With a 15-1-0 start, the Wisconsin women’s hockey team has basically been nothing but successful this season, and has done so with the help of a player who has only excelled in her time as a Badger.

Junior forward and assistant captain Brianna Decker has played a key role in UW’s achievements. With at least one point in each of the 16 games thus far, she has extended her scoring streak to 27 games, a program record. With five points this past weekend on two goals and three assists, Decker helped lead the Badgers to a sweep over St. Cloud State at home.

“It speaks a lot about consistency, since she has been doing well for so long,” head coach Mark Johnson said. “I give her a lot of credit for working hard and putting herself in the position to be this successful and consistent, whether it is at practice or in games.”

Decker’s success at Wisconsin hasn’t been a smooth ride, as she faced injury in the second game of her career as a Badger. Missing nine games due to a broken wrist, Decker was forced to sit on the bench and watch her teammates compete and accomplish things she had set out to achieve herself.

“Unfortunately, I got injured the second game of the season and was out for a good chunk [of time]. It was tough,” Decker said. “But I persevered, and I think it is helping me now.”

After starting off on a low note, Decker took her time on the bench as further inspiration to come back even stronger. Since returning from her setback, Decker has done nothing but improve with each successive game.

Finishing her freshman year healthy, Decker came out hard as a sophomore and surpassed expectations with 80 points on the season, third most for Wisconsin and fourth nationally. Her ability to come back after a difficult setback is something Johnson looks for in his top players.

“It was a tough way to start her career here. Obviously, she was highly recruited, and we certainly had high expectations,” Johnson said. “[Decker] was able to finish the year off, and most importantly in the big picture it helped her determination. … Maybe a short-term loss for some long-term gains.”

The big picture of Decker’s career relies on this determination. Her consistency on the ice is an instrumental aspect of Wisconsin’s high-scoring offense, which has racked up 83 goals thus far, compared to their opponents’ 23.

Decker leads Wisconsin and the nation with 18 goals on the season, as well as leading the team in points with 38. With 20 assists, she also has the second most assists for UW. These assists and goals have been a tremendous asset for Decker’s teammates and linemates, who have seen their own success by feeding off her aggressive play and competitive attitude.

“She is really strong, aggressive, anticipates well and is a great goal scorer, and she is very competitive,” senior forward and linemate Brooke Ammerman said. “I have a lot of fun playing with her, and we see each other well. She puts the puck in the net and gets me the puck.”

Decker’s success as a Badger, which helped lead UW to a national championship last season, is not the only major accomplishment of her career. Playing at the national level for Team USA has elevated her level of play to become a quicker and an all-around better player.

Most recently, she represented the victorious Team USA in the Four Nations Cup two weeks ago. Decker was able translate her experiences at this next level into success and motivation for Wisconsin.

“At the national level, the pace is so much higher, so I bring it back here and I am able to skate and move quicker out there,” Decker said. “I [also] think our team chemistry is great, which makes it easy to play. We are moving the puck well, especially with my linemates, so I think that is where my success is coming from.”

Johnson also sees Decker learning from current and former Badgers who have also competed at the highest level. Current senior forward Hilary Knight, along with former Badger Meghan Duggan, are players Decker has been able to study both on and off the ice in order to take her game to the next level.

“For [Decker], the last few players she played with a year or two ago helped her and even made her want to be better than them,” Johnson said. “She knows the things she has to do during the summer, during training to get to that level because obviously they got to that level because they worked hard.”