It was a historic night for No. 1 Wisconsin (3-0 WCHA, 3-0 overall), who blanked Ohio State (2-1, 2-1) 3-0 at LaBahn Arena Friday night. That shutout gave Badgers senior goalie Ann-Renée Desbiens the program record for career shutouts at 40, passing UW great Jessie Vetter.
“I think it was pretty awesome to [get the record] at home in front of the fans,” Desbiens said. “Being able to share the moment with them was a good feeling.”
She was also quick to thank her teammates.
“They block a couple of shots I know that hurt, that’s not always fun for them, but they do it for you and it’s always a nice feeling to know that they have your back and that they care so much about you, that they’re willing to sacrifice themselves,” Desbiens said. “It’s a team achievement, and yes, it’s going to be my name on the record, but everyone that is around knows that it's not only me.”
Head coach Mark Johnson had high praise for his senior leader.
“She had really good, strong practices Tuesday and Wednesday, and if you watch her in the second period, they have multiple power plays and they’re putting the puck around the crease and the goal area,” Johnson said. “She’s focused in and was tracking the puck real well; give her a lot of credit for her ability to stay in attention and pay attention to detail … She earned it tonight.”
Offensively, the Badgers wasted little time in scoring the game’s first goal. Racing down the ice with a two-on-one, junior forward Emily Clark slid the puck past the goalie, coming off assists from sophomore left wing Sam Cogan and junior right wing Annie Pankowski.
The second period was the exact opposite for the Badgers. UW faced lots of opportunities to extend its lead, but a combination of good goalie play and penalties cost the Badgers. Finally, with just over two minutes left in the period, Clark struck again, lighting the lamp for the second time on the night.
Wisconsin would add one final goal for good measure, as senior defenseman Jenny Ryan raced out of the penalty box and slipped the puck past the goalie. The Badgers then controlled the puck the rest of the quarter.
UW outshot the Buckeyes by an astonishing 47-to-15 margin, as OSU only mustered up two shots on goal in the third period.
Redshirt sophomore goalie Kassidy Sauve, the reigning WCHA Defensive Player of the Week, was solid for the Buckeyes, stopping 41 of 44 shots despite being under siege for most of the game.
Wisconsin finishes up the series with the Buckeyes Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.
