MINNEAPOLIS — After dispatching Minnesota Duluth in the semifinals of the 2016 WCHA Final Face-Off, the No. 3 Badgers take on No. 2 Minnesota in the league championship game. The winner of Sunday's game earns an automatic spot in the 2016 NCAA Tournament, that will be announced Sunday night at 8 p.m. (CT) on NCAA.com

Sunday's game will air on Fox Sports North and the Fox Sports Wisconsin alternate channel. 

UW enters the weekend leading the country in scoring defense with a goals-against average of 0.70. UW has shutout its opponents in 21 of its 37 games this year and have allowed only 26 goals on the year.

The Cardinal and White also ranks fourth in the country scoring offense averaging 3.92 goals per contest. 

The Badgers lead the NCAA in penalty killing with a .943 clip. UW has killed 100 of its 106 penalties, and has scored seven short-handed goals in 37 games. 

After winning the WCHA regular season title, UW looks to sweep the league crowns for the first time since the 2010-11 season. 

Wisconsin looks to repeat as WCHA playoff champs after defeating Bemidji State, 4-0, in the finals at the 2015 WCHA Final Face-Off in Grand Forks, North Dakota. 

Player Notes
Annie Pankowski, a Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award top-10 finalist, leads the team with 22 goals and 34 assists for 56 points this season. Pankowski ranks seventh in the nation for points per game, averaging 1.51 points per contest. After scoring three points against MSU on Feb. 14, Pankowski became the first Badger to record 50 points in a season since Brianna Decker in 2012-13.

Sophomore Emily Clark has notched 22 goals and 20 assists for 42 points this season, averaging 1.20 points per game. She's tallied seven game-winning goals this season, tied for fourth in the NCAA. 

Junior Sarah Nurse ranks seventh in the country for goals per game, averaging 0.73 goals per contest. Her 24 goals lead all Badgers, as well as ranking third all-WCHA. The Hamilton, Ontario, native also ranks third nationally in shot-handed goals with three.

Ann-Renée Desbiens, a Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award top-three finalist, leads the nation in save percentage (.959) and goals-against average (0.75). Desbiens' 19 shutouts this season are the most in NCAA men's or women's hockey history. Desbiens is the only goalie in NCAA history to record back-to-back seasons of 12 or more shutouts. Desbiens also has 36 career shutouts, which ranks second in program history and third in NCAA history

Junior Jenny Ryan ranks eighth in the country's defensemen in points per game, averaging 0.81 points per contest. Ryan's 30 points this season are a career high, coming from seven goals and 23 assists. She also has tallied three game-winning goals this season.

Senior Courtney Burke is third in the country in points among defensemen, averaging 0.89 points per contest. Her 106 career points are the third-most in program history among defensemen and rank 19th in school history.

Last time vs. Minnesota: Minnesota 4, Wisconsin 3 (OT)
 After rallying from two goals down, the No. 2 Wisconsin women's hockey team fell in overtime, 4-3, to No. 3 Minnesota in the Badgers' regular season finale on Saturday at Ridder Arena.

Despite outshooting the Gophers 34-27, the Badgers (30-3-1, 24-3-1-1 WCHA) were unable to stop Minnesota (29-3-1, 24-3-1-0 WCHA) in overtime.

"We had a couple moments in the game that we faced adversity," UW head coach Mark Johnson said "But we took the challenge and the end result is that we gave ourselves a chance to win at the end and we came up a little bit short. But it was a great effort and we showed a lot of heart today."

Erika Sowchuk, Sarah Nurse and Annie Pankowski each lit the lamp for Wisconsin as Pankowski ended the game with a team-high two points. The sophomore now has 95 career points and is five points away from becoming the 20th in program history to tally 100 career points.

After giving up goals to Minnesota's Sarah Potomak and Kate Schipper in the first five minutes of the game, Sowchuk scored her 11th of the season, sneaking the puck past Minnesota netminder Amanda Leveille with seven minutes left in the first to make it a 2-1 game.

The Gophers extended their lead to 3-1, scoring at the 13:19 mark of the second as Minnesota's Cara Piazza scored on a scrum.

Just three minutes later, Nurse scored on a breakaway, her 21st of the year, off a feed from seniorKaty Harding to make it a 3-2 contest after two periods of play.

Early in the third, the Badgers were assessed a penalty shot after Minnesota defenseman Milica McMillen covered the puck in the crease momentarily before throwing it out of the crease.

Pankowski scored her 20th of the season on the penalty shot, marking UW's first penalty shot conversion since Karley Sylvester successfully lit the lamp against Ohio State on Nov. 16, 2012.

UW outshot Minnesota 13-4 in the final frame, but couldn't tally a second goal in the period.

In overtime, the Badgers dominated play early, but Minnesota's Kelly Pannek scored with 54 seconds remaining on a rush to end the game.

Wisconsin goaltender Ann-Renee Desbiens stopped 23 shots in the defeat.

Last Time Out: Wisconsin 5, Minnesota Duluth 0 (March 5, 2016)
Behind a shutout from WCHA Player of the Year Ann-Renée Desbiens and a four-goal flurry in the second period, the No. 3 Wisconsin women's hockey team will play in the WCHA Final Face-Off championship after defeating Minnesota Duluth, 5-0, on Saturday at Ridder Arena.

The shutout marks Desbiens' 19th blank slate of the season, extending the NCAA record she broke last weekend. One of three finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, Desbiens continues to lead the nation with a 0.75 goals-against average and a .959 save percentage.

"If you had asked me at the beginning of the year, I didn't think that was possible," Desbiens said of her performance in net this year. "It's seriously just amazing. Everything that everyone in front of me has been doing, it's amazing."

Wisconsin (33-3-1) saw goals from five different players, outshooting Minnesota Duluth (15-21-1) 43-17. It marks the 21st time the Badgers have taken 40 or more shots in a contest this season.

The Badgers capitalized on rebounds let up by UMD goaltender Kayla Black early, as freshmanMikaela Gardner notched her first goal since Oct. 11, 2015 as she charged the net and put away a loose puck to give UW the 1-0 lead at the 7:34 mark of the frame.

UW tallied the game's first 10 shots on goal, and didn't allow a UMD shot to reach Desbiens until the 12 minute mark of the period.

In the second period, Wisconsin wasted no time as senior captain Courtney Burke doubled her team's lead just 21 seconds into the second stanza. Burke cut into the slot and redirected a pass right past Black for her 10th goal of the year.

The teams would battle for the next 14 minutes scoreless, until sophomore Annie Pankowski forced a UMD turnover and sniped a loose puck over Black's shoulder to take the 3-0 lead. The goal marks Pankowski's 56th point of the season, and her 99th career point. Pankowski needs one more point to become the 21st player in program history to reach 100 career points.

"Certainly pleased with our efforts this afternoon, especially in the second period," UW head coachMark Johnson said of his squad. "I think [Burke's goal] put Minnesota Duluth on their heels to start the period and then we just built off that and played very well."

Senior Kim Drake would tally a goal next, skating deep into the UMD zone and shooting the puck into the crease, where it rattled off Black's skate and into the goal to make the score 4-0.

Capping off the scoring with 19 seconds remaining in the frame, Sarah Nurse tallied her team-leading 24th goal of the season to secure the 5-0 victory. Sydney McKibbon tied up UMD's center, allowing Nurse to quickly shoot the puck over Black.

"I think we loosened up a little bit," Pankowski said of the offensive charge in the second frame. "I think when you get a chance to play a playoff game, it is away from home and it's not in our home atmosphere, it feels a little different. Once we were able to take a breath and loosen up on our sticks a little and just play our game, we got a lot better."

The teams fought to a scoreless third period thanks to big saves from both Black and Desbiens.

Despite serving three penalties during the contest, the Badgers remained dominant, continuing to lead the nation's penalty kill with a .943 clip.

"What I like is the team is still hungry. They're practicing hard, they're preparing, and they're doing the necessary things," Johnson said. "When the regular season finished, they were crowned WCHA champs, but that didn't hold them back. They got excited to play in the playoffs, to come up here and get a chance to play for another trophy.

"They've worked their way and put themselves in a position to play in Sunday's game, which I think everybody on the squad and the coaching staff are excited about."

With the victory, the Badgers advance to the WCHA Final Face-off championship to defend their 2015 WCHA playoff title. The championship matchup is set for a 2 p.m. tilt and can be seen on Fox Sports North and the Fox Sports Wisconsin alternate channel. The game will also be broadcasted in the Madison area on 1310 WIBA AM. 

Nine Badgers to Compete at World Championships
The International Ice Hockey Federation's Women's World Championships will have a Wisconsin flair, as nine current and former Badgers will compete for their home countries at the tournament.

Sophomore Emily Clark will join UW alums Blayre Turnbull and Meaghan Mikkelson on the Team Canada roster, while sophomore Annie Pankowski will compete for the United States alongside UW legends Hilary Knight, Brianna Decker, Meghan Duggan, Jessie Vetter, and Alex Rigsby.

Koch recognized as AHCA Assistant Coach of the Year
Wisconsin women's hockey associate head coach Dan Koch was named the American Hockey Coaches Association Women's Hockey Assistant Coach of the Year, as announced by the group on Thursday.

A Madison native, Koch is in his fifth season as the Badgers' associate head coach after serving eight years as an assistant coach, amassing a 367-81-35 (.796) record behind the bench. Koch has assisted the Badgers to seven NCAA Frozen Fours and saw the team win three of their four national titles.

Koch oversees the stingy UW defense, which has ranked among the top-three teams nationally for scoring defense in 11 of his 12 seasons with the Badgers. That includes the 2006-07 squad that set the NCAA record with a 0.88 goals-against average. His defensemen have led the NCAA in scoring defense in three different seasons.

This season, Koch helped the Badgers set the NCAA men's and women's shutout record, tallying nine-consecutive shutouts that spanned over 624 minutes between Oct. 3 and Nov. 14. The Badgers have recorded shutouts in 12 of their 22 games this season and have a goals-against average of 0.64 to pace the country.

Koch also plays a part in the team's penalty kill, which has led the NCAA four of his 12 seasons. Last year, the UW penalty kill set the NCAA record with a .958 clip.

Koch will be recognized on April 29 during the 2016 AHCA Convention in Naples, Florida. Read more here.