The No. 6 University of Wisconsin men’s hockey team (3-1-0) will look to stay undefeated at home against No. 13 Clarkson University (2-1-1) on Friday and Saturday.
The Badgers rose from No. 17 to No. 6 in the national rankings following a convincing weekend against two-time reigning NCAA champion University of Minnesota Duluth. Wisconsin began a four-game home stand this past weekend by sweeping the Bulldogs with scores of 6–2 and 3–1. The Badgers have now won three straight games, propelling them to a terrific start to the 2019-2020 season.
Clarkson University has already played a fair number of tough opponents in their schedule with significant success. They defeated and tied the University of Michigan in two games and fended off the University of Vermont.
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The Clarkson University Golden Knights sit comfortably in the national polls. But, following a 4–2 loss to No. 7 Providence College, they are hungry for a bounce back weekend against another ranked team.
The highlight of Clarkson University this season has easily been their goalkeeping. Graduate student and goalkeeper Francis Marotte is currently allowing less than two goals per game and is saving just over 94% of the shots he faces.
As a team, the Golden Knights have been scoring less than 2.5 goals per game and have been outshot by opponents in each of their four games this season. While they have been lacking results in five-on-five play, they have been superb on special teams and goalkeeping.
Their power play has a success rate of about 31%, as they have scored four times on 13 power plays. Furthermore, their opponents have capitalized with a man advantage just twice in 19 attempts, marking a success rate of about 11%.
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This weekend will serve as an indicator of how productive Wisconsin’s offense really is. Possessing arguably the best goal-scorers in college hockey, Wisconsin’s offense will need to be present and potent.
Their first line of offense of Alex Turcotte, Cole Caufield and Linus Weissbach have been unstoppable through the first four games of the season. While this line has been incredibly impactful, 13 other players have already put points on the board for the Badgers.
The Badgers are scoring an average of 5.8 goals per game and are allowing opponents to score just 3.3 goals per game thus far. Their power play has clicked at an elite level, totaling a 39% success rate with seven scores in 18 attempts.
Specifically, they have connected on the power play in each of their four games. They have also scored more shorthanded goals than power play goals given up, as opponents have scored on 12% of their opportunities, scoring just twice on 17 attempts.
The Badgers hold a 5-4-2 advantage in their all-time series against Clarkson University. However, they have fallen to the Golden Knights in four of the last five meetings, the most recent being a 4–2 loss just a season ago.
Game time is 7 p.m. CT both Friday and Saturday. The games can be viewed on FSW and listened to live on 1310WIBA. Both games can be followed live on Twitter @BadgerMHockey.
