In college hockey, a weekend off can be both a blessing and a curse.
On the one hand, it allows a team to rest and recover from injuries suffered throughout the course of the season. On the flipside, however, teams sometimes have trouble shaking off the rust coming out of an extended break.
University of Wisconsin men’s hockey coach Mike Eaves can see both scenarios playing out for his team, which had last weekend off and hosts Minnesota-Duluth this Friday and Saturday.
“Today we came in, had a workout this morning to get rid of some of those cobwebs physically,” Eaves said in his weekly press conference Monday. “Hopefully we’ll be mentally fresh to come back on the ice and be productive. … History tells us that sometimes it takes a period [to shake the rust off.] You may look sluggish for a period. When we come out of that period tied, one up or one down, we’re going to know we’re in pretty good shape.”
Since returning from winter break, Eaves’ Badgers have gone 4-3-1 in four straight weekends — three of which were at home in the Kohl Center. In a series split with Colorado College the last time out, Eaves noticed signs of fatigue in his younger players.
“For the younger freshmen, I think it was a good break,” Eaves said. “In our last home game, I think Jordy Murray hit the wall a little bit, and Derek [Stepan] didn’t have the same jump. Maybe for some of the young guys, this will be good.”
Murray didn’t score against the Tigers, and Stepan — the team’s second-leading scorer — was limited to just one assist on the weekend.
Badgers, Bulldogs much improved
It’s been over two months since the Badgers faced off against the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs, and both teams have come a long way since their last meeting. At that time in mid-November, UW was in the midst of a five-game unbeaten streak and a 7-1-1 mark in the month of November. UMD was struggling, as a loss and tie to Wisconsin was part of a stretch of five straight games without a win.
But now the Bulldogs are just a few points behind the third-place Badgers in the WCHA standings and have won four straight. According to Eaves, the success of both squads has been the result of each finding its identity.
“We have a better understanding of our identity. I think we’ve played to that identity a lot more,” Eaves said. “I think that’s an important factor from where we were. We’ve played some pretty decent hockey. They were in the process of finding out who they were. They definitely know who they are now.”
With a hot team like Minnesota-Duluth coming to town and only five series remaining before the WCHA playoffs, Eaves knows the importance of each game from here on out.
“They’ve got some chemistry,” Eaves said of the Bulldogs. “They’ve won their last four, and they’re starting to creep up. They have a big-time goaltender [in Alex Stalock]. Every series that we have is a big-time series down the stretch here.”
Smith upbeat despite injury
Sophomore defensemen Brendan Smith was hit with the injury bug last year, as a lower back ailment forced him to miss the latter part of UW’s season. This season, a broken wrist has kept Smith out of the past four games.
That’s not to say, however, that Smith’s presence is absent from practice.
“If you watch practice last week, he’s out there and he’s limited in what he can do, but he’s getting pucks for us. He’s on the bench talking to guys,” Eaves said. “The one thing I like about Brendan, he knows he’s coming back earlier than he did last year. He’s a tough young man. … He knows there’s lots to play for. He’s excited about that.”
