Trying to find a way to catch this weekend's Badger hockey games against Minnesota State? Don't worry, the BH has you covered.

Join Badger Herald beat writer Tyler Mason and WSUM sports director Eric Levine as they broadcast the game live from the Alltel Center in Mankato. Click here to access WSUM's live online sports stream or go to http://vu.wsum.net/sports.

Despite a disappointing 4-3 overtime loss to Denver Friday night--in which the Badgers allowed the game-tying goal with 14.4 seconds to play in regulation--Wisconsin moved up a spot in the PairWise rankings to 14th and would be in the NCAA tournament if it were to start today.

How did this happen? Well, a few other losses around the country certainly helped the Badgers, who couldn't help themselves with a win. Minnesota, who was a spot ahead of Wisconsin before yesterday, lost 4-3 to Colorado College. Also, Michigan beat Ohio State 4-1, keeping the Buckeyes behind the Badgers by two spots.

So as ugly as Friday's win may have been for fans, UW is strangely enough in tournament position. It makes you wonder how high they'd be in the PairWise today if they had won last night and at least taken one of two games against Northern Michigan. That makes tonight's game against the Pioneers that much bigger--as if it wasn't important enough already.

UW forward Joe Krabbenhoft earned his first career Big Ten Player of the Week award following his nine point, eight rebound and six steal performance in the Badgers' 55-50 win over the Buckeyes on Saturday.

Krabbenhoft's six steals were a career high for the senior, who is often considered one of the better defensive players in the Big Ten. He was assigned to guard Ohio State standout guard Evan Turner, who shot 9-for-13 from the field. However, Krabbenhoft's relentless defense forced six turnovers from Turner, who averages over 17 points per game.

The honor is the first such award for a UW player since former center Brian Butch received the Player of the Week prize on Dec. 31, 2007.

For their strong performances this past weekend in a sweep over the Minnesota Golden Gophers, Wisconsin defenseman Jamie McBain and goaltender Shane Connelly earned weekly honors.�

McBain, a junior from Faribault, Minn., scored two goals--one in each game, including a short-handed goal Friday--and added a pair of assists against the Gophers. He was named the WCHA Co-Offensive Player of the Week and received Inside College Hockey's Player of the Week honors.�

Connelly stopped 43 Gopher shots on Friday--including 19 in the first period alone--and another 33 shots Saturday in 3-2 and 5-4 wins, respectively. He was named the WCHA Defensive Player of the Week. Despite sweeping Minnesota,�

Wisconsin moved up just one spot--17th to 16th--in the PairWise rankings. Essentially, the top 14 teams in the PairWise make the NCAA tournament, so the Badgers still have some work to do. They did move up in the USCHO.com poll, however, from 16th to 13th.

It's hard to imagine that in the early 1990's, the University of Wisconsin struggled to fill its football home, Camp Randall Stadium, with enough fans to sell out conference games.

Now at UW, it's difficult to picture a game at Camp Randall without a packed home crowd donning the Wisconsin cardinal and rooting for the Badgers, no matter who they're playing.

Wisconsin's recent sports success began when current athletic director Barry Alvarez led the Badgers to three Rose Bowl titles in seven seasons, after winning only five conference games in his previous three seasons. Since then, the Badgers haven't looked back. But UW's success isn't measured simply by wins and losses; Madison prides itself as a school and a town that loves its sports.

While College GameDay wasn't able to swing by Wisconsin during the 2008 football season (and given the Badgers' disappointing season, that might be a good thing), ESPN is bringing one of its most popular shows to Badger Land during a more competitive basketball season.

After a Final Four appearance in 2000 under head coach Dick Bennett, Badger fans felt spoiled. A year removed from a Rose Bowl win, then an unprecedented run in the NCAA Tournament? Let's just say that when current Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan took over the basketball program near the beginning of the 2000-2001 season, few could have imagined that a perennial featherweight in the Big Ten would soon turn into a conference powerhouse.

Well, it happened, and now the entire nation will see why the reigning Big Ten champions, their seven consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances and The Grateful Red deserve to be on the national spotlight.

Once crowned the nation's "best college sports town" by Sports Illustrated, Madison, along with the students who go to school in Wisconsin's capital, are beyond excited to be on the country's center stage on College GameDay.

During Ryan's reign as head coach, Badger fans have crammed the Kohl Center to put Wisconsin's attendance rankings atop the Big Ten for five of the last six seasons. Now, GameDay gets to show the entire nation what UW's time-honored sports tradition is all about, where the fans are as much a part of the games as the teams are.

Perhaps GameDay's arrival in Madison couldn't have come at a more perfect time this season. After losing six straight games, the Ryan-led Badgers won consecutive games, including a home win over No. 23 Illinois, which soundly beat Wisconsin two weeks earlier, and a grinding road win over Penn State.

Now, with a much-anticipated matchup against the Ohio State Buckeyes, the Badgers may have a chance to rejuvenate their bid for the NCAA Tournament, and you can bet their fans will be there to root them on.

Badger fans might not hate Ohio State quite as much as Marquette or Minnesota, but with a fan base like this, those watching GameDay will understand why until this season, the Badgers averaged only one loss over their last seven seasons at the Kohl Center.

Simply put, no matter who the Badgers play, their fans get riled up. When GameDay gets here, I wouldn't necessarily say I'm afraid to see what they'll do, but let's just say there will be more than the typical face-painting for ESPN viewers to see.

So maybe a repeat of last year is out of reach. The Badgers are long shots (OK, let's be realistic - they have almost no shot of winning the Big Ten), and even a tournament berth is in jeopardy.

But now, finishing atop the conference is an afterthought to these Badgers, and you can bet that on GameDay, Ryan, Wisconsin and its fans will be ready to show the country why Madison is still the best college sports town, and why a repeat of the 2000 season isn't all that far-fetched.

For more information on College GameDay, check out www.espn.com/gamedaybasketball

Both the Badger men's and women's hockey teams are in Minneapolis this weekend to take on the Golden Gophers, and the Badger Herald and WSUM have all your live coverage. Join Herald beat writer Tyler Mason as he and Eric Levine broadcast all four of the weekend's games live on WSUM's online sports stream. To listen in, click here�or go to WSUM.org.

The men's games start at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday night, with the broadcast beginning about 15 minutes before the puck drops. The women's teams face off at 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday afternoon. Hope to have you all listening into the four Border Battle games.

Some things didn't make�today's story�in the Herald on four Badgers who all attended Shattuck-St. Mary's in Faribault, Minn. Here are some of the highlights:

Tom Ward, SSM's hockey director and head coach of the boy's prep team, on the rigorous schedules:�

"It takes a toll, absolutely it does. That's part of what makes them ready to go when they move on and do whatever they're going to do at the next level. That's all part of the process. It's part of the environment that they're in here. They get used to traveling and getting home late and night and getting up early in the morning and going to school. The expectation's on them to get good grades and they get to practice the next day and get after it. They can put themselves to bed at night and get themselves up and feed themselves. That's not easy to do as a 15-year-old kid."

Ward, on players keeping in touch after leaving Shattuck:�

"There's a real unique bond between the student-athletes here and our school that's life-lasting. It's great to come and see these kids at alumni events and how they keep in touch. I know Jonathan Toews and Zach Parise and Sidney (Crosby) all got together at the All-Star Game. They're not from the same hometown. They just have one thing in common, and that's Shattuck."

Ward, on McBain:

"Jamie was a good player when he was here. He's a skillful kid. He's come a long way from a 13-year-old kid or 14-year-old kid when he first showed up at Shattuck. His game, his skill level has just blossomed. He's a great young man."

Ward, on Murray and Stepan:

"They're members of a team to do the first thing we've had, and that's back-to-back national championships here, which is something that they were able to do that a lot of other pretty dang good players were a part of that weren't able to pull off. ... They're both great kids. They're hard-working kids. They're the kind of guys that are the first guys on the ice at practice and the last guys off. ... I think the Badger fans will see in time, once they become upperclassmen and get more leadership roles on the team that they'll find out the true kind of people that they are."

Stepan, on winning back-to-back titles:

"We joke around about it. It's called the 'Shattuck Curse.' Every other year, you win the national championship. ... When we came back after my junior year, we knew we were going to be stronger because our junior class, a lot of the guys were sticking around. ... When we snapped it, it was a pretty cool feeling."

At the completion of last season, I wrote a column on team captain Davis Drewiske, who remained unsigned by a professional team until after the Badgers lost to North Dakota in the NCAA Tournament. But just days after the loss, the Los Angeles Kings came calling.

Drewiske then spent time with the Kings' AHL affiliate, the Manchester Monarchs, before being called up to the big show earlier this week. He saw action in his first game last night against the Ottawa Senators--ironically enough, against his former teammate and Senators goaltender Brian Elliott.

Drewiske didn't record a point but played 14 shifts in his first career NHL game. He and the Kings got the best of Elliott in a 1-0 win.