nice goal. Nice work, Tom.

Anyway, here's Todd's account of the scrimmage. He's right; there weren't a lot of scoring opportunities, and that's a bit disappointing. But I heard that the boys were a bit tired, as they had done quite a bit of strength and conditioning work, and they played 60 minutes (2 30-minute halves) with just 2 or 3 lines per team. (The 5th line played for White in the 1st half and Red in the 2nd half.) So perhaps fatigue was a contributing factor. And perhaps our strong defensive corps had something to do with it.

But yeah, it did feel a little bit like last year, struggling to score. At one point I asked if the lack of scoring was due to good defense or struggling offense, and I received the answer "Yes". I thought I was asking an either-or question, not a yes-no question, but the answer is perhaps a little (or a lot) of both. I guess we'll have to see how it all plays out.

Despite the lack of scoring, it was great to see the boys back on the ice. And I gotta tell ya (as if you didn't already know), I'm pretty fired-up about the upcoming season.

Getting back to Tom, as after all the title of this post bears his name -- let's hope he continues to be Tom-tastic in in practices and gets himself into the lineup. Keep working hard and scoring those goals, Tom!

(Photo courtesy of Redheat15)

A few Saturday evening items

• As we previously reported, Milewski and Baggot have a first look at the lines and reports from this mornings men's practice. The team skated again at 3pm this afternoon, but media were not present. Capobianco reports on this afternoon's practice, which consisted of a 2-period scrimmage.
  
  The UW hired officials to work the scrimmage, and apparently the affair was penalty-filled. Not surprising at this point in time, but let's hope the boys work that out of their systems quickly.
  
  Team Red and Team White tied with 4 goals apiece. Brendan Smith had 2 goals for Team Red, and Tom Gorowksy and Mike Davies each scored 1 goal. Team White goals were scored by Ryan McDonagh, Chris Hickey, Ben Grotting, and Jamie McBain.
  
  So, it looks like the defensemen outscored the forwards. And 2 of the forward goals were scored by guys who are pencilled in on the 5th forward line. Hmmm. (Yeah, I know it's just a scrimmage during the 1st day of practices, but nonetheless I say "hmmm".)

• Per the Blog Hogs, Jake Dowell wore the "A" again tonight for Rockford, perhaps this time all by himself, as Danny Groulx was scratched. The Icehogs lost 5-3; Dowell was held off of the scoresheet. Ryan Nie, the Icehogs goalie for 2 periods tonight, might be a bit of a sieve, as he's listed as an outside shot to make the team. He allowed 4 goals on 20 shots before Joe Fallon replaced him in the 3rd. In goal for Peoria was a player whose name you might find familiar -- Ben Bishop from Maine.


• Lowetide has a post today on Tom Gilbert.


• The Chicago Blackhawks made 3 more cuts today, with Jack Skille still on the roster. The Hawks' last preseason game is tomorrow. Expect final cuts on Monday or Tuesday.
  

Badger Men: Official practices begin today!

The Badger Men began official practices this morning, and Milewski and Baggot have the first look at lines.

Turnbull-Street-Stepan
P. Johnson-Geoffrion-Davies
Mitchell-Dolan-Murray
Thurber-Bendickson-Grotting
Bohmbach-Gorowsky-Hickey/Bardis

McDonagh-McBain
Gardiner-Goloubef
Little-Smith
C. Johnson-Springer

At one point during practing, Goloubef and Smith were also paired up.

I'm sure I don't need to mention that we'll likely see a number of different line combinations over the next few weeks. The Badgers practice again this afternoon and Sunday before beginning a regular week of practice on Monday, and Eaves indicated that he may try some different lines this afternoon.

A few Wednesday afternoon items

• As mentioned yesterday, the Badger Men began working in small groups with the coaching staff. Todd mentions that the beginning of the season is still over a month away. To be precise, Todd, it's 37 days 'til the puck drops in Boston.


• A number of Badger men and women have attended prep schools prior to arriving at Wisconsin. Off the top of my head, Tom Bardis (Cushing Academy) and Ben Grotting, Jordy Murray, and Derek Stepan (Shattuck St. Mary's) come to mind on the men's side, and Meghan Duggan and Erika Lawler (Cushing Academy) come to mind on the women's side. The New England Hockey Journal has an interesting article on prep schools as a stepping stone to college hockey. (Thanks to The World of Junior Hockey for the link.)


• HIW has a link to a Youtube video that consists of 10 minutes of Gamblers highlights. As DPlaya points out, Aaron Crandall and Ryan Little make appearances.


• For those who don't follow recruiting much (Ma 60, this is for you!), The Bronco Hockey Blog has a nice primer on the recruiting process.
  
  

Tuesday Evening Odds & Ends

• Per Todd, the Badger Men start working with coaches in groups of 4 tomorrow, Sept 3. On Sept 15, the coaching staff can begin skill work with the entire team 2 hours per week. Official practices begin Oct 4. Todd also has some height/weight info about this year's team in comparison to last year's team.


• Uwbadgers.com has finished updating men's bios to include stats and info from last season.

• Hey students -- uwbadgers.com reminds us that men's hockey student tickets are available, as are student Red Cards. Red Cards cost $25 and get you admittance to women's hockey, volleyball, softball, men's and women's soccer, and wrestling.