Beavers relaxed on eve of opener

By Pioneer staff reports

March 24, 2006 at 11:00 PM

GREEN BAY, Wis. - The Bemidji State men's hockey team prepared for its second appearance in the national tournament Friday with an hour long practice, a national media press conference and a tour of Lambeau Field.

The Beavers (20-13-3) are set to face off against the top seed Wisconsin Badgers (26-10-3) at 1:30 p.m. today in the opening round of the NCAA Men's Hockey Midwest Regional in Green Bay. It will mark the first time in history the two teams have played.

There's a much different feeling surrounding the Beavers this year compared to last season's first ever NCAA DI national appearance. "Last year was an eye-opening experience for us," said BSU head coach Tom Serratore. "We were a bit star struck. This year everything is much more relaxed and we feel much more prepared. We played well against Denver last year and that's all I ask of the guys before every game - do the best you can, play good hockey and put yourselves in a position to win. That's all I'm asking today as well."

The Beavers will be looking to continue on an end-of-season roll which has seen the team win its last four games. "The last four games we've been pretty hot," said BSU team captain Jean-Guy Gervais, "and really coming together as a team. I think we're peaking right now and that's what you want. I believe we are ready. We're happy to be here and want to make some noise in this tournament."

The Beavers certainly face a major challenge from the Badgers - the second ranked team in the nation and the top seed in tournament. Wisconsin's 26 wins set a new record during head coach Mike Eaves' tenure. The Badgers are coming off an impressive 4-0 win over Minnesota for third place in the WCHA Tournament.

Wisconsin started its season fast, jumping out to an impressive 19-2-2 start and a unanimous first place ranking in the national polls. But then adversity struck, as premier junior goaltender Brian Elliott went down with an injury during practice at the end of January and the Badgers struggled. Wisconsin lost four in a row and five of their next six games. But Elliott returned and the Badgers got back on the right track, playing well down the stretch.

Elliott is one of 10 finalists for the Hobey Baker Award, given annually to the best player in college hockey. His statistics are eye-popping as Elliott is the national leader with a .790 winning percentage (23-5-3) and a 1.70 goals against average. His .933 save percentage is second nationally, but first among full-time goaltenders. He is 12-1-1 this year when playing against nationally ranked opponents.

With Elliott as the anchor the Badgers have become known as a defense oriented team. Wisconsin has allowed only 1.95 goals per game (first nationally) and limited opponents to just 25.2 shots per game. Senior Tom Gilbert heads the defensive corps.

Offensively, the Badgers have averaged 3.41 goals per game. On the power play the team has been successful 18.6 percent of the time. All Wisconsin's offensive stats are pedestrian, but then the Badgers don't have to score much when allowing just under two goals a game against premier competition. Sophomore Joe Pavelski (20-30 50) and junior Robbie Earl (21-25 46) lead the offense.

While unfamiliar with the Beavers, Eaves says he knows enough that the Badgers will be ready to play a tough game. "Hockey is a game of common fundamentals," he said. "They aren't so much different than us. They play hard and know how they want to control the game. They want to throw a lot of pucks and bodies at the net. But then both teams will want to dictate the tempo of the game. I believe fans should expect a high tempo game that's going to be very competitive."

Gilbert said the Badgers are prepared to face a team "that is fast and quick. We expect they are going to come at us hard."

Since the Badgers lead the nation in goals against and the Beavers average 3.47 goals per game (sixth nationally), the story line the national media tried to promote was Wisconsin defense versus BSU offense. Serratore dismissed that notion. "This is a long season full of ebbs and flows," he said. "At times a team scores a lot and the power play really clicks. Other times it's a struggle. That's to be expected. Their defense against our offense - it isn't that simple."

The key for the Beavers, Serratore said, will be to score early, get strong goal tending and concentrate on doing the little things well. "The bottom line is who's going to execute the small details. Who's going to make that last mistake that really costs you? Hopefully, it's not going to be the Green and White."

Gervais said the Beavers are expecting a major battle, but are also confident in their ability to win. "No doubt they are very tough defensively," he said. "But we pride ourselves on defense, too. As long as we play Beaver hockey and do the little things well, we'll be fine. When we win it's going to be a great feeling."

Notes

E Bemidji State is the first College Hockey America team to appear in back to back NCAA tournaments.

E BSU is making its 15th appearance all-time in an NCAA tournament.

E The Beavers have won 20 or more games in each of the last three seasons. BSU has not been shut out in its last 69 games.

E BSU leading scorer junior Luke Erickson (16-19 35) is the first DI era player to reach 100 points scored as a junior. His 105 career points place him second on the DI era scoring list. He needs three assists to tie BSU's career DI era record (69, Andrew Murray).

E Junior goaltender Layne Sedevie has won each of this last four starts. During that stretch Sedevie has a 1.49 goals against average and a .952 save percentage.

NORTHEAST REGIONAL

At DCU Center, Worcester, Mass.

Friday, March 24

Boston University 9, Nebraska-Omaha 2

Boston College 5, Miami (Ohio) 0

Championship

Saturday, March 25

Boston University (26-9-4) vs. Boston College (24-12-3) 5 p.m.

EAST REGIONAL

At Pepsi Arena, Albany, N.Y.

Saturday, March 25

Michigan State (24-11-8) vs. New Hampshire (20-12-7), 11 a.m.