Forgive me if you’ve heard this one before.
For the fourth consecutive season, Ohio State and Wisconsin are squaring off in the national championship game. In a sport that makes headlines every four years for having one of the best international rivalries, the Buckeyes and Badgers meeting in the final women’s college hockey game of the season is starting to feel like the United States and Canada facing off in the Olympic gold medal game: inevitable.
Before diving into the numbers and history behind this year’s championship game, check out TIG’s recap of Friday’s semifinal games.
By the Numbers: Comparing No. 1 Ohio State and No. 2 Wisconsin
Ohio State
Record: 36-4-0
Goals per game: 4.5 (second in the nation)
Shots per game: 41.0 (#2)
Power Play percentage: 26.9 (#6)
Shorthanded goals: 1 (#26)
Faceoff percentage: 60.1 % (#1)
Goals allowed per game: 1.6 (#3)
Shots allowed per game: 21.0 (#1)
Penalty kill percentage: 86.5 (#7)
Shorthanded goals allowed: 0 (#1)
Penalty minutes per game: 11.8 (#1)
Wisconsin
Record: 34-4-2
Goals per game: 5.3 (#1)
Shots per game: 44.9 (#1)
Power Play percentage: 35.5 (#1)
Shorthanded goals: 6 (#4)
Faceoff percentage: 55.0 % (#7)
Goals allowed per game: 1.5 (#2)
Shots allowed per game: 22.2 (#3)
Penalty kill percentage: 88.9 (#2)
Shorthanded goals allowed: 2 (#15)
Penalty minutes per game: 7.0 (#27)
The data doesn’t lie. While Wisconsin had trouble making it to the title game, on paper these two teams are clearly the best in the country. Still, a few numbers jump out as possible difference makers on Sunday.
Ohio State spends a lot of time in the penalty box. While the Buckeyes penalty kill is solid, 30 percent of its opponents goals have come on the power play. To put that number in perspective, Ohio State has scored under 20 percent of its goals with a skater advantage. Meanwhile, Wisconsin owns the best power play in the nation, scoring nearly as many power-play goals (44) as total goals it has allowed at both even strength and on the penalty kill (58).
In better news for Ohio State, its offense has been absolutely roaring in the postseason. The only WCHA or NCAA tournament game in which the Buckeyes have scored less than four goals came against Wisconsin in the WCHA championship game, a 2-1 Ohio State win.
Players to Watch
Wisconsin: Laila Edwards
This is almost an impossible question. Caroline Harvey, Kirsten Simms, and Laila Edwards are three of the most offensively gifted in NCAA hockey, while Lacey Eden leads the country in points.
Recently, Edwards has stood out. The senior — who has served as both a forward and defender for Wisconsin — scored a pair of goals and picked up an assist in the Badgers semifinal win over Penn State. Edwards enters the championship on an 11 game point streak, with five multi-point performances over that stretch.
Ohio State: Joy Dunne
Joy Dunne is clutch. In the Buckeyes semifinal win over Northeastern, Dunne tallied her seventh game winning goal of the season, a total which sits third in the nation and best amongst either Ohio State or Wisconsin.
Dunne nearly averages a goal per game, and like Edwards also has been playing phenomenal hockey as of late, picking up points in nine of the Buckeyes past 11 games. Wisconsin was able to keep her off the scoresheet in the WCHA championship game, but if the game comes down to the wire, Ohio State fans will hope the puck finds a way to stick.
Last Year’s Final: Wisconsin Beats Ohio State 4-3 in Overtime
Either Ohio State or Wisconsin has won the past six NCAA championships. Last year’s final was the most dramatic of that stretch. The Buckeyes — thanks in part to a Dunne shorthanded goal — took a three to one lead early in the second period, before the Badgers rallied back, with Simms tying the game on a penalty shot just 18 seconds before the end of regulation.
Just under three minutes into overtime, Simms struck again to win Wisconsin its eight national championship.
Sunday’s national championship is set to begin at 4 p.m. in Pegula Ice Arena. The game will be televised on ESPNU.