One trait evident in all championship teams is their ability to find motivation for a game regardless of the competition.
That being said, it should be no surprise the No. 1 Wisconsin women's hockey team (7-1-0 WCHA, 11-1-0 overall) will not take lightly its series against Rensselaer (1-3-2 ECAC, 3-7-4 overall) this weekend.
The Engineers beat Yale 5-0 Sunday to end a nine-game winless streak. While many will view this weekend's series as a sure-fire sweep, it still has the Badgers' full attention.
Senior forward Hilary Knight knows Wisconsin can benefit from playing against Rensselaer.
"I think the biggest thing is going into the game, and it's a 0-0 score," Knight said. "Just doing the little things that we need to, to progress ourselves as a unit."
Head coach Mark Johnson has instilled an identity in this team that is founded on working hard and playing smart no matter what team the Badgers are preparing for or playing against.
"Your game is sort of a reflection of how you practice," Johnson said. "Irrelevant of who you're playing or where you're playing them at, [working hard and playing smart] are some of the ingredients that you have to have if you're going to be successful."
The series provides further motivation for senior forward Brooke Ammerman and sophomore forward Brittany Ammerman.
Rensselaer's campus is less than two hours away from River Vale, N.J., the Ammermans' hometown. The sisters are expecting more than 20 family members and friends to attend the games.
While there is a small chance the NCAA quarterfinals could be held out east, this road trip could be Brooke Ammerman's last chance to play collegiate hockey on the east coast.
"Ever since I've gotten here, a lot of girls-in their senior year-got a chance to play near home," Brooke Ammerman said. "It's definitely really cool just to have my aunts and uncles see me play live, and it's definitely bittersweet."
Although Brittany Ammerman will likely have more opportunities to play near home over the next two seasons, Brooke can tell her younger sister is excited to make the trip this weekend.
"Brittany definitely has a little more step in her practice," Brooke Ammerman said.
As if the team did not have enough motivation already, Wisconsin is coming off a bye weekend. It was the first time the Badgers had a weekend without hockey since early in October.
"[The players] are itching to get back to some competition other than themselves," Johnson said.
The Badgers will not play a currently ranked team until January 2012, but do not expect tehm to let up during the upcoming stretch.
"If you don't want to work hard or you're not going to play smart, then good things aren't going to happen," Johnson said. "If you do work hard and you play smart, generally good things will follow."
