COLUMBUS, Ohio – Two first-period goals by Ohio State proved plenty as the No. 4 Wisconsin men's hockey team fell, 3-1, on Saturday afternoon at Value City Arena.
Ohio State (11-15-4, 3-15-2 Big Ten) opened up a 2-0 lead after the first period against the Badgers. Wisconsin's (22-8-2, 13-6-1 Big Ten) David Silye scored a power-play goal midway through the second to cut the lead in half, but OSU quickly took back its two-goal advantage, and the game ended with a final score of 3-1.
Freshman forward William Whitelaw found the back of the net 6:32 into the opening frame, but Ohio State successfully challenged the goal for offsides to keep the game at 0-0.
Cam Thiesing got the Buckeyes on the board first 16:16 into the first period.
Less than a minute later, Davis Burnside made it 2-0 in favor of Ohio State.
With 12:01 remaining in the second, senior forward David Silye lit the lamp for Wisconsin on the power play. Deep in OSU's zone, senior forward Mathieu De St. Phalle passed behind him to find sophomore Cruz Lucius at the bottom of the right circle. Lucius then passed to Silye in the middle of the right circle before the senior roofed a one-time shot home for his seventh goal of the season.
Joe Dunlap made it 3-1 for the Buckeyes 10:15 into the second.
Dunlap scored again 4:05 into the third period, but it was disallowed after Wisconsin won its challenge for an illegal hand pass. The score remained 3-1 until the end of the game.
Wisconsin went 1-for-2 on the power play and 1-for-1 on the penalty kill. UW finished the contest with a 29-28 deficit in shots on goal.
Notes to know:
- With 42 Big Ten points, the second-place Badgers stay within four points of first-place Michigan State. Both teams have four regular-season games remaining with the Spartans closing out the regular season at the Kohl Center.
Up Next: The Badgers head to University Park, Pennsylvania, to face Penn State for their final road series of the regular season on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 23-24. Friday's game begins at 6 p.m and Saturday's game starts at 5 p.m. Both games stream on B1G+. Audio play-by-play airs on the Badgers Radio network, including 1310 WIBA in the Madison area, 97.3 The Game in Milwaukee. It also airs on the Badgers app and The Varsity Network app. Follow along on X/Twitter and Instagram @BadgerMHockey.
