The Wisconsin men’s hockey team (11-18-3) is ranked sixth in the Big Ten Standings, only ahead of Notre Dame. Wisconsin will play the Fighting Irish this weekend at home, but even losing both games wouldn’t put Notre Dame ahead in the rankings.
In the Big Ten Tournament picture, the Badgers are looking for some luck to jump to the No. 5 seed. This will happen if No. 1 Michigan State sweeps Penn State and Wisconsin sweeps Notre Dame this weekend.
If Wisconsin finishes with the No. 5 seed, they will play the No. 4 seed Michigan, a team that the Badgers could match up against well this season. This series could really test both teams, and with three games played, lead to either outcome.
If Wisconsin finishes with the No. 6 seed, which is likely, they’ll play a three-game series against No. 3 seed Ohio State, the team that beat the Badgers every time the two played this season. Wisconsin would face a strong team offensively that swept them 4-1 and 4-2 last weekend.
While Penn State tries to avoid getting swept two weekends in a row, they are playing top-ranked Michigan State. If Penn State earns the upset, Wisconsin will play Ohio State. The Badgers will need to be strong defensively and have a goaltender that can stop whatever gets through the defense.
Sophomore Quinn Finley has been on a scoring drought. He hasn't recorded a single point since Jan. 25 against Michigan, going six games without a goal or an assist.
The Badgers will need the player that scored 19 goals and recorded 24 points this season to compete with Ohio State’s Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, who has 31 points this season. Fontaine is followed closely by Riley Thompson and Davis Burnside, both of whom have 28 points.
As for the current Big Ten Tournament seeding, Michigan State took the No. 1 seed on a bye week where they already have a spot in the semifinals single elimination round. No. 2 seed Minnesota will play No. 7 seed Notre Dame in the quarterfinals, likely advancing to the semifinals with a sweep of the Fighting Irish.
Currently, No. 5 seed Penn State will play No. 4 seed Michigan, a game that could go either way. In the semifinals, the winner of this series is likely to end up playing No. 1 seed Michigan State.
If Wisconsin wins against Ohio State and Notre Dame loses to Minnesota, Wisconsin would then play Michigan State.
Wisconsin has a difficult road ahead of them, but a three-game series to start off has one extra game that they may need to fall back on. The likelihood that the Badgers jump to the No. 5 seed is slim, so preparing to play Ohio State is their best opportunity for success.
If Wisconsin pulls off two wins against Ohio State and a win against Michigan State, they are likely to face Minnesota. Wisconsin and Minnesota had close games this season in Wisconsin and fell apart when they played in Minnesota.
Playoff hockey is a different game and Wisconsin does have a chance, but they need their leading goal scorer, little-to-no penalties and confidence in their goaltenders for that postseason playoff push.
The Badgers will play their last regular season series at the Kohl Center against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish this weekend to determine their Big Ten Tournament seed.
