Wisconsin Badgers
13-19-3
Ohio State
21-12-2
Wisconsin charges past Ohio State in Game 1
March 07, 2025 | Men's Hockey
Badgers win 4-1 Game 1 of the B1G Tourney Quarterfinals
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Fueled by four different goal scorers, the Wisconsin men's hockey team charged past the Ohio State Buckeyes, 4-1, on Friday night at Nationwide Arena.
With tonight's win, the Badgers are one victory away from advancing to the Big Ten Tournament semifinals.
Wisconsin (13-19-3) got on the board first at 18:51 of the first period on a deflection from Ryland Mosley. UW scored two more times in the second with Owen Mehlenbacher and Simon Tassy lighting the lamp at 3:04 and 9:09 into the period, respectively, to give the Badgers a 3-0 lead. Ohio State (21-12-2) found the back of the net at 4:19 of the third period to cut UW's lead to two goals, but an empty-net goal from Kyle Kukkonen at 18:14 into the final frame sealed a 4-1 victory for Wisconsin.
How it Happened
Graduate student forward Mosley opened the scoring 18:51 into the first period. From the Ohio State slot, sophomore forward Quinn Finley sent a backhand on net that got past the goaltender and to Mosley in front of the net, who deflected it home to record his 17th goal of the season.
MOSE (@Ryland68) ALWAYS KNOWS! 😤
— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey) March 8, 2025
The graduate student gets the scoring started in Columbus!
🍎: Quinn Finley & Logan Hensler pic.twitter.com/d57d9MMAOH
The Badgers extended their lead at 3:04 of the second. From the top of the Wisconsin zone, junior forward Tyson Dyck sent a pass to freshman forward Adam Pietila at center ice. Pietila then rushed into Buckeye territory, creating a two-on-one with sophomore forward Owen Mehlenbacher. Pietila passed to his left to the freshman, who one-timed the puck into the net to tally his fourth goal of the year.
MELLY (@mehlenbacher_37) GOT THAT DAWG IN HIM. 🐶
— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey) March 8, 2025
🍎: Adam Pietila & Tyson Dyck pic.twitter.com/oYbEwVLtoM
Junior forward Tassy made it a 3-0 game at 9:09 into the second period. Junior forward Christian Fitzgerald sent a pass from the bottom of the right circle to sophomore defenseman Zach Schulz near the slot. Schulz took a shot, which went wide and bounced off the back glass and off the top of the net before Tassy batted the puck home out of the air to give UW a three-goal advantage.
IT'S TASSY (@SimonTassy) TIME! ⏰
— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey) March 8, 2025
Sixth of the season for the junior!
🍎: Zach Schulz & Christian Fitzgerald pic.twitter.com/VDHvwnJTf0
At 4:19 into the third period, Brent Johnson got Ohio State on the board.
Junior forward Kukkonen tallied an empty-net goal at 18:14 into the final frame to seal the victory for Wisconsin.
SIGNED, SEALED, DELIVERED 💌
— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey) March 8, 2025
Golden goal #9 for #9 (@kyle_kukkonen)!
🍎: Christian Fitzgerald pic.twitter.com/3gvVzQAEzY
Wisconsin went 0-for-1 on the power play and 2-for-2 on the penalty kill. UW finished the contest with a 34-29 advantage in shots on goal.
Notes to know:
- The Badgers are 4-0-0 against the Buckeyes at NHL arenas, including three Big Ten Tournament contests
- This is the second time in 10 games against Ohio State that UW has scored more than two goals against the Buckeyes
- Sophomore defenseman Zach Schulz has points in three of his last four games played
Up Next: The Badgers play Game 2 of the best-of-three 2025 Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals against Ohio State on Saturday, March 8, at 6 p.m. CT. The game streams on B1G+ and takes place at Nationwide Arena, home of the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets. Audio play-by-play can be found on 1310 WIBA as well as on the Badgers app and the Varsity Network app. You can also follow along on X/Twitter and Instagram at @BadgerMHockey.
