> Miskovich quick to please crowd
>
> Freshman's speed excites U fans as well as coaches
> GREGG WONG STAFF WRITER
> MADISON, WIS.
>
> It didn't take long for University of Minnesota hockey fans to realize
> freshman wing Aaron Miskovich is a gifted player.
>
> Miskovich
> Almost every time Miskovich has touched the puck or had open space
> to display his speed and quickness, Gophers fans have roared in
> anticipation.
>
> Associate head coach Mike Guentzel, who recruited Miskovich in
> Grand Rapids, Minn., did not grasp the impact Miskovich has on home
> crowds until he viewed videotapes of last weekend's series against
> North Dakota.
>
> ``When Aaron got the puck, the noise level of the crowd really went
> up,'' Guentzel said. ``I hadn't noticed that on the bench, but it's really
> noticeable on the tapes. He's so identifiable because of that speed.
>
> "No question, he's probably the fastest player in the league. And he's
> so smooth.''
>
> Gophers coach Doug Woog knew Miskovich had great speed and
> quickness. But Woog had no way of knowing Miskovich would ignite
> Gophers fans so early in his college career.
>
> ``Aaron's electrifying. It's exciting watching him go,'' Woog said. ``It's
> neat that the crowd has that excitement and anticipation every time he
> touches the puck.
>
> ``We haven't seen anyone like him here in my 13 years with that
> combination of quickness and speed. He's an extraordinary talent with
> that speed.''
>
> At 7:35 tonight and 7:05 p.m. Saturday, Miskovich will show off that
> speed to hockey fans in the Dane County Coliseum, where the
> Gophers (3-3, 2-2 Western Collegiate Hockey Association) and
> Wisconsin Badgers (2-0, 2-0) renew their rivalry.
>
> It never has been easy for the Gophers to win here. And it's a tough
> place for visiting freshmen to play.
>
> But so far this season, Miskovich and the Gophers' other freshmen
> have not been intimidated. Woog doesn't expect they will be this
> weekend, either.
>
> In particular, Miskovich, center/wing Erik Westrum of Apple Valley
> and defenseman Dylan Mills of Duluth East played well last weekend
> against the defending NCAA champion Fighting Sioux.
>
> Miskovich and Westrum each scored twice in Friday's 6-5 victory.
> Miskovich's first goal, which gave the Gophers the lead for good, came
> on a short-handed dash around Sioux All-America defenseman Curtis
> Murphy.
>
> ``I changed speeds a little bit going around him, which is something the
> coaches have been telling me to do,'' said Miskovich, who was named
> the WCHA's rookie of the week for his play against the Sioux.
>
> ``I guess I've always had a gift of speed. I never thought about my
> skating because it's always been there. I do know it has made a lot of
> the other parts of the game easier for me. But the important thing is to
> learn to use it the right way, to know how and when to turn it on,
> especially against the better players at this level.''
>
> Miskovich, the sixth straight Mr. Hockey in Minnesota to play for the
> Gophers, was born fast.
>
> But he never took that speed for granted, Guentzel said.
>
> ``I had him in hockey schools in Greenway when he was 7, 8, 9 years
> old, and he was a great skater then,'' Guentzel said. ``Even at that age,
> you could see that he wanted to be a good player. He'd be the first guy
> in line to do a drill, and he worked hard.
>
> ``He's still that way. I don't know if there's a more coachable guy on
> the team or a player who wants it more. He'll do whatever you ask
> him.''
>
> He was that way in high school, too, where he was needed to play at
> defense his senior season. Despite spending a season on the blue line,
> Miskovich, in his prep career, scored 83 goals, including 18 hat tricks
> and 21 short-handed, and had 117 assists in 100 games. And twice he
> was named all-state.
>
> ``Aaron's competitive and he's eager to play. He gets involved in the
> physical aspects of the game, he goes to the net hard, so it's not like
> he's just skating around the perimeter,'' Woog said. ``Some people go
> hard occasionally; Aaron goes all the time. He comes out on the rink,
> and he's moving right away.''
 
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