You could feel the intensity brewing all weekend.
The series between No. 1 Denver and No. 3 Wisconsin was more than a typical regular season matchup. The coaches knew it, the players knew it and the fans knew it as they packed the Kohl Center Saturday night for the first official sell-out of the season.
There are a number of reasons why the intensity over the weekend reached such a high level: Denver’s dominance over UW in Madison (13-2-2 record at the Kohl Center heading into the series) was talked about all week leading up to Friday night’s contest, and senior tri-captain Blake Geoffrion certainly showed some intensity following the series’ opening game that ended in a 3-3 tie.
“We are all sick and tired of hearing about how they come in here and do well,” Geoffrion said. “It doesn’t matter; it’s a new game, new year.”
Aside from the frustration building because of the media’s assertion that Denver has UW’s number, Geoffrion and his teammates were bothered by the opportunity they let slip away in game one.
With the sour taste of a tie in their mouths, the intensity continued to build for a pivotal game two on Saturday.
“We have got to be ready to battle,” junior forward Michael Davies said after Friday night’s game. “It’s going to be a war.”
Saturday night’s contest lived up to the billing as two of the nation’s top teams endured a hard fought three periods. The game was decided by Davies’ game-winning goal scored with six and a half minutes remaining in the final period.
The crowd erupted following the game-winner and they remained standing throughout the game’s final minutes. At the conclusion, the Badgers saluted the effort of their fans as they skated off the ice. Freshman forward Craig Smith knew the atmosphere the fans created added to his team’s level of play.
“Coming into a packed building like this and knowing the rivalry between the two teams, it was really fun,” Smith said. “The environment brought the game to a higher level and we matched that.”
Junior goaltender Brett Bennett was thrown into the pressure-packed atmosphere Saturday night, playing his first significant game in weeks. But he was proud of the way he, along with his teammates, responded to the challenge.
“It’s been a long time since actually playing a meaningful game. And with this type of atmosphere with what was on the line, it was definitely huge,” Bennett said. “But I think it will make me better as a player and games like this make us better as teams.”
With Saturday’s win, the Badgers finally claimed a victory over the Pioneers at the Kohl Center, which they had not done since the building opened in 1998.
But more importantly, they took three out of a possible four points from the top-ranked team in the country, a team they are also chasing in the WCHA standings. Senior tri-captain Ben Street was well aware of Denver’s high ranking, and he spoke about the role it played in the extra energy witnessed throughout the series.
“It just kind of elevated everything, when you know the rankings are so high. There is a little bit more on the line with those rankings and with the PairWise [Rankings],” Street said. “It was definitely a more important weekend with the teams being ranked so high than if they were unranked.”
After two thrilling games between two of the nation’s top programs, these teams certainly expect to play deep into the postseason.
Will these teams meet again down the road?
The answer to that is not clear, but after a competitive series like this, head coach Mike Eaves knows full well his team will be prepared for whatever challenges laylie ahead.
“The best thing about this weekend is the fact when you play at that level, that’s championship-level, in terms of college hockey,” he said. “The intensity, the battle of two teams that have skill, that have strong will, have a strong work ethic, good goaltending.
“What better way to prepare yourself for the end of the year than by playing in these types of games?”
