When it needed it most, the Wisconsin women’s hockey team found success from one of its rising stars.

Sophomore forward Brittany Ammerman assisted on two crucial goals for the Badgers (24-2-2) this past weekend against Bemidji State, giving the team two more victories and a series sweep.

While usually not a top scorer for UW, Ammerman, with just four goals this season, has made a big impact by creating opportunities for teammates to knock the puck in.

“I had the mentality of just working hard and doing the little things for the team and hoping good would come out of it,” Ammerman said. “To get those assists, Friday night especially, built confidence in Saturday’s game.”

Saturday night, Ammerman found senior forward and linemate Hilary Knight charging towards the goal. After breaking away from the defender, she slid the puck to Knight who then buried it in the back of the net, giving the Badgers their 1-0 victory.

“There is a lot that comes into play when you are scoring a goal; her pass last Saturday night was amazing. It was a nice backhander,” Knight said. “You couldn’t really ask for more.”

Although her goal count is low, Ammerman is just one assist away from matching the 12 she racked up last year, an impressive feat considering the post-season is still a month away.

With many players on the team taking on the scoring role, the Badgers need players like Ammerman to consistently make the plays with scoring possibilities.

Not having scored as many goals can make a player lose confidence, but Ammerman has embraced her ability to contribute to her team in other, but equally important, ways.

“I don’t think I am in a scoring slump at all. Some people might say I am, but every year your role changes as a player, and each team needs people to do different things, not just score,” Ammerman said.

Also contributing to her success is the training she has done in the past year at U.S. national team camps, working on her game and conditioning over the summer. With a national championship already attained, her goal remains the same: to continue bringing the Badgers success.

Ammerman, along with Knight and sophomore forward Madison Packer, are stepping up big as Wisconsin’s second line. Packer scored Friday night’s overtime goal off a pass across the front of the net by Ammerman, a pass strong enough that Bemidji goaltender Zuzana Tomcikova could not adjust to in time.

The key goal scoring plays, along with other opportunities by the line in both games, add depth to Wisconsin, a team that has already found success in its first line. This has head coach Mark Johnson hopeful as he looks ahead to the rest of the season.

“Anytime you get secondary scoring and production from people other than the top line, it makes us that much better and even stronger,” Johnson said. “Hopefully that will continue to happen, but the big thing is to continue to create these opportunities because usually something is going to happen.”

With injured players for UW returning to the ice, Ammerman, Knight and Packer have been able to focus on improving as a line for the past few weeks. At practices, they continue to communicate on how to connect better, which is successfully transferring to games.

“[Knight] was in a little bit of a cold streak in terms of goals, but I think just being able to work through that and in practice talking to each other about what we need to do to made it better,” Ammerman said. “Being able to move the puck was really the difference in this last stretch.”

With just three regular season series left, Wisconsin needs Ammerman to build off what she has accomplished this past weekend if she wants to keep the dream of another national championship alive.

Johnson said he sees the potential of Ammerman as a key member of his dominating team and believes her recent success will propel her moving forward.

“It is a learning opportunity,” Johnson said. “That is what we have practices for, and she will continue to work, and the momentum she has built the last few games is something to build on.”