After a strong weekend sweep over the Western Collegiate Hockey Association rival Alaska Anchorage Seawolves at the Kohl Center, the first-place Wisconsin Badger hockey team (14-4-0 WCHA, 17-6-1 overall) will be on the road for one final non-conference series before the WCHA stretch run against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (3-11-4 Central Collegiate Hockey Association, 5-13-5 overall).
Last weekend's sweep was sort of a revenge series for the No. 5 Badgers, as the Seawolves upset Wisconsin in the first round of last season's WCHA playoffs. Even if they will not admit to it, payback will be again on UW's mind again this weekend, as last year in an unusual Saturday/Sunday Series, Notre Dame tied and beat the Badgers at the Kohl Center.
\I think it's always in the back of your mind,"" sophomore forward Andrew Joudrey said. ""Last year we got embarrassed in our own rink, but our main focus will be concentrating on us and making sure we're ready to play.""
This year the series will be played Friday at Notre Dame and Saturday on neutral ice at the Allstate Arena in Chicago, which is home to the American Hockey League's Chicago Wolves.
""There should be a very good crowd there that night [Saturday at Allstate Arena],"" Wisconsin head coach Mike Eaves said. ""It should be a different and exciting environment for our kids.""
Notre Dame comes in to this year's contest a much different team than they were a year ago. Last year, head coach Dave Poulin guided the Irish to a 20-win season, its first in 15 years, and was able to establish the program as a force on the national level with an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. This year is a rebuilding year for Notre Dame, and as a result the Irish has been an unpredictable team struggling to find an identity. Although it is in last place in the CCHA, the Irish have shown some signs of life at times, with two notable wins: 3-2 over Michigan State and a 3-2 shocker over No. 2 Boston College. But the lows have kept piling up for the Irish, and on Tuesday night they continued, as lowly two-win Michigan Tech, last place in the WCHA, pummeled Notre Dame 6-2.
For Notre Dame the key will be keeping the score low, as the Irish have a very anemic offense. Only three players have more than 10 points on the season, led by sophomore Wes O'Neill with six goals and eight assists for 14 points. In comparison, Wisconsin has 10 players who have scored more than 10 points, including two defensemen: sophomore Jeff Likens and freshman Kyle Klubertanz.
The other key factor in the series for Notre Dame will be the play of goaltender Morgan Cey, a senior and team leader of the Irish, who has very respectable numbers, with a save percentage of .922 and a goals-against average of 2.59.
""[They have] good goaltending,"" Eaves said. ""That was one of the reasons why they were about to beat and tie us last year, tough goaltending in our rink.""
One last thing that Notre Dame can hope for is that Wisconsin might get caught overlooking the struggling Irish, since Wisconsin is heading into a brutal stretch run starting with archrival Minnesota, a team that swept the badgers earlier this season.
If the Badgers need any motivation, they can return to the fact that they have struggled mightily this year in out-of-conference play, especially in their own Badger Hockey Showcase, where Wisconsin was credited with only a tie and a loss in a field of struggling teams.
""Momentum is huge for us,"" Joudrey said. ""Our goal is to keep this thing going, and a couple wins this weekend will go a long way in helping us getting for that stretch [of tough WCHA games].\
