The Wisconsin women's hockey team will skate into uncharted territory this weekend. That is, if any territory remains uncharted for a team that has been in this position in five consecutive seasons.
The top-ranked Badgers welcome an unfamiliar opponent into a scenario that has become almost routine, playing host to Dartmouth in an NCAA quarterfinal game at the Kohl Center Saturday afternoon.
Wisconsin has not seen the Big Green in nearly three and a half years. In fact, the Badgers have not even faced an Eastern College Athletic Conference opponent since their drubbing of Quinnipiac in the opening weekend of the season.
""It's always fun to play against teams that you never play against,"" junior forward Meghan Duggan said. ""There's that element of surprise. I'm actually really excited to play Dartmouth, a team from out east that we don't really know much about. I think it will be fun.""
This weekend's quarterfinal matchup might look like fun now, but if previous years are any indication, Duggan and the Badgers might want to reconsider. The last three NCAA quarterfinal contests WIsconsin has played have gone to a combined seven overtimes, including a seven-period thriller against Harvard in 2007.
""Obviously it's a huge game for everyone and everyone's going to bring their best game, so it drives a lot of games into overtime,"" Duggan said. ""Going into overtime games is obviously nerve-racking, but it's worked out in our favor the past three years.""
Bonus hockey puts even more pressure on the players between the pipes.
""I don't mind the pressure,"" senior goaltender Jessie Vetter said. ""It's just those type of games where you have to come to play and make the saves that need to be made.""
But to say Vetter looks forward to overtime might be a bit of a stretch.
""If we can do it in regulation, I would definitely take that,"" she said.
As they have for most of the season, the Badgers will have the edge this weekend, at least on paper. Dartmouth will have plenty of momentum though, coming off a dominant 6-1 win over Renssalaer in the ECAC championship game last Sunday. The Big Green finished the year a respectable 20-9-4 which was good enough for fourth place in the final ECAC standings, four points out of first.
Though Saturday will mark the first meeting between the teams this season, one piece of irony has not escaped the Badgers. In March of 2005, Wisconsin fell 4-3 to the Big Green in what was the Badgers' first NCAA tournament appearance.
With head coach Mark Johnson about to take a year off to coach the U.S. Olympic team, this weekend's game has taken on a bit of a ""full circle"" element. Still, it is not something the team has talked much about.
""I think I'm the only one on the team that was actually present at that game,"" said Vetter, who was redshirting at the time. ""I know [Erika] Lawler and Meghan [Duggan] were there [in the stands].""
Vetter will undoubtedly be at her best against the Big Green. Besides having her final season in cardinal and white on the line, the Cottage Grove, Wis., native was recently named one of three finalists for the Patty Kazmaier award.
""Normally people don't pick goalies too much for that type of award,"" she said. ""Just being in the top three is a great honor.""
Wisconsin and Dartmouth will face off at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Kohl Center. The winner will move on to the Frozen Four in Boston March 20 and 22.
