Wisconsin Women's Hockey 2022-2023

[wiscolorado]

Cami was absolutely hamming it up, it was great to see. She has another year of eligibility, right? When she went over to stand in the goal crease, it did look like a "one last time" sort of thing, so even if she does have another year of eligibility I am not sure that we should expect her back next year.

[BadgerPete]

Cami was absolutely hamming it up, it was great to see. She has another year of eligibility, right? When she went over to stand in the goal crease, it did look like a "one last time" sort of thing, so even if she does have another year of eligibility I am not sure that we should expect her back next year.

Cami's done, and what a way to be done.

Really, it's the kind of story that stands out even more in the portal era: a (now obviously) top-notch goalie who watched a parade of starters ahead of her get their chance and bided her time, worked at her craft, and then when the time came seized it with both hands. I'm not sure there are many athletes I've been more genuinely happy to watch them have their moment and it's been gratifying both postgame in Duluth and yesterday at LaBahn to see how incredibly happy she was.

[Timothy A]

Cami's done, and what a way to be done.

Really, it's the kind of story that stands out even more in the portal era: a (now obviously) top-notch goalie who watched a parade of starters ahead of her get their chance and bided her time, worked at her craft, and then when the time came seized it with both hands. I'm not sure there are many athletes I've been more genuinely happy to watch them have their moment and it's been gratifying both postgame in Duluth and yesterday at LaBahn to see how incredibly happy she was.

Her patience is something that young people of her age simply don't have anymore. She could have transferred when Soup or Blair showed up, but no, she stuck with the program and with her belief in herself. It's one of the great personal stories this program has ever had. Has UW had a more under the radar out of the blue key player than her? Maybe Maddy Rowe?

[ARM]

Has UW had a more under the radar out of the blue key player than her? Maybe Maddy Rowe?

I don't remember Maddy Rowe rising to the same level, even beyond the fact that a goalie has a greater opportunity to be recognized as Most Outstanding Player. Or maybe you're saying once the "key player" box is checked, and it can be fairly liberal, you're giving more stock to "under the radar out of the blue".

[Timothy A]

I don't remember Maddy Rowe rising to the same level, even beyond the fact that a goalie has a greater opportunity to be recognized as Most Outstanding Player.

I agree, she did not rise to Cami's level, but was a critical player especially during that Olympic year. And she noticeably improved every year.

[robertearle]

I agree, she did not rise to Cami's level, but was a critical player especially during that Olympic year. And she noticeably improved every year.

IIRC, There was one week when Maddie Rowe was named WCHA offensive player of the week, and played defense the next week. :-)

[pgb-ohio]

It's a tough pill to swallow when you think you are the better team and certainly one could make the case for your team. As robert pointed out earlier Wisconsin's loss to Clarkson stung for a long long time and honestly still makes a guy shake his head. I admire you and your other OSU fans' great attitude toward disappointing results for your team. How did you like Duluth otherwise?

Here's my answer to the Duluth question; osumalum86 should also weigh in.

IMHO, Duluth did a great job hosting; both at the rink and in the community. The locals seemed fully engaged with the tournament, and genuinely glad we were in town. There could have been bitterness at UMD's near miss. But as far as I could tell, that was not the case.

I've been to Duluth many times, but it had been a number of years. I'm honestly amazed at what Canal Park has become. Lots of appealing options for lodging, dining & touristing.

Canal Park Brewing Company: Soft Shell Tacos with Braised Ribs were very tasty. Thumbs up to the "Swedish Cream" dessert.

Pickwick Restaurant: Just a few minutes up the shore, next to Fitger's. Old School Restaurant featuring quality food & a very professional servers. Some will feel it's a little pricy. Reservations strongly recommended. But we loved the Lake Superior Whitefish appetizer. Entrees were Salmon & Prime Rib. High marks for both dishes.

Glensheen: Mansion Museum in East Duluth. Very interesting history of a family who made its fortune on the Iron Range. An extended look at how a wealthy family lived in the early 1900's. But be advised upfront, the docents won't talk about the infamous murders that occurred there. You have to buy the book for that! (available in the Gift Shop)

Aerial Lift Bridge: Duluth's most famous landmark. Always feels like visiting an old friend.

For Next Time: Maritime Museum; Aquarium; etc.

So yeah, it was a really good time. Except for a couple hours on Sunday afternoon. (Weak Smile Emoji Here)

[robertearle]

I was out this morning, and I stopped by Bucky's Locker Room at Camp Randall to see if they had any of the t-shirts, etc. available through the web site - and they had just two shirts in, more later this week. But they had the one I was most interested in, the one that has the 'logo' the players were skating around with as a big placard/sign postgame Sunday. And now I'm sitting here looking at it, noting the seven stars as part of the logo. I don't know how common this is in the wider hockey world, but I know the UW men's jersey has six stars on the upper back, representing their six national championships.

So what's the point of this rambling? It's this: if we wonder about the degree of 'surprise' vs 'confidence' in being able to get a win on Sunday, somebody in the Athletic Dept had enough confidence to have designed a logo with a seventh star, and printed it up on the placard and readied t-shirts etc. ready to go for the post-game celebration. They were certainly ready, "just in case...".

You can see the logo post-game in this tweet:

https://twitter.com/BadgerWHockey/st...39476980719620

--------------------

On the other hand, a couple pretty interesting quotes in this video...

https://twitter.com/jockosports/stat...76116996673561

[osualum86]

It's a tough pill to swallow when you think you are the better team and certainly one could make the case for your team. As robert pointed out earlier Wisconsin's loss to Clarkson stung for a long long time and honestly still makes a guy shake his head. I admire you and your other OSU fans' great attitude toward disappointing results for your team. How did you like Duluth otherwise?

A very nice turnout for the celebration at the rink yesterday. I just couldn't make it work to get there. They did video stream it though so I saw some of it.

We were 3-1 vs the Badgers going into this game, but when you get to this point, anything can happen. Wisconsin played a great game and deserved to win. We didn't appear to have the same energy that we did in Friday's game vs Northeastern. It was definitely a disappointing loss Sunday and even at the postgame dinner at Old Chicago, some of our kids were still distraught. Hopefully the returning players will learn from this and be determined to not let it happen again. As for Duluth, I really liked it. I would actually like to get up there again when the weather is better. The only downside was I promised Mrs 86 a trip to the mall, but the mall was closed due to the roof collapsing. Another thing I might do differently is not get a room at the official hotel for Northeastern and Wisconsin (haha). In my defense, though, it is a guessing game as to where our team is staying. There used to be a director of operations that I would email and he would tell me where the team was staying, but he is no longer there. But to answer the question, we had a great time in Duluth other than the loss Sunday. Now us OSU fans will have that feeling Robertearle has talked about where we wonder if "we will ever win again."

[Patricio]

What a finish to a tumultuous season – 3 games of total team effort with incredibly intense wins against the other top teams in the tournament! A wonderful outcome for all of the players, especially the graduating ones. Kronish put on an impressive display of goal tending under extremely demanding conditions and earned every second of her joyous celebration having waited 4 years for her chance to go out in style. Compher also persevered for a 5th year to get the title she was longing for, validating her reason for transferring to the UW. And the remaining graduates leave on a nice high after struggling under unusual conditions last year.

I was very pessimistic about the Badgers’ chances against MN and OSU. I was unfamiliar with Colgate’s strength of schedule and the validity of their seeding, so maybe a win there. But all the way to the title, unlikely. For atonement and a reminder to remain positive when things look bleak, I have had crows for several meals. Fortunately, my yard is (or was) full of them, so there was little effort in harvesting a few, a lot less than it took to eat and digest them. Definitely not something I intend to repeat. Now to close on some positive notes.

The last few weeks, highlighted by their performance this past weekend, showed that his year’s recruits have found their strides. Individually and collectively, Harvey, Simms, Laila, Jungels, and Enright played key roles in determining the outcome. All of them have bright futures ahead of them and they will make a point of making life miserable for opponents. The recruiting classes of the next few years look like they will be welcoming more players like them to replace players who will be celebrating their senior days with ones of equal promise. MN, OSU, and UMD will rebuild as usual and StC will continue to improve. Certainly, the other top teams will continue to be tough, but the Badgers will remain very difficult to contend with.

The only things that could disrupt things would be injuries, portal transfers, and another pillaging of the team roster by the next USA Olympic tryouts (only 3 years away). However, should the Olympics wreak havoc again, perhaps there will be more Comphers looking for a championship ring by moving to Madison, and the beat will go on.

[robertearle]

However, should the Olympics wreak havoc again, perhaps there will be more Comphers looking for a championship ring by moving to Madison, and the beat will go on.

Regarding Olympic years:
2022 Olympic year, 2023 UW championship
2018 Olympic year, 2019 UW championship
2014 Olympic year, 2015 loss to Minnesota in the semis
2010 Olympic year, 2011 UW championship
2006 Olympic year, 2007 UW championship

[robertearle]

The 'first time ever' stats keep on coming:

From Todd Milewski: first team ever to win the NCAA championship without a 20-goal scorer (not including COVID year); Curl and O'Brien both had 19.

And maybe the first time without a player on the Patty Kaz 10 finalist list.

[Patricio]

Regarding Olympic years:
2022 Olympic year, 2023 UW championship
2018 Olympic year, 2019 UW championship
2014 Olympic year, 2015 loss to Minnesota in the semis
2010 Olympic year, 2011 UW championship
2006 Olympic year, 2007 UW championship

Robert's post is a response to the comment below which I made in an earlier post in which I looked at the prospects for the Badgers for the next 3 years.

"The only things that could disrupt things would be injuries, portal transfers, and another pillaging of the team roster by the next USA Olympic tryouts (only 3 years away). However, should the Olympics wreak havoc again, perhaps there will be more Comphers looking for a championship ring by moving to Madison, and the beat will go on."

My focus was on the disruption in team rosters that result from the US Olympic Trials for which the squads of the better college teams are subjected to severe disruptions. For the 2022 Olympics, 4 Badgers were selected in the effort to build the roster for the 2022 Olympics making then unavailable last season (though only 1 was selected for the team), leaving the Badgers short on several lines. Based on Robert's list, it appears the problem has been all too common. Given the prospects for the next 3-4 years based on recruiting lists, this likely will be repeated for the 2026 Olympic year as I expect the Badgers will have a healthy number of players of interest.

Switching to different topics, I want to correct my failure to comment in my prior post about Kurl's contributions to the team this past year. She elevated her scoring from previous years while continuing her all around play - forechecking, blocking shots, leadership - her overall play generally - which I believe went somewhat under noticed. She was the perfect choice for captain. Interestingly, this was her 3rd championship ring and if all goes well, she will be the first Badger (perhaps anyone) to win 4 which may have been this year (along with ones for several graduating seniors as well) if not for that Olympic pillaging of last season. Should the Badgers go on to win the next 2 NCAAs, Eden also will follow.

[robertearle]

... in my prior post about Kurl's contributions to the team this past year. ... Interestingly, this was her 3rd championship ring and if all goes well, she will be the first Badger (perhaps anyone) to win 4 ...

Curl, not "Kurl".

Since no school/team has won four championships in a row, unless there is some player who transferred from one championship team to another or a 'well timed' redshirt/medical hardship year, there is certainly no player who has won four championships. Minnesota is the only team (so far) to have won 'four out of five'.

The closest would probably be Amanda Kessel (of course :-), who played on the 2012 and 2013 championship Gopher teams, then after missing time due to Olympics and injury, played again on the 2016 championship team. She would have been 'around' the 2015 team, but did not play; a medical hardship year.

(And, amazingly, Eden could possibly win FIVE. The 2021 COVID year doesn't count against her four years of eligibility or her 'five year' window, so right now she is for eligibility purposes a freshman with two championships already won and three more possible. 2022 Olympic centralization also didn't count against her 'clock'.)

[ARM]

Since no school/team has won four championships in a row, unless there is some player who transferred from one championship team to another or a 'well timed' redshirt/medical hardship year, there is certainly no player who has won four championships. ...

The closest would probably be Amanda Kessel (of course :-), who played on the 2012 and 2013 championship Gopher teams, then after missing time due to Olympics and injury, played again on the 2016 championship team. She would have been 'around' the 2015 team, but did not play; a medical hardship year.

Kessel's problem was that she didn't win a title in her rookie season in 2011, so she could only reach three titles at that point. Lee Stecklein came the closest of the Gophers, reaching the FF in 2017 with three titles already won. Clarkson denied that, as it did to those who lacked 2014 from a four-title resume.

UMD players were the first to have a shot at it, but because many of their players graduated after the third title in 2003, they didn't have too many around for a four-peat attempt. Tricia Guest is the one I can remember. It looks like Satu Kiipeli was also around for a fourth year with three rings already won.

At this point, I like Curl's chances of starting a new club.