Box Score Feb. 17, 2012
10 Denver 3, Wisconsin 0
Kohl Center • Madison, Wis. | |
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| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | | Denver | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | | Wisconsin | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | | | | Scoring Summary
| | 2nd | 08:22 | DU | Salazar | | 3rd | 07:46 | DU | Zucker (Knowlton) | | 3rd | 19:29 | DU | Nick Shore (Lee, Ostrow) | | Goaltender Summary
| Min | GA | Sv | | DU | Brittain (W, 4-1-0) | 60:00 | 0 | 28 | | WIS | Rumpel (L, 9-9-2) | 53:31 | 2 | 22 | | WIS | Peterson | 6:00 | 0 | 2 | | Statistical Comparison
| DU | WIS | | Shots on Goal | 27 | 28 | | Power Plays | 0-1 | 0-4 | | Penalties-Minutes | 5-10 | 3-6 | | |
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• Final Stats | Final Stats 
| Quotes | Photo Gallery 
MADISON, Wis.-- The Badger men’s hockey team was not without opportunities Friday night against Denver. It was the Pioneers though who took advantage of their chances as Wisconsin (12-15-2, 7-13-2 WCHA) fell to Denver (18-9-4, 13-6-4 WCHA) 3-0 at the Kohl Center.
| Fast Facts | | • For the third-straight game, Wisconsin outshot its opponent. | | • Denver entered Friday's game with the WCHA's top power play, converting on 24% of its opportunities. The Badgers held the Pioneers scoreless however on the power play. | |
Those opportunities came early for the Badgers with two power-play chances in the first period. Denver held Wisconsin scoreless with the man advantage, while the Badgers defense stood strong itself, and both teams entered the first intermission scoreless.
The second period paced much the same as the first until Denver drew first blood 8:22 into the period. The goal, from Luke Salazar, put the Pioneers up 1-0 on a score that would stand until mid-way through the third.
With 12:14 left in the game, Denver notched its second goal of the evening, this time from Jason Zucker.
The third period for Wisconsin was a combination of tough luck, rare missed shots and great goaltending play from DU’s Sam Brittain. Badger sophomore forwards Michael Mersch (Park Ridge, Ill.), Sean Little (Fond du Lac, Wis.) and Mark Zengerle (Rochester, N.Y.) each had chances from in close that were either pushed wide or stopped by Brittain. In the end, the period did not include a goal for the Badgers and a late empty-net score pushed Denver’s lead to 3-0.
“In the third period we had about four unbelievable chances to tie the game and get the crowd into it and we didn’t,” head coach Mike Eaves said. “I think offensively we’re really challenged right now.”
Freshman goalie Joel Rumpel (Swift Current, Saskatchewan) fell victim to a bizarre incident late in the game. With 6:29 remaining, sophomore forward Tyler Barnes (Eagan, Minn.) slid into the net chasing down a Denver attacker. While the puck was deflected away, Barnes went skate first into Rumpel and both went into the back of the net.
The two players surfaced and Rumpel left the ice with a cut to the leg, clearly frustrated.
Rumpel saved 22 on the night while his replacement, freshman Landon Peterson (Oregon, Wis.), saved two shots in relief.
The Badgers ended the evening 0-for-4 on the power play, but held the top power-play squad in the WCHA to 0-for-1 with the man advantage.
Wisconsin finished the game with a 28-27 advantage in shots.
“I just keep going, junior Justin Schultz (West Kelowna, B.C.) said of his recent struggles. “Like we’ve all said, there’s nothing else I can do. If I hang my head and feel sorry for myself it’s not going to get any better.”
Wisconsin and Denver meet again Saturday night at the Kohl Center for the Badger’s regular season home finale. The puck drops on senior night at 7 p.m.
