The No. 4 Wisconsin women's hockey team (2-0-0) may have already had the season's first face-off last weekend, but there is still much to be said about the team as well as the 32 regular season games that remain.
After barely missing the Frozen Four last season, the Badgers are well equipped to go even further this season. The make-up of the team goes as follows: six new players including four freshmen and two transfers, and 17 letter-winners from last season with only five of those players as seniors.
\We have to be able to maintain the level that we played at last year and the strong defensive play we had,"" senior defender Carla MacLeod said. ""I think we've got a good group here that is willing to work on it and achieve that.""
In last weekend's 19-goal performance against Wayne State, many of the upperclassmen were able to show their prowess. Sophomores Sara Bauer and Lindsay Macy both nabbed hat tricks and Macy's eight-point weekend helped her garner the first WCHA Player of the Week award of the season.
""That line of Macy, Bauer and [junior forward Sharon] Cole, they were very effective last year,"" MacLeod said. ""Obviously they carried it over into the new season and that's something that excites all of us. When that line's firing it's helpful. It was nice to get a lot of lines involved in this past weekend. A lot of lines were scoring and even if they weren't scoring they were creating chances and that's a positive and that's where we want to start from.""
Though the underclassmen are holding their own, the seniors will still be looked to for leadership. Captain MacLeod was unable to lead the team last weekend because she was playing with Team Canada in hopes of earning a spot on the Olympic squad. If she qualifies, she will encounter fellow senior captain Molly Engstrom, who has already established a spot on the U.S. National Team, in the Four Nations Cup.
Another senior that has not yet joined the team is forward Amy Vermeulen. As one of the star players on the UW women's soccer team, she won't be able to fully join the hockey team until the soccer season ends.
""Amy's quite a unique athlete,"" Badger Head Coach Mark Johnson said. ""That first year [I coached] she didn't practice three days, we threw her in against Ohio State and she scored a goal. She's going to start skating here as the soccer season starts to wind down just more from the puck possession and puck handling skill work. She takes care of herself and she's pretty amazing.""
Once the Badgers round out their roster, and play at full strength, they will be best equipped for their rough schedule that lies ahead. Two teams Wisconsin will have on their radars are No. 3 Harvard and the defending national champs, No. 1 Minnesota.
""If you can put a scare in them and prove it to ourselves that we can beat them, that will be a huge series for us,"" junior forward Nikki Burish said regarding the Minnesota series.
While these two teams could pose the biggest challenges for the Badgers, Johnson is not concerned about them-for now.
""Usually your next game is the biggest one,"" Johnson said. ""That's all you can control and all you can look forward to. Obviously some series as you go through the year will be big, the other games are equally as important because in our system you can't have too many hiccups, if you have too many hiccups along the way, when you get to the end, they cost you a chance to go to the NCAA Tournament.""
If all goes well for the lady icers, they will have a smooth ride into the Frozen Four during the spring. Until March rolls around though, the next team on Johnson's mind will be Bemidji State (2-1-0), who comes into the Kohl Center on Saturday and Sunday at 2:05 p.m. Bemidji even carries a familiar face, with former Badger Sis Paulsen serving as an assistant coach on the bench.
""Bemidji is going to certainly be improved from last year,"" Johnson said. ""They didn't lose a lot of players, they brought in a bunch of young players. It's a tough task for them to come into our building but they've got nothing to lose and everything to gain. We just have to make sure our players are focused and understand what's at stake so they come out and play hard.""
