As the final push of the regular season approaches, Wisconsin men’s hockey (6-16-8 overall, 1-11-4 Big Ten) is set to battle Penn State (19-9-4, 9-6-1) this weekend in the Badgers’ final home series.
With senior day just around the corner, head coach Mike Eaves addressed how important the seniors’ contributions have been this season.
“They’ve played significant roles for us,” Eaves said. “They understand that their time is slipping by. We’ve got four more games that we know of and four more periods that we can continue to grow, and that is what they are focused on.”
Coming off a string of losses against Michigan State and Ohio State, it is imperative the Badgers find a rhythm and gain momentum going into the weekend. Eaves said the team will look to its seniors to help propel them forward, specifically Eddie Wittchow.
Wittchow has played up and down to this point, registering 65 blocked shots, a middle-of-the-road – 9 rating but 51 penalty minutes and a three-game suspension for a hit during the January 23 game against Minnesota.
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“He’s got a great capacity for work, and he’s a great skater,” Eaves said. “I think sometimes he feels like, ‘I’ve got all this energy, I want to use it.’ He has to learn to control that, and at times he does a very good job of it, and at times he struggles with it.”
Eaves expects Wittchow’s aggressive play to come out this weekend since Wisconsin will have to fight off Penn State’s high-powered attack.
Despite obvious natural talents and abilities, Eaves warned Wittchow of trying to do too much, aware of how the senior’s over-eagerness got him into trouble.
“Sometimes you’ve got to pull the reigns back,” Eaves said.
As for the emotional takeaway and implications of the weekend for the seniors, Eaves hopes they take the skills they have acquired on and off the ice and apply it to their next chapter.
Even with the looming presence of taking on a team ranked third in the Big Ten, it is important for the team to come together in practice and get focused mentally and physically to give a solid performance this weekend.
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If the team does all of that, Eaves believes they will give the seniors the final home series they deserve.
