In the wake of a promising non-conference campaign that saw the UW men’s hockey team win four out of six games, the Mike Eaves era embarks on its WCHA season tonight hosting the No. 2 ranked Denver Pioneers at the Kohl Center.
Wisconsin (4-2-0), which lost all four meetings against the Pioneers last year, is coming off an east coast split last weekend losing to No. 4 Boston College 4-2 then bouncing back to crush Northeastern 5-1.
Denver (5-1-0), the defending WCHA champions, brings to Madison an experienced offensive attack and quite possibly the most-potent goalie combination in the country.
The Pioneers are led by senior center Kevin Doell and junior winger Connor James. The duo has combined for seven goals and 10 assists through the first six games of the season, including a six-point performance by Doell in last Saturday’s 7-0 win over Alabama-Huntsville.
Sophomore forward Kevin Ulanski, a Madison native, has notched a goal and six assists heading into Friday’s contest.
Senior Wade Dubielewicz and junior Adam Berkhoel have been splitting playing time in net through the early part of the schedule, allowing just nine goals in the first six games. Dubielewicz, who has been the nation’s best goaltender for the past two seasons, holds a 2-1 mark on the year while Berkhoel is off to a 3-0 start, leading the league in winning percentage, goals against average and save percentage. Neither Dubielewicz nor Berkheol have allowed a third-period goal this season.
Denver is under the direction of eighth-year head coach George Gwozdecky, who has been one of college hockey’s winningest coaches since taking over the reins of the Pioneer program, posting 175 wins in his short tenure. A 1978 graduate of Wisconsin, Gwozdecky played two seasons with UW head coach Mike Eaves.
“They’ll be prepared to play; they play hard, and they go to the net like no other team I’ve seen in college hockey,” Eaves said of Denver. “Their goaltending is good, and they’re a real physical team.”
Setting the pace for the Badgers thus far have been two of the more experienced players on the roster in senior winger Brad Winchester and junior forward Rene Bourque.
Both Winchester and Bourque tallied a pair of goals last weekend, knocking their season total up to four in just six games of play.
Sophomore forward Alex Leavitt and freshman blue-liner Tom Gilbert have also been effective in the early going, each posting a goal and six assists.
Scott Kabatoff and Bernd Bruckler took turns in the crease throughout the non-conference portion of the schedule, each posting a 2-1 record and .900 save percentage.
Questionable for the Badgers this weekend is John Krall, who injured his left foot last weekend at Boston College. Junior defenseman Dan Boeser, who is suffering from fractures to his left hand, is out indefinitely against Denver and will most likely miss a minimum of one month.
Getting off to a fast start is vital for the Badgers who dug themselves into a 3-0 deficit in the first five minutes against Boston College. Denver has proven to be one of the more aggressive teams in the country over the past few seasons, hitting the opposition in the mouth and grabbing hold of early leads.
The Pioneers outscored Wisconsin 16-5 in their four meetings last year, dominating the Badgers in nearly all aspects of the game.
Utilizing their seemingly effective power play will be Wisconsin’s best chance in getting on the board against Denver’s stingy goaltenders, as the Badgers converted on all three attempts in last Saturday’s win over Northeastern. Three of Bourque’s four goals have come on the power play.
With 19 games against ranked opponents looming on the horizon of Wisconsin’s schedule, Eaves and the Badgers know that they can ill-afford to get off to a slow start in conference play.
An encouraging performance in their first six games has instilled confidence in the team and experience in the younger players. An upset of the second-ranked team in the nation could jumpstart the WCHA season and catapult the Badgers into serious contention for the conference title.
