MILWAUKEE , Wis.—With approxiametly four minutes remaining in the second period Thursday night, Maine senior Travis Wright watched another Black Bear shot end up in the grasp of Badger junior goalie Brian Elliott.
Perhaps in a fit of frustration, he turned away from the net, lifted his stick, and banged it on the ice.
It was that kind of performance once again for Elliott in the Frozen Four semifinal —one that Badger fans and college hockey have seen time and again in this remarkable, storybook season.
When you talk about big players you talk about Brian Elliott,\ said head coach Mike Eaves, who now tries to coach the Badgers to a championship after winning one as the captain of the 1976-'77 UW team.
With an appearance in the championship game Saturday night on the line, it was the Badgers' mainstay, Hobey Baker Award finalist and, as Eaves often describes him, ""backbone"" of the team, who held steady when the game was still in the balance, stopping 32 shots in the Badgers' 5-2 win that now gives them the chance to claim their sixth NCAA championship.
Elliott's outing against an aggressive, physically gifted, offensively talented team was nearly all that could be asked of a goalie facing a team that had put up 11 goals in two regional tournament games. One of the two scores only managed to get by Elliott in the first period when he had no sight of the puck. That goal put an end to a WCHA record 269-minute scoreless streak.
But the second period displayed why Elliott has as good a chance as either Denver junior defenseman Matt Carle or Boston College senior forward Chris Collins to take home the title of best player in the nation, when the choice is named tonight.
Four times the Black Bears had an advantage in the second period, only to see seven power play shots stopped by the UW goalie. ""Your best penalty killer's got to be your goaltender,"" Eaves said.
In all, Elliott had 19 saves in those 20 minutes, a span in which the Badgers effectively took control of the most important game in all of their careers.
A comeback bid for Maine was in swing midway through the third period, but Elliott stymied the ninth ranked offense in the country the rest of the way.
With the semifinal behind him, an even greater task awaits Elliott in the final against Boston College, which, judging by its 16 goals in three tournament games, is sure to shoot a flurry of pucks at the Badgers' netminder. To hear Eaves tell it, though, there are no concerns.
""He lives for those shots,"" Eaves said of Elliott, who cemented his reputation as a big-game player with this 14th win against a ranked opponent. ""He made some big saves.""
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