TW weekend wrap-up

TW Minor swept the Waterloo Jr. Blackhawks Minor team this weekend in Madison. As the team alternates played at least 1 game this weekend, TW scratched several players for each game. I'm told that for future games there won't be any scratches as only regulars will be attending.


Sat 8/22: TW 4 - Waterloo 1
TW scoring: 1. Eddie Matsushima (Paul Byrne), 2. Kody Novinska (Jason Ford), 3. Nick Szopinski (Garrett Clemment), 4. Matt Fosdick (Brandon Walls, Tim Davison)

TW goalies: Saxton Soley 8-8, Austin Priebe 15-14

TW healthy scratches: Tyler Platz, Brett Bukowski, Dylan Cleereman, Trevor Okeson


Sunday 8/23: TW 5 - Waterloo 3
TW scoring: 1. Garrett Clemment (unassisted), 2. Alex Dahl (Eddie Matsushima), 3. Matt Fosdick (unassisted). 4. Jason Ford (Aston Wackym), 5. Eddie Matsushima (Dahl)

TW goalies: Saxton Soley 9-8, Tyler Platz 16-14

TW healthy scratches: Ryan Dau, John Feemster, Tim Davison, Austin Priebe


Next up for TW Minor:
Wakota Arena - South St. Paul, MN
9/12 9:35 AM - Metro SW (Rink 2)
9/12 4:50 PM - Northeast (Rink 1)
9/13 9:00 AM - Omaha (Rink 2)

Everybody Loves Tom Gilbert

Well, maybe not EVERYBODY, but hey, if Lowetide loves Tom Gilbert, that's good enough for me. LT is in the process of doing his "Reasonable Expectations" posts for the upcoming season, and today he takes a look at good ol' Tom. Good stuff.

LT prefaces his discussion of TG's numbers with this:

For those who believe you can't be young, unique, have personality and a lust for life while playing hockey for the Edmonton Oilers, allow me to present Mr. Tom Gilbert.

Much like a rock star, there seems to be a gap between what he "is" and what he "represents." What he "is" at this point is an outstanding hockey player: Tom Gilbert might be the best defenseman on a club teeming with them.

The only question left is something called "established level of ability." What does that mean? Well, in pure terms, we know what Albert Pujols is going to produce season over season: 40 homers, 125 rbi's and something called "ops" that is over 1.00 (is that on-base plus slugging? why would they do that? is this a useful stat? please explain!) and 162 times a season he causes the opposition starter to have a bead of sweat run from the back of his neck all the way down the crack of his ass. That's established level of ability: Albert Pujols is a walking barf bag for pitchers, the human 'dead man walking' for starters and the man who ends careers before they've started.

It takes some time, and Gilbert isn't there yet. He's not Albert Pujols, but Jesus H. he's trending nicely as an NHL player.

After a bit of discussion, LT leaves us with this prediction:

Prediction for 2009-10: 82gp, 9-31-40 (.488 per game)

Which represents a few more goals but a few less assists compared to his actual stats from last year.

Predicted: 82gp, 7-15-22 (.268 per game)
Actual: 82gp, 5-40-45 (.549 per game)

By the way, it looks like LT had to change the photo for his post. He initially had a fantastic photo taken by Curtis Comeau (Eternal Images Photography). I can't figure out how to link directly to the photo, but you can scroll through the portrait gallery and find it, as well as another photo Tom.

On a sillier note, edmontonoilers.nhl.com has a couple of videos with Tom Gilbert and Ladislav Smid: Ladislav Smid reports, How well does Ladislav Smid know Tom Gilbert?

Everybody Hates Dany Heatley?

If you're interested in the fall-out from the Dany Heatley conference call, Illegal Curve has a bunch of links that I honestly haven't read, and Mirtle and Brownlee weigh in as well.

On the other side of things, a couple of days ago Steve Yzerman talked about how Dany Heatley deserves to be at the Team Canada Olympic orientation camp.

As for me, I think I'll sit this debate out, for the most part, anyway. I think the whole trade saga paints him in a rather unfavorable light, but I do agree he belongs at the Olympic camp, I like the way he acknowledges Badger fans at his NHL games, and he once did something very nice for nubeetle. Can I just blame his agent for the whole mess?

U17 Five Nations: USA 9 - GER 6

As expected, the US defeated Germany (9-6) and Slovakia defeated Switzerland (6-1).

Future Badger Jordan Schmaltz scored USA's 4th goal. Wisconsinites Jake McCabe and Alex Racino were held off the scoresheet.

If you want to watch the USA-GER game, here's a video link.

Final Standings:
SVK 4-0-0
CZE 3-1-0
USA 2-2-0
SUI 1-3-0
GER 0-4-0

Dany Heatley speaks . . .

Heatley says that 'Diminished Role' led to trade demand

Audio from the conference call (16:28)

Video interview w/ TSN's Ryan Rishaug (2:49)

TW Minor sched

Gandalf already posted links for TW Major's "before" schedule. Today, I bring you TW Minor's "before" sched:

Aug 22-23: Waterloo Blackhawks (Madison, WI - Madison Ice Arena)
Sept 12-13: Metro SW, Northeast, Omaha (South St. Paul, MN - Wakota Arena)
Sept 17-20: Chicago Fury, Alaska All-Stars, Chicago Young Americans (Blaine, MN - Schwan's SuperRink)
Sept 26-27: Southeast, Metro NE, Metro East (Cottage Grove, MN - Cottage Grove Arena)
Oct 3-4: Metro NW, Metro East, Metro SE (Eau Claire, WI - Hobbs Arena)
Oct 10-11: Metro SW, ND Phantoms, ND Rebels (Blaine, MN - Schwan's SuperRink)
Oct 17-18: TBA (Faribault, MN - Shattuck)
Oct 24-25: Southeast, Omaha, Southwest (Rochester, MN - Graham Arena)
Oct 31-Nov 1: Metro SE, Northwest, Metro East (South St. Paul, MN - Wakota Arena)
Nov 5 - 8: Nike Bauer Invitational Tournament (Chicago, IL)

Not sure I'll be able to make it to any of those games, but I gotta tell ya, I'm sure gonna try. TW Minor has a strong team again this year and should make a strong run for the national title. Should be a heck of a lot of fun.

You can find the TW Major and Minor rosters here.

Go TW!

U17 Five Nations: CZE 2 - USA 1

The US U17 team dropped today's game to the Czech Republic 2-1. Future Badger defenseman Jordan Schmaltz had an assist on USA's sole goal. Jake McCabe and Alex Racino were held off the scoresheet.

In today's other game, Switzerland defeated Germany 4-3.

The tournament wraps up tomorrow, with Slovakia facing Switzerland at 9 AM CDT and USA facing Germany at 11:30 AM CDT. If you remember, USA defeated Germany 3-1 in their exhibition prior to the tournament.

Here are the standings so far:
SVK 3-0-0
CZE 3-1-0
USA 1-2-0
SUI 1-2-0
GER 0-3-0

Looks like a likely 3rd place finish for the US. We can't finish any higher than that, but I'd expect us to beat Germany again and for Slovakia to beat Switzerland.

Thursday Night Odds & Ends

• The WSJ discusses the Badger Women's 2009-2010 schedule.

• Alev and Derya Kelter are going to be part of "Faces of the Big Ten" commercial series.
  

• Jake Gardiner gets some love: Gardiner adapting fine to new position. (Thanks to anon for the link.) Lots of good quotes in this article -- too many to post -- so you'll just have to read it yourself.

• Bernd Bruckler is featured in the latest Uwbadgers "Where are they Now?". And nubeetle was kind enough to send me the link to this short video interview w/ Bernd in which he talks about going to the KHL next season and what he's working on this summer. Thanks, nu!
  

• Continuing their Fall 2009 Top 20 Prospects series, HF looks at the Montreal Canadiens. Patrick Johnson is an "Other Notable".

• Dany Heatley is finally going to talk to the media, participating in a confence call and a follow-up press conference in Kelowna on Friday. Heatley had been asked by Hockey Canada to clear the air before next week's Olympic orientation camp so that the "Dany Heatley Predicament" wouldn't overshadow the camp.

• This has been reported EVERYWHERE, so you probably already know that UND's Matt Frattin was arrested for DUI early Wednesday morning and was subsequently dismissed from the team. If he hadn't been dismissed, he would've already faced a minimum 2-game suspension, reduced scholarship money, and mandatory counseling due to some lawnmower-throwing shenanigans with Joe Finley. Hakstol is leaving the door open for Frattin to return to the team after this season.
  
  UND is expected to quickly add another forward to the team, and Schlossman thinks it will be Corban Knight.

• Kevin Pates has a bit on the DUMP expansion.

• I posted this before, but it was tacked onto the end of the Badger Women's Outlook Video post, so you may have missed it: The Duluth Foreign Legion has extended Shannon Miller's contract through the 2012-13 season.

• USCHO's Paula Weston reports on the CCHA's denial of UAH's application and then gives her take. I don't know though -- I'm not buying the whole "the CCHA needs to maintain the strongest possible CCHA to keep the Big Ten wolf at bay" argument. Because you can't tell me that, if the BTHC came calling, the CCHA-sans-UAH would be any more successful than the CCHA+UAH at stopping the creation of the BTHC. I mean, come on, REALLY?
  
  By the way, you might be interested in this article about UAH's fate from the front page of Sunday's Huntsville Times. The same edition also has an article about the importance of UAH Hockey in the community and an article that refutes the CCHA's reasons for denial.
  

• For what it's worth, I like Team Canada's new Olympic jerseys. At the same link, you can also take a look at Team Canada jerseys over the years, going all the way back to the 1920's.

• Well, this is probably the most impressive location for an outdoor hockey game. Dean Millard of Coming Down the Pipe tells us that the Norfolk Admirals are planning on playing a game on the deck of the USS Eisenhower.
  

US Olympic Camps linkorama

• The 2009 USA Hockey Women's National Festival is currently underway, starting yesterday and running through Monday the 24th. The festival is serving as the selection camp for the 23-player 2009-10 US Select Team that will participate in the Qwest Tour (Sept 25 - Feb 4), the National Women's Invitational Tournament (Aug 26 - Sept 6, Vancouver), and the Four Nations Cup (Nov 2 - 8).
  
  The 23-player Select Team roster will be announced on Monday. (In mid-December, the roster will be pared down to 21 players for the Olympic Games.)
  
  Badgers at the camp include Molly Engstrom, Kerry Weiland, Jinelle Zaugg Siergiej, Erika Lawler, Jessie Vetter, Hilary Knight, Meghan Duggan, Geena Prough, Brianna Decker, and Chanda Gunn.

• The US Men's Olympic orientation camp wrapped-up yesterday. Unlike the Women's Festival, this camp was more about team-building than anything else.
  
  34 players participated. Team USA GM Brian Burke says right now that 14 players have locked-up spots on the team. Kevin Paul DuPont of The Globe and Mail speculates on which players are likely to make the roster.
  
  Badgers at the camp were Brian Rafalski, Ryan Suter, Tom Gilbert, and Joe Pavelski.

• Bob at the Fifth Feather attended one of open sessions during the camp and shares his experience. (Thanks to Illegal Curve for the link.)
  

  Finally, Brian Rafalski was introduced last to a loud chorus of boos and even a little “Detroit Sucks!” chant. (Maybe I should have just gone to work.)

  Then, following introductions, the players skated around the rink, stretching and talking. As players skated by the side of the ice with bleachers, people screamed things at select players with little interference from rink noise typical in NHL stadiums. “Brian Rafalski, you suck!” said one man, who brought the easily amused crowd to a roar.

  “He’s on the Red Wings” I heard one man say to another. (It’s usually not funny if you have to explain it.) Rafalski acknowledged the yelp with a slight smile and a wave.

  Don't you just love Brian Rafalski?
  

• ESPN.com: Camp's out, but auditions just beginning
  

• Another Chris Chelios article: Coach Chelios takes on a new role with Team USA

• Even better, a Joe Pavelski article: Pavelski has gone from obscurity to Olympic hopeful

• Men's Olympic jerseys unveiled.

• Down Goes Brown, a Maple Leafs blog, gives us their own special "behind the scenes" from the camp. Sure, they take some shots at Joe Pavelski, Tom Gilbert, and Dany Heatley, but I think it's hilarious. (Once again, thanks to Illegal Curve for the link.)
  

U17 Five Nations: USA 4 - SUI 3

The US U17 team defeated Switzerland 4-3 today. Jordan Schmaltz, Jake McCabe, and Alex Racino were held off the scoresheet.

Next up: Fri 8/21, 8 AM CDT -- Czech Republic


I've been having a heck of a time finding a full tournament schedule or scores for games not involving the US, but I've finally found something:

8/18/09
SVK 3- USA 2
CZE 8 - GER 2

8/19/09
CZE 6 - SUI 1
SVK 6 - GER 5

8/20/09
SVK 5 - CZE 4
USA 4 - SUI 3

8/21/09
CZE – USA
GER – SUI

8/22/09
SVK – SUI
USA – GER

Women's schedule officially released

The Women's schedule has been officially released. The changes since the last time we posted about it, there is a Red/White scrimmage on monday Sept 28th at 2 PM. A home series vs Wayne State has been added Thurs/Fri Nov. 12&13, and in preparation for the 2010 Olympics, Team USA will play the Badgers on Tues Jan 5th. If you are a fan of hockey at all, you should circle that one on your calendar, how often will you get to see an Olympic team play in Madison, especially one that will likely feature six current or former players.

Sept. 28: Red/White Scrimmage
Oct. 2&3: North Dakota
Oct. 9&10: @ Bemidji
Oct. 16-18: Open
Oct. 23&24: Ohio State
Oct. 30, Nov 1: minnesota
Nov. 6&7: Robert Morris
Nov. 12&13: Wayne State
Nov. 20-21: @ St. Cloud
Nov. 27&28: @ Providence
Dec. 4&6: Duluth Foreign Legion
Dec. 11&12: @ Mankato
Jan. 5: US Olympic Team
Jan. 8&9: @ North Dakota
Jan. 16&17: @ Duluth Foreign Legion
Jan. 22&23: St. Cloud
Jan. 29&30: @Ohio State
Feb. 6&7: Bemidji*
Feb. 12&13: Mankato
Feb. 19&20: @minnesota
Feb. 26-28: 1st Round WCHA Playoffs
March 5&6: WCHA Final Faceoff
March 12&13: 1st Round NCAA Playoffs
March 18&20: Frozen Four

*Saturday game part of Camp Randall Classic

Chris Chelios Linkorama

There have been a few articles recently about Chris Chelios's inclusion on the USA Olympic Team staff and about his desire to play hockey next year. A couple of these links I actually stumbled upon myself, and a couple are courtesy of Illegal Curve.


Allen (USA Today): Team USA staffer Chelios, 47, still looking for ice time

Canadian Press (via The Hockey News): Veteran blueline Chris Chelios determined to play pro hockey next year.

Roarke (NHL.com): Chelios still wants to play, happy in adviser role

Simmons (Sun Media): Chelios asks Leafs for a job *

Wharnsby (Globe and Mail): Chelios inquired about joining Leafs *

* In this Daily Herald article about the orientation camp, Chelios's approaching Wilson about a job in Toronto is treated in a different light:

"He pulled me aside and said, 'You guys need a defenseman up in Toronto, don't you?'" joked Wilson, the Maple Leafs coach."

The Simmons post, however, specifically says that Chelios wasn't kidding.

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.

Everyone loves Derek Stepan

As you know, Derek Stepan recently participated in the NJEC. The camp consisted of 3 intrasquad scrimmages and 4 games v. Russia. Stepan was held off the scoresheet during the intrasquad scrimmages, but he fared quite will in the games v. Russia -- scoring 1 goal and 7 assists for 8 points in 4 games. Nice!

DPlaya, of course, spotted some nice write-ups about Stepan's play at the camp, and I'm shamelessly going to steal them from him. (Thanks, DP!)

The Prospect Park: It's really nice to dream
Note - this was written after 2 games v. Russia, so stats listed are reflected accordingly.

While the numbers being put up by the Ranger prospects have been really nice (Stepan 4 assists, Bourque 2 goals, 1 assist) what is being overlooked has been their defensive play.
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Derek Stepan has been as we have been saying since last season, a very smart player who's skating skills opens up ice for his linemates. Stepan in our eyes has perhaps the highest hockey IQ of all Ranger prospects as he makes smart play after smart play.

He has 4 assists but his own pressure on the forecheck is helping the US keep the Russians limited to just 2 goals in 2 days. Stepan was viewed as just a one way player but the teachings of his coach at Wisconsin Mike Eaves is paying dividends.

Rangers website: Stepan helps USA clinch series vs. Russians

Derek Stepan, the hottest of the Rangers prospects in Lake Placid, fittingly scored Team USA's final goal of the series -- a power-play tally at 13:35 of the third period. He also assisted on a power-play goal at 14:44 of the second period to put the U.S. up 4-0.

Stepan's numbers in the four-game series were remarkable. The University of wisconsin sophomore, drafted by the Blueshirts in the second round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, finished with one goal and seven assists for eight points in four games. Most of his scoring came on the power-play, where the U.S. was absolutely lethal.

Blueshirt Banter: Derek Stepan steps up at USA-Russia Evaluation Camp

Now everyone figured that Stepan would be a good player but questions loomed as to how he would fair on the international level during the USA-Russia junior evaluation camp. Well Stepan answered his doubters with some emphatic play. While most Ranger fans were probably wondering about Bourque and Kreider, Stepan put up 8 points (1g 7a) in 4 games and was noticeable whenever he touched the ice. He hit well, he shot the puck often, he made some brilliant passes, and he played some solid defense. Regardless of his numbers he was a leader on the ice and was always involved for team USA. He got into scrums, he was not afraid to get dirty, he parked himself in front of the net and he gave a damn.
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He is not flash, but he is incredibly fast. Scouts, including our friend Jess at the Prospect Park, say that his calling card is blowing by defenders and just scoring goals. He doesn't try to do too much with the puck and--as we saw from the evaluation camp--he has some great vision. I am very excited about him, are you?

So, to sum up, he plays smart, he skates well, he hits, he's not afraid to shoot the puck, he has vision, he passes well, he plays tough in front of the net, he forechecks, he plays well defensively, and he plays hard . . . What's not to love?

Michael Vilardo Re-Opens His Recruitment

I received a bit of interesting news tonight when It was brought to my attention that Illinois forward Michael Vilardo has de-committed from The Ohio State University and is looking at other options.

Michael is an extremely talented forward who played as a '92 with the Team Illinois Minor program last winter. He is listed at 6', 160 pounds and recorded 48 points in 31 games last season in the MWEHL.

If you may recall, I posted about his commitment last winter. I may have over-reacted in the initial post, but I'm not backing off the principles of my original arguments. I will clarify, that Michael was a bit un-fairly singled out in the post, it was more of a general rant towards the recruiting process in general, it just so happened that he was "in the now."

The fact remains that Vilardo is a great player. Vilardo is changing teams and playing with the Chicago Mission Midget Major program this season. This is also the same team that 1993 born defenseman and Wisconsin commit Jordan Schmaltz will play for. It would not shock me to see him end up playing some games this season in the USHL for the Steel or another franchise. (He was drafted by Fargo but they do not currently own his rights)

I do not know if Vilardo has interest in the Badgers. I will say that we are in need of forwards in the 92 age group, and I'm assuming Schmaltz will be making an effort to try and make him a Badger. Vilardo certainly will be an option now. Along with kids like CJ Eick and Ryan Belonger from Green Bay, and another Wisconsin native Garrett Allen who has made the Fargo Force roster.

SJ Sharks Captaincy Empty

For those who follow the NHL, you may have come across the story that's been out the last few days that Patrick Marleau has been stripped of his role as San Jose Sharks captain by head coach Todd McLellan. This will, of course, do nothing to stop the never-ending trade rumors that surround Marleau- his name has, after all, been constantly linked to trade rumors for the last couple of seasons.

But what might be more interesting to you Badger fans is that among the possible favorites to replace Marleau as captain of the Sharks is non other than the Polish Prince himself: Joe Pavelski.

Mark Purdy of Mercury News (Bay Area) notes Pavs along with Dan Boyle and Joe "Yes, Boston Really Traded Me" Thornton as one of his three candidates for the job:

"The final possibility is Joe Pavelski, the young second-line center who was among the most visibly angry Sharks following the playoff loss to the Ducks. He won an NCAA championship at the University of Wisconsin. Pavelski, 25, would be a bold selection, though not an utter shock."

Michael Farber on SI.com also suggested Pavelski as a candidate (Farber is also keen on Boyle, Thornton and geezer Rob Blake), as well as offering this quote from Pavs about Marleau's demotion:

"Pat is great," a somber Pavelski said Tuesday. "This isn't going to take anything away from the kind of character (player) he is. He is probably going to have to come out stronger after something like this. Or (he'll have to go) elsewhere . . . When something like that happens, it's not just Patty. This could be a wakeup call to the team. I feel just as bad for him because I could have done more."
(Emphasis added)

A lot of talk has been bubbling around over at The Sporting News regarding the Sharks and Pavs. Columnist Craig Custance in particular seems pretty into the idea of Pavelski stepping into the role. He's written a blog post and a twit (I like that word better... and thanks to 60 for pointing out the twitter post) proclaiming as such. The blog (emphasis added):

"It's been great getting to know some of the US players. Had a great chat today with Joe Pavelski which we used as a Q and A. I know people in the Sharks organization love Joe, I remember one San Jose scout telling me that before Pavelski was drafted the knock on Joe was his skating but he was constantly around the puck. That really stood out to them. Joe was pretty candid about his hopes of one day being a captain and if the decision was mine, which sadly it's not, I would give him a long look at the newly vacated captaincy in San Jose. He's won at every level and seems to have a drive and focus that a good captain needs. Believe me, he's still ticked off about the playoff loss."

The Twit:

"The more I talk to Joe Pavelski the more I think he needs to be the next Sharks captain."

Custance also posted a relatively in-depth Q&A with Pavs on the subject. Some choice quotes from Pavs to note (again, emphasis added):

"[The playoff exit] wasn't just [Marleau's] fault. I blame myself just as much as anything for something like that. In the game you need a supporting staff. I'm just as responsible for it as he is. We didn't get the job done this year."

"There are no captains right now. Someone will be named the captain, but it's going to be collective. Everybody needs to step up."

"I want to keep getting better. I want to eventually [be the captain] -- maybe it comes this year -- a different role, a more leadership role. I want to get to that level. I want to get there as quick as I can."

I may be accused of bias here, but from the quotes and phrases that I'm seeing from and about Pavs, it seems like he would be the natural choice to be captain. His Q&A with Custance in particular is showing that in spades. How many athletes, when asked about this sort of major shakeup by a member of the press, would be so forthcoming? So detailed and thought out in his responses? So accepting of his own responsibility? More often than not, you see an athlete give lip-service answers or go into some abbreviated version of coach-speak. Joe Pavelski seems as if he's having none of that, and I applaud him for it.

Here's hoping to see a 'C' on his chest this fall. All hail the Polish Prince!

U17 Five Nations: SVK 3 - USA 2

The US U17 team dropped their first game of the tourney, losing 3-2 to Slovakia. The game recap isn't all that insightful and doesn't really provide much of a feel for the game.

Verona's Jordan Schmaltz had an unassisted goal; Eau Claire's Jake McCabe and Merrill's Alex Racino were held off the scoresheet.

Next up: Thur 8/20, 12:30 CDT -- Switzerland

WCHA Previews: Mankato

School: Minnesota State Mankato or just Mankato
Mascot: Purple Cows
National Championships: None at DI
Head Coach: Troy Jutting, 142-162-44, 10th season

Last Season: 11-13-4, 8th Place WCHA; 15-17-6 Overall

Predicted 09/10 WCHA Finish: 8th

Key Departures:
F Mike Berge, 7-24-31*
F Trevor Bruess, 12-5-17
G Mike Zacharias, 14-14-6, 2.99 GAA, .911 save %
*All stats listed from 08/09

Key Returnees: (82.1% of scoring returns)
D Kurt Davis (Jr), 6-25-31
F Kael Mouillierat (Sr), 17-13-30
F Geoff Irwin (Sr), 12-16-28
F Rylan Gialardi (Jr), 8-20-28
F Mike Louwerse (So), 13-13-26

Top Sieve:
No returning goalie has started an NCAA game

Key Additions:
F Tyler Pitlick (MN HS), 27-31-58
F Eriah Hayes (USHL), 27-18-45
G Kevin Murdock (USHL), 21-10-4, 2.24 GAA, .920 save %
G Phil Cook (NAHL), 24-10-5, 2.68 GAA, .922 save %

Freshman Scouting Report: Tyler Pitlick is the biggest name in this class; he was a finalist for MN Mr. Hockey last season and should add more offense to the team. He will be eligible for the 2010 NHL Draft. Eriah Hayes was a teammate of Craig Smith’s in Waterloo and was 4th on his team in scoring. Kevin Murdock very well could be the starter for Mankato when the season starts. He had a fine season w/ the Lincoln Stars last season, but I’d think sophomore Austin Lee and freshman Phil Cook could compete for playing time as well. It will be someone’s job to grab, since the seat is vacant. Overall a decent class for Mankato.

When Wisconsin Beats Mankato: @ Mankato 10/23 & 10/24, @KC 2/12 & 2/13

08/09 Recap: While Mankato finished 8th in the WCHA last season they were only 3 points out of 5th place. Really outside of Tech, every team was in the running for home ice until the last few weekends of the season. At the end of the 07/08 season, Mankato threw a lot of blame around for not making the NCAA tourney when the PWR had them as the 1st team out, and a lot of that blame fell to Wisconsin. Wisconsin made up for it by promptly ended their season in the 1st round of the WCHA playoffs w/ a sweep. I don’t remember much about Mankato’s past season, because the Badgers played them late in the year and they never queued my interest other than some cheap jokes about their mascot and 24 year old freshman from time to time. Mankato had the WCHA best PP during league games.

Team’s Biggest Strength(es): The team scores a lot of hardworking goals and they have a lot of their offense back from last season, so they should score.

Team’s Biggest Weakness(es): Goaltending, cue up CC’s preview from last week on this one. As an anonymous poster guessed correctly last week, Mankato is in the 8th slot instead of UAA because they have no experience in the net.

09/10 Thoughts: Mankato should be one of the better offensive teams in the WCHA this season, but on the flip side they will likely also be one of the worst defensive teams in the league. There should be a lot of high scoring games for Land Cow fans, but in the end I think they will lose more than they win. If they were to stumble upon good goaltending (maybe Kevin Murdock will bring along his USHL success), they could easily finish in the top half of the league. Again how many freshman or inexperienced WCHA goalies step in and take the league by storm? Defenseman Kurt Davis and forward Kael Mouillierat should be the offensive leaders again for the Land Cows, both coming off nice seasons. The team is old (w/ 24 year old freshman how can they not be?) and in the WCHA that isn’t something to take lightly. I know the Badgers are banking on their group of seniors as well.

Mankato gets a good taste of future WCHA opponents Bemidji State and Nebraska-Omaha w/ series against both this coming season.

The difference between 3rd and 9th in the WCHA could likely be a few Randy Schmidt missed calls again this season. As much as UAA, Tech and Mankato aren’t powerhouses in the WCHA, I’d take them any day over the crap at the bottom of the CCHA. There are no nights off in the WCHA unlike the CCHA where the junior varsity suits up to beat W. Michigan.

A few Monday evening items

• Capobianco has information from this morning's planning meeting for the Camp Randall Classic.

• Boscacci tells us that "Head coach Mark Johnson packed up his office today officially starting his leave of absence and leaving DeKeyser in charge."

• I posted yesterday that the 5 Nations Tourney starts on Tuesday. Which is true -- the US plays their 1st game against Slovakia at 9AM. But I didn't realize that the US had an exhibition game yesterday in which they defeated Slovakia 3-1. Wisconsinites Jake McCabe and Alex Racino assisted on USA's third goal. Jordan Schmaltz was held off the scoresheet.

• Today WCH picks apart the CCHA's denial of UAH's application, and Goon talks about UAH's future.

• The US Men's Olympic Orientation Camp began today, and you can read about it here and here. For the on-ice sessions the players are broken into two groups, all Badgers are in Group 1: #8 Joe Pavelski, #20 Ryan Suter, #28 Brian Rafalski, and #77 Tom Gilbert.
  
  In the left photo below you can see TG on the ice at camp; in the right photo you can see Chris Chelios signing an autograph. Chelios is part of the USA Hockey staff. (Photos by Harry Thompson, from usahockey.com)
  

HF's Top 20 Prospects, Fall 2009

Hockey's Future is releasing their Fall 2009 top 20 prospects for each NHL team, and here are the teams so far with Badgers in the top 20. Nice to see previously unranked guys like Drewiske and Dowell make the jump into the top 20.

Anaheim Ducks

2. Jake Gardiner, D - 8.0C
6'1, 173 pounds
1st round, 17th overall, 2008

As a late convert to the blueline, Gardiner displays everything a team could want in a puck-moving defenseman. He has all of the size, as well as vision, hands, and a quickness on his feet that allows him to play strong positional defense. Now that he's at the back of the play most of the time, he has the opportunity to display his vision and awareness by developing plays. Most forwards that transition to defense have issues in their own end, but Gardiner is developing into the kind of defenseman that a team would want on the ice for all situations.

In 2008-09, Gardiner joined an already solid defensive unit at the University of Wisconsin. By the end of the season, he finished third in points among defensemen with three goals and 18 assists in 39 games and tied for fourth in plus/minus among all skaters with a plus four. He will return to the Badgers.

20. Justin Schultz, D - 6.0C
6'2, 162 pounds
2nd round, 43rd overall, 2008

After his stint as top defenseman in his conference in the BCHL, Schultz is ready to move on to the Wisconsin Badgers for the 2009-10 season. His offensive potential is high, with extraordinary puck-moving abilities and the skills to develop plays from the back end which is sought after in all power-play quarterbacks. At 6'2, but just 162 pounds, he needs to put on some muscle in order to play professional hockey. With Wisconsin, he will look to prove he can handle bigger competition.

LA Kings

16. (NR) Davis Drewiske, D
Signed as free agent, 2007

On the other end of the spectrum in terms of potential is Drewiske, who is never going to be an offensive player and not one to physically dominate an opposing forward. The 24-year-old has good feet and positioning to keep himself between the forward and the goaltender and subsequently the puck out of the net. While he has been penciled in as a possible starter on the third defensive pairing for Los Angeles to start the season, he has likely leveled off in terms of his potential. The Kings are not likely to get much more than a third-pairing defenseman out of Drewiske, which is fine for an organization looking for a “bridge” player to fill the gap between the now and when one of the more talented defensemen are ready to step in. While Drewiske is an important piece for an organization to have, his long-term contribution to the Kings will be limited and so is kept in the bottom half of these rankings.

Joe Piskula and Podge Turnbull are among the "Other Notables".




Chicago Blackhawks

7. (8) Jack Skille, RW - 22, 7.0C
6'1 208 lbs
Drafted first round, 7th overall, 2005

After opening the year on the Blackhawks’ roster, Skille spent a majority of the year with the IceHogs. He managed just one goal in his eight NHL games but fared much better in the American league. In 58 matches, he scored 20 goals and 25 assists to finish fourth on the team in scoring with 45 points. Skille’s speed fits well on Rockford’s top line and he’ll likely remain one of the first offensive options for the ‘Hogs. While he may be ready for another shot at the NHL, both the number of forwards already signed by the Blackhawks and Skille’s substantial cap hit may keep him in the minors.

16. (NR) Jake Dowell, C - 24, 6.0C
6'0 197 lbs
Drafted fifth round, 140th overall, 2004

Dowell has 20 games of NHL experience under his belt from his first two pro seasons. He spent 75 games in Rockford last season and scored six goals, added 14 assists, and earned 128 PIMs. A strong defensive forward, Dowell was generally used to center one of the bottom lines for the IceHogs. Though his role will likely remain the same, he remains a strong candidate for a call-up in the right situation. He is capable in both zones and especially strong in the faceoff circle providing some defensive depth at the center position.

Columbus Blue Jackets

4. (3) Cody Goloubef, D
Grade 7.5C Projection: Top-three defenseman
Age: 19 Height/weight: 6'0, 195
Drafted 37th overall, 2008

Goloubef plays a solid, unspectacular game, but is highly regarded. Goloubef has shown the ability to chip in offensively, but doesn’t have the power play potential that Moore displays. Instead, Goloubef has ample potential to become a top defender on the penalty kill.

He will enter his third season with the University of Wisconsin next season, after posting five goals and eight assists in 36 games last season.

U17 Five Nations Tournament begins Tuesday

As you already know, 3 Wisconsinites will be representing the US at the U17 Five Nations Tournament that runs Aug 18-24 in Fussen, Germany: Badger recruit Jordan Schmaltz, Jake McCabe, and Alex Racino.

Here's the schedule for the US U17 Select Team (times listed as CDT):
Aug 18, 9 AM - Slovakia
Aug 20, 12:30 PM - Switzerland
Aug 21, 8 AM - Czech Republic
Aug 22, 10:30 AM - Germany

US Olympic camps start this week

The US Men's Olympic orientation camp starts tomorrow (Aug 17-19, Woodridge, IL). Badgers at the camp include Brian Rafalski, Ryan Suter, Joe Pavelski, and Tom Gilbert.

The US Women's National Festival /National Team selection camp starts on Tuesday (Aug 18-24, Blaine, MN). Badgers at the camp include Molly Engstrom, Kerry Weiland, Jinelle Zaugg Siergiej, Erika Lawler, Jessie Vetter, Angie Keseley, Hilary Knight, Meghan Duggan, Brooke Ammerman, Geena Prough, Brianna Decker, and Chanda Gunn.) The 23-player National Team roster for the Qwest Tour will be named at the completion of the camp.

In case you were wondering, Canada's Men's Olympic orientation camp is the following week (Aug 24, Calgary, AB), and Dany Heatley is the sole Badger representative. Can't say that I know anything about any Olympic camps on the women's side, but the 26-player centralization roster (including Badgers Carla MacLeod and Meaghan Mikkelson) has already been named.

Badger alumni updates

• uwbadgers14 on uscho has posted that Shane Connelly has signed a tryout contract with the Senators organization and will try for a spot in Binghamton. I can't find any links, though. He also indicates that if Cons doesn't make the cut, he'll head to Europe to ply his trade.
  

• Andy Baggot had a really nice article over a week ago about the Badger alumni who are training this offseason in Madison, including Tom Gilbert, Adam Burish, Jake Dowell, Brian Elliott, Davis Drewiske, Jeff Likens, and Kyle Klubertanz.

• Speaking of Badger alums in Madison, DPlaya shared a story emailed to him about the Badger alumni and current players skating @ the KC after the Badger Youth Development Hockey Camp. My favorite part: "Burish and Gilbert both play at another speed on the ice. Their experience in the NHL is very telling even in a session of pond hockey. When those two want to they played at a speed the others (even Engel and Drewiske) struggled to keep pace with and the fact it was evident even in a game of pond hockey tells me why those two are where they are considering the D1 talent that was on the ice with them at the time."

• This is an old video that I missed it when it was originally posted (11/4/08), but Paul Capobianco recently posted it on twitter. If you remember a ways back, the Oilers had a Guitar Hero contest in which winning players would get to play in the finals against Tom Gilbert, and this is the video of Tom Gilbert at the Guitar Hero finals. I think TG is funny.

• In his most recent blog post, Tom Gilbert writes about his summer travels, summer training, and his new house. I know I'm easily amused, but I thought his comments about Sam Gagner and Andrew Cogliano not knowing what to do since he moved out were amusing.
  

• CHED's Dan Tencer has an audio interview with Tom Gilbert. In the 13-min interview, he talks about his new house, Andrew Cogliano's involvement in the Dany Heatley trade rumor, the Oilers' new coaching staff, his offseason training and conditioning, and the upcoming US Olympic orientation camp (Aug 17-19, Woodridge, IL).
  

• Jim Matheson reports that the Oilers may be looking at moving one of their top defenseman, one of which is Tom Gilbert, in order to get a good forward. Jonathan Willis of the Copper and Blue isn't buying that the Oilers have enough depth at D to make this move advisable.
  

Sunday afternoon catch-up

Catching up with a number of items that have accumulated over the last week or so:

• Andy Baggot had a blog post listing candidates to play on the Badger Men's top line, and DPlaya weighs in with his thoughts.

• Lowetide has a post on Troy Hesketh: Tall Tree from Minnetonka. I think I've pretty much already posted most of the contained information, but it's worth a look to refresh your memory. Good stuff.

• Chris Walby has a post on his WSN Wiscohockey blog about future Badger Cody Strang. In the post he indicated that Strang has been "battling the decision to pursue golf instead of hockey despite being drafted by the USHL and committed to a scholarship with the UW hockey team", prompting me to ask "couldn't he do both?". I suppose the seasons do overlap, but the golf season isn't all that long, and none of the dates conflict. Before anyone gets too riled up, though, Strang did say, "Golf is always going to be there and I'm committed to hockey, to Youngstown and the Badgers".

• DPlaya has some links about potential recruit Barret Kaib, including a recent Bleacher Report feature and WCH's and USHR's reports from last year's Select 15 Festival.
  

• Hilary Knight recently did a photo shoot for Inside Wisconsin Sports, and Jacqueline Boscacci snapped a few pictures while at the photo shoot (1, 2, 3).

• I previously mentioned that Women's interim head coach Tracey DeKeyser was interviewed on 1070 Aug 4, but I don't think I mentioned that new assistant Peter Johnson was interviewed on 1070 the next day Aug 5. You can find all of the 1070 OnWisconsin podcasts here.

• Uwbadgers.com has a Fan Video Guide. I haven't watched it yet, but it says you can "[s]ee the men’s hockey locker room and office tour and take a tour of the inner depths of the Kohl Center" and "[c]heck out the practices of the national champion women’s hockey team and relive their 2009 title run highlights".

• A number of things don't make sense to me regarding the CCHA's rejection of UAH. But rather than tell you myself, I'll just refer you to Goon's World and the Ciskie Blog, as Goon is doing a bang-up job of covering the situation.

• Kurt Kleinendorst has been named head coach of the NTDP U18 team. Ron Rolston previously held that position, but this year he will be head coach of the NTDP U17 team, a position recently vacated by former Badger assistant John Hynes. Future Badgers Frankie Simonelli and Michael Mersch will play for the U18 team this year, and potential recruit and Wisconsinite Jake McCabe will play for the U17 team.

• Looks like there will be another outdoor double header besides the Camp Randall Classic. Sounds like BC/BU Men and Northeastern/UNH Women. It hasn't been officially announced, I don't think, as the official press conference is scheduled for Aug 20, but TSN is already reporting it.
  

US goes 3-1 v. Russia @ NJEC

The NJEC is over, and the US defeated Russia in games 1, 2, and 4 (8-1, 6-1, 6-0) while losing game 3 (4-6). Given their domination in the other games, I was surprised to see they lost game 3, but Coach Blais said they gave up a couple of soft goals, so there ya go.

Badger forward Derek Stepan finished the camp 7th on the team in scoring with 8 points (1G 7 A) in 7 games. Badger defenseman Jake Gardiner played in 5 games but was held off the scoresheet.

2 of 6 Badgers @ camp make Canada's U22 Women's roster

I think I neglected to post that 6 Badger Women were recently at Canada's U22 selection camp (Aug 6-14): forwards Mallory Deluce, Carolyne Prévost, and Breann Frykans, and defensemen Brittany Haverstock, Stefanie McKeough, and Saige Pacholok. Anyway, two of the players -- Deluce and McKeough -- have made the roster for the 3-game series v. Canada's National Women's Team (Aug 17-20, Calgary).

Congratulations Mallory and Stefanie!

The U22 team will also participate in 2010 MLP Cup (early Jan, Germany). The roster for that event will be announced in December.

When You Say Wisconsin....

You've said it all

64 NHL Badgers

A couple days ago, Paul Capobianco told us that every time a Badger plays in an NHL game, his picture gets added to the locker room wall. He further informed us that there currently are 64 such pictures. I highly recommend the photo gallery that he linked.

I thought it would be fun to see how many players I could name without looking. (By the way, I didn't look at the photo gallery until I was done.) I think I did pretty good by naming 46, but I'm fairly horrified that I missed 2 current NHL players, 2 current AHL players who recently played in the NHL, the 1st Badger to play in the NHL, and a few other guys I should've known.

Here's how I did. The players in regular text are the players I got, the players in bold are the ones that I missed.

G
Brian Elliott
Mike Richter
Curtis Joseph
Marc Behrend
Jim Carey
Terry Kleisinger (yeah, should've gotten him)
Wayne Thomas (1st NHL Badger)

D
Tom Gilbert
Davis Drewiske
Joe Piskula
Dave Tanabe
Paul Stanton
Mark Osiecki
Sean Hill
Barry Richter
Shaun Sabol
Craig Norwich
Chris Chelios
Brian Rafalski
Gary Suter
Ryan Suter
John Taft
Bruce Driver
Brian Engblom
Andy Wozniewski (currently in AHL)
Alex Brooks (currently in AHL)
Vic Posa
Peter Scamurra

F
Kyle Turris
Robbie Earl
Jack Skille
Jake Dowell
Joe Pavelski
Adam Burish
Dany Heatley
Steve Reinprecht
Gary Shuchuk
Chris Tancill
John Byce
Doug MacDonald
John Johannson
Tony Granato
Paul Ranheim
Scott Mellanby
Mark Johnson
Mike Eaves
Dean Talafous
Steve Alley
John Newberry
Dave Maley
Dan Plante
Pat Flatley
Rene Bourque (duh, still in NHL)
Brad Winchester (duh, still in NHL)
Jason Zent (should've guessed that one)
Steve Tuttle (should've known)
Paul Houck (should've known)
Brian Mullen (should've known)
Kelly Fairchild (should've guessed)
Matt Hussey (probably should've known, but I wasn't really paying attention)
Mike Meeker
Mike Blaisdell
Steve Clippingdale

Not sure what position
Steve Short

2 future Badgers named to Women's U18 camp roster

Goaltender Alex Rigsby and forward Brittany Ammerman have been named to the 23-player women's U18 training camp roster. The training camp will run Aug 17-21 concurrently with the US Women's National Festival (Aug 18-24) in Blaine, MN. All 20 skaters and 2 of the 3 goaltenders will represent the US at the 2009 Women's U18 Select Series v. Canada (Aug 24-27 in Calgary).

A number of players with Badger ties were previously named to the US Women's National Festival roster, including Brianna Decker, Brooke Ammerman, Meghan Duggan, Angie Kesely, Hilary Knight, Erika Lawler, Jinelle Zaugg, Geena Prough, Kerry Weiland, Molly Engstrom, Jessie Vetter, and Chanda Gunn.

Update from the NJEC

Photos clockwise from top left: a.) #8 Jake Gardiner on D during the Aug 7 Blue/White scrimmage, b.) #22 Derek Stepan in front of the net during the Aug 9 Blue/White scrimmage, c.) #22 Derek Stepan at center ice during the Aug 12 USA/RUS game, and d.) #22 Derek Stepan on the draw during the Aug 11 USA/RUS game. All photos from usahockey.com.

The roster at the National Junior Evaluation Camp has been cut down from 42 to 29 players, and Badgers Derek Stepan and Jake Gardiner have made it past this cut. The camp started with 2 teams -- Blue and White -- and was cut down to a single team (5 defensive pairs, 5 forward lines, 4 goaltenders) prior to the games v. Russia. USA Hockey says they'll continue to evaluate all original camp participants, including those recently sent home.

In their first 2 games v. Russia, the US has won 8-1 and 6-1. There are 2 games remaining. You can find all game results, photos, and highlight videos here.

There are also a couple of videos of the coaching staff that you might find interesting. In this video, head coach Dean Blais and assistant coach Mark Osiecki talk about evaluating kids that have played for them previously. Oz indicates that rather than having a bias for those plays, they're more likely to have a reverse bias. But he does have some nice things to say about Jake Gardiner. And in this video, John Hynes, Mark Osiecki, and Dean Blais discuss speech strategies.

By the way, I'm not sure if I mentioned this previously, but Badger alum Tony Granato is a camp coach, recently departed Badger equipment manager Steve Castelletti is camp equiment manager, and Badger alum Jim Johannson is team GM.

WCHA Previews: Colorado College

School: Colorado College
Mascot: Tigers
National Championships: So long ago the banners have turned to dust
Head Coach: Ron Jeremy (aka Scott Owens), 239-133-35, 11th season

Last Season: 12-9-7, T-3rd Place WCHA; 16-12-10 Overall

Predicted 09/10 WCHA Finish: 9th

Key Departures:
F Chad Rau, 18-19-37*
F Eric Walsky, 12-25-36
D Brian Connelly, 3-24-27
G Richard Bachman, 14-11-10, 2.63 GAA, .914 save %
F Scott McCulloch, 7-6-13
*All stats listed from 08/09

Key Returnees: (58.5% of scoring returns)
F Bill Sweatt (Sr), 12-11-23
D Gabe Guentzel (So), 3-14-17
F Stephen Schultz (Jr), 10-4-14
D Nate Prosser (Sr), 5-8-13
F Andreas Vlassoploulus (Sr), 3-9-12

Top Sieve:
No goalie has started an NCAA game

Key Additions:
F Rylan Schwartz (SJHL), 39-49-88, League MVP
F William Rapuzzi (USHL), 21-30-51
F Andrew Hamburg (NAHL), 12-48-60
G Hudson Stremmel (USHL), 18-14-1, 3.19 GAA, 0.895 save %
G Joe Howe (USHL), 17-13-2, 3.51 GAA, 0.882 save %

Freshman Scouting Report: This class is filled w/ some more offensive talent to help rebuild. I’ve seen William Rapuzzi play w/ the Gamblers several times and he is a good player. John Moore was suppose to be the prize recruit for their blueline, but instead he ducked and ran to the OHL following the NHL Draft. There wasn’t much left to replace his absence this late in the recruiting process (the Joe Pavelski syndrome). In goal, both Stremmel and Howe are good goalies, but neither had great stats in the USHL last season, and will need to pick rabbits out of their hats to fill the void in net.

When Wisconsin Beats CC: KC 10/16 & 10/17, @CC 1/15 & 1/16

08/09 Recap: After winning the MacNaughton Cup the previous season, CC was many people’s favorite to repeat as WCHA champs, but they were never really in the running. They managed to finish tied for 3rd w/ the Badgers, splitting a lot of series and getting what I think was a record amount of ties in their school history w/ 7. In 07/08, the story for CC was Richard Bachman, his netminding carried them all season, but he could not pull a repeat performance as a sophomore, and the team never got anything going. They allowed more goals in league play than they scored. W/ Kyle Klubertanz gone from UW, Chad Rau’s SH goals as a senior dropped significantly. Duluth visited CC in the 1st round of the playoff and swept them on their way to wining the Final Five. Following the season Bachman and junior dman Brian Connolly both left CC for pro contracts. CC also lost to Air Force mid-season.

Team’s Biggest Strength(es): CC still has some talented forwards, adding a few more, and should score some goals, though the last two seasons when a lot of people hyped CC’s offense I was never impressed.

Team’s Biggest Weakness(es): Goaltending, they don’t have ANY experience (ok junior Tyler O’Brien played 30 minutes last season) at the NCAA level and I think we can all agree for every Richard Bachman who storms the WCHA there are a lot of rookie goalies who get crushed. Mono or player threesomes are always a danger to derail the team as well.

09/10 Thoughts: This is likely the lowest you’ll see CC on any WCHA previews. They haven’t gone on the road in the playoffs in a long, long time, but all streaks need to end, and I don’t think CC has the talent to put 5 other teams behind them this year. Its definitely rebuilding time in the Springs. The biggest reason I have them down so far is goaltending. They don’t have any experience in net, and whoever takes over doesn’t have the pedigree of Bachman. Their offense struggled last season at times, and they really only lost talent there. Their top freshman is no longer coming to school, but instead John Moore signed w/ Columbus and is headed to the OHL. Never getting Moore on campus, losing Connelly weakens the blue line. Things aren’t looking good for the Tigers this season, but they are a storied program (at least in regular season accolades) and will bounce back in the future.

While I picked them 9th, I think they could finish as high as 6th, but when I did the WCHA predictor a few times, their finish was always the same.

Yeah I don’t have UAA 9th, or even 8th.

HS Hockey Elite League returns

A month from today you can be in Oregon, WI to watch the HS Hockey Elite League as it kicks off another season the weekend of Sept 12th. Eight teams will compete again this season and the main website has links to all the rosters of the teams. Team WI is not posted yet, but I'm assuming it would be the same roster as Team WI Major. UW recruit Troy Hesketh will be playing on Team SW w/ Jake Gardiner's brother Max. Max was pretty impressive last season in Verona, it will be interesting to see how he has improved even if he made the poor choice of committing to minnesota. I didn't see any other players of interest in my quick glance through the rosters, maybe Chuck could help me out if he knows of any other kids who are potential UW recruits.

The league has games in WI on two other weekends besides Oregon for the opener. The weekend of October 3rd, the league (including Team WI) has games in Stevens Point and again the weekend of October 24th games will be in Eau Claire.

A lot of these kids will end up in the WCHA in the future, so if you are looking for some inexpensive hockey before the Badgers get into full swing, check out the HS Hockey Elite League. I'm going to try to get to Oregon and Stevens Point.

CCHA shuts the door on Alabama Huntsville

Citing due diligence, and careful consideration and discussion, the CCHA has denied Alabama Huntsville (UAH) membership into their conference. UAH is the only remaining member of the CHA who will not have a home after this season. The WCHA wisely opened their door to Bemidji State while Niagara and Robert Morris are headed to Atlantic Hockey.

W/ Nebraska-Omaha's departure from the CCHA to the WCHA following this season, that left the CCHA w/ only 11 teams. WCHA Commissioner Bruce McLeod mentioned that the WCHA didn't want to just admit BSU because of the difficulties of a 11 team schedule; now the CCHA can show us all how it is done (maybe Michigan can somehow have an even easier schedule).

I'm not a fan of this decision simply because while I'm a Badger fan first and foremost, I really like College Hockey as a whole. I enjoyed the Frozen Four and the Final Five last year, I'll enjoy a college game anywhere. This puts the future of UAH in jeopordy, they will be the only independent after this season, and I think the CCHA dropped the ball. Travel considerations is a weak argument since Nebraska-Omaha is about the same distance to most schools. UAH is no powerhouse, but Ferris State and W. Michigan aren't either.

The CCHA makes their hay (so to speak) by having a bunch of "good" teams on top like Michigan, Miami (OH), Notre Lame and Michigan State, while the rest of the conference is just a feeder systems for wins for those teams to improve their Pairwise Rankings, since beating a bad team is still better (in most cases) than losing to someone. The opposite is true of the WCHA, where while Tech and UAA are consistently at the bottom of the standings, they would be fighting for a top 4 finish in the CCHA. WCHA teams beat the hell out of each other, while the CCHA is top and bottom heavy, and really letting UAH in wouldn't have changed that mix. They had their chance to do something good for College Hockey, and instead thumbed their nose at a school looking for a home.

09/10 WCHA Previews: Michigan Tech

School: Michigan Tech
Mascot: Huskies
National Championships: 3 (‘62, ‘65 & ‘75)
Head Coach: Jamie Russell, 61-137-32, 7th season

Last Season: 2-19-7, Last Place WCHA; 6-25-7 Overall

Predicted 09/10 WCHA Finish: Last

Key Departures:
D Geoff Kinrade, 3-13-16*
F Alex Gagne, 5-8-13
F Malcolm Gwilliam, 2-5-7
G Rob "red light" Nolan, 2-17-5, 3.05 GAA, .894 save %
*All stats listed from 08/09

Key Returnees: (72.5% of scoring returns)
F Jordan Baker (Jr), 16-11-27
F Brett Olson (So), 10-13-23
D Drew Dobson (Sr), 5-14-19
D Deron Cousens (Jr), 5-11-16
F Alex MacLeod (So), 6-4-10

Top Sieve:
Josh Robinson (So), 4-8-2, 3.09 GAA, 0.889 save %

Key Additions:
F Milos Gordic (BCHL), 42-34-76
F Evan Witt (BCHL), 17-44-61
D Steven Seigo (AJHL), 14-25-39
D Tommy Brown (SJHL), 3-26-29

Freshman Scouting Report: I don’t know who any of these players are, though both Witt (16th) and Gordic (7th) were in the top 20 in scoring in the BCHL, though not in the same class as 1st Star Zengerle. Gordic also tied for the league lead in goals scored, so maybe there is hope for offense in Houghton. Both Seigo and Brown played on Team Canada West in the Jr A Challenge won by the United States and captained by Craig Smith. A side note: the season preview press release by Tech has the wrong 08/09 stats for their freshman, nice work!

When Wisconsin Beats MTU: KC 12/4 & 12/5, @MTU 2/26 & 2/27

08/09 Recap: Last season was one to forget in Houghton as the Huskies struggled most of the season. There were not many bright spots, though I’m sure the fans were happy to see them take the season series against N. Michigan, and they gave North Dakota some trouble around New Year’s. About the only bright spot offensively was Superior, WI native Brett Olson who was second on the team in scoring as a frosh. Wisconsin’s sweep of Tech in November came at a critical time which built momentum to dig out of the 0-6-1 start. Tech was never in contention for anything other than last place.

Team’s Biggest Strength(es): They come to play every night, and if another WCHA foe takes a night off against Tech they might hand them a precious W for their laziness. Their defense is always solid as well, going hand in hand w/ the good effort every night of the season.

Team’s Biggest Weakness(es): Offense, plain and simple.

09/10 Thoughts: This season likely won’t be much better for Tech, while they return a good amount of their scoring from last season, they didn’t really do much lighting of the lamp to begin w/ to warrant excitement. It was only a few seasons back when Tech made it to the Final Five after going to CC in the first round and things were looking up, but the cellar is staring them in the face again. Tech was planning on upgrading their offense w/ USHL star and WI native Jake Hauswirth, but instead he decided to sign a pro contract w/ the Washington Capitals. The team is young, there is hope for the future, but the Huskies need to find some more offense and a trusty goalie. Josh Robinson is a decent tender, but nothing like Teslek was a few seasons back.

I find it hard to dislike Tech (except when they play the Badgers) and Jamie Russell sounds like a stand up guy. Maybe global warming will shorten the winter in Houghton to 44 weeks from 50 weeks and make it more appealing to recruits.

WCHA season starts in 10 weeks

Ten weeks from tomorrow another season of College Hockey kicks off, but not for the Badgers since they start a week behind everyone else.

Over the next ten weeks I'm going to preview one WCHA team each week for your enjoyment or what not in reverse order of how I think the league will finish come next March. Later tonight you can read about Michigan Tech, who should comfortably hold down the WCHA cellar again this season.

Also in September, Badger player previews will move into full swing as almost every day I'll be previewing both a Men's and Women's player based on their number. Obviously there aren't 55 days in September (or 35) so I'll squeeze John Ramage in there on an open day. Feel free to leave comments about players and teams, it's time to start getting excited about the 2009/10 season of Badger Hockey (or more excited than you currently are).

Penguins name Tony Granato assistant coach

Congratulations, Tony!

Regarding Granato, Pens' head coach Dan Bylsma says:

"We are excited to have a guy who’s accomplished as much as Tony join our staff as an assistant coach. In addition to his 13 years as an NHL player, he’s also been a head coach and assistant for six years with the Avalanche, and all of that experience will make him a tremendous asset to the Penguins organization."

And here are some quotes from Granato:

"I’m just extremely excited to join an organization with such great history and get a chance to work with a staff that I’ve admired from afar with what they’ve done. I’m looking forward to being a part of it."

"To be able to jump to an organization like this that’s on the top, I feel very lucky. I’m really looking forward to the opportunity to help in any way I can. I’ll do my part to help keep that going."

"I’ve gone through a lot as a player and as a coach. I love the game and being a part of it. I think all of us that play and coach want to win and want to be a part of something special."

"I’m just thankful and really looking forward to being a part of the staff, getting my family moved and being part of the community there. With what Pittsburgh’s done for so many years, the tradition, the history, to be able to join an organization that like is extremely exciting for me."

Regarding how Granato may fit with the Pens coaching staff, Pensburgh says the following:

Fitzgerald worked with forwards a lot on faceoffs and penalty-killing, so presumably that may be an area that Granato, a former NHL forward, oversees.

Despite extensive coaching experience, Granato is just 45 years old, which ought to fit well with the youthful energy that Dan Bylsma (39) and Mike Yeo (36) look to keep throughout the lineup. Though he had some rocky seasons towards the end of his run with Colorado, Granato didn't have too much to work with roster wise. It'll be interesting to see how he fits in Pittsburgh and also if this will be a springboard for him to get another head coaching gig somewhere in the NHL.

Several Tuesday evening links

Some random stuff this evening . . .

• Jacqueline Boscacci has twittered that 1070 has an interview with Tracey DeKeyser. I haven't had a chance to listen to it yet, but I'd imagine it's interesting.

• This month's issue of USA Hockey Magazine has a nice article about training for the US Women's National Team, including quotes from Meaghan Duggan, Jinelle Zaugg, and Kerry Weiland. There are also several photos, including one of Erika Lawler and one of Mark Johnson with a couple of players (I think one is Molly Engstrom, but don't quote me on that).

• Andy Baggot tells us that Josh Engel has been offered a contract by Toronto. I can't find anything more specific than that right now. Last season, Engel played for the ECHL's Gwinnett Gladiators, the AHL's Providence Bruins, and the AHL's Toronto Marlies.

• In the same post, Baggot tells us that Jake Gardiner, Derek Stepan, and Mark Osiecki will leave Wednesday for the World Junior Team evaluation camp in Lake Placid. The camp runs from Aug 7 through Aug 15 and will include practices, intrasquad scrimmages, and 4 games v. Russia.

• Also in the same post, Baggot notes that 16 y.o. defenseman Barrett Kaib recently made an unofficial campus visit. Kaib previously played for Culver Military Academy and will play for the USNTP U17 this upcoming season. Can't say I know anything about Kaib. Anyone know anything they can share?

• We had previously linked THN's top-10 American-born players, and now we bring you NHL.com's top-10 current American-born players. Brian Rafalski comes in at #5:

  5. Brian Rafalski, D, Detroit -- Rafalski finished with career highs in assists (49) and points (59) in 78 games last season. He averaged 23:10 of ice time per game and finished with a plus-17 rating, mostly playing alongside Nicklas Lidstrom. Rafalski, who has never finished a season with a negative plus/minus rating, has produced 425 points in 692 career games in his nine NHL seasons.

• Former Badger assistant and USNTDP U17 head coach John Hynes is leaving USA Hockey to be an assistant coach for the AHL's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.

  "John has done a tremendous job and had a positive impact on hockey in our country on many fronts. He’s got a bright future and we wish him and his family the very best." -- Scott Monaghan, director of operations for the NTDP
  
  "We were fortunate to have John as part of our coaching staff at the NTDP for seven years. He has certainly left his mark on the way we develop players in this country." -- Jim Johannson, assistant executive director of hockey operations at USA Hockey

• Patrick Eaves, who was recently traded to Boston and then placed on waivers, has signed a 1-year $500,000 deal with the Detroit Red Wings.

• UND's Matt Frattin pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and and received a $225 fine and a 10-day suspended sentence. The fleeing charge was dropped. I wonder if all the charges would've been dropped if the lawnmower had been maroon and gold . . .

  A UND hockey player pleaded guilty Monday to disorderly conduct for throwing dinnerware, a kitchen table and a red lawnmower onto a Grand Forks street.

Jessie Vetter is finalist for Sportswoman of the Year

Jessie Vetter is one of 10 finalists for the Women's Sports Foundation's Sportswoman of the Year award. Looks like the final award will be based on fan voting, so you'll want to VOTE FOR JESSIE by August 9.

Jessie Vetter (Ice Hockey) – American. At the end of her senior year, goaltender Jessie Vetter became the all-time NCAA Division I leader for victories (91) and shutouts (39) and has the single-season shutout record (14). In November 2008, she led the U.S. Women’s Select Team to the Four Nations Cup. During her 2008-09 collegiate season with the University of Wisconsin, Vetter recorded 14 shutouts and had a national-best .942 save percentage. In March 2009, she became the first goaltender in history to start in four consecutive NCAA championship games, she led her team to a record of 33-2-5 and then helped them win a third NCAA Division I Women’s Ice Hockey Championship in four years. Also in March, Vetter won the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, which recognizes the accomplishments of the most outstanding player in NCAA Division I women’s ice hockey each season. USA Today named her Olympic Athlete of the Week in late March. After making 39 saves, Vetter helped Team USA defeat Canada and win the gold at the International Ice Hockey Federation World Women’s Championship and again was named Olympic Athlete of the Week by USA Today (April). In June, she was honored with the Bob Allen Women’s Player of the Year award, given annually to an outstanding American-born women’s ice hockey player.

Here's the uwbadgers release, the usahockey release, and some love from the Cap Times. (Hey, look at that, some hockey coverage in TCT . . . )

The other finalists are:
Cara Black/Liezel Huber (Zimbabwe/US, tennis)
Marta Vieira da Silva (Brazil, soccer)
Nicole Fawcett (US, volleyball)
Hannah Nielsen (Australia, lacrosse)
Sandra Kiriasis (Germany, bobsled)
Renee Montgomery (US, basketball)
Shannon Kleibrink (Canada, curling)
Danielle Lawrie (Canada, softball)
Kelly Kulick (US, bowling)

Brian Elliott re-signs with Ottawa

Badger alum Brian Elliott, the #1a (aka: Backup for now, Starter of the future) goaltender for the Senators and defender of Ottawa from rogue gangs of moose, has avoided arbitration with Ottawa and has resigned for two years.

Financial terms were not released in the NHL.com story or on TSN (as of 4:51 today). I'll update as they become available.

UPDATE: Per THN, Elliott will earn $800,000 in 2009-10 and $900,000 in 2010-11. (In case you were wondering, Elliott's previous contract was for $757,720 per year in 2007-08 and 2008-09, per Cap Geek.)

Badgers Have A New Equipment Manager

I'm very excited to inform you that the University of Wisconsin Badgers Men's Hockey program has a new equipment manager. His name is Nate LaPoint and he comes from the University of North Dakota.

From the UW press release, "An Eau Claire, Wis., native, LaPoint joins the Badgers after spending the past four years as an assistant equipment manager with the University of North Dakota men’s hockey program. While at North Dakota, he performed the regular duties of an equipment manager, such as skate sharpening, equipment inventory and purchasing of equipment, while also helping with the program’s video needs on road trips."

In case you are wondering, yes, Nate is the older brother of North Dakota junior defenseman Derrick LaPoint.

Mike Eaves weighs in on the newest Badger, “Nate, a Wisconsin native, comes highly recommended by all his references,” said Eaves. “He should be a good fit with our hockey program and we look forward to him joining our staff.”

The photo above on the left is a picture of Nate with the McNaughton Cup that North Dakota won last season. Let's hope he helps the boys bring a few of those to Madison in the coming years.

Badger HS development camp, and other items

• DPlaya has a nice update from the Badger HS development camp. (Thanks, DP!) Scanning his post, it looks like future Badgers in attendance include Matt Paape and Corbin McGuire. Plus a bunch of other top Wisconsin players. DPlaya did point out that Eau Claire's Jake McCabe was not there (as had been previously reported by Baggot) since he doesn't have much time before leaving for Germany for the U17 Five Nations Tourney and then moving to Ann Arbor after that.

• Here's an article about tryouts for the Janesville Jets, the NAHL team that Joe Pavelski partially owns.

• Not Badger related at all, but I thought this was a nice article about Northern alum Dallas Drake and his partial ownership of the NAHL's Traverse City North Stars. (Thanks to TWOJH for the heads-up.)

• THN has a video in which they discuss the players at the US and Canadian Olympic orientation camps. I haven't watched it yet, so I don't know how interesting it may or may not be.

• Joe Finley is the Caps #19 prospect per HF. Looking at the write-up, not exactly a ringing endorsement for a 1st-round draft pick.

  19. Joe Finley, D - 6.0 D
  6'7 240 lbs
  Born 6-29-87
  Acquired: 1st Round, 2005
  
  While he has the size and hitting ability to possibly turn into a shut-down defenseman, Finley's foot speed and passing leaves much to be desired. After four seasons at the University of North Dakota, Finley will be making his full-time pro debut next season.
  
  Switched to forward for the last day of the 2009 development camp, Finley could turn out to be an NHL enforcer. He doesn't seem to have the stick skills or quickness to clear pucks out of the zone effectively as a defenseman at the NHL level. It will be interesting to see whether he starts on defense for Hershey this season despite their depth at the position, or if he will be converted to a full-time forward.

Greatest Moment of 2008-09: Women's hockey clinches NCAA title

Uwbadgers.com has been counting down the Top 15 Badger Moments of 2008-09, and coming in at #1 is the Badger Women winning the NCAA title.

The Badger Women's program accounts for 3 of the greatest moments of last season -- with Jessie Vetter's winning the Patty Kaz @ #3 and Mark Johnson's being named Olympic head coach @ #7.

The Badger Men also accounts for 1 of the greatest moments -- with Jamie McBains play on the blueline @ # 8.

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.