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Wisconsin Women's Hockey 2023-2024

Patricio said:
TimothyA’s post sums up what I see as a cluster fiasco (or whatever) at D for the coming season.

In my view, Jungels-Harvey remains as one of the D lines. If not, I will need something stronger than beer in order to dampen my fan experience. My second D will line is Potter-Murphy, two highly regarded players who I think will prove to be a solid D pairing with added offensive punch as well.
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I don't see the two freshman ahead of Edwards, but I'd like to see them play together as well. No matter what there should never be a need to shorten the bench with defenseman this year in any game.

I also hate the idea of 7/11. I like continuity in the lines.
 
Bonzo said:
Kotlowski is listed as a redshirt senior on the Badger website. The year she redshirted is the Covid year that many players now are taking advantage of. However since she didn't play and redshirted that year, are we sure she still has another year left? I would think not. If 2023-24 is her last year then 3 of the D will be using their last year of eligibility this season.
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I believe Kotlowski redshirted the 2019-20 season, her frosh year. The principal loss for players was related to games they would have played in the NCAA tournament, but extra eligibility was not given to the players affected by this. Makes sense since only 8 teams would have been impacted, otherwise everyone had a standard season. Since Kotlowski was not affected at all, this season probably counts of 1 of a standard 5. The 20-21 season was different since a host of teams continued to suspend play due to covid and those that did play had very abbreviated schedules. Every player lost significant playing time, some more than others. Kotlowski did see ice time, so she qualifies for the added covid year leaving her the 21-22, 22-23, and 23-24 season. So, if this analysis is correct, she exhausts her eligibility this season.

Ergo, Bonzo may have found a solution to the excess Ds dilemma. If Helgeson were to redshirt, we would get down to 7 Ds, making it easier to give everyone substantial playing time - not necessarily what they were used to, but enough. As Bonzo further notes, 3 Ds also would exhaust their eligibility – Edwards, Kotlowski, and Wilgren. That would leave Venusio and Helgesen to fill out the D contingent for the following 2 years or, at worst, create further scenarios involving only 7 Ds instead of 8 which would be easier to manage.

As for Timothy A's concern about either Potter or Murphy supplanting Edwards, I prefer the risks associated with pairing them on one of the D lines. I believe they provide another opportunity to have a solid pairing this season and into the future (like Harvey and Jungels) - one that combines strong defensive play with an offensive bonus. They signed with the Badgers to play, and they will be part of the team for the next 3 years as well. For me, it would be best for the longer-term prospects for the Badgers if their development is emphasized. Harvey, Jungels, Potter, Murphy, and Vesuvio are a new breed of D and Bucky needs to continue to pursue others like them and focus on how to utilize their full abilities. That should start now.
 
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In all the PWHL news, this sneaky little bit that Alex Azzi posted caught my eye:

"USA Hockey and Hockey Canada have gotten used to centralizing their women's teams FOR MONTHS ahead of the Olympics. That's going to change with the PWHL, Gina Kingsbury confirms."

Looking down the road, the lack of a massive centralization could really change the calculus for that 25-26 year.
 
Patricio said:
Kotlowski ... So, if this analysis is correct, she exhausts her eligibility this season.
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She is listed on the roster for 2019-2020, but not at all on the stats page. Looks like she was indeed a redshirt in 2019-2020.

Her five year clock turns into a six year clock due to COVID. Six years is (springs of) 2020, 21, 22, 23, 24, 2025.

Play in 2020-21 doesn't count against four years eligibility used (or becomes a 5th year, however you prefer to think about it.) because of COVID. So four years used would be (spring of) 2022, 23, 24, 25.

She has eligibility through the 2024-25 season.
 
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BadgerPete said:
In all the PWHL news, this sneaky little bit that Alex Azzi posted caught my eye:

"USA Hockey and Hockey Canada have gotten used to centralizing their women's teams FOR MONTHS ahead of the Olympics. That's going to change with the PWHL, Gina Kingsbury confirms."

Looking down the road, the lack of a massive centralization could really change the calculus for that 25-26 year.
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This is really HUGE news. The Olympic games are played in February, so players may be missing for as short a time as 1 month, maybe 2; but back in plenty of time for the league and ncaa tourneys.
 
Patricio said:
Here is a link to an article about Nela Lopusanova since her arrival at BK. Most of it is familiar from other, earlier articles. However, at the end of this one it mentions that she is looking forward to attending UW. She is a sophomore at BK, so, if she continues to develop as anticipated, a good add to the 26-27 class.

Slovakian teenage girls' hockey phenom Nela Lopusanova arrives in North America (yahoo.com)
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I thought you couldn't talk to a player when they are a sophomore in high school?
 
Timothy A said:
I thought you couldn't talk to a player when they are a sophomore in high school?
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Coaches are prohibited from communicating with recruits until June 15 after the recruit's sophomore year. Players can talk to each other whenevs, and I think this article reads as an incoming player (Finley McCarthy) talking to a potential future teammate, and Lospusanova talking about a current "when I grow up" thing she sees herself doing. There's certainly nothing set in stone, and I'm sure when that June 16 bell rings next year she'll have more than a couple of phone calls. Good to have a foot in the mental door though.
 
I just saw on the Djurgarden Hockey X feed that Brette Pettit was named captain and Maddie Posick is one of two assistant captains. Good for them! I tried to add a link but it didn't work.
 
Gargoyle said:
I just saw on the Djurgarden Hockey X feed that Brette Pettit was named captain and Maddie Posick is one of two assistant captains. Good for them! I tried to add a link but it didn't work.
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That's so cool. How did the team do last year?
 
As a birthday present to myself on Wednesday, I re-watched the Natty game with my daughter. Here are some takeaways in regards to this year's squad.

Kotlowski and Helgeson are the 7th and 8th D. The incoming Fr D will be near the level of Jungels, and when you see the parts of the game where OSU got some push, the 7th and 8th D were on the ice. This is backed up by the +/- from last year. Wilgren is the wildcard if she can beat out Kotlowski. CE, though she's not flashy, is a top 4 D all day long. In my head I was getting caught up with offensive D and I was disrespecting her game. My bad.

Curl does all those little things you need to see done to win and if she can get on a line that can also help her showcase her scoring ability, she'll have a monster year, which would be defined as 60+ points.

O'B is SO good. Sure she led the team in scoring, but the eye test says more than that, similar to Curl.

UW lost their 4th, 6th and 8th leading scorers, there is some production (106 pts worth) that will need to be covered.
 
Timothy A said:
That's so cool. How did the team do last year?
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From what I can tell, it finished third in the Swedish hockey league standings and lost in the semi-finals of the conference championship. Maddie and Brette stayed in Sweden but it looks like Alexis Mauermann did not, or at least she didn't stay with that team.
 
Jungels not even preseason all wcha anything? Gorbatenko pre-season rookie of the year candidate when it appears she's the least heralded UW Fr?
 
Timothy A said:
Curl does all those little things you need to see done to win and if she can get on a line that can also help her showcase her scoring ability, she'll have a monster year, which would be defined as 60+ points.
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Anyone that watched the U18 games could have predicted that Curl would be a game maker. A real standout on the IIHF stage.It will be a pleasure to see her in action this year, and hopefully in years to come on the national and international stage.
 
Timothy A said:
Jungels not even preseason all wcha anything? Gorbatenko pre-season rookie of the year candidate when it appears she's the least heralded UW Fr?
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They only pick one preseason team, and as much as I feel Vivian is one of the most underrated players out there I don't think it can be considered a slight to not make a team when the only choices are Caroline Harvey and Cayla Barnes. (UM's Wethington and UMD's Jobst-Smith are literally the only other D players that got a vote at all.)

As for Kelly, I think she fell off everyone's radar a bit because she was too old for the last U18 tournament, but I've been on the Gorbatrain since I saw her in Madison and I think there's a reality that her size and strength make her the most likely of the forwards to make an immediate impact.
 
The 23 Natty ring is a beauty, plenty of bling and size yet it is elegantly restrained. They had 48 made. It would be interesting to see who gets one.
 
Well, with practice started and recently talking to the coaching staff they slipped that there are two possible redshirts this year due to injuries. Have not heard who though.
 
I am not that concerned about the WCHA’s preseason nominations for first team memberships, though I agree with the choices of Harvey and Simms. The success of this season will depend on two things – the continued development of last season’s and class and the extent to which this season’s class settles in and makes significant contributions. The major things I will be looking for include the following:
  • Curl continues last season’s aggressive play around the and has similar results.
  • LEdwards demonstrates she paid attention to Curl’s play around the net last season and starts emulating it. With her size, goals like the one she scored against MN in the NCSs semi-final would become more common and, with a third somewhat aggressive member, the line would give opposing defenses nightmares.
  • The line of Simms, Eden, and Enright remaining intact which should lead to considerably more scoring by all three as they continue becoming more familiar with each other’s styles of play. If this pans out, this line also will provide a lot of uneasiness for opponents.
  • Continued strong play on D by Harvey and Jungels along with Harvey’s continued offense prowess and improvement in Jungels offensive play as she has become more comfortable with working with Harvey as her linemate (an all-world player takes time to adjust to).
  • Potter and Murphy emerging as a combination of strong D and significant scoring potential.
As for the 3 new Fs, I am not entirely uncertain what to expect. Because of her reputation as a goal scorer who is equally facile at distributing the puck to others, I am expecting Hall to start as the 3rd member of the O’B-Wheeler line. Gorbatenko and Vasseur are harder for me to predict. Gorbatenko’s nomination for rookie of the year may indicate the possibility of joining the Curl line. Vasseur has gotten some positive reviews of her skating and general stick handling so she and Gorbatenko could be 2 members of a good F line. If so, that leaves Woz and Picard (both very capable too) to fill out that line and Curl’s.

Fortunately, the schedule provides sufficient for everyone to get experience playing with each other and sorting out the best configurations of all the lines before the Badgers have to face MN and OSU at the end of the first half. We don’t have to wait much longer to see how it all works out.

PS The news of 2 Rs due to injuries definitely is very concerning and easily could alter my comments. Though any injuries would be unfortunate and not bode well, hopefully, it is not 2 of the incoming class.
 
wheel snipe celly said:
Well, with practice started and recently talking to the coaching staff they slipped that there are two possible redshirts this year due to injuries. Have not heard who though.
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If true, yikes. I guess at least one of them is a defenseman and they knew quite a while ago hence they wanted 8 going into the season.
 
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