To hear Wisconsin Badgers men's hockey coach Mike Eaves tell it, a series against the most highly regarded team in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association doesn't carry any extra weight for his players.
Whether it's North Dakota, or Michigan Tech, or [Minnesota] State, it's just phenomenal the level of play that's within this league, and so we have to be ready to play every game every weekend or you're going to get your hat handed to you,"" Eaves said earlier this week.
That would figure to be especially true this weekend, when North Dakota (2-2 WCHA, 4-2-1 overall) visits the Kohl Center for a two-game series against the No. 10 Badgers (1-1, 4-2).
Three out of the four opponents the Badgers have faced off against this season have been ranked, the highest being Notre Dame, which held the No. 8 spot in USCHO.com's first released rankings of the season in early October.
But none have sat atop as many teams as North Dakota - voted the top team in the country in advance of the season. As they come to Madison, the Fighting Sioux occupy the third position in the USCHO poll and the fourth in USA Today's rankings.
Eaves said that, given his team's history playing against the better teams in the league, he expects a hard-fought series.
""Be it Minnesota, North Dakota, we always seem to be right there hammering on each other,"" he said. ""And there's great excitement. I mean, the games are almost sold out right now, and we've had some great battles with them, and we'll continue to do so.""
Rounding out a three-weekend homestand, their longest of the season, the Badgers will lay their high-octane on the line against the top defense in the country. Remarkably, UW has averaged close to five goals per game (4.67), good for second in the nation. Match that up against a Fighting Sioux defense, allowing only 1.29 pucks into the net per game, and something's bound to give.
""They're a team that you know what you're going to play against,"" Eaves said.
The strength of North Dakota this season has undoubtedly been its defense, which has allowed a meager nine goals this season in seven games.
Senior goaltender Jean-Philippe Lamoureux is likely to be the best the Badgers will see this season. He became the first in league history to record four shutouts in his first five games, an effort that earned him player of the month honors from the Hockey Commissioners Association.
UW has had his number, though, over his first three collegiate seasons. Lamoureux is only 1-5 against the Badgers, allowing 2.5 goals/game, but this season his goals against average is 1.06.
On offense, juniors Ryan Duncan and T.J. Oshie should be marked men. Duncan, who has taken it to the Badgers in his career (five goals in seven games), was named the best player in college hockey last season and leads the team with eight points. Oshie tops the team with five goals.
The two teams only meet for one series this season, unlike last year, when both teams hosted each other. UW took three of four, and looks to continue recent success against North Dakota. The Badgers have won three in a row and five of the last six played at the Kohl Center.
Eaves said he believes that the Sioux's talent makes the series between the two teams that much more competitive.
""They're going to come in, they're going to play hard, and I think that brings out the best in what we will have as well,"" he said.
