NCAA Bracketology 2/15/2010

Wisconsin got a much needed sweep this weekend over Minnesota State and now I've got your most recent NCAA Tournament Bracketology to keep every one's eyes on the real prize, Wisconsin's 7th National Championship.

First, let's talk about the changes in this weeks PWR. There were no changes within the top 4 overall seeds in the tournament. It still goes Miami, Denver, Wisconsin, and St. Cloud State despite St. Cloud being absolutely demolished by North Dakota on Saturday night. Maine took a HUGE fall in the rankings over the weekend when they were swept at Boston University this weekend. Maine fell from 7th overall to 17th, and out of the tournament. UMass also took a big hit going from 9th to 15th and barely still in the tournament. Yale took the biggest step forward this weekend. They beat Cornell and Colgate and went from the outside looking in, to 9th overall in the pairwise.

Let's get this thing started.

Step 1: Pick the 16 Tournament teams

1. Miami
2. Denver
3. Wisconsin
4. St. Cloud State
5. Bemidji State
6. Boston College
7. Colorado Collge
8. Yale
9. Minnesota-Duluth
10. New Hampshire
11. Michigan State
12. Vermont
13. North Dakota
14. Cornell
15. UMass
16. Atlantic Hockey Winner

Bubble Teams (Ferris State, Maine, Alaska, Boston University, Northeastern, Union)

Step 2: Assign the Seeds

No. 1 Seeds: Miami, Denver, Wisconsin, St. Cloud
No. 2 Seeds: Bemidji, Boston College, Colorado College, Yale
No. 3 Seeds: Minnesota-Duluth, New Hampshire, Michigan State, Vermont
No. 4 Seeds: North Dakota, Cornell, UMass, Atlantic Hockey Winner

Step 3: Place number 1 seeds in regionals

Number 1 seeds are placed based on proximity to regional site.

No. 1 Miami is placed in the Mid-West regional in Fort Wayne
No. 2 Denver is placed in the West regional in St. Paul
No. 3 Wisconsin is placed in the East regional in Albany
No. 4 St. Cloud State is placed in Northeast regional in Worchester

Step 4: Place the other 12 teams avoiding inter-conference match ups if possible

Begin by filling in each bracket by banding groups. Remember that teams are not assigned to the regional closest to their campus sites by ranking order within the banding.

If this is the case, then the committee should seed so that the quarterfinals are seeded such that the four regional championships are played by No. 1 v. No. 8, No. 2 v. No. 7, No. 3 v. No. 6 and No. 4 v. No. 5.

Number 2 Seeds:

No. 8 Yale is placed in No. 1 Miami's Regional, the Midwest Regional.
No. 7 Colorado College is placed in No. 2 Denver's Regional, the West Regional.
No. 6 Boston College is placed in No. 3 Wisconsin's Regional, the East Regional.
No. 5 Bemidji State is placed in No. 4 St. Cloud's Regional, the Northeast Regional.

Number 3 Seeds:

Our bracketing system has one Regional containing seeds 1, 8, 9, and 16, another with 2, 7, 10, 15, another with 3, 6, 11, 14 and another with 4, 5, 12 and 13.

No. 9 Minnesota-Duluth is placed in No. 8 Yale's Regional, the Midwest Regional.
No. 10 New Hampshire is placed in No. 7 Colorado College's, the West Regional.
No. 11 Michigan State is placed in No. 6 Boston College's Regional, the East Regional.
No. 12 Vermont is placed in No. 5 Bemidji State's Regional, the Northeast Regional.

Number 4 seeds:

One more time, taking No. 16 v. No. 1, No. 15 v. No. 2, etc.

No. 16 Atlantic Hockey Winner is sent to No. 1 Miami's Regional, the Midwest Regional.
No. 15 UMass is sent to No. 2 Denver's Regional, the West Regional.
No. 14 Cornell is sent to No. 3 Wisconsin's Regional, the East Regional.
No. 13 North Dakota is sent to No. 4 St. Cloud's Regional, the Northeast Regional.

Our Bracket as we have it set up:

Midwest Regional:

1 Miami vs 16 Atlantic Hockey Champ
8 Yale vs 9 Minnesota-Duluth

West Regional:

2 Denver vs 15 UMass
7 Colorado College vs 10 New Hampshire

East Regional:

3 Wisconsin vs 14 Cornell
6 Boston College vs 11 Michigan State

Northeast Regional:

4 St. Cloud State vs 13 North Dakota
5 Bemidji vs 12 Vermont

Our first concern is to avoid inter-conference first round match ups. We have one with St. Cloud and North Dakota. With three WCHA teams as number one seeds, the only place to switch out North Dakota is with the Atlantic Hockey Champion.

So our new tournament now is:

Midwest Regional:

1 Miami vs 13 North Dakota
8 Yale vs 9 Minnesota-Duluth

West Regional:

2 Denver vs 15 UMass
7 Colorado College vs 10 New Hampshire

East Regional:

3 Wisconsin vs 14 Cornell
6 Boston College vs 11 Michigan State

Northeast Regional:

4 St. Cloud State vs 16 Atlantic Hockey Champ
5 Bemidji vs 12 Vermont

So how does it look? We have no inter-conference match-ups. Integrity also looks good. We do have some attendance issues. As it stands, we currently have three number 1 seeds that need to fly to their regionals. By moving Denver out of St. Paul, only tow number 2 seeds need to fly. Attendance would be much better if we switch out Denver's "pod" with St. Cloud's "pod."

So our FINAL tournament now is:

Midwest Regional:

1 Miami vs 13 North Dakota
8 Yale vs 9 Minnesota-Duluth

West Regional:

4 St. Cloud State vs 16 Atlantic Hockey Champ
5 Bemidji vs 12 Vermont

East Regional:

3 Wisconsin vs 14 Cornell
6 Boston College vs 11 Michigan State

Northeast Regional:

2 Denver vs 15 UMass
7 Colorado College vs 10 New Hampshire

I like that bracket a LOT better. Now we have Miami and North Dakota in Fort Wayne, St. Cloud and Bemidji State in St. Paul, Cornell and Boston College in Albany, and UMass and New Hampshire in Worchester.

That's my bracket for the week. We'll see what Jayson Moy from USCHO comes up with during the week.

Weekly Recap

I've been wanting to do this for a while now so I'm going to give it a shot this week and see if I can't continue it for a while. Every Sunday I'd basically like to do a link recap of important Badger Hockey news that took place the previous seven days.

Game Recaps

Badgers 4, Ugly Purple Jerseys 3 (Men's Friday)-Gandalf The Red
Badgers Take Over Fourth Place (Men's Friday)-Andy Baggot
Bohmber impresses in win over purple cows (Men's Saturday)-Gandalf The Red
Bombach brilliant as Badgers breeze to sweep (Men's Saturday)-Andy Baggot
Lowly Mavericks win matinee (Women's Friday)-Andy Baggot
McCready shuts out Mavericks (Women's Saturday)-Andy Baggot

Recruiting

Delgadillo In Play?-Chuck Schwartz
Sioux City Defender Delgadillo Has Two Favorites-James Dunn
Committed Recruits Updated Statistics-Chuck Schwartz
Badgers Go West, Land Elite California Recruit-Chuck Schwartz
Eaves Lands California Recruit For 2012-2012-Andy Baggot
Rumpel Commits for 2011-Gandalf The Red
Rumpel Doesn't Waste Time, Commits To Wisconsin-James Dunn
UW lands goalie with familiar pedigree, look-Andy Baggot
More on Rumpel, UW men's hockey recruiting-Andy Baggot
Top Classes in 2009: No. 9 Wisconsin-Bob Miller
It's Vladdy D Time, And Time To Sign Fiala-Chuck Schwartz

Former Badgers

Dowell Re-called, records two points-Chuck Schwartz
Wild recalls Cody Almond from AHL Houston, Robbie Earl sent down-Brian Stensaas

Olympics

Olympic Hockey TV Schedule-Chuck Schwartz
US Women Open With 12-1 Victory-Chuck Schwartz

News, Notes, and Analysis

Thurber Suspended-Gandalf The Red
Thurber suspended from UW men's hockey team-Andy Baggot
Bohmbach Demoted For Poor Play, Johnson Promoted For Poor Play-Chuck Schwartz
Friday Night Game Notes-Chuck Schwartz
UW vs Minnesota @ Target Center Tickets On Sale Now-Chuck Schwartz
As expected, Eaves goes with Bennett Saturday-Andy Baggot
One way to measure Eaves offense-Andy Baggot
Brendan Smith Plays Defense, But Opposing Goalies Should Be Aware-Andy Baggot
Five Good Minutes With Ben Grotting-Andy Baggot

UW vs Minnesota @ Target Center Tickets On Sale Now

Press Release

Tickets for Minnesota’s men’s hockey game against Wisconsin at the Target Center on Fri., March 5 are now available through Ticketmaster. That is the first game of two on the last weekend of the regular season. The second game is Sunday at Mariucci.

Why the weird schedule? A synchronized skating meet has booked Mariucci most of that week, through Saturday.

Fans can purchase tickets for the Target Center game at ticketmaster.com or by calling 1-800-745-3000. Tickets, which cost $25 or $35 each, are also available at the Target Center box office.

The Gophers and Badgers will face off at 7 p.m. on March 5 in the first college hockey game played at the Target Center since the 2000 WCHA Final Five.

I've gone on the ticketmaster website and looked at available tickets and as of right now it looks as if the only tickets available are upper level tickets. Should be a nice event though.

Badgers In The Pros: Dowell Re-called, Records 2 Points

Press Release

The Chicago Blackhawks have recalled center Jake Dowell (DOW-uhl) from the American Hockey League’s Rockford IceHogs. In addition, the Blackhawks have placed center John Madden on Injured Reserve.

Dowell, 24, has recorded a fighting major and three shots in two games with the Blackhawks this season. The Eau Claire, Wisconsin native has tallied 12 assists, 18 points and 66 penalty minutes in 55 contests with Rockford this season while serving as the team captain.

Overall, Dowell has appeared in 22 regular-season games with the Blackhawks over the last three seasons (2007-09), posting three points (2G, A) and 17 penalty minutes, which includes being held scoreless in one game with the club in 2008-09. He has also racked up 60 points (21G, 39A) and 266 penalty minutes in 188 regular-season AHL tilts with the Norfolk Admirals (2006-07) and Rockford (2007-10).

Dowell played today for Chicago in a 5-4 shoot-out victory for the Blackhawks. While playing only 8 minutes, the Eau Claire native was able to record a goal and an assist. The former Badger was named the third star in the Victory.

Other Badgers in NHL action on Sunday:

Former Badger goalie Brian Elliott continued his torrid pace with 34 saves on 37 shots in a 4-3 Senators victory. Elliott is 12-2 over his past 14 games played for the Sen's. Over that span he's allowed more than 3 goals only twice. Elliott is silencing a lot of critics right now with his play.

Olympic Hockey TV Schedule

I've been having a tough time keeping track of what Olympic hockey teams are playing on what day and what time and on what channel so I figured I'd try and put together a list of dates, times, and channels for myself, and I might as well post it on here in case anyone else is having as much trouble as I am of keeping track.

Wisconsin is represented on both Canada and the United States men's and women's teams so I will list the TV Schedules for ALL four of those squads first.

I also plan to do some live blogging during the tournament on day games with Badger players playing. It's going to be tough for people to watch weekday-day games so I'll try and provide as much coverage online as possible to keep you updated. I'll also list the games I plan on live blogging.

All times Central Standard

United States Women:
Sun. (2/14/2010)-2:00 PM vs China (USA Network, HD)
Tue. (2/16/2010)-4:30 PM vs Russia (MSNBC) 60 Minutes LIVE BLOG
Thu. (2/18/2010)-4:30 PM vs Finland (MSNBC) 60 Minutes LIVE BLOG

United States Men:
Tue. (2/16/2010)-2:00 PM vs Switzerland (USA Network, HD) 60 Minutes LIVE BLOG
Thu. (2/18/2010)-2:00 PM vs Norway (USA Network, HD) 60 Minutes LIVE BLOG
Sun. (2/21/2010)-6:00 PM vs Canada (MSNBC) Possible 60 Minutes LIVE BLOG

Canada Women:
Sat. (2/13/2010)-7:00 PM vs Slovakia (CNBC)
Mon. (2/15/2010)-4:30 PM vs Switzerland (MSNBC)
Wed. (2/17/2010)-4:30 PM vs Sweden (MSNBC)

Canada Men:
Tue. (2/16/2010)-7:00 PM vs Norway (CNBC)
Thu. (2/18/2010)-7:00 PM vs Switzerland (CNBC)
Sun. (2/21/2010)-6:00 PM vs USA (MSNBC) Possible 60 Minutes LIVE BLOG

Other Olympic Hockey TV Coverage:

Sunday (2/14)
6:30 PM Finland vs Russia Women (CNBC)

Monday (2/15):
2:00 AM USA vs China Women(MSNBC) REPLAY

Tuesday (2/16):
2:00 AM Canada vs Switzerland Women (MSNBC) REPLAY
9:00 PM Finland vs China Women (CNBC)
11:30 PM Russia vs Latvia Men (CNBC)

Wednsday (2/17):
2:00 PM Finland vs Belarus Men (MSNBC)
7:00 PM Sweden vs Germany Men (CNBC)
9:00 PM Switzerland vs Slovakia Women (CNBC)
11:30 PM Slovakia vs Czech Republic Men (CNBC)

Thursday (2/18):
9:00 PM Russia vs China Women (CNBC)
11:30 PM Russia vs Slovakia Men (CNBC)

Friday (2/19):
2:00 PM Sweden vs Belarus Men(MSNBC)
7:00 PM Czech Republic vs Latvia Men (CNBC)
11:00 PM Finland vs Germany Men (MSNBC)

Saturday (2/20):
2:00 PM Norway vs Switzerland Men (MSNBC)
6:30 PM Slovakia vs Latvia Men (MSNBC)
11:00 PM Belarus vs Germany Men (MSNBC)

Sunday (2/21):
11:00 PM Sweden vs Finland Men (MSNBC)

Monday (2/22):
2:00 PM Women's Semi-Final #1 (USA Network, HD) Possible 60 Minutes LIVE BLOG
7:00 PM Women's Semi-Final #2 (CNBC)

Tuesday (2/23):
2:00 PM Men's Elimination Round (USA Network, HD) Possible 60 Minutes LIVE BLOG
7:00 PM Men's Elimination Round (CNBC)
9:00 PM Men's Elimination Round (CNBC)
11:30 PM Men's Elimination Round (CNBC)

Wednsday (2/24):
2:00 PM Men's Quarter-Final Round (NBC, HD) Possible 60 Minutes LIVE BLOG
6:00 PM Men's Quarter-Final Round (CNBC)
9:00 PM Men's Quarter-Final Round (CNBC)
11:30 PM Men's Quarter-Final Round (CNBC)

Thursday (2/25):
1:00 PM Women's Bronze Medal Game (MSNB)
5:00 PM Women's Gold Medal Game (MSNBC)

Friday (2/26):
2:00 PM Men's Semi-Final Round (NBC, HD) Possible 60 Minutes LIVE BLOG
8:00 PM Men's Semi-Final Round (CNBC)

Saturday (2/27):
9:00 PM Men's Bronze Medal Game (MSNBC)

Sunday (2/28):
2:00 PM Men's Gold Medal Game (NBC, HD)

USA Women Open With 12-1 Victory

The United States women's hockey team opened up the 2010 Olympic Winter games with a 12-1 victory over China Sunday afternoon. Ironically, these two teams faced each other eight years ago to the day, and played to the exact same score, a 12-1 USA victory.

The United States is absolutely loaded with former and current Badger players. They were led on Sunday by forward Meghan Duggan (pictured left) who had two goals on four shots for the red, white, and blue. Duggan will have one year of eligibility left with the Badgers after she returns from Vancouver.

Other Badgers who figured into the scoring Sunday afternoon: Molly Engstrom had a goal and an assist. Hilary Knight, and Kerry Weiland both finished with one assist. Erika Lawler and Jinelle Zaugg-Siergiej were held off the scoresheet. Jessie Vetter did not play.

Arguably the biggest news of the day was that forward Erika Lawler suffered an apparent ankle injury when she crashed into the boards racing for a loose puck. It happened during the second period and while she returned to the bench, she never returned to the ice. It didn't look like the injury was too serious and she was probably held out due to precautionary reasons more than anything. Keep an eye on this situation.

Team USA next plays on Tuesday vs Russia at 4:30 on MSNBC
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The Badgers are represented on Team Canada as well. Former Badger defensemen Carla MacLeod and Meaghan Mikkelson are suited up for Team Canada and they started off their tournament by taking on Slovakia Saturday night.

Team Canada absolutely smoked Slovakia and got an 18-0 victory. MacLoed was a star for the Canadians with two goals and two assists in the blowout. Mikkelson went scoreless.

Team Canada next plays on Monday vs Switzerland at 4:30 on MSNBC

Duggan photo courtesy of Getty Images

Bohmber impresses in win over Purple Cows

I was impressed last night in the play of Andy Bohmbach and so was Andy Baggot. If you weren't, you either didn't watch the game or don't like people from Hudson, WI or a mindless gopher fan who still thinks Alex Wangas is a good goalie. The Badgers won 8-4.

The Bohmber scored a beautiful goal to tie things up early after Brett Bennett (started in net) let in a softy in the opening minute of play. The Bohmber later assisted on a few nice goals, including a Ben Grotting breakaway. A 1-2-3, +3 night will hopefully lead to continued production from my favorite Badger.

This SHOULD move the Bohmber back up to the 3rd line, because I think a line of Bohmber/Bendi/Mitchell or Grotting could be the difference late in the season, as that line could score especially if Mitchell starts to play better; he had two nice assists last night. What other team is going to roll a 3rd line that good?

Blake "Captain Asskicker" Geoffrion continued to put up Hobey Baker type numbers, notching 2 more goals and an assist, and now has 21 goals on the season. First Badger since Robbie Earl & Plover, WI's Joe Pavelski both cracked 20 during the 2006 Championship run.

Michael Davies added two assists and Bredan Smith went 1-2-3 from the blue line. A trio of Hobey Candidates?

One thing I like about this team is that some weekends some of the top guys have off nights, this weekend was Derek Stepan, but due to incredible depth, its ok, as next week he'll probably be lighting up the box score.

My only criticism of last night's game is Brett Bennett. Too many soft goals that are ok against Mankato when the team hangs 8 in your support, and while Goody has had a few softies lately he continues to make big save after big save, and Bennett looks shaky out there. As my buddy who I share tix w/ on saturdays wisely stated, if Mankato wasn't so bad, all those chances they had close in would have been goals on a good team (Denver, Miami (OH), etc). The defense was sloppy last night too, but Goody picks up the slack much better as the last brick in the wall, compared to B^2. I think in games that matter (like next weekend) Goody needs to be minding the net, the rotation can return for the series w/ Tech.

Badgers 4 Ugly Purple Jerseys 3

Blake Geoffrion was part of every Badger goal (1 goal, 3 assists) and Michael Davies netted a pair on the same PP to lift the Badgers to a 4-3 win over the land cows of Mankato.

In my opinion, if we are going to talk about the Hobey Baker and a Badger winning it, time to stop talking about Brendan Smith and start talking about Blake Geoffrion. Captain Asskicker is the COMPLETE player. 1st EV unit, 1st PP unit, 1st PK unit, the top leader on the ice (at least that is obvious to me). He finds a way to get things done and lift the team, and is leading the WCHA in scoring while doing it. He has turned into the player that every young man should model themselves after in terms of leadership and giving their best on the ice each night.

The transformation from the selfish out of control freshman to the player he is today is outstanding.

Quick Friday Night Game Notes

There is no way that I could even come close to putting together a "It's Friday, I'm in Love" as good as 60 Min. does so I'm not even going to attempt it. I do however have a few pieces of info that would be to your advantage if you were not aware of it already.

BADGER MEN vs Minnesota State: FRI / SAT 8 PM

UW: 16-7-4 overall, 10-5-3 WCHA
Kato: 12-14-2 overall, 6-13-1 WCHA

Gameday Links
TV: FSN-Wisconsin (Fri & Sat)
Radio: WIBA 1310
Audio webstream: insideBADGERSPORTS ($9.95/mo)

Weekly Shooutout Winner
Blake Geoffrion takes the shootout over Brendan Smith, Andy Bohmbach and Aaron Bendickson.

HatchetJoe says . . .
yap...yap...yap...yap...yap...
...shut the f up & play...


Again, if you did not see it before 8PM START TIME TONIGHT.

Friday Recruiting Notes: Delgadillo In Play?

College hockey recruiting is a never ending chore. If you aren't persistent in restocking the shelf, eventually the cupboard runs dry. Apparently the Badger coaching staff is committed to making sure the pipeline of great defensemen at the University of Wisconsin continues.

One of my favorite under the radar prospects, Milwaukee area defenseman Jose Delgadillo has scheduled an official recruiting trip to Madison in April. He also plans to officially visit Minnesota State.

Delgadillo has been playing in the Milwaukee Jr. Admirals program, but recently has made the transition to Sioux City of the USHL. Sioux City has strong UW connections with recruits Matt Paape and Chase Drake already playing there, as well as head coach Luke Strand who is from Eau Claire.

From the collegehockey247 article: "I'm from Wisconsin so I know the school, I know the coaches - Mark Osiecki is one of the best defensive coaches in the country so I know I'd learn a great deal from him. It's also a Big Ten school that does really well in academics and I think that's a good fit for me. Plus, I've visited unofficially a few times and liked it."

I got a chance to watch Delgadillo when I was scouting the Fargo Force camp this summer and came away very impressed. He is slated to be a 2011 recruit so it will be interesting to see how he would fit in, if he decided on Wisconsin. Here are my current projections for the next few seasons defensively:

2010-11 (9)

Ryan McDonagh-Leaves for NHL
Brendan Smith-Leaves for NHL

Senior-Cody Goloubef
Senior-Craig Johnson
Junior-Jake Gardiner
Junior-Eric Springer
Sophomore-Justin Schultz
Sophomore-John Ramage
Red Shirt Sophomore-Ryan Little
Freshman-Frankie Simonelli
Freshman-Chase Drake

2011-2012 (9?)

Jake Gardiner-Leaves for NHL

Senior-Eric Springer
Junior-Justin Schultz
Junior-John Ramage
Red Shirt Junior-Ryan Little
Sophomore-Frankie Simonelli
Sophomore-Chase Drake
Freshman-Troy Hesketh
Freshman-Jake McCabe
Freshman-Jose Delgadillo (projected possible commitment)

2012-2013 (9?)

Justin Schultz-Leaves for NHL

Senior-John Ramage
Red Shirt Senior-Ryan Little
Junior-Frankie Simonelli
Junior-Chase Drake
Sophomore-Troy Hesketh
Sophomore-Jake McCabe
Sophomore-Jose Delgadillo (projected possible commitment)
Freshman-Jordan Schmaltz
Freshman-Joe Fiala (projected possible commitment)

Bohmbach Demoted For Poor Play, Johnson Promoted For Poor Play

When someone mentioned to me that Baggot had an update on the lineup for this weekend and it included Pat Johnson on the third line, I thought they were joking. Apparently not. Senior Andy Bohmbach has been moved from the third line down to the fourth and Pat Johnson has taken his place.

According to Baggots article, "Quite honestly, I thought Bomber missed some checks early in the game (against Michigan) on Saturday and it's a little reminder to him,'' Eaves said Thursday. "And we're giving Patrick a chance to step up and play with that group of guys and see what he can get done.''

Now, I have no problems with sending a message to Bohmbach by playing him with the fourth line. I do have a problem with promoting Pat Johnson in order to make the move. Pat Johnson is not that good with the puck, hes not that good defensively, hes not that good on the pk, he's not that good on the power play, he's not a physical presence, he doesn't bring any extra energy. I think I would like to use a quote from Office Space and ask Patrick, "what would you say, ya do here?"



The answer over the past two seasons is, absolutely nothing. A whopping 13 points in the past two seasons (61 games). If anything this would be a good opportunity to get Derek Lee (9 points in only 16 games this season) or even Podge Turnbull some action up on that third line. I'm sick of the Patrick Johnson experiment. If he doesn't have Kyle Turris on his line, he can't do anything productive.

Here are the projected lines for Friday night:


Wisconsin:

Jordy Murray-Blake Geoffrion-Craig Smith
Ben Street-Derek Stepan-Michael Davies
John Mitchell-Aaron Bendickson-Pat Johnson
Andy Bohmbach-Sean Dolan-Ben Grotting

Ryan McDonagh-Jake Gardiner
Brendan Smith-John Ramage
Cody Goloubef-Justin Schultz

Scott Gudmandson

Minnesota State

Geoff Irwin-Jerad Stewart-Kael Mouillierat
Adam Mueller-Zach Harrison-Justin Jokinen
Mike Dorr-Tyler Pitlick-Eriah Hayes
Andy Sackrison-Rylan Galiardi-Mike Louwerse

Channing Boe-Kurt Davis
Ben Youds-Tyler Elbrecht
Cameron Cooper-Evan Mosey

Austin Lee

Committed Recruits: Updated Statistics

Click on image to enlarge

Badgers Go West, Land Elite California Recuit

Andy Baggot's blog tips us off to the fact that the Wisconsin Badgers took the next step in continuing their storied tradition by landing the services of elite forward Nick Kerdiles from Irvine, California. Kerdiles is a 1994 born forward who currenltly plays for the LA Selects program. Over the past summer he played at the USA Hockey select 15 festival in Rochester, New York. He has already accepted a spot with the USA National Team Development Program for next season.

Kirdiles will be a 2012 recruit and joins other committed players Corbin McGuire and Jordan Schmaltz to form the start of an absolutely sick class.

I got a chance to talk to Kirdles tonight and here were his initial comments:

"I'm absolutely speechless and still in shock and I don't think it has set in yet. It is such a great academically and athletically strong school. Its track record proves it with six National Championships. I love the facility that they play in! The Kohl Center is second to none and is just absolutely amazing. I can not wait to play in it! The atmosphere is amazing there at the Kohl Center and everyone loves the badgers in the community which is awesome!!!

Most importantly i really like the coaches. They are very approachable and I felt comfortable around them. I felt welcomed and they are such nice people. They all have strong backgrounds and I had a chance to talk with some of the boys and go out to eat with them and hang out at the dorms and they just told me so many great things about them. Its honestly a first class University."

Chuck Schwartz: You were at the Camp Randall game last weekend. What was that experience like?

Nick Kerdiles: All I can say is breath taking. It was such an amazing experience. Only so many people in the world will ever get to experience what I was fortunate to see. The crowd was loud and very positive, the weather was nice and cold for a California guy like me but i loved it, and the game couldn't have turned out better with the big win for The BADGERS!

Chuck Schwartz: How long have you been considering Wisconsin and what made you decide on them?

Nick Kerdiles: Wisconsin has always been high on my list because of the instant interest they showed me right off the bat. They were the first to send me a questionnaire and also really wanted me to talk to them as much as I could. I have always loved wisconsin and they have a great track record, and I believe they are the best University for hockey to develop and get better and I have a great chance to win a National Championship with them!

Chuck Schwartz: What other schools were you looking at?

Nick Kerdiles: The University of Michigan showed me a lot of interested and also offered me and Denver was talking to me closely and a little of North Dakota.

Chuck Schwartz: Wisconsin has a very elite class shaping up for 2012 with Jordan Schmaltz and Corbin McGuire already committed, do you know those players and are you excited to play with them?

Nick Kerdiles: I do not know them. I am extremely excited for opportunity that lies ahead of me and I will do anything to win a national championship and develop for hopefully one day the NHL.

Chuck Schwartz: 2012 is still a long ways away. Is there any chance of you playing in the WHL or are you dead set on the college route?

Nick Kerdiles: I am dead set on the college route. I get good grades and I can use that to my advantage by getting my college paid for and also having more time to develop both as a man and by a hockey player.

Chuck Schwartz: Wisconsin is a long ways away from California, how did they get into the picture as a future destination?

Nick Kerdiles: Wisconsin is a great hockey school so I would fly across the world if it meant that I would be putting on the Badgers uniform. I laid out the pros and cons of Wisconsin and all I could come up with was the pros, no cons which is a great sign.

Chuck Schwartz: I see you listed at 150 pounds. Is that accurate and where do you see your size/weight when you come to Madison?

Nick Kerdiles: That is false. I am Currently at 6 foot 1 and 1/2 and i weigh 184 pounds. Going to the NTDP will give me a huge advantage because of how strong the program is. They have great trainers and Coaches and I will be playing against older guys in the USHL and the following year on the 18U team against colleges too. I do not have an exact estimate for you but i trust the NTDP staff of putting on the right weight that I need to put on.

Chuck Schwartz: Can you give us an indication on your style of play?

Nick Kerdiles: I'm a big strong play maker who will play gritty and fight for loose pucks. I have speed and I excel in puck-protection. I like being the difference maker in games by putting up points and helping my team win.


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I can't thank Nick enough for taking the time out tonight to answer a couple questions for us. I wish him luck over the next few seasons and can't wait to see him on campus in 2012.

Future WCHA'ers In Madison This Weekend

The Madison Capitols are hosting the 22nd annual Gold Medal Classic this weekend in Madison at the Capitol Ice Center in Middleton. Sixteen of the best Midget Major programs in the country will be in the area over the weekend for the event.

The tournament starts on Thursday and runs through Sunday. Tournament schedule can be found here. The tournament features some of the best under 18 players in the country.

Jason Clark, who recently committed to play for the Wisconsin Badgers next season is a forward with the Shattuck St. Marys squad. They play Thursday at 6:15 PM, Friday at 12:00 PM, and Saturday at 8:00 AM. They also most likely will play in the medal rounds on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.

Jordan Schmaltz, a 2012 committed defenseman will not be in attendance as he was invited to play with the United States U-17 squad in an international tournament.

Other elite players that will be in attendance that are committed to colleges:

Shattuck St. Marys: Joe Basaraba (Minnesota Duluth), Jason Clark (Wisconsin), Kirill Gotovets (Cornell), Jimmy Mullin (Miami), J.P. Lafontaine (Minnesota State), James Polk (Nebraska-Omaha), Brad Robbins (Bemidji).

Team Illinois: Chris Joyaux (Ohio State)

Hats off to MadCityRich for the heads up as always.

Thurber Suspended

Andy Baggot reports that sophomore forward Matt Thurber has been suspended indefinitely.

From his post: Reasons for the punishment weren't immediately known. The policy (school's student-athlete discipline policy) calls for immediate suspension of a UW student-athlete if he or she has violated laws related to drugs, violence or gambling.

He is still a member of the team, but cannot practice or play in any games.

This isn't cool. I really like Thurber on the ice, and while the team is deep, the bench just got a little shorter at forward.

Honestly I don't care what the reason was either, but hopefully Matt pulls himself together and can find his way back on the roster at some point in the future.

Recruiting: It's Vladdy D Time (And Time To Sign Fiala)

Wisconsin recruiting took a large step this weekend when we landed a premier goaltender for the 2011 season with Joel Rumpel. It's been the number 1 priority for a while now. In my opinion, our next step is to lock down Joe Fiala, a defenseman from Verona.

Fiala, who has been talked about here many times has recently accepted a mid-season invitation to join the USA NTDP U-17 squad full time. The NTDP has experienced an exorbitant amount of injuries and suspensions this season leading to Fiala's invitation.

At 6'2, 190 pounds, Fiala already has the size you look for in a Division 1 WCHA defenseman. His biggest problem was his every day competition at Verona high school. Moving to the USA NTDP will accelerate his development. We have two defensemen coming in for the 2011 season, Jake McCabe, and and Troy Hesketh. Fiala would fit in well in 2012, arriving with Chicago Mission defenseman Jordan Schmaltz.

Speaking of Schmaltz, he has been added to the USA U-17 squad for the upcoming 2010 Vlad Dzurilla Under-18 Tournament. "The defenseman helped the U.S. National Under-17 Team capture first place at the 2010 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in January. Schmaltz participated in each of Team USA’s seven games and notched one goal. In 39 games with the Mission, Schmaltz has led the team’s defensemen with 31 points (10-21)."

The tournament starts on Thursday but they played an exhibition this morning which they lost, 4-3 to Slovakia. Schmaltz had a goal in the exhibition. "Jordan Schmaltz (Madison, Wis.) skated in from the blue line, wheeled around a defender and put a backhanded shot under the blocker of netminder Dusan Szalontay with 4:52 remaining in regulation."

Rumpel commits for 2011

On schedule, Joel Rumpel commits for the 2011 season, and Badger fans can breath a little sigh of relief about the goaltending situation following the graduations of Scott Gudmandson and Brett Bennett.

Editted on 2/9/09

Baggot added the following yesterday. Rumpel's coach at Penticton draws comparisons between him and Brian Elliott. A little soon for that, but I love this kid's size, one thing you can't teach, Jeff Sanger can do the rest.

In addition, Baggot had a little more on Rumpel today. I agree that it is a good thing for Rumpel to return to the BCHL to be the man for Penticton next season before arriving. A) he wouldn't play here next year & there is probably not any schollie money and B) he'll need the experience of playing 45 games or so to prepare for possibly being the #1 right out the gate as a frosh. He will be 20 as a freshman, which is always a bonus.

The same article mentions the rankings from RedLine Report which has 2010 recruit Michael Mersch at #56 and John Ramage at #198 for the 2010 NHL Draft. While Mersch wasn't a worldkiller when the U-18 team visited in early January, he has the size and rare talent to be a great power forward at Wisconsin. Next season he'll only be a senior in high school, in age, but accelerating to come in, so he'll have some growing to do yet.

Brendan Smith For Hobey?

Wow.

That is the only word I can use to describe Brendan Smith's third period yesterday afternoon. I know I said before that I didn't think Brendan deserved the Hobey. He's doing a really good job right now of making me second guess that statement.

This guy has established himself as THE premier offensive defenseman in the entire country. His 33 points lead all defensemen. He's 14th overall among all skaters in points per game at 1.27 points per game.

Will it be enough? We shall see. But I think he officially submitted his name for consideration last night.

Photo by RedHeat15

Badgers Win 3-2 At Camp Randall

Box Score

First Period:

3:04-Wisconsin: Jordy Murray (Craig Smith, Blake Geoffrion)
18:57-Michigan: Scooter Vaughan (Ben Winnett, Lindsay Sparks)

Second Period:

Third Period:

11:03-Michgian: Kevin Lynch (Carl Hagelin)
14:28-Wisconsin: Brendan Smith (Michael Davies, Derek Stepan)
18:38-Wisconsin: Brendan Smith (Justin Schultz, Derek Stepan)

Saves:

Michigan-Bryan Hogan: 24 saves, 3 goals against
Wisconsin-Scott Gudmandson: 22 saves, 2 goals against




Photo by tristarscoop

Time For Some Outdoor Puck Live Blog

I'm not going to be providing real time updates since most of you are at the game, and if your not, I'm sure your watching it on TV. But I figured I'd open this up for anyone who wanted to talk about the game.

It's A Great Day For Hockey!

I hope everyone who is going to the game today has an outstanding time. It's a shame that Badger Bob isn't here for this glorious event.

On, Wisconsin!

Projected Lineups For Tomorrow

Wisconsin

Courtesy of Andy Baggot:

Jordy Murray-Blake Geoffrion-Craig Smith
Ben Street-Derek Stepan-Michael Davies
Andy Bohmbach-Aaron Bendickson-John Mitchell
Ben Grotting-Sean Dolan-Patrick Johnson

Ryan McDonagh-Jake Gardiner
Cody Goloubef-Justin Schultz
Brendan Smith-John Ramage

No word on the goaltenders yet. It would be an absolute travesty if Eaves starts Brett Bennett tomorrow. An absolute travesty.

Michigan

Carl Hagelin-Matt Rust-Kevin Lynch
David Wohlberg-Louie Caporusso-Luke Glendening
Brian Lebler-A.J. Treais-Chris Brown
Scooter Vaughan-Jeff Rohrkemper-Ben Winnett

Chad Langlais-Chris Summers
Lee Moffie-Steve Kampfer
Brandon Burlon-Greg Pateryn

Bryan Hogan
Shawn Hunwick

Important Notes For Tomorrow

MADISON, Wis. -- In preparation for the Culver’s Camp Randall Hockey Classic on Saturday, the University of Wisconsin Department of Athletics would like to remind Badger fans about a few policies and services open to them to help things run smoothly on gameday.

CARRY-IN ITEMS

The following items are PERMITTED in Camp Randall Stadium for Wisconsin athletic events: purses (not more than 12 inches wide), camera cases, binocular cases, fanny packs, blankets, jackets, items related to a medical condition, chairbacks (not more than 16 inches wide) and diaper bags or items related to the care of an infant.

For the safety and security of all patrons, the following items are PROHIBITED, including, but not limited to: any food or beverage items, cans, bottles, coolers, thermoses, backpacks (including draw string bags), large bags (gym, duffel and tote), luggage, strollers, laser pointers, banners, flags, signs, noisemakers, weapons, balloons, beach balls or umbrellas.

All patrons entering UW athletic facilities are subject to search. Storage facilities are not available for checking prohibited items.

PARKING

Fans that have not purchased parking passes in advance can purchase permits the day of the game in the following campus lots:

lot 36 (ramp)
lot 44 (surface)
lot 29 (ramp)
lot 7 (ramp)
lot 43 (surface)
lot 62 (surface)
lot 34 (surface)
lot 60 (surface – autos & buses – shuttle service begins at 1 p.m. for $5 roundtrip)

UW Campus Parking Map

Permits will still cost $15 except for lot 60 which is $5 (auto), $17 (bus).

Fans can also get to Camp Randall via shuttle busses that will be running from the Alliant Energy Center and downtown ramps starting at 1 p.m. Busses will run for approximately 1 hour after the completion of the men's hockey game.

Prices for the shuttle bus are as follows:

Alliant Energy Center
$5.50 to park cars
$16.50 to park a bus
$5 to ride shuttle round trip
$3 to ride shuttle one way

Downtown Ramps
Normal rates apply to park cars
$5 to ride shuttle round trip
$3 to ride shuttle one way

Disabled parking permits are sold out.

WARMING AREAS

Fans at the games will be able to enter the McClain Center during the Coca-Cola Fan Experience from 1 p.m. until the start of the third period of the men’s game. Beginning at 5 p.m., the UW Fieldhouse will become a warming area to all game ticket holders, again closing at the start of the third period of the men’s game. Prior to 5 p.m., only those fans with tickets to the official "Badger Warm-Up" will have access to the UW Field House.

What If No One Left The WCHA Early?

You always hear different fan bases bitching about what things would be like if certain players didn't leave early for the pros. I went back and put together rosters of WCHA teams for this season if none of their players left early for the pro's or for Major Junior. I didn't include kids who backed on verbals only to sign with another program like Patrick Wiercoich, or back out on two verbals like Mike Dorr.

I'm sure some players got left out, especially on the major junior side so correct me if you see something that is wrong.

Players who left early in BOLD.

Alaska Anchorage:

Tommy Grant-Paul Crowder-Kevin Clark
Josh Lunden-Daniel Naslund-Sean Wiles
Brad McCabe-Winston DayChief-August Aiken
Mickey Spencer-Nick Haddad-Tyler Moir

Lee Baldwin-Brad Gorham
Nils Backstrom-Jared Tuton
Drew Darwitz-Kane Lafranchise

Jon Olthuis
Bryce Christianson

Colorado College:

Bill Sweatt-Rylan Schwartz-Andrew Hamburg
Stephen Schultz-David Civitarese-Mike Testwuide
Tim Hall-Brian McMillin-Tyler Johnson
Addison DeBoer-Nick Dineen-Scott Winkler

Brian Connelly-John Moore
Gabe Guentzel-Nate Prosser
Kris Fredheim-Ryan Lowery

Richard Bachman
Joe Howe

Denver:

Rhett Rakhshani-Tyler Ruegsegger-Stepan Novotny
Anthony Miani-Tyler Bozak-Joe Colborne
Drew Shore-Jesse Martin-Kyle Ostrow
Luke Salazar-Brandon Vossberg-Shawn Ostrow

Patrick Wiercoich-Keith Seabrook
Matt Donovan-John Lee
William Wrenn-Cody Brookwell

Marc Cheverie
Adam Murray

Michigan Tech

Casey Pierro-Zabotel-Brett Olson-Malcolm Gwilliam
Bennett Royer-Jordan Baker-Drew Dobson
Anthony Schooley-Eric Kattelus-Alex MacLeod
Eli Vlaisavljevich-Aaron Pietila-Evan Witt

Steven Seigo-Ricky Doriott
Deron Cousens-Mike VanWagner
John Kivisto-Carl Nielsen

Kevin Genoe
Josh Robinson

Minnesota

Jacob Cepis-Kyle Okposo-Jordan Schroeder
Tony Lucia-Jim O'Brien-Zach Budish
Patricia White-Nico Saccheti-Jake Hansen
Nick Larson-Mike Carman-Ryan Flynn

Nick Leddy-Erik Johnson
Aaron Ness-Cade Fairchild
David Fischer-Seth Helgeson

Minnesota State

Geoff Irwin-Trevor Bruess-Kael Mouillierat
Zach Harrison-Rylan Galiardi-Jerad Stewart
Tyler Pitlick-Michael Dorr-Mike Louwerse
Eli Zuck-Eriah Hayes-Justin Jokinen

Ben Youds-Tyler Elbrecht
Channing Boe-Kurt Davis
Cameron Cooper-Nick Canzanello

Austin Lee
Phil Cook

Minnesota-Duluth

Mike Connelly-Jack Connelly-Justin Fontaine
Rob Bordson-Travis Oleksuk-Mike Seidel
Jordan Fulton-Drew Atkins-David Grun
Cody Danburg-Dan DeLisle-Jake Hendrickson

Dylan Olsen-Mike Montgomery
Wade Bergman-Brady Lamb
Scott Kishel-Chad Huttel

Alex Stalock
Kenny Reiter

North Dakota

Jason Gregoire-Chris VandeVelde-Matt Frattin
Evan Trupp-Brad Malone-Dany Kristo
Corban Knight-Darcy Zajac-Michael Forney
Carter Rowney-Mario Lamoureux-David Toews

Chay Genoway-Ben Blood
Derrick LaPoint-Jake Marto
Andrew MacWilliam-Joe Gleason

Brad Eidsness
Anthony Greico

St. Cloud State

Andreas Nodl-Garrett Roe-Ryan Lasch
Tony Mosey-Jared Festler-David Eddy
Ben Hanowski-Aaron Marvin-Drew LeBlanc
Jordy Christian-Nick Oslund-Travis Novak

Chris Hepp-Garrett Raboin
Oliver Lauridsen-Taylor Johnson
Sam Zabkowicz-Craig Gaudet

Dan Dunn
Mike Lee

Wisconsin

Sam Gagner-Kyle Turris-Michael Davies
Jordy Murray-Blake Geoffrion-Craig Smith
Ben Street-Derek Stepan-John Mitchell
Andy Bohmbach-Aaron Bendickson-Ben Grotting

Ryan McDonagh-Jamie McBain
Nigel Williams-Brendan Smith
Jake Gardiner-Cody Goloubef

Scott Gudmandson
Brett Bennett

Hockeys Future NCAA Prospects Update (Part 2)

Hockey's Future is doing a series of updates on NHL teams college hockey prospects. Hockey's Future is one of the best resources on the net for following NHL prospects. Last week we were able to link you to profiles of 6 Badgers. Today we bring you the rest of the drafted Badgers.

Jason Menard has recently profiled the Montreal Canadiens who own the rights of Badgers Junior forward Patrick Johnson.

"The Badgers are fourth in the WCHA, but the pollsters have a whole lot more respect for Wisconsin than what the standings indicate, as the club finished second in the latest USCHO/USA Today poll, behind only Miami of Ohio. However, Johnson's contribution to the cause has been minimal at best and perplexing at worst.

As a freshman in 2007-08, Johnson made a huge impact on the Badgers, playing in 40 games and scoring 21 points (including eight goals). He looked poised to step up as a sophomore and play a key role on this traditional powerhouse.

Then something happened. It's not an injury -- at least physically. For some reason or another, Johnson's play slipped. Actually, slipped is too kind -- it plummeted. Last year as a sophomore, he ended up with seven points (three goals) in 35 games. Sure, he continued his aggressive, feisty play, but his nose for the net suddenly lost its sense.

As a junior, Johnson's had the chance to redeem himself. Unfortunately, instead of reclaiming his freshman promise, he's sunk deeper into his morass. The forward finds himself clinging to a spot on the fourth line. He's matched his goal-scoring totals from last year (three) in 10 fewer games to date, but he's yet to even match his meager assists totals. In 25 games so far, he's scored three goals and three assists.

Johnson's a bubble player who is always playing for a contract. However, it's safe to say he's not doing anything that's going to appeal to the Habs brass."
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Leslie Treff has recently profiled the New York Rangers who own the rights of Badgers junior defenseman Ryan McDonagh and sophomore forward Derek Stepan.

"On the top pairing for the University of Wisconsin with an Anaheim Ducks top prospect Jake Gardiner, junior blueliner McDonagh is a two-way defenseman who is not afraid to take the body and protect teammates. Named a tri-captain for the season, McDonagh has an excellent competitive fire and knows how to lead. In what is widely thought to be his final season as a Badger, McDonagh is second among defensemen in total points on the team with 12 (3 goals, 9 assists).

McDonagh is expected to compete for a Rangers roster spot out of camp next season, however, is more likely to spend the campaign in Hartford."
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"Stepan has become well known over the past few weeks, as he was captain of the US U-20 World Junior Championship team that won gold in Saskatchewan earlier this month. Named to the media all-star team for the tournament, as well as one of the three best USA players by the coaches. Stepan was the scoring leader of the entire tournament (14 points in seven games, with a +9).

The Rangers second round pick from 2008 did not, however, have a very good start to his season at Wisconsin. The sophomore was expected to do great things and play in all situations, just as he had last spring, but his early games in the 2009-10 campaign were somewhat lackluster. He was not scoring, nor creating the plays that made him so exciting to watch last year. Things began to turn around when Stepan picked up his physical game, and currently, he is a more than a point-a-game pace. In 22 games, Stepan has recorded 29 points (6 goals, 23 assists), with a +6 plus/minus rating. This is made even more impressive by the fact that Stepan has been playing on the third line.

Not too long ago, it was almost certain that Stepan would return to Wisconsin for the 2010-11 season. Since his fine performance in the World Juniors, questions have arisen. Stepan still needs to get bigger and faster to be ready for professional play. Much will depend on the Minnesota native's performance over the next two months on the ice. If he has nothing left to prove at this level, Stepan will move on, but it is more likely that he will spend one more year as a Badger."

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Chris Shafer has recently profiled the Detroit Red Wings who own the rights of Badgers Junior defenseman Brendan Smith.

"The University of Wisconsin has treated junior defenseman Brendan Smith very well. He has been surrounded by talent, especially on the blue line. Anaheim's Jake Gardiner is one of a talented core of blueliners that make Wisconsin one of the hardest teams to score against year in and year out.

Smith has found his way to the top of Wisconsin scoring from the blue line with 31 points off of 10 goals and 21 assists through 25 games this season. His +16 rating is tied for second on a team where many blueliners are sharing similar success.

Not lost in his steady offensive improvement each season are all the skills necessary for any mobile, new-era defenseman to make it in the NHL. What was an asset to Smith even before he was drafted, his skating, vision, and stickhandling, has steadily gotten better over the course of three years as well."
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Josh Deitell has recently profiled the LA Kings who own the rights of Badgers Junior forward Podge Turnbull.

"Once a promising two-way prospect, Turnbull was drafted by the Kings as a fifth rounder after putting up 54 points in 60 games with the Waterloo Black Hawks in the 2006-07 USHL season. However, Turnbull has been unable to translate his game to the NCAA level, and his games played total has been trending downward because of it. Though he suited up for a respectable 37 games in his freshman season, he only saw the ice in 24 last year, a little more than half of the Badgers' total games. His role has diminished even further this year: Of the 26 games the Badgers have played this year, Turnbull has only suited up for six. Barring a miraculous turnaround, Turnbull's time as a legitimate prospect is over. "

Badgers Close In On Canadian Goalie

The crystal ball is becoming very clear in regards to the Badgers pursuit of goaltenders to eventually replace juniors Brett Bennett and Scott Gudmandson.

There has been rampant speculation over the past year on what the Badgers would eventually do with two goalies graduating in the same year. While we still don't know exactly what the Badgers plans are, it looks like they are on the verge of locking up one goalie from north of the border very soon.

Joel Rumpel, a goaltender from the Penticton Vees of the British Columbia hockey leage is scheduled to visit the Wisconsin campus this weekend according to Badger beat writer Andy Baggot.

Rumpel is an 18 year old who has burst onto the scene after limited playing time to start the season. Through 21 games, the nephew of Roy Schultz (All American for Bucky in 1980) is second in the BCHL in both GAA (1.86) and Save percentage (9.24). Those are impressive numbers for a goalie considering the BCHL is considered a wide open offensive style junior league.

From the Baggot article, "He's been outstanding since day one,'' Fred Harbinson (Penticton head coach) said of Rumpel, who's listed at 6-foot-3 and 175 pounds. "He's very technically sound and he has a bit of a calmness that settles everyone down.''

Rivals new hockey website College Hockey 247 also talked with Rumpel. Rumpel has been in contact with other colleges but it's clear that he kid is destined to be a Badger. "There have been a few other teams - Notre Dame and St. Cloud State - but Wisconsin is the dream school," he said. "This will be my first-ever visit to a college team so I want to see their hockey environment, tour their campus, get a feel for their coaches, but I've really grown up hearing all about Wisconsin from my uncle and if everything goes well, I think I could [commit]."

Rumple who describes himself as a big bodied goaltender that can cover the net, could step in and immediately make an impact in 2011.

"There hasn't even been an official offer yet," he said. "But this is crazy. A few years ago, I never thought I'd be in this position. You grow up in Saskatchewan and you never think ? but my uncle showed me this whole other world and told me I should definitely think about college because it was so rewarding for him."

Check back over the weekend to see if we have a new goalie in the fold.

Drunk Driving Is Legal In North Dakota

Ok, let me preface this blog post to say that I couldn't be less shocked with this outcome. With that said...

North Dakota junior forward Matt Frattin was found not guilty of driving under the influence on Tuesday. Somehow (eyeroll), a jury of six Grand Forks County residents decided that the North Dakota hockey player on trial was innocent.

From the Grand Forks Herald, "Campus police pulled over Frattin, a junior forward, in the early morning hours of Aug. 19. According to police, Lt. Tracy Meidinger smelled alcohol on Frattin’s breath and a test at the station put his blood-alcohol level at .12 percent. The legal limit is .08 percent."

I'll admit, I'm far from the smartest person in the world, but what possible debate would someone have in this scenario? This is like the most slam dunk guilty case I've ever heard of. He was pulled over, was taken in for a bac test, and FAILED the test. This couldn't be more black and white.

So basically, one of two things happened here. Either A, Frattin did a voodoo dance and the late Johnny Cochran arose from the dead and won an OJ like case on his behalf, or there were (hold on, this is shocking) some North Dakota hockey fans on the jury. Either way, there is something extremely fishy going on here.

Olympic Preview: Team USA Women

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

For easy reference the links to the Badgers:

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

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

Around the WCHA: What is Left

I've been testing Chuck to see how he'd run the blog and he's done a stand up job, nice work Chuck!

Most teams have 8 games left over the next 5 weekends and the standings are TIGHT!

Here are the WCHA standings. Denver leads by a point over Duluth who has a point edge over St Cloud who has a one advantage over the Badgers and CC.

The WCHA "What If" calculator is awesome all year and w/ the standings so close, spots 2 thru 4 can go anyway. Here is what I think will happen:

1) Denver - 40 pts
2) UW - 38 pts
3) Duluth - 36 pts
4) St Cloud - 35 pts
5) North Dakota - 31 pts
6) CC - 30 pts
7) minnesota - 24 pts
8) UAA - 23 pts
9) Mankato - 16 pts
10) Tech - 7 pts

I think North Dakota is going to make a run, or I just think CC is still overrated.

Here are the "contenders" for home ice's remaining schedules:

Denver: umn, Tech, @Mankato, CC (home & home) {can it get any easier?}
Duluth: @Tech, @UND, umn, @AA (6 road games always tough)
St Cloud: AA, UND, @UW, @Mankato
CC: @umn, UND, DU (home & home)
UW: Mankato, SCSU, @Tech, @umn
UND: @SCSU, UMD, @CC, Tech (possibly favorable to make a run)

I didn't include the gophers for two reasons: 1) they play 4 of the top 5 teams to finish, and (2) they suck.

I think the Badgers can go 6-1-1 the rest of the way, other than St Cloud, they are really hitting the bottom of the conference teams the rest of the way. I don't see a way anyone can catch DU w/ that schedule.

Lastly, check out the Playoff Status website. Really like this one. Based on the statistical analysis they use, Denver controls their own destiny and has a 60% chance of winning the MacNaughton. At this point, the Badgers have less than 2% chance of not getting home ice and will likely fall between 2 and 4, which certainly looks like how it will shake out w/ Duluth and St Cloud. Tech has last wrapped up, but we all knew this in October.

It should be a fun finish to the season, a 2nd or 3rd place finish will look good going into the Final Five to avoid the play-in game as that tourney could decide who gets the #1 seed in St Paul.

Ugh...Denver Gets Garrett Allen

Well...that didn't take long. When I posted this morning that I thought he may be committing soon, I didn't think it would be TODAY. Also when I posted my guess that he was going to Denver, I was hoping I was wrong. Apparently not. Ugh...I'm disappointed.

I'm not sure where this leaves us for the 2011 forward class. Currently it looks like we'll have Cody Strang, Tyler Lapic, Gavin Hartzog, and Matt Paape as of right now. Pretty blah forward class right now. Hopefully Eaver has a trick or two up his sleeve.

At least he's not going to Minnesota.

Recruiting: Stats Updated, Potential Player Notes

First things first, I've updated the recruiting statistics spreadsheet, so you can check that out for all the latest statistics on our committed players and potential recruits.

Ok, so now that we have that out of the way I wanted to talk about some potential recruits for the Badgers. The first one is 1992 born forward Garrett Allen (pictured left). I mentioned last week that Allen was a name that was really picking up steam in the recruiting circles.

Originally I thought that Allen would probably wait until later in the season/summer to make a commitment but recent rumblings have given me a feeling that he is going to make a decision sooner rather than later.

As far as I know, the schools in the running are Wisconsin, Colorado College and Denver. Those three schools have been in the race for a while now, so that's nothing new. The biggest surprise is that Hammy, a Minnesota hockey insider recently alerted me that the Gophers may have jumped into the fray and made Allen an offer. I do not have official confirmation that Allen holds an offer from any of these schools, but I think it's safe to say that he holds offers from Minnesota, Wisconsin, and possibly from CC and Denver.

So where does he end up? It's hard to say. Rumors are that he has strong family ties out in Colorado, so both DU and CC will be in play. Allen is from Wisconsin and while the Badgers don't land every instate kid they offer, they usually do pretty well for themselves. The wild card is definitely Minnesota entering the race late. Allen plays for the Fargo Force with Gopher recruits Nate Schmidt and Nate Condon. If your not familiar, Condon is another Wisconsin born forward (Wausau). I'm going to take a shot in the dark and say he ends up at Denver but that's a pretty wild guess.
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The second player I wanted to talk about was goaltending prospect Troy Grosenick. If your not familiar with Grosenick, he is in his second USHL season for the Cedar Rapids Rough Riders.

I've been getting a ton of recruiting questions over the past couple months regarding the goaltending situation of the future. For as long as I can remember the Badgers have run a goaltending system with a junior/freshman or a senior/sophomore. Transfer Brett Bennett threw a wrench into things since we now have two scholarship junior goaltenders.

A reader this week alerted me to Grosenick who I've grossly been overlooking as a Badger prospect, pun intended. (wow that was lame) Anyways, Grosenick isn't a world beater first round draft pick type of goalie but he could be a player that would fit into our situation.

First of all, he's from Brookfield. Being a Wisconsin native always helps obviously in the recruiting situation with the familiarity of the program and the bonus of having in-state tuition. Second of all, Grosenick ages out of junior hockey this season so he would have to come to Wisconsin next season. I know what your thinking, there is no way we roster three scholarship goalies next year, and you are right. But being an in-state kid, I can definitely see Grosenick taking a 3 for 4 scholarship deal. If your unfamiliar with that, it basically means that he will not receive a scholarship his first year (when we still have Bennett and Gudmandson), but will receive a full scholarship his last three seasons.

Personally i would rather see us bring in a player like Grosenick next season and an elite freshman goalie in 2011 than bring in two freshmen goalies in 2011. Like I said, Grosenick isn't a top of the line goaltender by any means but he's had two very productive seasons in the USHL. He currently has a career 2.63 GAA and a .903 save percentage in 57 career USHL games. He also possesses decent size at 6'0, 190 pounds.

There are a few other goaltenders out there that I would like to bring in next season as well but the problem is the scholarship issue. If I had my first choice we would bring in Green Bay (USHL) goaltender Steve Summerhays. The problem is that Summerhays is an Alaska native and probably isn't likely to pay out of state tuition for a full year at Wisconsin.
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Ok, I'll admit from the start that I don't know much about this kid but I heard about his name last week and I thought he deserved to be brought up. The kid in reference is Delano, Minnesota forward Tyler Heinonen. Heinonen has recently been linked to the Wisconsin program and will be an interesting name to follow in the recruiting process.

At 6'1, 170 and averaging two goals a game, Heinonen brings a lot to the table. The problem is that it's tough to evaluate a kid like Heinonen playing at the level he plays. While Minnesota high school hockey is great, the lower Class A schools that his Delano Tigers play against simply aren't that good so it's tough to evaluate his statistics.

As a positive, Heinonen played pretty well in the Upper Midwest High School Elite league this past fall for Team Southwest which also housed future Badger Troy Hesketh from Minnetonka. Heinonen's 16 points in 23 games were very respectable. Also, I figured this was pointing out, Heinonen recently recorded four hat-tricks in a row. I don't care who you play against, four hat-tricks in a row is impressive.

It's Time To Give Gudmandson The Keys To The Car

I don't think that there is any question about it. At some point, Mike Eaves and the rest of the Badger coaching staff is going to have to find a go-to goaltender to lead the cardinal and white into the battle that is the NCAA Tournament.

In my humble opinion, the time to make the choice is right now. It's time for Coach Eaves to have a meeting with Junior goaltender Scott Gudmandson and tell him that he has the key's to the Badgers car.

Taking a look at the upcoming Wisconsin schedule, we've got five weekends (9 games) of hockey left before we start the WCHA Playoffs. The biggest problem for this seasons Badger squad has been finding a level of consistency. I feel that consistency starts in goal and works it's way out from there.

We've had three weekends of WCHA action in a row where we got a good solid goaltending performance on Friday night, and a poor one on Saturday. (I understand Gudmandson started one of the Saturday games).

Since Brett Bennett has come back from his injury, he has not played well, and admitted in the papers that he was not focused this past Saturday in Duluth. "It's been tough," Bennett said. "I've got to get better. I've got to mentally prepare better.

You would have to be borderline blind not to realize that Gudmandson has clearly had the better season for the Badgers. The difference between Gudmandsons .919 save percentage and Bennett's .896 is like night and day.

Another nugget suggesting that we need to go to Gudmandson full time was this quote from Bennett, "It's weird. I don't know how to explain it. You're almost out of rhythm with so much time between games and stuff."

The Badgers only have one game this week, obviously the Camp Randall Classic, until a weekend series in Madison against Minnesota State. With Bennett fully admitting that it's hard for him to concentrate and be in rhythm without regular playing time, do you trust playing him on Saturday night (2/13) after his only action in the previous 20 days was giving up two weak goals on three shots in an important series in Duluth?

I feel that goaltending is one of the most important factors in winning an NCAA title and for as long as I can remember, there has only been one team to win an NCAA title rotating goaltenders (05 Denver). Last season BU won a title with Kieran Millan playing 35 games for the Terriers. The year before BC won a title by playing John Muse in ALL 44 games BC played. The year before Michigan State rode Jeff Lerg to a title, and before that the Badgers relied on Brian Elliott. Even in 2005 when Denver rotated goaltenders all year, when it came to crunch time, they went with Peter Manino in both Frozen Four games.

To wrap this thing up, to me it's clear that we need to give Gudmandson the vote of confidence and name him our starting goaltender. I was fine with the rotation until Bennett stopped holding up his end of the bargain. It's time to get serious about this thing.

Photo by RedHeat15

Cody Strang USHL Offensive Player Of The Week

Madison native and future Badger Cody Strang has been named the USHL Reebok Hockey Offensive Player Of The Week. Strang, who most likely will end up being a 2011 forward recruit from the Badgers, is playing in his first USHL season for the Youngstown Phantoms. Future Badger Jefferson Dahl also plays for the Phantoms.

From the USHL website: "Strang scored four goals over three games for the Phantoms. After scoring two goals through his first 20 games of the season, the first-year USHL forward more than doubled that total with a "natural hat trick", scoring three goals in succession during the second period of the 7-3 victory over Team USA on January 18th. The native of Madison, Wisconsin scored his three goals over a span of 4:55 which was the first hat trick in the inaugural season of the Phantoms. The 19-year-old then scored the first goal of the game in the 3-2 loss to Cedar Rapids on Saturday."

Strang had an outstanding prep career for Madison Edgewood high school which culminated in him winning the Wisconsin Mr. Hockey award last season. Strang has battled injuries for a few years and needs to get stronger before he comes to Wisconsin. With that said, he has definitely showed flashes of brilliance at times. Keep an eye on this kid.

PS, Jefferson Dahl assisted on all three of his hat-trick goals.