(UW ATHLETICS) ANN ARBOR, Mich. – A perfect 23-save performance from senior goaltender Tommy Scarfone helped the Wisconsin men’s hockey team blank the No. 8 Michigan Wolverines, 4-0, on Friday night at Yost Ice Arena.
With tonight’s win, the Badgers continue to sit in second place in the Big Ten with 18 points in 11 games played.
Wisconsin (7-9-1, 5-6-0 Big Ten) opened the scoring 8:35 into the first period when Kyle Kukkonen redirected a Christian Fitzgerald shot home on the power play. The Badgers extended their lead 20 seconds into the second period on a short-handed goal from Cody Laskosky. With 2:43 left in the second period, Ryland Mosley found the back of the net to make it 3-0. UW’s special teams stayed hot as Quinn Finley added another power-play goal with 2:04 remaining in the contest to give Wisconsin the 4-0 win. Michigan (10-6-1, 4-3-0 Big Ten), who is scoreless in its last three games, was unable to find the back of the net as Scarfone stopped 23 shots on goal to record his second shutout in three games.
How it Happened
Junior forward Kukkonen got the Badgers on the board first with 11:25 left in the first period on the power play. At the right side of the Michigan blue line, freshman defenseman Logan Hensler passed in front of him to junior forward Fitzgerald in the middle of the right faceoff circle. Fitzgerald then skated to the slot before taking a shot, which Kukkonen redirected home to make it 1-0, Wisconsin.
Graduate student forward Laskosky scored the Badgers’ first short-handed goal of the year 20 seconds into the second period to extend their lead to two. At the left circle in Michigan’s defensive zone, sophomore forward Sawyer Scholl won a faceoff and left the puck in the middle of the dot. Laskosky saw the loose puck and ripped a quick shot past Michigan goaltender Logan Stein to tally his third goal of the year and make it 2-0, Badgers.
The Badgers continued their offensive momentum, putting up 18 shots in the middle frame before adding a third goal with 2:43 left in the period. Junior defenseman Ben Dexheimer passed from the right side of the blue line to sophomore defenseman Zach Schulz in the middle. Schulz took a shot, which rebounded off of the goaltender’s pads and into graduate student forward Mosley’s possession. Mosley then poked the puck past Michigan’s Logan Stein to score his eighth goal of the year.
To cap off the evening, sophomore forward Finley scored his league-leading 12th goal of the year with 2:04 left in the contest on the power play. From the slot, Dexheimer passed to freshman forward Gavin Morrissey near the left side of the net. Morrissey then passed across the zone to Finley, who let a one-timer fly to tally the Badgers’ second power-play goal of the night.
Wisconsin went 2-for-6 on the power play and 4-for-4 on the penalty kill. UW finished the contest with a 28-23 advantage in shots on goal.
Notes to know:
– The Badgers posted their first shutout at Michigan in 60 games – its first since a 0-0 tie in Ann Arbor on Feb 19, 1931
– Tommy Scarfone has two 4-0 shutouts in his last three games, making 82 saves on 85 shots in that time span
– Cody Laskosky scored Wisconsin’s first short-handed goal of the year
– Quinn Finley’s 12 goals are tied for first in the NCAA. He has sole possession of the top spot in the Big Ten
– UW is 4-1-0 in the past year against Michigan
Straight from the rink
Senior goaltender Tommy Scarfone
On the team’s defensive effort tonight
“The buy-in right now is huge from our team. Everyone’s contributing, forwards or defensemen. Everyone’s blocking shots, and that’s making my job easier. I’m really grateful for them.”
Up Next: The Badgers wrap up their semester with their series finale at Michigan on Saturday, Dec. 14. The contest starts at 6 p.m.
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