According to head coach Mike Eaves, the Wisconsin men's hockey team will need to put the last game against the University of Denver in the back of its mind to win against the No. 8 Denver Pioneers Friday and Saturday.
When the Badgers faced Denver back in October, Wisconsin lost both road games, giving the team a 0-4 record to start the year, and lost co-captain Ben Street to a season-ending injury. Eaves admitted the series was and still is the Badgers' worst weekend of the year.
At that time, we weren't a very good hockey team,"" he said. ""We were struggling in many areas trying to find our identity and since that time we've been able to do that, which has caused a turnaround.""
Since the Pioneers swept the Badgers in October, Wisconsin has gone 16-8-2, climbed to No. 13 in the nation, and now sits one point behind Denver and North Dakota for top spot in the WCHA.
""We've got lots to play for,"" he said. ""It's an exciting time of year, it's going to go by quickly '¦ I think [the team] knows what's at stake. I know they know.""
Although the Badgers will certainly be excited to get back on the ice following their bye week, the Pioneers will be a tough challenge for Wisconsin. When the teams played Oct. 17, senior goalie Shane Connelly made 46 saves - a season high - in a game the Badgers went on to lose 6-5.
""They're a pressure-oriented team,"" Eaves said of Denver. ""They like to skate, move the puck in transition, a lot like other teams in our league so we have to prepare for that.""
This series will have major implications for the regular-season WCHA championship. Currently, the Pioneers and No. 9 North Dakota are tied at the top of the conference standings with 29 points, while the Badgers trail by only one point at 28.
In Wisconsin's final three series of the regular season, Denver will visit the Kohl Center this weekend, the Badgers will head to Mankato to face Minnesota State Feb. 27 and 28, and North Dakota will come to Madison for the final games of the regular season March 6 and 7.
""Obviously our first goal is to try to be on the top of the mountain and win the NCAA Championship, then you set out intermediate goals, and one of those stops along the way is the MacNaughton Cup,"" Eaves said, referring to the trophy awarded to the regular-season WCHA champion.
The Badgers' ability to shake off the cobwebs from their bye week could be crucial in the upcoming Denver series after their sweep of rival Minnesota.Eaves said the first period of Friday's game will be a sign of how well-prepared the team is for the series.
""It's a roll of the dice,"" he said about the week off. ""We'll monitor that first period really [closely] and see where we are.""
That said, the team is riding high heading into these final few weeks of the season.
""We're pretty healthy right now [and] we came off a big series,"" Eaves said. ""We have to just keep their focus on the process here, and if we do that then we're doing our job.""
