The No. 6 Wisconsin men's hockey team wraps up its regular season this weekend in Duluth, against at the unranked University of Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs. The Badgers swept the Bulldogs earlier this season.
The veteran Duluth team-which was the preseason pick to win the WCHA-has had a disappointing season, but played well in the last couple weeks, winning its last three games, including one game against league-leading Denver.
By contrast, the Badgers have struggled in their last few games. With a loss and a tie to North Dakota last weekend, they hope to play well and win their last two games heading into the playoffs.
\It's always good to have momentum going in to the playoffs. ... We want to finish the season strong and continue that into the playoffs,"" junior defenseman Tom Gilbert said of this weekend's series.
With only four goals in the last three games, the Badgers are struggling to put the puck in the net, but they have continued to play strong defense.
""Offense is something that comes and goes. ... Offense will win games but defense wins championships,"" head coach Mike Eaves said of UW's offensive struggles.
The Bulldogs have a veteran squad, which is always dangerous toward the end of the season and heading into the playoffs, but Eaves thinks his Badgers match up well with the Bulldogs and likes his chances this weekend.
The Kohl Center has an Olympic-size rink but, like North Dakota, the Bulldog's home ice is smaller, something Eaves hopes will help his team get more scoring chances.
""We saw some good things last weekend, at least we were getting some scoring chances,"" Eaves said of the smaller ice.
But getting chances does not always equate to scoring goals, as last weekend's two-goal and one-goal performances show.
Eaves used a baseball analogy to explain what his team has to do to put the puck in the net this weekend.
""In baseball they call it manufacturing runs; we have to manufacture some goals right now, and those are things we can control-be a little more tenacious in front of the net to get rebounds and tip-ins.""
The Badgers enter the weekend in third place in the WCHA, four points behind Colorado College and Denver, which are tied in first and play a Thursday-Friday series this week.
With one win this weekend the Badgers secure third place in the conference over Minnesota, but if the Badgers lose both games and Minnesota sweeps Michigan Tech, or wins and ties, the Badgers will be left in fourth place behind the Golden Gophers.
