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Badgers to fight Sioux on ice
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Also by Mike Ackerstein:
- Wisconsin hits road for Milwaukee (December 12, 2007)
- Heisman pressures could tackle Tebow (December 10, 2007)
- Wisconsin's home streak dead at 28 (December 10, 2007)
- Poor ball control haunts Badgers (December 10, 2007)
- Badgers put on show against Terriers (December 4, 2007)
Related Stories:
- WCHA's best, worst face-off in Verona (February 23, 2007)
- UW awaits WCHA tourney (March 3, 2006)
- Badgers to keep 22-game streak rolling (November 3, 2006)
- Wisconsin moves on, ready to face North Dakota (December 7, 2007)
- Wisconsin hosts North Dakota (November 12, 2004)
by Mike Ackerstein
Friday, October 27, 2006
While the UW women's hockey team's home matchup with North Dakota this weekend won't have as much national attention or as many postseason implications as last weekend's with Minnesota, it will be important nonetheless.
Wisconsin (7-0-1, 5-0-1 Big Ten) split last weekend with a win and a draw, ending its 19 game win streak, and dropping the team into a tie for the top spot with New Hampshire in the national rankings.
The second game of the series, a 3-3 tie, was especially disappointing for the Badgers, as they let a two-goal lead slip through their fingers in the final minute of play and were left with a sour taste in their mouths.
This week though, the team has rebounded, working hard to ensure the late-game letdown against Minnesota won't happen again.
"I think we're responding really positively," said captain Bobbi-Jo Slusar of the team's reaction in the aftermath of Sunday's tie. "I think our practices have been good, we've looked like we've been up tempo, and we'll be ready to go this weekend."
"We had a very good practice yesterday, and today was pretty good," head coach Mark Johnson said. "We're just getting better as a team."
Though there isn't as much time as usual between games this week — Wisconsin will play Friday afternoon after last playing Sunday — Johnson understands that might not be a bad thing as it gives the Badgers a quick opportunity to get back out on the ice.
"It's nice to have a short turnaround, because you don't have to think about [the tie] very much," Johnson said. "We get right back into our next game."
North Dakota (2-4-0, 0-4-0) comes into the series in a bit of a slump as the Fighting Sioux have lost their last four games and have failed to score in any of them, having been outscored by a whopping 19-0.
The Sioux are a young team with just two seniors and only one junior, and inexperience has hampered them early on in the season.
Yet, the Badgers won't be taking them lightly.
"I get more nervous about these games than I do when we play Minnesota," Johnson said. "As coaches we have to make sure these kids are prepared and play up to their potential."
Johnson and his coaching staff must have been effective getting that point across as Slusar agrees the team must come out hard against the undermatched Sioux.
"You can't take [North Dakota] lightly, they're going to come out and be a good team. They're going to fight the whole way," Slusar said. "They have nothing to lose, and we have a lot to lose. Games like [this weekend's] are just as important as last weekend, we have to go out and play 60 minutes."
North Dakota, who is a mere 1-33 on the power play this year and averages just 19.7 shots per game, hasn't been very successful against Wisconsin historically.
Last season, the Sioux lost all six of their games against the Badgers, and the team has never beaten the Badgers, losing all 10 of the teams' meetings.
Despite those numbers, Johnson recognizes that on any given day an upset may occur.
"It doesn't matter who you're playing or where you're playing, you just have to come out and compete every night," Johnson said. "You'll see upsets because one team took someone lightly, but we don't take anyone lightly."
Wisconsin opened the season against a lightly regarded Quinnipiac team and had little difficulty dismantling them. Over the course of the season, the Badgers have faced teams of different levels of play, and, with the exception of Sunday's tie against one of their toughest opponents, the Badgers have emerged victorious every time.
"We've been able to establish consistency over the season," Johnson. "I anticipate us coming and playing quite well Friday afternoon."
