When Blake Geoffrion opens his mouth, what comes out would, in another world, garner him a clean, sudsy rinsing from a bar of Dial.
But in the game of hockey, Geoffrion plays by different rules. And being a nuisance is required.
What University of Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves views as gritty, the opposition feels as frustration.
Eaves said ? as you may know ? Geoffrion is employing his strength and size to be the player that takes hits, wins loose puck battles and opens up shooting lanes for his teammates.
?A lot of my game is the physical part. That?s where I thrive,? said Geoffrion, who doesn?t need goals to be effective in the rink.
That much is true, but what makes him that reliable player and successful in that role is his personality.
?When I?m in the game, I?m yelling at guys and talking trash to goalies,? Geoffrion said. ?I think that gives me more energy and helps me play with more confidence.?
Another comment audible enough so just the opposing forward can hear results in Geoffrion getting flat backed ? slammed to the ice.
The 6-foot-2, 195-pound sophomore gets up with his mouth still running, glances over at the head referee, who has his right arm raised in an accusatory pose and smiles. The Badgers are on the power play.
He did his job. He pissed someone off.
?He?s definitely an antagonizer on the ice,? said Minnesota forward Ryan Flynn, who played for two years with Geoffrion in the U.S. National Development Team Program.
Flynn won?t be the only one to tell you that Geoffrion, while great to have on your team, is not someone you want to play against.
No longer obligated to protect, Geoffrion, like General Zaroff in ?The Most Dangerous Game,? will relentlessly hunt you. And if you aren?t thrown off your game by his antics, rest assured: After receiving a few shots to the extremities you?ll think twice about facing him again.
?It?s just getting in guys’ heads, letting them know that I?m going to be there all night. I?m not going to leave,? Geoffrion said. ?I don?t care if you hit me a million times.?
Fellow first-liner and top recruit Kyle Turris learned firsthand what it?s like to skate opposite Geoffrion when the two faced off as members of Team Canada and Team U.S.A., respectively, in the World Juniors over winter break. Let?s just say he realized just how intolerable Geoffrion can be.
?It?s a lot nicer being on the same team and the same line than playing against him,? Turris said, not one to let his true feelings about something that displeases him to slip out. To prove this point, Turris said Geoffrion ?never crosses the line, though. He?s always very respectful.?
Translation: ?I couldn?t stand him.?
It would be utter folly to say that Turris wasn?t harassed and treated like the opposing quarterbacks in ?Waterboy? when Bobby Boucher got a hold of them.
Geoffrion didn?t let the confines of the rink contain his assault, either, taking smack talking to a ?World Wide? level. He e-mailed Turris some trash before their head-to-head matchup. It detailed, among other things, how Geoffrion was going to take Turris? head off.
Somehow, Turris managed an assist with Geoffrion draped on his back and in the back of his mind in Canada?s 4-1 win over the United States.
Ridiculous as Geoffrion can get, he?s just having fun, playing the game the way he knows best: his way.
While it sometimes leads to stupid penalties of his own, his teammates will take it, because the good he does for Wisconsin far exceeds the bad.
All of the jawing, hits and tussles amount to Geoffrion becoming more of a consistent player. That?s what he wants. But as Turris found out, that?s not what the rest of the league wants to see.
Kevin is a senior majoring in journalism and economics. Let him know a story you want to hear about in an upcoming ?Friday with Haggy? by e-mailing him at [email protected].
