Center Gallucci anchors returning core; new left wing Piotrowski adds size and, reportedly, “a willingness to fight”
Tonight at 7:30 p.m., the Badgers step onto the ice at the Civic Center for the first game in the history of the franchise, and if Head Coach Frank Drewicz is calm about it — and he is, with the particular calm of a man who has convinced himself that nervousness is a tactical disadvantage — it is because he has been preparing for this moment since he first walked into this town and decided, as he put it, “to be the kind of coach this kind of team needs.”
What kind of coach does this kind of team need? Drewicz has a very specific answer.
“The kind who knows that half the players are twenty-three years old and still think they can coast on talent,” he said Thursday morning at practice, watching the team run through neutral zone breakouts for the third consecutive session. “And the kind who has been coaching long enough to know that talent alone has never won anything, ever, not once, in the entire history of sport.”
His top line centers on Kevin “Kev” Gallucci, twenty-four, who scored thirty-one goals in his previous league before coming here and who has described his own game as “smart, creative, and occasionally brilliant if I had a good night’s sleep.” Drewicz describes Gallucci’s game as “excellent when he listens and theoretical when he doesn’t.” Both men say this dynamic is “working out.”
New acquisition Marek Piotrowski, left wing, comes from a team in the Northern Premier League and is described in his scouting report as “a willing combatant” with a “strong defensive work ethic” and a “notable difficulty remaining in the penalty-free zone for extended periods.” When asked about this, Piotrowski said: “The referees in this league will get used to my style.” Drewicz closed his eyes briefly at this statement.
Head Coach: Frank Drewicz
Asst. Coach: Terry Molnar
#11 Kevin Gallucci, C (Captain)
#22 Marek Piotrowski, LW
#7 Denny Faust, RW
#44 Chad Luecke, D
#33 Ivan Kowalski, D
#1 Greg Holter, G
Full roster: Page C2
The Foundry takes the field for their first game as a program; Marthaler says team has “no excuses and no history to hide behind, which is either a weakness or a strength”
The Foundry will play its first football game Friday night at 7 p.m. against an opponent from the county league, a game Head Coach Tom Marthaler has prepared for with the thoroughness of a man who has been coaching high school football for fourteen years and who views a lack of preparation as a character flaw.
Quarterback Brandon Szymanski, a junior who was named starter after a three-week training camp competition that Marthaler describes as “closely contested but not very close, ultimately,” said he is “ready to play.” He said this several times, in different conversations, to different people, on Thursday, apparently because it is his primary mode of communication when discussing football.
The Foundry’s team name was chosen, Marthaler explained, because “this is a town with a foundry history and a working-class identity, and I wanted the kids to play like they understood that. Like they had something to be proud of that came before the scoreboard.”
Don Pavalko has covered sports for twenty-two years. He has seen dynasty teams and catastrophe teams and teams that were somehow both. He has covered five championship runs and one memorable incident involving a penalty flag that ended a career. What he hasn’t done, until now, is cover a team that doesn’t have any history at all. Read his observations on what it’s like to walk into a sports section with no score to settle, no legacy to uphold, and no losing streak to explain away.
Badgers center Kevin Gallucci has become the team’s most vocal advocate for the Bespoke AI Models being manufactured at the factory down the street. He says his model — which he had fitted in August during the pre-season — has changed the way he approaches film study. “I tell it what I noticed in the game. It tells me what I missed. Then I watch the missed parts. Then I know more.” Coach Drewicz has asked players not to use AI tools during game prep. Gallucci was asked about this. He smiled.
Civic Center Ice: The Civic Center ice plant is operational and the rink is “as good as any surface I’ve skated on,” says Gallucci.
Badgers Schedule: Full home and away schedule now posted at the Civic Center box office and at http://www.theinternetlives.net/badgers.
Foundry Tickets: $5 general admission, $3 students. Available at the gate. Parking is free but Marthaler asks that you arrive before kickoff, “out of respect for the game.”