I was at the WI-MN semifinal game on Friday.  Even though the
Badgers lost, it was a great game to watch, and I was pleased to see quite
a crowd there, considering it was a Friday afternoon.  My companion brought
along a Walkman radio, and while trying to find the Wisconsin Radio
Network's local station, we instead stumbled upon the audio feed from the
MSC TV broadcast being beamed back to Minnesota.  FYI, check at the very
low end of the AM dial (530AM) if you're at an MSC-televised event.
        It was amusing to listen to these guys, who were as partisan for
the Gophs as the Milwaukee crowd was partisan for the Badgers.  The
hilarious part was that the guys kept their mikes live during commercial
breaks and video segments, unwittingly broadcasting their comments to any
listening fans.  Some highlights:
 
About halfway through the game:
 
"OK, can we do that [video] piece when we come back from commercial?  Good.
Besides, I'm eating a pretzel."
 
With under 5 minutes to go in the third, and MN clinging to a 3-2 lead.
 
"Um, can you cover for me?  -Nice time for a break, but yeah, I'll cover
for you."   (Must have had some liquid refreshment along with that
pretzel!)
 
And the one that got me roaring with laughter, at the end of regulation,
after the Badgers had scored a goal to send it to overtime:
 
"F***!!!!  F***, f***, f***!!!  F***ing goal!  The Badgers get all the
f***ing luck!..."  (etc, etc...)
 
We may not have won, but we sure had the MSC announcer pretty pissed off.
Kinda makes it all worthwhile...
 
=======================
 
As for the hockey....  When you look at the W/L tally for the Badgers this
year, it would appear that this was one of the worst years in recent
history for the program.  Certainly, the first 2/3 of the season were a
test for true Badger fans.  Those who stuck with WI were well rewarded by
their play at the end of the season, especially the blossoming of Kirk
Daubenspeck, who is working on his Jim Carey impersonation.  (Note that
this speaks volumes about the worth of goalie coach Bill Howard to the
program -- Dauber came in as a good prospect, but has shown remarkable
improvement under Howie's tutelage.  If he puts in a consistently solid
year next year, I expect to see him playing pro hockey.)
 
It's certainly a pity that "the league's hottest team" doesn't have a shot
at the NCAA's, but I'm certainly not going to argue that a team with a
losing record belongs in the field.  It is tantalizing to think about what
would have happened had one of the good OT chances vs. the Gophs gotten by
Moen.  This team wasn't going to win an NCAA championship, but they could
give anyone in the country a good game, the way they're playing now.  They
need to ride the momentum into a strong season next year.  This was what
they were supposed to do following _last_ year's strong finish, but they
got waylaid by a brutal start-of-season schedule and inexperience on the
blue line.
 
Prognosis for next year... we lose a lot of big guns up front.  It will be
strange not seeing at least one Strobel out there, and Williams and Carter
will be sorely missed.  Mickey Elick was the "quarterback" of the power
play unit, and his leadership and work ethic will be missed.  (Note that he
separated his shoulder at the end of the third period on Friday, so he
wasn't there for the Badger power play during overtime.)  It was fun having
Troy Howard (son of Bill) as a Badger, too -- another non-flashy player
with a good work ethic.  The young blueliners really improved down the
stretch, so Dauber will have some more help next year.  The key will have
to be how well the underclassmen forwards can step up to plug those big
offensive holes.  I expect to see some freshmen getting ice time early on.
 
Thanks for a great year, Bucky!  I'd rather end the season on a high note
than fizzle out like Denver did.
 
Drop the puck!
john nash
 
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