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The playoffs can bring out the very best in a team, or they can expose a team?s weakness. The Wisconsin women?s hockey team (26-7-3, 20-5-3 WCHA) will play Minnesota (27-5-4, 21-5-2 WCHA) in the semifinal of the Final Face-off on Saturday, and they are expecting to give Minnesota their very best effort.

?Yeah, the playoffs bring a lot of pressure,? goaltender Jessie Vetter said. ?But with pressure comes good games and good teams to play against. We like the competition, and obviously it is a lot of fun to play in that atmosphere. We enjoy being in this situation, and I think the playoffs will bring out our best hockey.?

In what will be the biggest game of the year so far, the Badgers are looking forward to competing against the border rival Gophers. UW has had mixed success against UMN this year, posting a 2-1-1 record, including a 5-1 thrashing they delivered two weeks ago.

?We are two really competitive teams,? Vetter said. ?We both do well in the league, and we have got a lot of friends on both sides. It is just fun to play Minnesota because it is always a good game.?

?It is a huge rivalry, and hands down they are my favorite team to play against,? sophomore Meghan Duggan said. ?They are a gritty team, they play clean and hard, which is exactly how we play. So any time we play them it is a great battle, and I am sure the game will only be decided by one or two goals.?

The Badgers ? who scored nine total goals in their sweep of Minnesota State last weekend ? have yet to win a game this year in which they haven?t scored three or more goals. Fortunately for UW, however, the Badgers have scored three or more goals in 16 of their last 18 games.

Spearheading the potent offensive attack is Duggan. Duggan, after starting the year slowly, has recorded 24 points in her last 14 games and leads the Badgers with 39 points on the season.

?We are just heading into the weekend hoping to play like we did when we played them last time,? Duggan said. ?We have been on a roll lately. The chemistry has been good and our lines have been clicking, so if we play hard, good things will happen.?

Duggan scored two goals last Saturday in the team’s 5-0 win over Minnesota State. Making the performance even more impressive, however, was the fact that Duggan played center, a position she has never played in her collegiate career.

?I don?t know if I will [play center] this weekend because it is up to Coach [Mark Johnson],? Duggan said. ?If he thinks that it is best for the team, then it is best for the team, and I will play it. If he wants to put me at wing, center, defense, goalies, I?ll do it. I will do anything to help the team.?

UW will have to do more than just score goals though, if they are to win this playoff game and advance to the final. Led by junior Gigi Marvin and senior Erika McKenzie, the Gophers boast the second highest scoring offense in the WCHA at 3.4 goals per game.

?There are a lot of little things that we have to do,? Vetter said. ?We have to get on the board quick and stay out of the box, because Minnesota has a very good power play.?