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My Trip to Madison


Fedorov

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I'd echo some of Fedorov's comments... I thought the call on Greene on Saturday was lame. It didn't effect the play and was severley embelished. At least call a diving penalty as well.

The Sioux looked sluggish, excpet for certain bursts. A couple times Prpich really stepped up the intensity, but I didn't notice players around him doing the same. Overall, he played well (the pic on the big screen after he got smakced was great, he got up, adjusted his helmet, and was smiling the whole time).

Fylling played well all weekend and actually went to the net with the puck.

Zajac had flashes and missed a golden opportunity in the Saturday game when he got the puck all alone in the slot. I could't tell if it was a great save from my angle.

Smaby needs a night off. He's big, but he has no quickness at all. He got burned a few times. Either hit them or get off the ice. No need to dance with them.

Massen - He needs to shoot the puck. He's not a good passer. I want to see him standing in front of the net beating people up and using that big body to block the goalie's view. He would do well to mirror some of Prpich's grittiness.

Defense and Forwards - Breaking out of the zone looked horrible. Cycling and forechecking on Saturday was much improved. I thought the team gave good effort on Saturday; they just failed to develop many quality scoring opprotunities. Wisco looked to be the quicker and faster team, which was a little hard to watch. I do think they improved over the Minnesota series however.

Lammy - Should be the #1 goalie without a doubt.

Badger Fans - Normally great. I like how their student section is organized so well. The racist mascot chants sucked, but I had to laugh at the a$$hole chant. Sieved everything, which got old. "That's debatable" cheer is the worst in the history of bad cheers. The sieve cheer after a goal is great.

All in all, not horrible, but not up to expectations. However, there was obviously a reason that Blais defaulted to the Murray - Parise - Bochenski line a fair amount last year, even when they started out separated. That team had a hard time generating offense on occasion, and this team is showing why. The passing isn't clicking yet and we're not winning the battles for loose pucks. I think, and hope, it will come, but it wasn't evident this weekend.

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This team seems to be losing races to the puck.

Is it really as well conditioned as we believe it to be?

Is it a lack of intensity?

Is it just plain old slow?

I still say Rory McMahon's two goals against CC should become mandatory viewing for the team. He got each because he kept his feet moving toward the net. He scrummed one in on a rebound; he took the shot (not the pretty pass temptation) on the other. There's a lesson or two for the team in there.

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This team seems to be losing races to the puck.

Is it really as well conditioned as we believe it to be?

Is it a lack of intensity?

Is it just plain old slow?

I still say Rory McMahon's two goals against CC should become mandatory viewing for the team. He got each because he kept his feet moving toward the net. He scrummed one in on a rebound; he took the shot (not the pretty pass temptation) on the other. There's a lesson or two for the team in there.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I also noticed a brekaway attempt that Zajac(?) had where he wnt to the net well and got the intial shot off, but failed to keep driving for a possible rebound (follow your shot isn't just for b-ballers). He slipped off to the side and the puck came straight back out. He wasn't in any sort of a position to make a play on it and Bruckler reached out and covered it.

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This team seems to be losing races to the puck.

Is it really as well conditioned as we believe it to be?

Is it a lack of intensity?

Is it just plain old slow?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Or even worse, a combination of the three?

Thankfully, the first two can be addressed - conditioning can be improved and intensity can be increased, but if you are slow, you are slow. Although there is some speed on this team, overall I think team speed is down from years past.

How do you combat being slow? Work harder on the first two issues, I guess.

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I also went to Madison this past weekend and here are my thoughts:

Hockey:

It's all pretty much been said. I'm not in Panicville, but I can see it from here.

Atmosphere and Badger fans:

In terms of atmosphere and cheering for their team, Wisconsin fans are head and shoulders above everyone else. They have coordinated chants, they dance, they cheer extremely loud, and they're more creative than most fans.

But In terms of being good "hockey" fans, Wisconsin fans are horrible. Among other things, they sieve great saves and empty nets and they yell "that's debatable" after Wisconsin becomes full strength.

Having said that, I'd gladly trade a few hockey IQ points at the Ralph for the atmosphere at the Kohl. Part of this is not really the fans as much as the facilities. I'm not a Ralph-basher like countless people that post here, but putting the students on the ends so they can stand (and dance), having the band in the lower level, and the absence of piped-in music makes a HUGE difference in terms of atmosphere.

Wisconsin fans were a little more confrontational this year than they were when I was there two years ago (winning will do that), but overall they're not any worse than any other venues I've visited.

"miscellaneous":

Anyone who has made the trip to Madison knows that it's not just about the games. And, again, Madison did not disappoint. :lol:

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In terms of atmosphere and cheering for their team, Wisconsin fans are head and shoulders above everyone else.  They have coordinated chants, they dance, they cheer extremely loud, and they're more creative than most fans.

I agree with that, but the student turnout Saturday night wasn't good. I'll give 'em the benefit of the doubt and chalk it up to the football team getting their asses handed to them by Michigan St. This was our first trip to UW, and indeed, the extracurricular activities in Madison lived up to the billing. :lol: We will be back.

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In terms of atmosphere and cheering for their team, Wisconsin fans are head and shoulders above everyone else.  They have coordinated chants, they dance, they cheer extremely loud, and they're more creative than most fans.

This is non-original footage, I posted it last February, but in case there's anyone new around:

1... 2... we want more (MPEG, 2.8Mb)

Sieve chant (MPEG, 5.5Mb)

The first one is a lot better, and more representative of the entire crowd joining in a cheer. The whole crowd is in on the 2nd cheer, but it's less obvious. Both are somewhat mediocre as they were shot with a still camera.

You can't beat the crowd participation at Wisconsin.

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