On Thursday, Oct. 6, the day before the Badgers’ season opener, Wisconsin men’s hockey coach Mike Eaves still hadn’t decided who would start the season opener the following night. He knew it would be either freshman Landon Peterson or freshman Joel Rumpel, but the decision was essentially a toss-up.

Eaves ended up choosing Peterson to start game one and started Rumpel in game two, and it has been that way in every series since. But there is a little intrigue week-to-week; neither goalie ever knows for certain what the rotation will be – or if there will even be a rotation.

“There is something that when you don’t know if you’re the starting guy, you have to be good every day,” Eaves said. “That internal type mindset is very good for pressing people to stay on top, take care of the details and be good day in and day out.”

Strictly looking at each goalie’s record – Rumpel sits at 3-1 and Peterson at 1-3 – Rumpel appears to be the favorite. But a deeper look into the Badgers’ season shows strong play from both goaltenders. Peterson’s three losses have included two overtime games and a power play goal in the final 20 seconds against Nebraska-Omaha.

Serving as the game two goalie each series may also be giving Rumpel a small advantage, as he essentially receives an extra day of preparation.

“You definitely get a better feel for the game,” Rumpel said. “You get to see their power play and understand their systems a little better and things to watch for. I guess when you get in the net, it’s kind of just a whirlwind, but you are out there on your own for sure.”

It is said that rivalry breeds healthy competition and while “rivalry” wasn’t a term specifically expressed by Peterson or Rumpel, the presence of one evidently pushes the other to go above and beyond.

“Just in practice in general, you see us battling more,” Rumpel said. “It’s kind of getting into the net and definitely just never giving up on pucks, trying to make those fourth and fifth saves to show up the other guy. In practice you can definitely notice it.”

Peterson recognizes other benefits in not being handed the reins as a full-time goalie.

“As a freshman, it’s good,” Peterson said. “Usually freshmen don’t see ice time a lot until their junior year. Just getting my toes in the water and getting the experience and also watching on the bench, it’s good.”

It’s not just the goal that Peterson and Rumpel share – both also come from somewhere other than the contiguous United States. Rumpel was a recruited scholarship player from Swift Current, Saskatchewan, and Peterson was a late commit to Wisconsin after skating for two seasons with the Alaska Avalanche of the North American Hockey League.

“Landon did a tremendous job to get himself into school; there were a lot of logistics he had to go through … and he carried a lot of the responsibility on his shoulders,” Eaves said. “[He was] really mature and that is the one thing that was like, man, he is really on top of it. That is what is helping him as a goaltender, his mental and emotional control and just keeping everything calm and doing the things he does well, and as a result you have what you think is a pretty mature looking young goalie in there.”

The improvement and maturation of each player is an interesting concept. Both Peterson and Rumpel have played well in their first four games of collegiate hockey, but what happens if both continue to become better goaltenders and deserving of more playing time?

“Whoever is going to get the starting position in the long run [doesn’t matter]; we are teammates and we’re here to support each other, so whether he is playing or I’m playing, the support is always going to be there,” Peterson said. “If that role comes down to me, you just want to play your heart out every night just trying to get the job done.”

Teammate Justin Schultz commented that both young goaltenders have gained the trust of the rest of the team by giving the Badgers a chance to win in every game, and it appears Peterson and Rumpel refuse to allow playing time get in the way of the competitive friendship and team chemistry they have helped develop.

“It’s been a good relationship; we’re pretty good friends off the ice and joke around and get in little pushing matches once in a while,” Rumpel said. “It’s all in good fun, so it’s a good competition, and it’s only going to make both of us better.”