Ben Street was the closest thing to a star the Wisconsin men’s hockey team had. He could miss the entire season with a leg injury.

Jolene Anderson was the most prolific scorer in UW basketball history. She’s no longer a member of Lisa Stone’s team as she’s playing professionally in France.

It would be natural to think either of these teams would struggle without a so-called “go-to player.” Yet as we enter the second week of December, both teams are riding rather impressive winning streaks heading into the semester break.

The hockey team hasn’t lost since Nov. 21 — a five-game span — and has been bested just once since Nov. 1. Since getting thrashed by 20 against South Dakota State in its season opener, the women’s hoops squad has quietly won eight straight after Sunday’s home win over Northern Illinois.

Kind of weird how two of the hottest teams on campus get lost in the shuffle behind the football and men’s basketball programs. Even more bizarre is the fact that each is finding success without a true star on their roster.

Looking up and down the Wisconsin hockey lineup, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a player that wows you with pure talent. A year ago, Mike Eaves had one of those at his disposal in freshman phenom Kyle Turris, who was drafted third overall by the Phoenix Coyotes. Yet Turris made a predictable one-year stop in Madison before turning pro, leaving the Badgers sans a superstar for the 2008-09 campaign.

Even with Turris, though, Wisconsin failed to reach .500 by season’s end and just barely snuck into the NCAA playoffs. Turris led the team in scoring with 35 points, but as he cooled down as the season progressed, so too did the Badgers.

On the hardwood, Anderson was without a doubt the player UW would get the ball to in a close game. Sometimes, however, Wisconsin relied too heavily on Anderson and her 19.9 points per game last season. When she struggled from the field, it typically translated into a struggle for her team as well.

One word sums up the way both teams have found success: balance.

And really, when you don’t have a superstar to fall back on, how else can you expect to win other than having everyone step up?

Saturday night’s win for the hockey team was the latest example of this. Six different players scored goals, and 12 total players finished with points. And they did so without team captain Blake Geoffrion, who leads UW with eight goals but was out with an injury. Friday’s three goals all came from different sources as well; no one player has been relied on for offense.

The same holds true for the basketball team. Only one scorer averages over 10 points per game, and that’s Alyssa Karel and her 12.6-point average entering Sunday’s win. After her, the scoring remains relatively even. Six players average between five to eight points per contest.

What the absence of a go-to player has done for Eaves’ and Stone’s teams is allowed the entire roster to contribute. After Geoffrion’s eight goals, three players have scored five goals and four have found the net four times.

Podge Turnbull. John Mitchell. Tom Gorowsky. Not a group of guys you’d expect to be among the team leaders in goals scored.

Meanwhile, pick any name from the women’s hoops roster — save for two players with a combined seven minutes of playing time — and there’s a chance she’s been a key contributor at some point this season.

Obviously, there’s a lot of time left in both teams’ seasons. The women’s squad hasn’t even kicked off the Big Ten season yet, which could present an entirely new set of challenges. But at each team’s respective juncture in their seasons — the hockey team in first place in the WCHA, the women’s hoops squad at 8-1 — the idea of having a superstar doesn’t seem so appealing after all.

Every hockey coach drools when thinking about that skater who can pirouette down the ice, slice through defenders and score. Every basketball coach would love to have a player who can shoot the lights out on offense and lock down against the opponent’s best player on defense.

But there’s one thing coaches can’t recruit, and that’s balance.

Tyler is a senior majoring in journalism. He’d like to thank everyone who’s read Mase in the Face over the past three semesters. It’s been fun. Any questions or comments for Tyler can be sent to [email protected].