For the third consecutive season, the No. 2 Wisconsin Badgers (35-3-1) return to the NCAA Women’s Hockey Frozen Four looking to bring a National Championship trophy back to Madison for the first time since 2011.
Their semifinal matchup comes against an opponent they are very familiar with. The No. 3 Minnesota Golden Gophers (33-4-1) advanced to the Frozen Four as well, defeating Princeton 6-2 in the quarterfinals, setting up the sixth game between the Badgers and the Gophers this season.
The first five haven’t been lacking the typical intensity and drama that comes with the Border Battle.
The first series took place at LaBahn Arena back in December, when Wisconsin pulled out a sweep behind a 3-2 overtime victory and 3-1 win that was only a one-goal game until Minnesota pulled their goalie.
In the return series in Minneapolis, the Gophers handled Wisconsin 4-0 in the first game, but the second game went to OT, with Minnesota getting a goal to win the game and sweep its home series.
The final game came in the WCHA tournament final, where Minnesota was looking for revenge after conceding the conference title to Wisconsin for the first time in four years. But the Badgers went into Minneapolis and won 1-0, putting the season series 3-2 in favor of the Cardinal and White, and all the hardware went to the Badgers.
Now the Border Battle is back, and the biggest title of the season is riding on it. Naturally, head coach Mark Johnson and his team are looking forward to the game.
“Everybody is excited. Right time to be excited in regards to we get to practice again today, that means we got another game at hand, and certainly the opponent has been there before,” Johnson said at a Monday press conference. “We've played each other five times now this season, so it's who is going to be able to come out, execute and do the little things necessary to give their team the best opportunities to win. So it should be a fun atmosphere, it should be a fun game to play in, and certainly our players are excited for the opportunity.”
Throughout the whole season, one of the recurring themes for the team has been to focus on doing the little things right, and that focus is perhaps even more important when the season comes down to one game, like it does in the Frozen Four.
“I think details definitely win games,” sophomore forward Emily Clark said. “All season we’ve just been focused on what’s in front of us and not looking too far ahead and that’s been a big part of our success.”
The Badgers are bringing an experienced team to Durham, N.H., as the only players on the roster without Frozen Four experience are the three freshmen.
Forwards Sam Cogan and Sophia Shaver, along with defenseman Mikaela Gardner, all play important roles for the team despite their youth, but they have a lot of players to look up to to figure out how to approach such a meaningful game.
“I think that we are just trying to set an example,” junior defenseman Jenny Ryan said. “Being calm and collected, and acting like we’ve been there, as most of us have. There’s been so many players here before us that have put that legacy out for our team and made it to the Frozen Four so many times. I think that [the freshmen] see how experienced we all are and they are comfortable stepping into those shoes knowing this team is experienced even if they aren’t necessarily as individuals.”
That experience goes a long way in important games, specifically from a mental standpoint, because senior captain Courtney Burke and the team aren’t approaching this game any differently than they have all season.
“I don’t think we look at [the game] any differently,” Burke said. “We just need to go in there and stick to our game and not worry about anything else. They’re gonna come out, but we will too, and it will be a good game.”
It’s hard for Wisconsin not to feel confident when they have Patty Kaz Award finalist, Ann-Renée Desbiens in goal. Yet to allow a goal in six postseason games, Johnson believes Desbiens should be the recipient of the Patty Kaz Award this year.
“I think the numbers she has put up, the NCAA record, probably lot of people felt was one that may not be broken,” Johnson said. “She has gone beyond that, and she obviously has put our team in a position to play in the Frozen Four. We won our WCHA league title, we won our playoff title. Her resume is pretty impressive, as well as the other two individuals that are part of the equation.”
In a game where every play can have an impact on the season, it helps the other players knowing Desbiens is behind them.
“She definitely has been awesome for us all year long,” Ryan said. “It’s a comfort factor back there knowing that if you do make a mistake she is going to be behind you.”
The Badgers have taken the whole season one game at a time, but a win over Minnesota would put them in the National Championship game versus the winner of Boston College and Clarkson. Capturing a national title, especially for the eight seniors on the roster, would be an incredible accomplishment for a team that has already accomplished so much.
“I think it would just top off this year we’ve had, we’ve had a pretty special year and I think that would just be the icing on the cake to get that national championship,” Burke said. “Everyone on the team believes we can do it and knows we can do it, so hopefully we can get the title.”
The semifinal matchup against Minnesota will take place March 18 with the puck dropping at 6 p.m. A win would send Wisconsin to the National Championship game March 20.
