Nov. 24, 2009

MADISON, Wis.-On Monday afternoon, Mike Eaves highlighted last weekend's series against SCSU, among other things. The team split the two games with the Huskies and now prepares for another weekend away from the Kohl Center. The team hits the road this weekend, when it will play in the College Hockey Showcase in Michigan. The Badgers face Michigan State Friday night and Michigan Saturday night. The puck drops at 6 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. (CST), respectively. The Badgers return to Madison the following weekend, when it will square off against Michigan Tech.

To view the video of Eaves' media conference, click here.

BRIAN LUCAS: . . . split a pair of games this weekend, last weekend, at St. Cloud State, sits at 7-4-1 overall, 5-4-1 in the WCHA. Badgers step out of conference play this weekend for the annual College Hockey Showcase. UW will play at Michigan State on Friday at 6:00 p.m. and at Michigan on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. Coach Eaves is here and will take any questions.

QUESTION #1: Mike, do you know if there will be further sanctions for Craig Smith?

Mike Eaves: I was not contacted this morning, Andy, and I think if there had of been, I would have been. So at this point, I don’t think so.

QUESTION #2: Since Andy asked about Craig, from what I understand, he actually did what you ask players to do in that regard, isn’t that correct?

EAVES: Well, we went to the video, and they cut the video off. There was no replay, so I never really got a good look at it. The guys on the bench said that he did grab him, took him into the wall. So I talked to Craig after the game, and he said the same thing. So it’s one of those deals. The referee’s view of it and he called it what it was.

QUESTION #3: Could you tell us the future of this, I know you’ve spoken about this a little bit, but the future of the College Hockey Showcase and where it stands right now, Mike?

EAVES: Well, I think some changes are in the future. I think that, we’ve talked about this before, the evolution of the Big Ten Network has put things in a different perspective, and we’re looking out to different scenarios that might become part of that. The next revenue sport, once basketball and football are up and running, is hockey. And they need some airtime that could be filled by hockey, and so I think we’re taking a look at different scenarios. But I think there’s a metamorphosis that’s going on right now as to what it is or what it will become, it’s tough to say.

QUESTION #4: And yet neither one of the games this weekend are on the Big Ten Network.

EAVES: Well, that is out of my control.

QUESTION #5: How would you classify the adjustment you’re going to make to playing on a smaller ice sheet? You seem to do it fairly seamless previous, but is it a big deal at all?

EAVES: It is. We talked about that this morning, the fact that we need this week, and we will this week, get on a small sheet of ice. Early in our career here, we played on a small sheet and practiced all week on a big sheet, thinking, well, we’ll just adjust. Well, we looked, it was like a Chinese fire drill out there. It took us awhile to get adjusted. So history tells us that we need to get on a small sheet, get used to the lack of time and space. And watching both teams, they play like you should on a small sheet. They try to take time and space away. So we will get on that size sheet of ice this week and see how quickly we can adapt.

QUESTION #6: Of your defensemen, which guy has improved the most from the start of the season until now?

EAVES: Well, I hadn’t thought about that question coming in here, but quickly, off the top of my head, running through that, I think, I would have to say the young freshmen, both Ramage and Schultz, have adapted to the college game faster than I think we anticipated, in terms of their ability to do things. I’m sure you would agree with this after watching a lot of college hockey throughout your time here, Andy, that they don’t play like freshmen, first semester, right now. So I would have to say those two young gentlemen.

QUESTION #7: Could you describe what your goaltender situation will be for this weekend’s games?

EAVES: Probably based on what we’ve done so far, it will be very much looking like what it did this past weekend.

QUESTION #8: Do you ever sit back, you know, think about Red Berenson and how long he’s coached at Michigan, or Rick Comley, I mean, do you ever sit back and say, wow?

EAVES: I’ve actually taken time, not specifically with those two gentleman, well, although Rick, at the coaches meeting last spring in Florida, actually Mike Cerniglia and I were having lunch, we ran into Rick at the Dairy Queen, and we sat and talked about, you know, his longevity and things he’s done. I’ve talked to Jerry York about it. Talked to Jackie Parker about it, and just trying to pick their brain. It is amazing. It amazes me as to the longevity and how they have done things over their career to keep their interest, keep their energy up, and it was fun to talk to them because, you know, Red’s going to be 70. Think about it. And not having talked to him and talking to people around him, it’s the fact that he loves being around the game, loves being around the kids.

QUESTION #9: Kind of in the same part, you just hit your 150th win, and we’re talking about two guys who are, you know, a couple of decades ahead of you in that sense. It makes you appreciate their ability to stay in the game, their ability to adapt, I would think, was probably their greatest achievement, given where the game was and where it is now.

EAVES: Without question. That fact alone, in terms of on a personal level, having coached over 25 years, I’ve been in the game awhile, but not at the same level and doing the same type of thing. The things that those gentlemen that I just mentioned a moment ago is the fact that they have changed. They’ve changed the way they play. They changed the way they recruit. They’ve been adaptable to the times. And you know, I think that’s why they’re still doing what they’re doing, still enjoying what they’re doing, and I think it’s a lesson for life, if we don’t adapt and change as we grow older, then life becomes a little bit of a bugaboo, and we fight it rather than enjoy it.

QUESTION #10: Mike, did we see on that one play, Derek Lee to Jordy Murray, the ability that Mr. Lee has with the puck?

EAVES: Yeah. We talked about that this morning, on both ends of it. The fact that Derek had the patience to wait. He made a pass, but he has that thing you don’t teach. It was partially touched by the defensemen, but it got through to the goal scorer, Jordy, who made a heck of a shot in it. So that’s a good observation, Brian, it was a glimpse of, I think, we’ve seen it in practice, and we saw it there in the game.

QUESTION #11: Terribly unfair hypothetical, would you rather have a really outstanding power play or an outstanding penalty kill? That’s not a reflection on your current status, because your power play has the potential, and your PK is doing really well. But would you rather have, if you could only choose one or the other, where would you go?

EAVES: Can I give a hypothetical answer, so it doesn’t mean anything? You know what, in a game like Saturday, I would like the great penalty killing, because it was something that we had to have in order to win that game, because it was such a turning point. So it really depends on the game. You know, you go back to the championship game against Boston College, it was a power play that came through. Although our team’s power play that year wasn’t what you would call unbelievable. It was solid. I think it was between 15 and 17%. But a lot of times on power play, Andy, it’s not what your percentage is, it’s when you score. It’s getting that big goal when you need it, and to me, I guess in kind of talking this out loud, I would rather have a great penalty killing and then timely goals by our power play. Well, that worked out well.

QUESTION #12: Does this trip screw up your Thanksgiving?

EAVES: Only every other year. We’ve kind of got used to it in terms of, we’ve been doing this now since we got here. So on a personal level, you know, we always have Thanksgiving at our home here, so Beth is used to me not being there and having a little extra chores to do, although I don’t do that much anyway. But we’ve had some great meals on the road. We always seem to find a good place, and they treat us really well, so not too much.

QUESTION #13: . . .

EAVES: Yes, yeah, yeah.

QUESTION #14: What would you say was the turning point in your game against Cloud State on Saturday?

EAVES: Well, without question, it was the five-minute kill. I think that what it did for us was give us energy, and on the other side of the coin, it took energy away from them.

QUESTION #15: Mike, with regards to the recruiting class that you finally unveiled today, is that a reflection of your philosophy now, a really good reflection of the philosophy you have of bringing in guys that have that mix of, you know, NHL potential versus inexperience versus youth and talent, the mix that you would like?

EAVES: I think a mix in a lot of ways, and I think if you take a look at those kids that are coming in, we have guys that have roles to be played on our team. We have guys that are more skilled, guys that will work hard, stay at home defensemen, offensive defensemen. I think we have a good blend. In terms of top end guys, you know, there’s not those Kyle Turris’ in this class, but that is a reflection on the fact that we’re going to be very careful about how many of those guys we go after, and having guys around longer than shorter is a priority.