BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — Under most circumstances, the milestone that Matt Jurusik reached that Saturday afternoon in early December would have been cause for euphoria.
In his 14th start as the freshman goaltender for the Wisconsin men's hockey team, Jurusik made 28 saves and turned in his first career shutout during a 3-0 Big Ten Conference victory over Michigan State.
The win on Dec. 12 was huge at the time. It closed out a difficult first half of the season on an upbeat note. It salvaged a series split one day after UW blew a pair of two-goal leads and dropped a 4-3 decision to the Spartans. It also ended a six-game winless streak.
But as the red and white Badger Bus made its way from Munn Ice Arena to the airport in East Lansing, Michigan, Jurusik was in mourning.
His father, Mike, had just pulled him aside and told him that his maternal grandfather, Jerry Kowalski, had died in his sleep earlier that day.
"Really tough to hear," Matt said.
"It was a tough moment for both of us," the father said. "I think we both recognized how much of a fan he was of Matt."
Kowalski, the father of five and grandfather of 12, was 79. Five weeks earlier, he and his wife, Helen, accompanied their son-in-law to Madison to watch Matt play in a non-conference series opener against Arizona State. They saw Matt make 18 saves in a 5-1 victory and later had a keepsake photo – Matt between his beaming grandparents – taken at the Kohl Center.
Tracy Jurusik said the trip from Burr Ridge, Illinois, fulfilled a wish her father had.
"He really wanted to see Matthew play in Madison," she said. "He was so glad he had a chance to."
Matt Jurusik with his grandfather and grandmother at the Kohl Center.That trip was one of the memories that came flooding back to Matt and his father as they had their poignant talk.
"We had a couple tears, but also a couple smiles reminiscing on Grandpa K and everything he did when he was around," Matt said. "We have a ton of good memories and that makes it easier."
Jurusik and his grandfather, who ran a trucking company in Summit, Illinois, were close even though Matt had been away from his home in LaGrange, Illinois, playing hockey since junior high school.
"My dad was so proud of him," Tracy said.
"I know he was my No. 1 fan," Matt said.
That emotional moment is part of a unique narrative that is Matt Jurusik's rookie season with the Badgers. Heading into a Big Ten rematch with Michigan State on Friday and Saturday at the Kohl Center, it's been anything but ordinary.
Until mid-summer, Jurusik wasn't part of the goaltending picture at UW. Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves had signed Luke Opilka out of the U.S. National Team Developmental Program and Opilka was the projected starter for 2015-16 and beyond.
But Opilka decided in early July that he would turn pro, signing with his hometown St. Louis Blues after they tabbed him in the fifth round of the NHL Entry Draft, and creating a huge void on the UW roster.
Eaves and his new staff, associate head coach Luke Strand and assistant JB Bittner, knew of Jurusik and his stellar work with Janesville of the North American Hockey League (33 wins, 1.57 goals against average, .939 save ratio) last season. Another recruiting process kicked into gear.
A host of schools had targeted Jurusik for 2016-17, but not only was he intent on playing as an 18-year-old – he's the youngest starting goaltender among the 59 NCAA Division I programs – he wanted access to as much playing time as possible.
That ultimately led him to the Badgers, whose lone returnees, senior Adam Miller and redshirt freshman Gabe Grunwald, had zero starts between them.
"A lot of colleges were interested in him, but he had it in his mind that he wanted a big-time program and he was going to hold out for that," Tracy Jurusik said.
"I knew I'd have a chance to play right away," said Matt, who also had drawn interest from multiple Major Junior clubs in Canada. "I wanted to push myself to step in as a young guy and play at this level."
Landing Jurusik wasn't all that difficult, but the mechanics of getting him admitted to school, finding housing and inserting him into an unfamiliar team setting at that late stage were "daunting," according to Eaves.
"It was so crazy," Tracy Jurusik said. "I do remember thinking it was pretty flawless, but there was a lot to do in a very short amount of time.
"It was a crazy time, but it all worked out miraculously."
Jurusik, listed at 6-foot-2 and 193 pounds, is young enough that he showed up on campus wearing braces on his teeth. They were gone before the first game, but not before he caught some good-natured flak from teammates.
"That didn't help with the chirping," he said. "But I got them off and grew up a little bit, so it's going good."
Jurusik, one of nine freshmen to play in at least 10 games for the Badgers, goes by the curious nickname of "Jannie." It was bestowed upon him by a fellow rookie, winger Luke Kunin, and refers to Steve Janaszak, the backup goaltender for Team USA in 1980 who never played for the iconic gold medal winners in the Winter Olympics.
"The first week we here he was just joking around," Jurusik said of Kunin. "It just stuck.
"I think it might have been a little of a backhanded compliment or chirp, but I like it. I think it's funny and the guys like it, too."
Jurusik has turned in some noteworthy performances. In addition to getting his first career shutout on the road, he beat the top-ranked team on the road – a 3-1 decision over North Dakota on Nov. 6 – and made 54 saves – the most by UW freshman – during a 4-3 overtime loss at Penn State.
But his overall statistics – 6-11-6, 3.40 goals against and a .893 save ratio in 25 starts – suggest there have been some struggles, too.
"They're definitely not good numbers," Jurusik said, "but I'm a young guy and I'm learning. There've been a couple blips in the road, but other than that I've had some really solid games over the course of the year."
That description fits the Badgers, who are 6-13-7 overall, but have had the lead or been tied in the third period of 18 games.
"It's about finding consistency and the numbers will come up," Jurusik said of his own game. "I see it as I need to settle down and become more consistent.
"I really don't see myself as an under .900 goalie, but that's where I am right now. I just need to work every day and get better. The better I get the better chance we have to win as a team."
Eaves said judging Jurusik's season to date means looking at the big picture, not a thumbnail sketch.
"You take all that's gone on in his life, if you're just a pure hockey person, you're thinking those numbers aren't very good," Eaves said. "But if you look at the whole picture, those numbers are darn good."
Jurusik said things have calmed down since his whirlwind introduction to college life. He said he hasn't decided on a major, but had a 2.5 grade-point average his first semester.
"It was a little hectic for a couple months there, but it settled down a couple weeks into school," he said.
Jurusik was asked if he has a philosophy for being adaptable.
"I just feel everything will work out eventually," he said. "You just have to work hard and put your mind to it.
"You have to have fun. I haven't had a bad day here yet. I'm having fun every day.
"We're going in the right direction. I'm going in the right direction."
Before he died, Jurusik's grandfather saw him win his first collegiate game.
After he died, it's fair to wonder if Grandpa K was involved once again in his first collegiate shutout.
"I have no doubt in my mind," Tracy Jurusik said.
"A lot of people have said that, that he was watching over me as I played," Matt said. "I don't know if that's what it took to get the job done, but it got done."
