Wisconsin men's hockey head coach Mike Eaves answered questions Monday as his Badgers prepare for their Final Five showdown against Michigan Tech this Thursday in Minnesota.
UW reached the Final Five with a best-of-three series win over Denver last weekend. The Badgers swept the Pioneers and have always played well at Magness Arena, and Eaves tried to shed some light as to why that is.
""I can't put my finger on it,"" Eaves said. ""But we have played well there in our tenure, and we were hoping that would continue this past weekend, and it did. But to answer your question, I really can't put my finger on it.""
Why UW has played so well at Denver may be a team conundrum, but that isn't going to stop Wisconsin from embracing the opportunity of playing another weekend.
""What a tremendous opportunity, and how excited can you be coming off the weekend that we had. So I'm speaking for myself and projecting how I hope they feel and the message that we carry forth with them when we get together today,"" Eaves said. ""But I think they're excited about the opportunity and knowing that there's a tremendous task at hand.""
The Badgers are 6-2-2 over their last 10 games, and seem to be showing signs of improvement and consistency that was missing towards the beginning of the season. But Eaves was quick to point out that nothing is set in stone.
""I would like to give you a definitive yes. I would like to do that. But I think when you're dealing with college athletes, I don't think that you can ever truly say that,"" Eaves said. ""I think because of the way we've played in our last 10, we have a better idea in what's at stake, I think we have a better idea.""
Eaves partly attributed last weekend's success to the play of this year's senior class. One key member of that class, defenseman Jeff Likens, was injured last weekend and the word is still out as to his availability for the Final Five.
""You know, right now, all I can say [is] he's day to day,"" Eaves said. ""I would say he's better, in talking to Andy, but other than that, it's encouraging. So it's day to day as we stand right now.""
However, even without Likens on a line this weekend, Eaves is still confident with the defensemen in the Badger arsenal.
""The thing about this group, you know, we take a look at, yeah, they're not nominated for any league awards, but as a group, they don't do anything like outstanding. They can all play. They're all solid WCHA defensemen. And as a core, I would go to battle with them in a heartbeat. I mean, they play to their strengths,"" Eaves said. ""They're players. And even though they might not be flashy, or you see them on the score sheet every night, Brian will be the first one to tell you he's awful glad that they're in front of him because they help get the numbers that he's had in terms of save percentage and those kinds of things.""
Wisconsin will take on Michigan Tech this Thursday at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. The game is scheduled to start at 7:07 p.m.
