February 11, 2006
Frozen Tundra Classic
Badger Booster Shot
Wisconsin sees game as a springboard to late-season run

By Mike Eidelbes

Wisconsin's Adam Burish celebrates his goal 23 seconds into the first period of Saturday's Frozen Tundra Hockey Classic. (Larry Radloff photo)

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Maybe an outdoor hockey game in front of a partisan crowd of 40,000 at one of the most storied athletic venues on the planet is just what Wisconsin needs to snap out of its three-week swoon.

The Badgers, losers of five of their last six games, have seen what was once a seemingly insurmountable lead in the WCHA standings evaporate during that span. But like the team that spent more than two months atop the national poll, Wisconsin did what it needed to do to beat Ohio State, 4-2, before 40,890 at the Frozen Tundra Hockey Classic – perhaps a more accurate name would’ve been the World’s Largest Outdoor Kegger – at Lambeau Field Saturday.

“We, as a coaching staff, looked at this game as an energizer for the rest of the season,” said Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves. “This time of the year is like the dog days of the season. This week is unique in the energy it brought to the team.”

Adam Burish, perhaps sensing the Badgers’ need for a spark, kept a throng that was whipped into a pre-game frenzy on its feet by scoring 23 seconds into the game off a Dave Caruso rebound.

“It was like everyone traded in their Favre jerseys for Wisconsin hockey jerseys,” said Burish, a Madison native. “The plan was to do a Lambeau leap into the glass, but I got so wrapped up I didn’t know what I was doing out there.”

It was a game that played to the Badgers’ strengths with an emphasis on hitting and, thanks to seven penalties in the game’s first 20 minutes, special teams play. Wisconsin did a good job of keeping Ohio State chances to a minimum, outshooting the Buckeyes by a 12-7 margin in the first period.

Of course, a little luck helps, too. It looked as if OSU drew even a little more than seven minutes into the game when Sean Collins’ shot from the high slot fluttered past Badger goalie Shane Connelly, but the goal was disallowed when the officials ruled the net was off its moorings prior to puck crossing the goal line.

“I didn’t mean to push it off in any way,” said Connelly. “It wasn’t in the ice very good. I told the ref it’s going to be a struggle down here. They’re just pegs, not the moorings that are in the ice.”

“I didn’t know what they were talking about when the three referees met,” Collins said. “None of the Wisconsin players complained about it.”

Wisconsin 4,
Ohio State 2
Team Goal Str
Time Assists
First Period
1-UW Adam Burish (8) EV
:23 J. Pavelski, R. Earl

Second Period

1-OS Dave Barton (4) EV
11:11 unassisted
2-UW Kyle Klubertanz (4) PP
16:58 R. Carlson, B. Street
Third Period
3-UW Andrew Joudrey (7) EV
7:00 R. MacMurchy, J. Dowell
2-OS Sam Campbell (4) EV
15:57 B. Anderson, T. Fritsche
4-UW Robbie Earl (15) EN
19:02 J. Piskula
Goaltending
OSU: Dave Caruso, 59:28, 27 saves, 3 GA;
Empty net, 0:32, 1 GA
UW: Shane Connelly, 60:00, 18 saves, 2 GA
Penalties: OSU 14/14; UW 11/22
Power Plays: OSU 0-7; UW 1-8
Attendance: 40,890

Ohio State would eventually get the equalizer midway through the second period when Dave Barton’s shot from the neutral zone hit the stick of Wisconsin defenseman Davis Drewiske and befuddled Connelly like a ground ball on a poorly manicured infield. Any momentum generated from that goal, however, was short lived – the Buckeyes took two penalties that led to back-to-back Badger power plays. Wisconsin connected on the second of the two man advantages, as a shot by defenseman Kyle Klubertanz hit an OSU forward and caromed past Caruso with 3:02 left in the period.

Wisconsin took a two-goal lead seven minutes into a fast-paced third period on a pretty play that was started by a combination of hard work by the Badgers and a sloppy clearing attempt by the Buckeyes’ Tom Fritsche, who tried to skate the puck out of his end but ended up backhanding it to the halfboards, out of the reach of one of his defensemen. Wisconsin played the puck behind the net, where it was dug out by Ryan MacMurchy. He skated out to Caruso’s left and threaded a pass across the slot to a streaking Andrew Joudrey, who barely needed to move his stick blade to tap the puck in.

Sam Campbell cut into the Badgers’ lead on a rebound goal with 4:03 left in regulation, but Wisconsin’s Robbie Earl, who had a number of quality scoring chances in the game, got an empty-net goal with 58 seconds remaining in the period to seal the victory.

“[The momentum] is not something that dies tonight,” Burish said. “It’s gonna carry through all next week, and guys are going to be so excited to come to the rink and see each other on Monday and get back to playing.

“We feel so good about our game right now. We feel good about each other. That’s going to carry on for, hopefully, the rest of the season.”

INCH's Three Stars of the Night

3. Adam Burish, Wisconsin
He scored the game's first goal, but the captain saved his best performance for the post-game media conference. The chatterbox had a comeback for every question. For example, he claimed the entire experience was awesome, right down to the stalls in the locker room.

2. Lambeau Field
A beautiful facility that recently received a multi-million dollar facelift, the configuration for Saturday's game created an intimate setting, believe it or not.

1. The fans
From the tailgaters who arrived hours before the game to the Badger students who conregated at one end of the stadium, the atmosphere was uniquely Wisconsin.

SEEN AND HEARD AT LAMBEAU FIELD

• One of the highlights of the game took place after the teams left the ice. The Badgers, led by defenseman Jeff Likens, headed to one end of the stadium and, like the Packers, jumped over a retaining wall and into the arms of a swarm of Badger fans.

"You know John Madden diagrams it where your hips have gotta be above the green [wall]?" said Burish, who called the moment the pinnacle of the entire event. "I think our guys had their hips above the green. We were perfect."

• Denver coach George Gwozdecky would've been impressed: Both teams were escorted from their hotels to the stadium by Green Bay police squad cars.

• It'd figure that a maroon-and-gold interloper would crash the festivities at Lambeau. Well, maybe it's not quite that egregious. Among those participating in pre-game face-off ceremonies were former members of the Green Bay Bobcats, the city's first professional hockey team, who are also U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame inductees. One of the ex-Bobcats was John Mayasich, the former Minnesota great who appeared on the ice wearing a Gophers baseball cap and sweatshirt.

• No surprise that Burish and Klubertanz would score goals for the Badgers. After all, both are quit familiar with the surroundings. Before heading to Wisconsin to play for coach Mike Eaves, both were members of the United States Hockey League's Green Bay Gamblers.

• In spite of losing, Ohio State coach John Markell called the Frozen Tundra Hockey Classic a great experience for his team. But when asked if he'd bring his club back to a similar event, Markell upped the ante slightly.

"I'd like to host it," the Buckeyes coach said. "I'd like to fill our stadium."

That'd be quite a tall order. Ohio Stadium, the nation's fourth-largest college football venue, has room for 101,568 fans.

• Games like the Lambeau Field event certainly aren't going to become everyday events, but contests of similar stature appear to be on the horizon judging by the representatives from other venues in attendance. One source told INCH that officials from five stadia were at Lambeau Saturday – including parties from the Metrodome in Minneapolis, where Minnesota is scheduled to face Minnesota Duluth in 2007, and NCAA brass, who'll run the 2010 Frozen Four at Detroit's Ford Field. Also looking in on the Frozen Tundra Classic were reps from Boston's Fenway Park, which is investigating the possibility of a Boston College-Boston University doubleheader, as well as the NFL's Buffalo Bills and Denver Broncos.


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