Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

[Timothy A]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

Are you sure Daniel Lebedeff wasn't in goal? (Too soon, Tim?)

Um yeah. Maybe if the men's team did allow 40+ sog they might be able to win a game 4-3.

 

[agfire]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

Robert is spot on with his analysis. The first and 3rd are saves you need to make from the distance they were shot and number 2 Blesi thought it was in her pads but it plopped down next to her and UW didn't tie up sticks, bodies or clear it. I'd go 50 50 on that one for responsibility. Blesi's reaction to that goal was to me not how you want your goalie to act. This kind of game certainly makes me wonder if Blesi is ready to carry the load next year. She was solid until this game. I can't recall a softer 3 goals allowed by a UW goalie in a game than these 3.

I saws the first 2 periods, so comments on those 2 periods....Watts missed a wide open net in the first 2 minutes of the second on the backdoor. If she pots that one and gets it to 2-1 and at that point Kato has the doubts creep in. UW's 2nd period was not good again from a SOG standpoint. Down 3-0 in the 2nd you need to next to a next gear. Teams coming back from being down 3 in the 3rd are very rare. Reffing was awful, both teams got screwed, but the most egregious was Roque getting pull down in front of the Kato net while spinning to shoot. Gotta call that. Kato played pretty well, they didn't get a ton of shots, but they were able to breakout decently and they had very active sticks in passing lanes in the D zone. They are making progress, a stick tap to them.

Now a possibly deflated and/or pizzed OSU plays a possibly deflated and/or pizzed UW. Game 1 is Sr night, game 2 is fill the Kohl, very distracty games with a lot on the line. OSU fighting to stay in the hunt for the ncaa and UW fighting for a top 4 in the ncaa's and the wcha regular season crown. My supreme confidence has been shaken, but Soup will be back. UW can't play loose in transition D like yesterday or Friday against the rodents or OSU will make them pay.

Great assessment. Agree on all points. I will say that the refs also got the 5 min major in the third wrong as well.

 

[Sieve1]

Mankato's first shot was taken from above the faceoff circle and beat Blesi clean. A good shot, but one you would expect the goalie to stop. Their second shot was into Blesi's body, and she had just about controlled the puck until it just got away from her, and then was punched in during the scrum in front of her. Three shots, two goals.

The third goal was a two-on-one breakaway when somebody - Roque, maybe - got her skates crossed and fell. Steffen tried to play the pass by laying out, but it got through to the second Mankato player. It would have been a tough save for Blesi; one you hope your goalie can save, but you wouldn't 'expect' it.

Offensively, the Badgers had a ton of really good chances, especially early on, but just couldn't get one to go in. Calla Frank had a lot to do with that, but they must have used up all their 'puck luck' last weekend against St Cloud.

One of those days.

Unfortunately for UW goalies the plan seems to be play the starter for every game, which leaves the rest of them with little or no game experience...until the starter gets injured. Praying your starting goalie stays healthy all season may not be the most effective strategy.

 

[ARM]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

Unfortunately for UW goalies the plan seems to be play the starter for every game, which leaves the rest of them with little or no game experience...until the starter gets injured. Praying your starting goalie stays healthy all season may not be the most effective strategy.

It does seem to be the strategy of late, which is strange, given that Johnson rotated goalies most of the time in his first few years, including the first two NCAA Championship teams.

 

[Leather helmet]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

It does seem to be the strategy of late, which is strange, given that Johnson rotated goalies most of the time in his first few years, including the first two NCAA Championship teams.

It seems that, for many years, UW had such elite goaltending that there was a wide gap between starter and backup. I don't think that dynamic applies now.

 

[ARM]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

It seems that, for many years, UW had such elite goaltending that there was a wide gap between starter and backup.

That's true, but Vetter was as elite as it gets, and she was in rotations her first two years until NCAAs (including a three-goalie rotation her first season). The problem of late may be that the starter plays almost all of the minutes, so of course there will be a drop off to someone w/o any experience.

 

[Timothy A]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

Unfortunately for UW goalies the plan seems to be play the starter for every game, which leaves the rest of them with little or no game experience...until the starter gets injured. Praying your starting goalie stays healthy all season may not be the most effective strategy.

I don't think goals 1 and 3 have anything to do with lack of experience, and I'm not sure goal 2 did either.

Personally I don't like a goalie rotation system unless it's a set game 1 goes to x player and game 2 goes to y player. Play the best one and go for it. Otherwise all you are doing is playing head games with the goalie or guessing who will be hot that night.

 

[NMH]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

We can nitpick the goaltending and it's true that Campbell does probably stop two of those three goals, but the bigger point has to be that you simply have to score more than one goal against MSU.

I don't see putting this loss on Blesi when the only goal scored on offense was too late to matter on a 5-on-3 they didn't deserve.

Watching Sunday's game felt a lot like watching the national championship game against Clarkson in 2017 to me. In both cases it was clear the ice was playing slow and the Badgers had no idea what to do about it. They couldn't play their usual fast game and they couldn't rely on crisp passes as the puck wasn't moving like they wanted it to and then they were just totally lost and it showed.

I'd like to see the team be able to adapt better than that and it's not great that this has happened before and the team still hasn't been prepared for it. There's something to being so far in system that you can't function if the system breaks down and it felt a lot like that's what happened on Sunday. It's like the slow ice threw them off so badly that suddenly they couldn't complete simple passes or hit wide open shots. Everything was just OFF and it was honestly really hard to watch.

 

[Still Eeyore]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

We can nitpick the goaltending and it's true that Campbell does probably stop two of those three goals, but the bigger point has to be that you simply have to score more than one goal against MSU.

I don't see putting this loss on Blesi when the only goal scored on offense was too late to matter on a 5-on-3 they didn't deserve.

Watching Sunday's game felt a lot like watching the national championship game against Clarkson in 2017 to me. In both cases it was clear the ice was playing slow and the Badgers had no idea what to do about it. They couldn't play their usual fast game and they couldn't rely on crisp passes as the puck wasn't moving like they wanted it to and then they were just totally lost and it showed.

I'd like to see the team be able to adapt better than that and it's not great that this has happened before and the team still hasn't been prepared for it. There's something to being so far in system that you can't function if the system breaks down and it felt a lot like that's what happened on Sunday. It's like the slow ice threw them off so badly that suddenly they couldn't complete simple passes or hit wide open shots. Everything was just OFF and it was honestly really hard to watch.

This could help explain what happened to them in Bemidji a few weeks back. That sounds a lot like the ice Minnesota played on up there this week. The Gophers have done a better job of handling it than I'm used to.

 

[Timothy A]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

We can nitpick the goaltending and it's true that Campbell does probably stop two of those three goals, but the bigger point has to be that you simply have to score more than one goal against MSU. I don't see putting this loss on Blesi when the only goal scored on offense was too late to matter on a 5-on-3 they didn't deserve.

I don't think anyone is pinning the loss on Blesi. If you only score 1 goal you aren't going to win many hockey games. We are seeing what the future holds for UW's goaltending and seeing a window into Blesi as a player. That is the most interesting part of Saturday's game and all the games I have seen her play in.

No matter how bored ARD or Rigsby were, I never saw them have a game like a I saw Saturday. My sample size is a little less than seeing half of their games per season.

It is a troubling trend losing to BSU and MSU and the lack of goal scoring in those 2 games, yet I really do like the top 2 lines.

The final 4 games are VERY tricky for UW. Will the UW puke up another wwcha regular season crown? At any rate the quality opponents will prep them for the tourney games in the future.

 

[Offsides Guy]

We can nitpick the goaltending and it's true that Campbell does probably stop two of those three goals, but the bigger point has to be that you simply have to score more than one goal against MSU.

I don't see putting this loss on Blesi when the only goal scored on offense was too late to matter on a 5-on-3 they didn't deserve.

Watching Sunday's game felt a lot like watching the national championship game against Clarkson in 2017 to me. In both cases it was clear the ice was playing slow and the Badgers had no idea what to do about it. They couldn't play their usual fast game and they couldn't rely on crisp passes as the puck wasn't moving like they wanted it to and then they were just totally lost and it showed.

I'd like to see the team be able to adapt better than that and it's not great that this has happened before and the team still hasn't been prepared for it. There's something to being so far in system that you can't function if the system breaks down and it felt a lot like that's what happened on Sunday. It's like the slow ice threw them off so badly that suddenly they couldn't complete simple passes or hit wide open shots. Everything was just OFF and it was honestly really hard to watch.

They lost because of slow ice??!! This sounds like a Muzz presser after a loss.

 

[FiveHoleFrenzy]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

They lost because of slow ice??!! This sounds like a Muzz presser after a loss.

Indeed, that does sound like something the Muzzinator would say...

 

[ARM]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

I don't think goals 1 and 3 have anything to do with lack of experience, and I'm not sure goal 2 did either.

Personally I don't like a goalie rotation system unless it's a set game 1 goes to x player and game 2 goes to y player. Play the best one and go for it.

No matter how bored ARD or Rigsby were, I never saw them have a game like a I saw Saturday.

You can't have it both ways. If you play one goalie all of the time, and then she gets hurt, be prepared for a drop in effectiveness when your backup goalie has sat on the bench for two years. Sidney Peters redshirted a year and then played the equivalent of about 15 games over the next two seasons. By the time she took over as the No. 1 goalie as a redshirt junior, there was definitely rust in her game, and she didn't always react to things that were happening at game speed. If the backup goalie goes more than a season with irregular work, she isn't going to be as sharp as a goalie who sees the ice almost every weekend.

On the other hand, I do think that falling behind in the WCHA is not a recipe for success. Even the weaker teams are pretty effective at protecting multiple-goal leads. Many offenses, even those that are high-scoring, start to press when they're looking at a deficit.

 

[Timothy A]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

You can't have it both ways. If you play one goalie all of the time, and then she gets hurt, be prepared for a drop in effectiveness when your backup goalie has sat on the bench for two years. Sidney Peters redshirted a year and then played the equivalent of about 15 games over the next two seasons. By the time she took over as the No. 1 goalie as a redshirt junior, there was definitely rust in her game, and she didn't always react to things that were happening at game speed. If the backup goalie goes more than a season with irregular work, she isn't going to be as sharp as a goalie who sees the ice almost every weekend.

On the other hand, I do think that falling behind in the WCHA is not a recipe for success. Even the weaker teams are pretty effective at protecting multiple-goal leads. Many offenses, even those that are high-scoring, start to press when they're looking at a deficit.

Blesi is practicing against top end shooters and playmakers in practices and scrimmages, it isn't like she just came in off the street. She played very well in the games before, hence the clunker Saturday was all the more shocking. It was just 1 bad game. I'm sure everything will turn out just fine.

The wild card in all of this is Cece, a Sr. goalie who was listed in the game day roster sheets as the primary back-up many many times over the last 4 years. She apparently was suspended. I wonder if she was still with the team if she would have started some of these games.

Also, the fact that this did happen shows why you can't stick your backup into the starter's role against a weak opponent and assume you are going to win (in a tight race as usual). Also, historically, the back-up for UW is usually a star in the waiting, so it's not a big deal. ARD looked awesome when she filled in for Rigsby.

 

[robertearle]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

I think I'll leave it up to MJ and the other coaches...

 

[Leather helmet]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

They lost because of slow ice??!! This sounds like a Muzz presser after a loss.

In baseball, groundskeepers are known to tweak the field conditions to suit their team, such as packing the dirt in front of the plate or leaving the infield grass a little long. Maybe rink managers around the WCHA will start dialing up the ice temperature by a degree or so when the Badgers come to town.

 

[robertearle]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

In baseball, groundskeepers are known to tweak the field conditions to suit their team, such as packing the dirt in front of the plate or leaving the infield grass a little long. Maybe rink managers around the WCHA will start dialing up the ice temperature by a degree or so when the Badgers come to town.

They thought of it between Friday's game and Saturday's game?

(Friday's game, Wisconsin put 37 shots on goal; On Saturday, 36 SOG. On Friday, Mankato put 12 shots on goal; On Saturday, 11 SOG.)

 

[Leather helmet]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

They thought of it between Friday's game and Saturday's game?

Hey, I'm a big-picture guy. I've already moved on to other theories. My next idea involves the home team surreptitiously wearing night-vision goggles and backlighting the visiting goalie.

 

[Still Eeyore]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

They lost because of slow ice??!!

Let's see if we can edit this sentence so that it doesn't misrepresent what NMH said, shall we?

They lost in part because of their inability to adjust to slow ice??!!

Only an idiot would deny that the characteristics of the ice surface can affect the play, and that it's going to affect different teams in different ways. Some teams are going to benefit from slower ice, and other teams are going to be hurt by it. And it's neither surprising nor nefarious that teams that fall into the former category might opt to produce slower ice when one of the latter teams comes to visit. As NMH said, if you want to be a great team, you need to be able to adapt to that. If Wisconsin can't do that, it's on them. There's a difference between an explanation of what happened and an excuse for what happened. NMH was positing the first, not the second. I didn't watch Sunday's game, or the Badgers' loss up in Bemidji, so I can't offer an opinion as to whether that's a correct assessment, though it does sound plausible.

As I said, it's interesting to hear that, because I find that Minnesota usually struggles more to make that adaptation than Wisconsin does, but the Gophers have done a really good job adjusting to bad ice this year.

 

[Offsides Guy]

Re: Wisconsin Badgers 2019-2020 Season Thread

Let's see if we can edit this sentence so that it doesn't misrepresent what NMH said, shall we?



Only an idiot would deny that the characteristics of the ice surface can affect the play, and that it's going to affect different teams in different ways. Some teams are going to benefit from slower ice, and other teams are going to be hurt by it. And it's neither surprising nor nefarious that teams that fall into the former category might opt to produce slower ice when one of the latter teams comes to visit. As NMH said, if you want to be a great team, you need to be able to adapt to that. If Wisconsin can't do that, it's on them. There's a difference between an explanation of what happened and an excuse for what happened. NMH was positing the first, not the second. I didn't watch Sunday's game, or the Badgers' loss up in Bemidji, so I can't offer an opinion as to whether that's a correct assessment, though it does sound plausible.

As I said, it's interesting to hear that, because I find that Minnesota usually struggles more to make that adaptation than Wisconsin does, but the Gophers have done a really good job adjusting to bad ice this year.

NMH said, "In both cases it was clear the ice was playing slow and the Badgers had no idea what to do about it. They couldn't play their usual fast game and they couldn't rely on crisp passes as the puck wasn't moving like they wanted it to and then they were just totally lost and it showed." Sorry, but that's laying the blame on the ice as the cause of their troubles and the loss.

I was at the Bemidji/WI series and can tell you ice had nothing to do with the outcome even though Sanford is known for soft ice. The Beavers simply worked much harder in Saturday's win than they did in Fri's loss and their goaltending once again shined. It was similar to the recent Beaver/Gopher series (though BSU didn't get a win obviously) in which the Beavers worked much harder in Saturday's game making it much more of a contest.