Badgers pull away in third period, move within a game of advancing in WCHA playoffs

The No. 3 Wisconsin Badgers (31-3-1) were able to quickly forget their sweep against Minnesota last weekend, as they defeated the Minnesota State Mavericks (3-28-4) Friday night 4-0, winning the opening game in the first-round series of the WCHA playoffs.

The last time Wisconsin faced off against Minnesota State was on Senior Day Feb. 14, when the Badgers took a 2-1 lead into the third period before scoring six goals to put the game to bed.

Today’s game went along a very similar storyline, as the Badgers struggled to find the net in the first two periods.

Wisconsin had its foot on the gas the whole game, but Minnesota State did its best to get in middle of the ice and block as many shots as it could, a game plan head coach Mark Johnson expected.

“I think we anticipated them clogging up the middle of the neutral zone, keeping people in that area and trying to create turnovers and scoring opportunities through that,” Johnson said. “We talked about our speed, getting pucks in deep, controlling pucks in the offensive zone and taking them into the scoring area, and right from the opening shift we did a pretty good job of that.”

The Badgers put 19 shots on goal in the first period, but couldn’t break through until there were two minutes left, when they went on their first power play of the night. Thirty seconds into the power play, senior captain Courtney Burke sent a hard shot to goal from the blue line. MSU goaltender Brianna Quade blocked the shot but was unable to secure the puck, which eventually fell to sophomore forward Emily Clark, who then slotted it into the net to put Wisconsin out in front.

“I was just in the right spot at the right time,” Clark said. “Lucky that it squeaked in, their goalie played really well so we needed to get players in front of them, and I was fortunate to be there.”

The second period was all Wisconsin, as it put 23 shots on goal, compared to one single shot on goal for the Mavericks. And yet, despite so many opportunities, the second period came and went without the Badgers adding to their lead. To put 42 shots on goal in their first two periods and come away with only one goal to show for it was certainly a disappointment for the team.

“I think it’s natural to get frustrated, especially in the second period when you’re throwing a lot of pucks at the net,” Johnson admitted. “Some nights, and I’ve been in hockey a long time, [the puck] doesn’t want to go in. But the big thing is to keep doing the things that create those chances.”

While the MSU goaltender was getting everything she could handle during the second, Wisconsin goaltender Ann-Renée Desbiens, who had to turn away just one shot all period, was looking for ways to keep her busy.

“[The defense] made my job pretty easy out there, and I was just saying sometimes I get bored, but it’s pretty nice to be in LaBahn because there plenty of things around for me to entertain myself with,” Desbiens said.

Two weekends ago, as the Badgers clung to a 2-1 lead over Minnesota State, the Badgers scored early and often in the third to put away the game.

Friday night, clinging to a 1-0 lead over Minnesota State, the Badgers again struck early in the third to open the game up. Less than a minute in, junior defender Mellissa Channell took the puck up by the right circle and delivered a long shot that slipped through the legs of Quade and gave Wisconsin a two-goal lead and got them going again.

“Usually all it takes is one goal, one bounce, one shot, one blocked shot, one anything,” said Channell. “And I’m not gonna say I got lucky but my goal wasn’t really the best goal around. I was going for a pot play with Sam [Cogan] and it somehow slipped through, so it kind of changed things around and then [Sarah] Nurse came up with a quick goal, so those just kind of built up on top of each other.”

Another quick goal indeed came from junior forward Sarah Nurse, who found herself leading a two-on-one break only a couple minutes later. Nurse brought the puck and elected to take it all the way herself, firing a shot past Quade to effectively seal the game for the Badgers.

The final goal of the night came when Clark sent a beautiful pass across the ice to freshman forward Sam Cogan, who controlled the puck and then went top shelf to make it 4-0.

With her 17th shutout of the season, Desbiens tied the NCAA record for most shutouts in a single season. While Desbiens likes to deflect praise she receives to her teammates, her teammates are happy to talk about the impact she has on the team.

“[Knowing Desbiens is behind her] is incredible,” Channell said. “It’s not often you get a goaltender that puts up that kind of record, but [the record] just says a lot, she’s incredible, she makes everything easy for us, she does her job and we do our job and that’s what happens.”

As the season is on the line for Minnesota State tomorrow, it’s expected the Mavericks will come out with even more fire, but Clark believes the team will be ready for it.

“Definitely tomorrow they will be coming out hard,” Clark said. “Our coach always says the hardest part of the season is ending someone else’s, but if we start the way we did tonight then we will be successful tomorrow.”

The puck drops at LaBahn Arena tomorrow at 4 p.m. A win for the Badgers would send them to the WCHA semifinals in Minneapolis next weekend.