The Badger men’s hockey team beat Minnesota-Duluth on the road Saturday 4-1, earning the team’s first sweep of the season. Junior goaltender Scott Kabotoff had 39 saves on the night bringing his series total to 82.
The line of senior Matt Hussey, sophomore John Eichelberger and junior Brad Winchester combined for seven points with three goals and four assists.
The Badgers lead the Bulldogs throughout the game. In the first period freshman Alex Leavitt put the Badgers on the board with his third goal on the season. Early in the second period a goal by Winchester added to the Badgers’ lead, setting the score at 2-0. Hussey then put the puck in the net late in the same period, giving the Badgers extra security heading into the last period.
Minnesota-Duluth put up its only goal of the game early in the third, but it was not enough to overtake Wisconsin, as the Badgers added one more goal later in the third.
Saturday’s win improved the Badgers’ record to 5-3 overall, 4-2 in WCHA play.
This record was helped with another victory the previous night, when Wisconsin topped the Bulldogs 5-1.
Eichelberger, scoring his first career goal for the Badgers, gave the UW the first lead of the game at the 13:04 mark of the first period. Eichelberger deflected a pass in the net on a shot by sophomore defenseman Andy Wozniewski.
Bulldog captain Judd Medak knotted the game, netting UMD’s only goal at 16:01. With just one second remaining in the period and a man down, UW captain and Duluth-native Andy Wheeler scored shorthanded to give the UW the momentum and a 2-1 lead heading into the second period.
After a three-goal first period, the middle stanza remained scoreless. The highlight of the period occurred at 11:15 when UW’s Erik Jensen and Bulldog Steve Rodberg squared off at center ice and were whistled for five-minute majors and game-disqualifications for fighting. The two will sit tomorrow’s game.
The third period was all Wisconsin as Rene Bourque, Wonzniewski and Hussey all tallied their second scores of the season at the 8:13, 11:57 and 18:41 marks respectively. Wozniewski’s goal was on the power play and Hussey’s tally marked the second shorthanded goal of the game and the fourth of the season for the Badgers.
