Tag: Wisconsin Hockey

Wisconsin men’s hockey team captain signs with minor league team in Idaho

Wisconsin men’s hockey team captain signs with minor league team in Idaho

Former Wisconsin men’s hockey team captain Mike Vorlicky signed with the Idaho Steelheads on Thursday.

Based in Boise, Idaho, the Steelheads have been a member of the East Coast Hockey League’s Western Conference since 2016-17. The league includes professional minor hockey squads in the United States and Canada and serves as a farm system to the American Hockey League and National Hockey League.

Most specifically, the Steelheads are a direct affiliate of the NHL’s Dallas Stars.

Vorlicky joins the Idahoan squad on a five-year contract after playing five seasons with the Badgers from 2019-24. Most recently, the defenseman appeared in 37 games as the platoon’s team captain in his graduate season.

In total, Vorlicky skated in 124 bouts for UW under former head coach Tony Granato and current leader Mike Hastings. He scored four goals and pocketed 17 assists for 21 points during his five-year tenure in Madison.

The righty took 84 total shots as a Badger and registered 12 of his 21 points during his final seasons as a representative of UW. He also helped guide UW to the conference’s regular season title during the 2020-21 season.

Given the Steelheads’ ties to professional opportunities, Vorlicky could end up playing himself into a major league role down the line. The team captain title at one of the nation’s premier hockey programs never hurts.

Former Wisconsin men’s hockey stars unite on St. Louis Blues

Former Wisconsin men’s hockey stars unite on St. Louis Blues

The St. Louis Blues acquired former Wisconsin men’s hockey star Dylan Holloway on Tuesday.

Holloway, who skated with the Badgers from 2019-21, will unite with fellow UW alumnus Ryan Suter with the Blues this season. Suter, a native of Madison, Wisconsin, signed with the Blues in June after a storied career with the Minnesota Wild and Dallas Stars from 2012-24.

Holloway arrives in St. Louis after his former crew, the Edmonton Oilers, declined to match his offer sheet signed in early August. The Bragg Creek, Alberta native was the first college player selected in the 2020 NHL Draft when he went No. 14 to the Oilers in the first round.

The center logged 16 goals and nine assists in 38 regular-season games a season ago, per St. Louis. The southpaw also suited up for all 25 of the Oilers postseason games en route to Edmonton’s loss in the Stanley Cup Final.

At UW, Holloway was a top-10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award as a sophomore, the same season he took home First-Team All-Big Ten team nods and captured a silver medal with Team Canada at World Junior Championship.

Holloway will begin the next chapter of his professional hockey career alongside Suter, a First-Team NHL All-Star and Norris Trophy runner-up with the Minnesota Wild over a decade ago.

LOOK: Wisconsin women’s hockey announces updates to 2024-25 slate

Wisconsin women’s hockey announces updates to 2024-25 schedule

Wisconsin’s women’s hockey program announced updates to its 2024-25 schedule on Monday.

The crew, captained by dynastic head coach Mark Johnson, will play a total of 34 regular season games before embarking on its quest for an eighth NCAA Tournament championship this winter.

The schedule includes seven home series and 15 total home contests from Sept. 27 through Feb. 22. Wisconsin kick-starts its season against Lindenwood on Friday, Sept. 27 and Saturday, Sept. 28, a few weeks before they welcome Minnesota Duluth to Madison’s La Bahn Arena.

UW also hosts Bemidji State in October, St. Thomas in November, Ohio State, Minnesota State and St. Cloud State in January and Minnesota in February.

Puck drop times for all of these matches will be released in the next few weeks. For more information about Wisconsin’s home schedule, click here.

The Badgers will also travel to Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts to play Boston College the weekend of Oct. 4 and Minneapolis, Minnesota to play the Golden Gophers the weekend of Oct. 18.

St Cloud State (Nov. 1-2), Ohio State (Nov. 15-16), Maine (Nov. 29-30), Minnesota State, (Dec. 6-7) St. Thomas (Jan. 17-18), Minnesota Duluth (Jan 31-Feb. 1) and Bemidji State (Feb. 21-22) are included on UW’s away game list as well.

Wisconsin went 35-6 a season ago before falling to Ohio State in the NCAA title game. The program, which embodies consistency on the ice, will aim to reach the pinnacle of college hockey once more in late March.

Wisconsin men’s hockey legend officially announces retirement from the NHL

Wisconsin men’s hockey legend officially announces retirement from the NHL

Former Wisconsin men’s hockey legend Joe Pavelski has officially announced his retirement, according to the NHL’s recent post on X.

After 18 illustrious seasons representing both the San Jose Sharks and Dallas Stars, Pavelski officially hung up his skates after 1,332 games in the NHL. The Plover, Wisconsin native orchestrated one of the more storied amateur and professional careers of any Badger in program history.

Before representing Wisconsin, an 18-year-old Pavelski earned United States Hockey League Rookie of the Year in 2002-03 with Waterloo on the junior ice hockey scene. The Sharks picked the Wisconsin product at No. 205 in the seventh round of the 2003 NHL draft before he starred in Madison.

During his 2004-05 freshman campaign at UW, Pavelski led NCAA first-years in points with 16 goals and 29 assists. He followed that up with an NCAA championship in 2006 and paced the team in both assists and points.

Pavelski made his professional debut with San Jose on Nov. 22, 2006 and registered his first 20-goal season in the NHL in 2008-09. He reached his peak during the 2013-14 season after recording career-bests in goals (41) and points (79). The output netted him NHL Second All-Star Team and Sharks Player of the Year nods.

As captain of the 2015-16 Sharks, Pavelski earned his first NHL All-Star Game bid and guided San Jose to its first Stanley Cup Final against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Sharks would ultimately lose the series in six games.

The former Badger’s quest for a Stanley Cup, however, would not end there.

A year after signing with the Dallas Stars in July 2019, Pavelski’s Stars reached the Stanley Cup Finals but fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games. Still, the Plover product led Dallas and was second among all players with 13 playoff goals at age 36.

Pavelski played four more seasons with the Stars and scored his 1,000th NHL point on April 10, 2023.

The Badger legend finished his career with 476 goals and 592 assists for 1,068 points in over 1,330 regular-season games for Dallas and San Jose. After the conclusion of the 2023-24 slate, Pavelski also ranked fifth in goals and games among active players.

Pavelski will now turn a chapter on his ice hockey career after cementing his legacy as one of the Badgers’ all-time greats. It’s safe to say the NHL and Badger faithful throughout the nation will miss watching him skate past defenders on a professional stage.

Wisconsin Athletics reveals new courtside seating options in Kohl Center

Wisconsin Athletics reveals new courtside seating options in Kohl Center

Wisconsin Athletics displayed renderings for new courtside seating options at the Kohl Center in a press release Tuesday.

The construction will be completed in time for the 2024-25 basketball season.

Located adjacent to the rink and hardwood, visuals depict a few extra rows of seating for Badger fans next season. These seats will be located on each side of the ice sheet at the event level of the Kohl Center, per UW Athletics.

“These upgrades will help to create an exciting, new fan experience and drive additional revenue that will support Badger student-athletes across our 23 sport programs,” UW Director of Athletics Chris McIntosh told UWBadgers.com

The renovation will also include high-quality seating surfaces and access to the Krantz Club, an event-level club space, starting in January. Other amenities include parking priorities, inclusive food and drink services and a cash bar.

The renovation arrives shortly after the Kohl Center’s ice sheet dimensions were reduced to NHL proportions in February. This ultimately created extra space between the event level and the playing fields.

Wisconsin’s Kohl Center is home to the both the men’s and women’s basketball teams and men’s hockey team.

Former Wisconsin men’s hockey defenseman transfers to Alaska

Former Wisconsin men’s hockey defenseman transfers to Alaska

Former Wisconsin men’s hockey defenseman Luke LaMaster will transfer to the University of Alaska Fairbanks, according to BadgerExtra’s Todd Milewski.

LaMaster will join Alaska for his fifth season of collegiate eligibility. He and the Nanooks will play against the Badgers during the Holiday Face-Off in late December.

The Duluth, Minnesota native represented Wisconsin from 2020-24 before graduating this spring. He played in 65 games as a defenseman from 2020-23 and registered a career-best 21 shots during his 2022-23 junior season.

LaMaster is the sixth Badger to transfer elsewhere since the end of the 2023-24 season, joining Sam Stange, William Whitelaw, Charlie Stramel, Cruz Lucius and Brady Cleveland.

Notwithstanding the departures, the Badgers have added four new transfers, including former Northern Michigan recruit Adam Pietila and Rochester Institute of Technology alumni Cody Laskosky.

Fresh off its 26-win output in 2023-24, Wisconsin will look to build off its momentum in their second year under Hastings. Last year’s Badgers’ squad saw its most success since 2009-10 and earned a berth to the 2023-24 NCAA Tournament.

WATCH: Wisconsin hockey great in contention at American Century Championship

WATCH: Wisconsin hockey great in contention at American Century Championship

Wisconsin hockey great Joe Pavelski enters the final round of the 2024 American Century Championship in second place, trailing former professional tennis player Mardy Fish.

The golf tournament is held on the south course at the Edgewood Tahoe Resort in Lake Tahoe. It includes a star-studded field of current and former athletes, musical artists, actors and more.

Related: Why Wisconsin football will or won’t break through to College Football Playoff in 2024

Pavelsi enters Sunday’s final round with 50 points in the modified Stableford scoring format. Instead of scoring in relation to par, this format rewards 10 points for an albatross, eight points for a hole-in-one, six points for an eagle, three for a birdie, one for a par, zero for a bogey and -2 for a double bogey or worse.

He trails Fish’s 57 points and leads NFL wide receiver Adam Thielen (45 points), former MLB pitchers Derek Lowe (42) and Mark Mulder (42), LPGA legend Annika Sorenstam (41) and NBA legend Ray Allen (38).

Pavelski is currently a free agent after playing the last six years with the Dallas Stars. He has played in the NHL since 2006 after spending two seasons at Wisconsin. The veteran, who leads the NHL in all-time playoff goals by an American-born player, did recently announce that he does not intend to play this upcoming season — though did not use the word ‘retire.’

He will look to chase down Fish when the leaders tee off on Sunday.

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Former Wisconsin men’s hockey captain inks deal in American Hockey League

Former Wisconsin men’s hockey team captain inks deal in American Hockey League

Former Wisconsin men’s hockey defensemen Peter Tischke signed with the American Hockey League’s Rochester Americans on Wednesday.

Tischke’s signing arrives a few days after Wisconsin recruit Luke Osburn was selected by the Sabres with the No. 108 pick of the 2024 NHL Draft. Fellow UW recruit and left-wing Blake Montgomery was picked shortly afterwards by the Ottawa Senators.

During his four seasons in Madison, Tischke appeared in 135 games, scored eight goals and tallied 26 assists. The Hinsdale, Illinois native was named team captain for his senior campaign and pocketed the 2019 Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.

The defenseman also earned back-to-back All-Big Ten Honorable Mention nods during his sophomore and junior seasons after pacing his group with 139 combined blocks from 2017-19.

As a member of the AHL, the Americans are the an owned and operated affiliate of the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres. The Americans are the fourth oldest team in the AHL and play their home games at Rochestor’s Blue Cross Arena.

Several former Wisconsin men’s hockey players to participate in NHL development camps

Several former Wisconsin men’s hockey players to participate in NHL development camps

Over 20 current, future and former Wisconsin men’s hockey players will take part in several NHL development camps this summer.

Three undrafted current members of UW’s roster, along with seven drafted players or recruits will participate in the showcase events. Additionally, twelve Wisconsin alumni will represent the Badgers during drills both on and off the ice with multiple NHL franchises.

Minnesota, Detroit and Pittsburgh each welcome a pair of former Badgers to their camps: Kyle McClellan and Charlie Stramel will represent the Minnesota Wild, Sam Strange and Brady Cleveland will don Detroit Red Wings threads and Mathieu De St. Phalle and Cruz Lucius will sport Pittsburgh Penguins jerseys.

Current Wisconsin players Ben Dexheimer and Joe Palodichuk will skate for the Nashville Predators while Simon Tassy will participate for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Seven other recruits, including Tyson Duck and Blake Montgomery, will showcase their skills as current draftees and recruits.

Designed to provide fans a glimpse at top prospects and incoming professional talent, these development camps serve as an entertaining bridge between the conclusion of the NHL’s postseason and the beginning of its offseason.

After winning 26 games in 2023-24, Wisconsin will look to build off its output under second-year leader Mike Hastings. Last year’s Badgers’ win total was the program’s highest since 2009-10 and helped UW clinch an NCAA Tournament berth.

Wisconsin men’s hockey to open 2024-25 season with exhibition at Omaha

Wisconsin men’s hockey to open season with exhibition at Omaha

Wisconsin men’s hockey program will open its 2024-25 season with an exhibition match in Nebraska against the Omaha Mavericks on Oct. 5.

That same night, Omaha will name its rink after Mike Kemp, who served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for 14 seasons at UW.

Fresh off their 26-victory season in 2023-24, Wisconsin will look to build off their momentum in their second year of the Mike Hastings era. Last year’s Badgers’ win total was the program’s highest since 2009-10 and propelled Hastings’ group to an NCAA Tournament berth.

Wisconsin ignited its 2023-24 season with four signature wins against No. 1 Minnesota and No. 4 Michigan. Those vaulted them into college hockey’s upper echelon, but UW would ultimately fall to Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament and Quinnipiac in the NCAA Tournament.

The Badgers added former Northern Michigan signee Adam Pietila and former Rochester Institute of Technology forward Cody Laskosky via the transfer portal thus far this offseason. With years of combined postseason experience, the two will serve as pivotal veteran skaters for a team hungry to return to the NCAA’s top-five.