Game Gab - Nightly Post-Game Analysis
Come here after the games for analysis and insights from CHN Staff members.
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Friday, March 15, 2013
Wisconsin 3, Minnesota-Duluth 1 - Friday, March 15, 2013
Wisconsin kept its recent strong play going, taking Game 1. The win puts the Badgers right on the cusp of the NCAAs. “We’ve been playing playoff hockey since November when we started the season 1-7-2,” Wisconsin defenseman John Ramage said. “It’s just another game. That’s just kind of the mentality we have. We know exactly what we need to do to win and we got the job done tonight.” Ramage had a power-play goal and assist.
Wisconsin also kept down the fourth-best power play in the nation in Minnesota-Duluth. The Bulldogs were 0-for-3 with the man advantage, after entering the game having converted 14 of its last 32 (43.8 percent). Mark Zengerle's empty netter capped a three-point night. “We needed his offense,” Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves said. “One of the responsibilities he has, or the expectations that we have for him, is to help produce offense for us and he was in on every goal tonight. The empty-netter was a goal scorer’s goal, an offensive player’s goal. ... This time of year, to have an offensive guy feeling it from the inside out is a good thing for us.”
Read more here.
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Wisconsin 3, St. Cloud State 2 - Saturday, March 9, 2013
St. Cloud State has some euphoria Friday, as it rallied in the third period to defeat Wisconsin and clinch its first WCHA regular-season title, in its final season in the league. But that euphoria was muted somewhat Saturday, as the Huskies lost and missed out on a chance to win the title outright. Instead, it has to share it with Minnesota. “It hurts right now, sharing the title with a team you despise,” Cory Thorson said to the St. Cloud Times, which was a typical response from the players. “But credit to them for sticking it out and sharing it with us. But we wanted it all to ourselves. Credit Wisconsin tonight because they played a very solid game.”
The teams traded goals in the first minute, but Wisconsin took control after that and limited the Huskies to just 20 shots. Michael Mersch scored in the first period, and then again with an empty netter late in the third. St. Cloud kept the net empty and actually got one back, and got chances after that, but couldn't tie it. ... “It was a great hockey game, but we lost it in the first period,” Huskies coach Bob Motzko told the Times. “They had a great little rush for three or four minutes where they were really forechecking us hard and our top line was minus-2, sleeping at the wheel to start a game."
SCSU remains the top seed in the playoffs, and will host Anchorage. Wisconsin clinched a home-ice spot, but is still unsure of its opponent.
Saturday, March 2, 2013
Wisconsin 6, Nebraska-Omaha 2 - Saturday, March 2, 2013
Wisconsin certainly made a statement in coming off that overtime loss to Penn State on Monday. It took a lot of flack for that, but the Badgers bounced back and won twice in Omaha this weekend, and have surged their way up to fourth in the WCHA with one weekend remaining. It all gets very interesting now, because the Badgers host first-place St. Cloud State for two games next weekend, and could conceivably finish in first. Given the start the Badgers had, not to mention that loss to Penn State, that's amazing to even be that close. Unfortunately for them, they dug a big hole as far as the NCAAs are concerned, and still have a lot of work to do in that department.
Michael Mersch scored twice, his 19th and 20th on the season. How many people realize Mersch is a 20-goal scorer? He had 14 last season as a sophomore, and definitely flies under the radar nationally.
Nebraska-Omaha has really taken it on the chin lately after its promising start. The NCAAs are well in the rearview mirror at this point, and a home ice spot in the playoffs is in major jeopardy now too.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
Wisconsin 3, Minnesota 2 - Sunday, February 17, 2013
Wisconsin uses a big second period to earn a split of the weekend series, this one coming outdoors in Chicago. See our complete story.
Saturday, February 9, 2013
Wisconsin 3, Bemidji State 2 - Saturday, February 9, 2013
Wisconsin took a 3-0 lead and held off Bemidji to get three points on the weekend, and stay close to the top of a tight pack in the WCHA. Assistant captain Derek Lee came back from missing three games due to injury, to get a goal and an assist. “He’s a big energy guy,” Brendan Woods said of Lee. “He's the leader. He gets the guys going when we’re down.”
“We’ll try to win games any way we can,” Lee said. “I think we’ve seen in different weekends throughout the season this year that we can play at a higher level. We’re looking to do that game in and game out, so we know it’s there. We just have to harness that and bring it to every weekend.” Wisconsin is now in a three-way tie for fifth place in the conference and just one point out of third place, with six conference games remaining. “We’ve carved out this little path for ourselves to make something here,” Lee said. “We just have to make sure we’re all pulling the rope in the same direction and ready for each game.”
Saturday, February 2, 2013
North Dakota 4, Wisconsin 1 - Saturday, February 2, 2013
UND snapped its longest winless streak (5 games) in 10 years with the victory and handed the Badgers their first WCHA loss in their last 12 games (7-1-4). Power-play goals by sophomore center Mark MacMillan just 45 seconds into the game and a sensational backdoor cut by senior defenseman Joe Gleason to knock home a perfect feed from senior center Corban Knight at 13:24 stimulated an ovation from the fans. Sophomore right wing Michael Parks scored twice in the second period for his first career two-goal game to build North Dakota's cushion to 4-0. Despite a late miscue playing the puck, North Dakota goalie Zane Gothberg was impressive for the second straight game. He stopped 21 of 22 shots Saturday and 50 of 52 for the weekend after Friday's 1-1 tie. ... "I think everybody looks to the first power-play goal as a key part of the game, which it was, but also the following penalty kill was critical," UND coach Dave Hakstol said. "Those guys did a very good job through the weekend."
Parks, who missed 18 of UND's first 19 games with injuries, showed how much he can contribute offensively when healthy. His goals were his fourth and fifth in 11 games after he tallied 12 his rookie season. "We wanted to come out and have a really good baseline game," Parks said, "and let our hard work gets us the goals. I think all four lines did that. Everyone contributed to the win."
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Wisconsin 2, Alaska-Anchorage 1 - Saturday, January 26, 2013
After dominating Friday, Wisconsin won a squeaker Saturday, needing just 19 shots to do it. The Badgers remained red hot, and are now in a three-way tie for fourth place in the WCHA, winners of nine of their last 10. "I wish, and the players wish, that every game would be like (Friday) night," Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves said. "But that's not reality. These are nights where you've got to find ways to solve the riddle."
"The strides we've made over the year are pretty amazing," said Tyler Barnes, who had one of the goals for the Badgers. "I think that's the biggest thing we've changed is we've gotten used to the guys we're playing with and we have more trust in the guys we're playing with. ... Things are going more smoothly and the hard is still there. That's where we need to keep the focus."
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Miami 2, Wisconsin 1 - Saturday, January 19, 2013
The Badgers' 11-game unbeaten streak came to an end Saturday night at the Kohl Center, but the team was left with a lot of good feelings after getting a chance to reflect on it all. This streak started out as something to be unsure of, coming against a lot of lesser teams. But as it went on, and the wins started coming against better and better teams, culminating with the shutout of Miami on Friday, the Badgers felt they were back. "We can play at a higher pace now," forward Mark Zengerle, whose return from injury helped spark the streak, said. "This weekend brought our team to a new level." ... "It's time to start a new streak," defenseman Jake McCabe said. Joel Rumpel, coming off a 26-save shutout on Friday, got the start again in lieu of Landon Peterson. But Miami came out with something to prove, and in dire need of a win after going winless in the previous four. "They were a team that lost last night and they came out with a little burr in their fanny," Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves said. "But, I thought it evened out after that."
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Wisconsin 2, Minnesota State 1 - Saturday, January 12, 2013
John Ramage scored the OT winner for the second straight night, this time with 6.2 seconds remaining, to give Wisconsin its first-ever sweep in Mankato, and extend its unbeaten streak to six. Just a night prior, the Badgers won their first WCHA regular-season overtime game since 2006. Ramage found himself in scoring position following assists from Ryan Little and Jake McCabe. Stick handling his way through the MSU defense, the senior captain found a hole left side, stepped into his shot and blasted the go-ahead score into the net for the win. Although the streak has coincided with the return of big cogs Nic Kerdiles and Mark Zengerle, many questioned whether the Badgers really had turned the corner, since the wins came against a soft part of the schedule. But while Minnesota State may not be the elite of the WCHA, it came into the weekend, at home, on a hot streak of its own, and is certainly a quality opponent.
Saturday, January 5, 2013
Wisconsin 1, Alaska-Anchorage 0 - Saturday, January 5, 2013
This hasn't been the best of seasons for Wisconsin in a myriad of ways. But thanks -- in part -- to a soft patch in its schedule, it can now say it's gone unbeaten in eight games, including four wins in a row over Alabama-Huntsville and Anchorage. Derek Lee's second-period goal was all the Badgers needed, as they held UAA to just 12 shots.
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Michigan Tech 3, Wisconsin 3 - Saturday, December 8, 2012
Wisconsin remains winless at home, a thought that's somewhat hard to fathom for the storied program. It gets a pair of home games next weekend against Alabama-Huntsville, which may provide a temporary respite. It's been a season of struggles in so many ways for the Badgers. But a bright spot in this game was the first goals of the season each for big sophomore forwards Joseph LaBate and Brendan Woods, each of whom had five goals as freshmen. The biggest problem is a lack of production overall, with Mark Zengerle out and not enough players picking up the slack. Nic Kerdiles has yet to score, and is still getting his feet wet. The power play sits at an abysmal 11 percent.
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Minnesota 3, Wisconsin 1 - Saturday, November 17, 2012
Wisconsin is still grinding things out, without top scorer Mark Zengerle, without top recruit Nic Kerdiles, and without its assistant coach, Bill Butters, who resigned mid-season. So Friday's tie was a bit of an accomplishment, but the Badgers couldn't sustain it Saturday and conceded three points to the rival Gophers. It wasn't easy for Minnesota -- it overcame a shorthanded goal from Ryan Little, and rallied for the next two before getting the empty netter. ... “It was a very good college hockey game,” Minnesota coach Don Lucia said. “I thought both teams competed extremely hard. It went down to the third period, and for us it was great to see a guy (Tom Serratore) that doesn’t score a lot score a big goal.”
Said Nick Bjugstad, who had the game-tying goal for Minnesota: “Last night, we felt we had some chances we didn’t capitalize on. Tonight, we were missing the net a little bit, but executed on some of those goals. Tom Serratore came up big with that game winner. The team put together a great effort. We came out hard from the start, so that was a good statement to make.”
Saturday, November 3, 2012
Colorado College 3, Wisconsin 0 - Saturday, November 3, 2012
Colorado College bounced back from a sweep at Cornell last weekend, to sweep two games at Wisconsin this weekend. Alexander Krushelnyski scored 25 seconds into overtime on Friday for the Tigers, and had another on Saturday as Joe Howe recorded the shutout win. Howe is trying to bounceback from his junior year, when he got hurt early and performed poorly otherwise. This was just his second start this season, but he has so far outplayed Josh Thorimbert, and could be getting his No. 1 job back.
The biggest problem for Wisconsin, though, was losing Hobey candidate Mark Zengerle, who took a shot to the hand and suffered a broken finger. He reportedly is expected to be out until mid-December.
Wisconsin 4, Minnesota-Duluth 1 - Saturday, March 16, 2013
Wisconsin sweeps to get to the Final Five, though the Badgers still have work to do to get an NCAA bid. Jefferson Dahl scored just under three minutes into the game to open the flood gates for the Badgers, who scored three goals in the first eight minutes of the first period to take a 3-1 lead. “'Great start' is the first thing we write (on the board in the locker room) because stats tell us that the team that scores the first goal has the winning percentage in its favor,” Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves said. “To score three (goals) like that is an explosion for us. That great start put (Minnesota-Duluth) in a position they couldn’t get back from.” ... “To finally get back to the WCHA Final Five is huge for the guys,” John Ramage (St. Louis) said. “We know we can be there. We knew we could be there the past couple seasons and didn’t get the job done. ... We got the job done this year and we’re excited to go make some noise.”
Eaves said the whole team was lifted by the quick early goal from Dahl. “The bench jumped about a foot and a half when he scored,” Eaves said. “They know how many good things (Dahl’s line) does, and to get a little bit of a reward for that was pleasing to the team and pleasing to those guys because they do work so hard.”
Read more in our blog.
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