Two years removed from earning Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player honors and a year after winning her second consecutive national championship, University of Wisconsin goalie Jessie Vetter will finally carry the bulk of the load as the Badger net-minder this season, according to head coach Mark Johnson.
"I think she's in a position right now to carry the load a little bit here in the early part of the season," Johnson said. "We're going to ask her to do that."
As a freshman in the 2005-06 season, Vetter didn’t emerge as the top goalie until late in the season and last year she split time with senior Christine Dufour. Now though, only sophomore Alannah McCready, who got her first career start Saturday against Union, poses a threat to Vetter’s playing time.
"She's something that as a coach you feel very confident with, and she's a big part of why we won two championships," Johnson said of Vetter, an alternate captain. "She's certainly going to be a big part of our success this year."
Vetter, in just two seasons as a Badger, has certainly played well enough to be trusted with the load. Last season while splitting time with Dufour, she recorded a laundry list of accolades including being named a first-team All-American, leading the nation in goals against average and posting the longest shutout streak in collegiate hockey history at 448 minutes and 32 seconds.
Emily Morris provides leadership as captain
The loss of last season’s seniors, including Dufour, Sara Bauer and captain Bobbi-Jo Slusar, has left the Badgers waiting for a new group of leaders to emerge.
"Obviously, some of the players we lost, not only on the ice, but away from the rink, were important to our success for a couple of years," Johnson said. "But the fun part of our business too is to watch kids develop, watch them mature, watch them take leadership positions as they grow in their stature and as they become juniors and seniors."
Johnson feels confident that in this year’s captain, Emily Morris, a former linemate of Slusar, the team has a strong and capable leader.
"With Emily Morris this year as our captain, I'm very confident that she'll do a good job for us away from the rink and off the ice with our players," Johnson said. "She comes from a hockey background. Not only is she a very nice kid, but she's a good player for us. So that gives you a little bit of ease, but every year is different, who's going to step forward, who's going to be your leaders. That just takes time."
Morris, one of three seniors on the roster along with Jinelle Zaugg and Mikka Nordby, didn’t score last season, but tallied nine assists while helping to anchor one of the nation’s best defenses.
Success won’t change approach
In unchartered territory as the reigning back-to-back national champions, Wisconsin will try and enter the season with the same mindset that has served the team so well the past two seasons.
"The approach is no different than it is any other year, the goal is certainly the same," Johnson said.
So far the approach has worked well as the Badgers notched 5-0 and 11-0 wins in the season’s opening series.
"The things we talked about this past weekend with a young team is trying to create work habits, establishing those work habits early in the season, and then that ability to compete every night," Johnson said. "If we don't compete every night, the way the parity has come within our league the last couple of years, you're not going to win. So you have to compete hard, irrelevant of who you're playing."
That’s not to say that the Badgers aren’t aware of the challenges that success brings.
"From a coaching standpoint, the bull's-eye last year was certainly on the chest," Johnson said. "Now I think it's on the back too, so they've got it coming from both sides."
