After being swept by the University of Denver last weekend, the Wisconsin men's hockey team is preparing for a showdown with Alaska-Anchorage this weekend.
The Badgers (2-13-3 WCHA, 8-17-3 overall) host the Seawolves (0-16-6, 1-18-7) Friday and Saturday.
In their previous meeting this season, the two teams twice played to overtime ties. It is not surprising then, that Wisconsin Head Coach Mike Eaves believes that Wisconsin and Alaska-Anchorage are similarly matched up.
\If you were to talk to [UAA's Head Coach] John Hill, I think he would probably say a lot of the same things,"" Eaves said. ""Trying to get things turned around, in terms of getting the ball rolling in a positive direction. Build on as many positives as you can.""
The Badgers have been swept in their past two series, giving up 20 goals and scoring only four times in a number of lopsided defeats.
In order to improve its unimpressive goal-output, UW needs junior wing Rene Bourque and sophomore center Alex Leavitt to continue to step up. Bourque leads the Badgers in goals and points, while Leavitt is the team's premier playmaker, with 13 assists to his credit.
Another area that UW hopes to improve is its power play. The Badgers are ranked last in the WCHA in power play scores, but remain hard at work trying to find a solution.
""[We work] on it two or three times a week, [so] you know we spend time on it,"" Eaves said. ""We look at some video and try some different combinations ... By doing that, hopefully that will bring it around.""
Besides the battles on the ice, another battle the Badgers face is the task of keeping its spirits up in the locker room.
""I think one thing about the human spirit is that every day you can choose your attitude and that's something we have talked about,"" Eaves said. ""We try to control the things that we can control on a daily basis because that's the only thing we can do.""
With its coach guiding the way, UW hopes to regain control Friday.
