On a night that saw the Badgers jump out to a lead on a power play goal and do some impressive things on both ends of the ice, the Northern Michigan Wildcats fought back to spoil Wisconsin’s home opener with a 2-2 tie. Down 2-1 for much of the third period, a flurry of late pressure by the Badgers yielded a game-tying tally with just over 42 seconds to go, but Wisconsin was unable to net a game winner in overtime.
The Badgers started strong in the first period, putting 13 shots on goal to Northern Michigan’s four. Wildcat goaltender Atte Tolvanen stood tall, however, making timely saves and keeping the Badgers off the board in the first 20 minutes. Defensively, UW’s plan to be aggressive and play an up-tempo pace was evident, especially on hustle plays like Tim Davison’s last-ditch poke check to break up a Northern Michigan 2-on-1.
The second period saw the Badgers continue to apply pressure offensively. Adam Rockwood walked through the offensive zone and drew a hooking call a little over midway through the second period, which led to UW’s first successfully converted powerplay of the season. The PP unit moved the puck well, and freshman Seamus Malone found Jake Linhart to put the Badgers up 1-0. Two penalties by senior captain Eddie Wittchow forced the defense to provide support for goaltender Adam Miller, but the penalty kill unit stepped up, with critical shot blocks by freshman forward Luke Kunin. Kunin impressed on the defensive end tonight, with two blocked shots that led to transition opportunities for the Badgers.
Down 1-0 heading into the third period, Northern Michigan came out aggressively, hoping to catch the Badgers relaxing with a one goal cushion. Shane Sooth found himself all alone in front of the crease with just under 15 minutes remaining, and tied things up for the Wildcats. Not long after, Filip Starzynski gave Northern Michigan the lead after taking advantage of a loose puck between the circles, and the momentum officially belonged to the visitors. The now-trailing Badgers appeared to fall back on their heels, struggling to create offense for the next ten minutes of play. Tolvanen made two impressive glove saves as the Badger offense increased the pressure with the clock winding down, but he couldn’t stop Grant Besse, who found a deflection in front of the net and put it away with just 42 seconds remaining. A chaotic final drive for the net saw a Cameron Hughes’ shot bounce out in front of the crease, and Luke Kunin appeared to push the puck across the goal line as time expired. The play on the ice was ruled no goal, however, due to a whistle blowing the play dead before the shot. The video review confirmed the official’s call, and the game headed to overtime tied 2-2.
Overtime failed to live up to the excitement of the third period, as both teams struggled to get sustained possessions in the offensive zone. A 2-on-1 opportunity for the Badgers was foiled by an impressive diving block by Northern Michigan’s Barret Kaib, and the overtime period ended without a winner. As this was a non-conference matchup, the game was officially recorded as a tie, though the teams still competed in a shootout despite no extra point being awarded. Northern Michigan was victorious in the superfluous skills competition, with Tolvanen allowing just one goal in the shootout.
Despite a disappointing result given the 1-0 lead heading into the third period, there were several positives for the Badgers to take away from this season opening matchup. First, the play of freshmen Seamus Malone (2 assists) and Luke Kunin (2 blocks, 3 shots) showed that the Badgers’ young talent is ready to contribute even at this early stage in the season. Second, UW scored an early power play goal, something they struggled with all throughout last year. Finally, a gritty comeback in the game’s final minutes shows that this season’s team is not going to fold in the face of adversity. While last year a major momentum loss in the third period would have spelled doom for the Badgers, tonight they battled back to earn a decent result.
The students won’t exactly spill onto State Street to celebrate a season opening tie, there is reason to believe this Wisconsin men’s hockey team has grown since last spring, and is ready to compete this year. Those sentiments were felt by Badgers coach Mike Eaves after the game, who seemed frustrated with the tie, but optimistic about the overall play of the team.
“There were some excellent moments and moments that we’re going to have to go back and learn from.” – Mike Eaves
We’ll have more on Monday for our weekly Badger hockey update. The Badgers take on Northern Michigan once again tomorrow night at 7:00 PM at the Kohl Center.