The No. 2 Wisconsin women's hockey team heads to St. Cloud, Minnesota to take on the St. Cloud State Huskies. Faceoff on Friday and Saturday is set for 3 p.m. at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center.
Key notes to consider
• The Badgers have been off to a historic start, outscoring their opponents 28-2. For the first time in program history, UW has scored five or more goals in each of its first four contests.
• Sophomore Annie Pankowski ranks second in the nation in scoring, averaging 2.67 points per contest. She has also scored 19 goals in her last 19 games dating back to her rookie campaign. She also leads the country in short-handed goals with three.
• With her shutouts last weekend, Ann-Renee Desbiens earned her 18th and 19th career shutout to move into third in the school's all-time list.Â
• Sophomore Emily Clark was named the WCHA Offensive Player of the Week after a seven-point weekend against the Buckeyes. She scored two goals in each of the games, including a goal on Sunday that was the No. 4  play on Sunday's ESPN SportsCenter Top-10 Plays.Â
• The Badgers went 5-1-0 against the Huskies last year and outscored SCSU 23-3 during their six meetings.Â
• Wisconsin moved up to a tie for second in the latest USCHO.com Poll, while UW now holds the second spot in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll.Â
Number of the week7 -Â Wisconsin leads the country in scoring, averaging 7.00 goals per contest. UW has outscored its opponents 28-2 in its first three games of the 2015-16 season.
Clark named WCHA offensive player of the week Wisconsin women's hockey sophomore Emily Clark has been named the WCHA Offensive Player of the Week for Oct. 5-12, the league announced Tuesday.
It marks the second-straight week a Badger has received the award as Clark's linemate, Annie Pankowski, was named the WCHA Offensive Player of the Week last week after a five-point weekend against Providence.
Clark scored four goals while tallying three assists for the Badgers' during their sweep of Ohio State at LaBahn Arena on Oct. 10-11.
On Saturday, Clark collected a pair of goals and assists as the Badgers blanked the Buckeyes, 7-0.
Sunday, Clark scored 30 seconds into the game and added a later goal that would be the No. 4 play on ESPN Sportcenter's Top-10 Plays, along with an assist, in UW's 8-0 triumph.
A native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Clark ended the weekend with a +8 plus/minus rating and had a .364 shooting percentage on 11 shots.
This season, Clark is tied for second on the team with five goals and eight points, while her +10 rating is tied for the second-best mark. Clark, Nurse selected to Team Canada's Four Nations Cup RosterWisconsin women's hockey players Emily Clark and Sarah Nurse have been selected to the Canadian National Women's Team that will defend Canada's gold medal at the 2015 Four Nations Cup, the team announced Tuesday.
The 22-player roster was chosen following the Canadian National Women's Team Fall Festival, a week-long camp held in Calgary this September.
Clark, a Saskatoon, Saskatchewan native, is familiar with Canada's national program, as the sophomore won gold at both the 2012 and 2013 U-18 IIHF World Championships, as well as winning a silver medal with Team Canada in the 2015 IIHF World Championships. In addition, Clark helped Canada to a gold medal at the 2014 Four Nations Cup.
During her rookie season for the Badgers, Clark tallied 27 points and was named to the All-WCHA Rookie Team. This season, she has collected five goals and three assists in four games, and was named the WCHA Offensive Player of the Week for her performance against Ohio State.
For Nurse, a junior from Hamilton, Ontario, this Four Nations Cup will be her first time skating with the Canadian senior team. In 2011, Nurse skated at the IIHF High Performance Hockey Camp with Team Canada, as well as winning a gold medal with Team Ontario Red in the Canadian National Championship. Nurse also participated with the Canadian National Development Team, winning gold at the 2015 Nations Cup.
Last season, Nurse led the Badgers to their fifth WCHA Playoff Championship as she tallied four goals and two assists during the finals to earn WCHA Final Face-Off most outstanding player accolades. In four games this season, she has already notched eight points on four goals and four assists.
The 2015 Four Nations Cup will run Nov. 4-8 in Sundsvall, Sweden. The tournament, featuring Canada, Finland, Sweden, and the United States, will also serve as an evaluation as Team Canada coaches look to fill the roster for the 2016 IIHF Women's World Championships and, in the long run, the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Canada will open the tournament against Finland on Nov. 4, and face the United States on Nov. 5 in preliminary action. Last time vs. St. Cloud State: Wisconsin 5, St. Cloud State 1 (Feb. 28, 2015)
Four different Badgers lit the lamp as the No. 3 Wisconsin women's hockey team defeated St. Cloud State, 4-1, on Saturday night to advance to the WCHA Final Faceoff in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
Wisconsin (26-6-4) swept its WCHA first round playoff matchup with St. Cloud State (8-28-1) after defeating the Huskies 5-1 on Friday night.
Sophomore Mikayla Johnson and freshman Emily Clark scored in the first for the Badgers, while seniors Katy Josephs and Blayre Turnbull added goals in the third period.
The Badgers got on the board early as Johnson tallied her third of the season, knocking a shot past SCSU netminder Julie Friend to give UW a 1-0 lead.
With time winding down in the first period, Clark accelerated through the St. Cloud State zone and notched her 11th goal of the season with 2.4 seconds to go in the period. Wisconsin ended the first frame outshooting St. Cloud State 18-2.
After a scoreless second, Josephs tallied her second of the weekend and 10th of the season, stealing a SCSU pass and launching a rocket into the top of the net.
St. Cloud State snuck the puck past UW netminder Ann-Renee Desbiens with nine minutes left in the game, but Turnbull helped UW retake a three-goal lead with a blast past Friend a minute after the Huskies' goal. It marked Turnbull's seventh goal in the past seven games.
With the win, the Badgers advanced to the WCHA Final Faceoff in Grand Forks, North Dakota for the fifth straight year. Wisconsin will face host tournament host North Dakota at the Ralph Engelstad Arena on Saturday in a 5 p.m. contest.
Last Time Out: Badgers 8, Ohio State 0 (Oct. 11, 2015)
Sophomore Emily Clark scored twice while junior netminder Ann-Renee Desbiens stopped all 19 shots she faced to lead the No. 3 Wisconsin women's hockey team to a 8-0 win over Ohio State on Sunday at LaBahn Arena.
Clark ended the game with three points off her two goals and an assist, while linemate Annie Pankowskialso collected three points of a goal and two assists.
A native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Clark found the back of the net just 30 seconds into the game after receiving a pass from Jenny Ryan to give the Badgers (4-0-0, 2-0-0-0 WCHA) an early 1-0 lead over Ohio State (2-2-0, 0-2-0-0 WCHA).
Around the four minute mark, Pankowski drove across the slot and popped a backhand shot into the top shelf. The unassisted score gave UW a 2-0 lead heading into the first intermission.
Wisconsin outshot the Buckeyes 23-6 during the frame, including seven power play shots. Ohio State took four penalties in the first period, but the Cardinal and White were unable to capitalize on the advantages.
The Badgers wasted no time in the second, scoring three more goals before the period's halfway point. Sydney McKibbon received a cross-ice pass from Sarah Nurse while speeding into the offensive zone, where her shot bounced off the post, off Lamere's pad, and into the net just 78 seconds into the period.
Nurse tallied the fourth Badger goal, finishing a string of passes between herself, McKibbon, andSam Cogan with a shot that Lamere didn't see until it was in the back of the net.
Three minutes later, freshman Mikaela Gardner scored her first collegiate goal to put the Badgers up 5-0, taking a shot on OSU goaltender Selena Hunter and charging to the net to collect her own rebound.
In similar fashion, Ryan went deep into the OSU zone near the 15 minute mark of the period and stuffed a loose rebound past Hunter for the 6-0 lead.
Wisconsin finished the period with 28 shots on net, which is tied for the third-most shots in a period.
Clark lit the lamp again halfway through period three, taking a pass from Maddie Rolfes in the neutral zone all the way to the net, pushing between the entire line of Buckeyes for the score.
Proving that a game isn't over until it's over, Mikayla Johnson took a pass from Molly Doner and slammed the one-timer past Hunter with 9.7 seconds remaining in the game to complete the 8-0 win.
Desbiens earned her second shutout of the year and the 19th of her career, which ranks third in Wisconsin program history behind only UW legends Jessie Vetter (39) and Alex Rigsby (30).
Wisconsin's 61 shots on net marks the third time in less than a year that the Badgers have posted more than 60 shots on net in a game, and ranks seventh in the record books for shots taken in a game.
Oh Captain, My Captains
• Senior Courtney Burke will serve as captain for the Wisconsin Women's hockey team during the 2015-16 season, while juniors Sydney McKibbon and Jenny Ryan will be assistant captains this season.
• Burke is the first defenseman to serve as the Badgers' captain since Emily Morris donned the "C" on her sweater during the 2007-08 season.
• A native of Albany, New York, Burke has been named program's Defensive Player is the Year in each of her three years at Wisconsin. Burke ranks sixth in school history in defenseman scoring with 73 points after tallying 24 points during her junior year. Her 0.06 points per game average ranked 20th nationally among defensemen.
• A native of Oakville, Ontario, McKibbon played in all 40 games for Wisconsin during the 2014-15 season, scoring 10 goals while adding 16 assists. Five of her 15 career goals are game winners, and the junior center ranked second in the conference last year with a .604 face-off win percentage.
• The 2015 NCAA Elite 89 winner for women's hockey, Ryan has played in all 40 games for UW last year, scoring three goals while adding 19 assists. Ryan, a native of Victor, New York, also had a +30 plus/minus rating for the Badgers last year.
Note of the Week
Wisconsin goaltender Ann-Renee Desbiens now has 19 shutouts in her career, which ranks third in program history. Only UW legends Jessie Vetter (39) and Alex Rigsby (30) had more blank slates during their collegiate careers.Â
Badgers picked second in WCHA
• The Wisconsin women's hockey team was picked to finish second in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association by the league's coaches, it was announced Sept. 15
• The Badgers collected 44 points and two first-place votes in the WCHA's Preseason Coaches' Poll, while Minnesota was picked to win the league, earning 48 points and six first-place votes.
• North Dakota was third with 35 points, while Bemidji State was close behind in fourth with 31 points. Rounding out the poll was Minnesota Duluth, Ohio State, St. Cloud State and Minnesota State.
• Wisconsin junior Sarah Nurse received a vote for the league's preseason player of the year, while freshmen Mikaela Gardner and Sophia Shaver each earned a vote for the WCHA Preseason Rookie of the Year.Â
The series vs. St. Cloud StateThe Badgers lead the overall series against the Huskies 62-8-2.
On the road, UW holds a 25-5-2 record against SCSU in the Granite City, and the Badgers have won 10 straight in St. Cloud.Â
In 72 meetings, the Cardinal and White have outscored the Huskies, 342-99
Wisconsin went 5-1-0 against SCSU last year, and a perfect 2-0 against the Huskies in St. Cloud. UW outscored SCSU 23-3 in the six meetings last year.Â
