The Frozen Four took place on Friday and the results were a little dash of Dรฉjร vu.
While Ohio State finished with a 5-0 shutout, Wisconsin punched their ticket to the championship game with a 4-3 win in overtime. The wins by the WCHA powerhouses sets up the fourth straight year of the Buckeyes and Badgers meeting in the title game.
Northeastern vs. Ohio State
The Huskies put together one of the strongest showings in the regional semifinal last week when they defeated Minnesota 4-2.
But things were different this time around.
Recapping the Game
It was Northeastern who fell behind midway through the first period. Joy Dunne found the back of the net to make it 1-0. Minutes later, the Buckeyes scored two goals a little over a minute apart for a 3-0 lead. It looked like that would be it but Emma Peschel managed the fourth goal of the period with seconds left.
Ohio State came out strong and were able to solve Northeasternโs Lisa Jรถnsson with no problem. The Buckeyes recorded 20 shots on goal in the first period, the fourth most in a Frozen Four ever. The Huskies only managed eight. At points where it looked they had momentum, it was instantly killed. Before Ohio Stateโs third goal, they shut down Northeasternโs play and took the puck the other way to score. Sequences like that showed how much strength the Buckeyes had against their opponent.
The second period was much calmer, as no goals were given up by either team. Still, in a period where Northeastern could have gotten things going offensively, they were at least able to shut down the Buckeyes.
That didnโt last long. Less than three minutes into the third period, Ohio State added a fifth goal. Hailey MacLeod was perfect in net recording her sixth shutout of the season. She made 15 saves in the game.
What Went Right for Ohio State
The Buckeyes were able to take advantage of some of Northeasternโs defects. One of those was puck watching that the Huskies did. At some points they would lose a Buckeyes player which led to chances for Ohio State. The Buckeyes had great speed and played a good physical game. But one of the most interesting parts of this game was that head coach Nadine Muzerall โ who recently signed a new five-year deal to remain with OSU โ still made lineup changes to her squad.ย Her team entered this game on a nine game win streak but she still knew to adjust.
She moved Kassidy Carmichael up to the first line with Joy Dunne and Jocelyn Amos. Carmichael was on the third line against Yale in the last game. This move worked well as that line flowed together very well. Then WCHA Rookie of the Year and HCA Co-Rookie of the Year Hilda Svensson was moved to the second line. That proved to be a good move as Svensson assisted on Sani Vanhanen’s goal in the second period.
Other players also played well throughout the lineup. Kaia Malachino, who has been playing great as of late, finished the game with a goal and an assist. Defensive pair Emma Peschel and Sara Swiderski each recorded a goal.ย
Now heading into yet another national championship, the Buckeyes look incredibly prepared to face Wisconsin once again as they look to avenge their heartbreaking loss from last yearโs finale.
Penn State vs. Wisconsin
Penn State entered their first Frozen Four ever with a lot of fire power. In front of a Frozen Four record 5,176 fans, PSU was hoping to keep their Cinderella run going. Wisconsin wanted to advance to yet another title game.
The Frozen Four Rookies Against the Seasoned Vets
In their Frozen Four debut, the Nittany Lions looked good from the start. Captain Tessa Janecke scored on the power play less than two minutes into the game. The physical start from the Nittany Lions helped them jump out a quick lead. The penalty for the Badgers proved costly.
But this is Wisconsin, the defending champions, the team that was ranked number one overall all season, and a team that boasts five Olympians. Naturally, a few minutes later gold medalist Laila Edwards got around Penn State goalie Katie DeSa and tied the game at one.
Just two and a half minutes after that, Maddy Christianโs shot was stopped by Ava McNaughton. But Abby Stonehouse was able to keep picking at the puck and it went in five hole. Stonehouse kept going hard at the net and it gave the Nittany Lions the 2-1 lead off another power play. For having the nationโs top power play, the Badgers were in unfamiliar territory. PSUโs defense was lights out this period. They blocked 10 shots and their DeSa was making great saves to keep the lead in hand. The Nittany Lions also had control over this game with their faceoff wins too.
A Ridiculously Fun 40 minutes of Hockey
The tide began to change in the second period. Wisconsin had a power play with 13 minutes left in the second and Edwards tied the game at two. The best power play in the nation did look like it this time around. Another Olympian Adรฉla ล apovalivovรก scored on a wraparound goal for the lead. It was her fifth goal in the last five games and the Czechia native finished that play perfectly.
Wisconsin got into trouble in the third period. They started on the penalty kill before taking another penalty that resulted in a 5-on-3 advantage for Penn State. Luckily for the Badgers, they killed both penalties and kept their lead intact.
Five minutes into the period McNaughton stole the spotlight. She made three incredible saves within the span of a minute. Those were three of the best chances PSU had since they lost their lead and it resulted in nothing.
Then Things got Interesting
Then with five minutes left in the game, Janecke got a perfect feed from Nicole Hall. She raced down the ice with Wisconsinโs Emma Venusio in tow, who couldnโt stop her, and Janecke was able to fake the shot and get behind McNaughton to tie the game at three.
The Olympian played a lot of minutes in regulation and she was the one that took this game into her own hands and relied on her incredible experience away from college hockey to be that player in the biggest moment when her team needed her. This was only Janeckeโs second multi-goal game of the season. What a way to cap it off!
Overtime did not last long. If thereโs one thing to take away from this game itโs that penalties can be costly. Wisconsin, with the nationโs best power play, went on a player advantage after Kendall Butze was called for boarding. The physicality from the Nittany Lions was working well at the start but this penalty cost them. Kirsten Simms was able to find the back of the net seconds into the power play for the game winning goal. It was her 100th career goal to send the Badgers back to the championship game to defend their title.
What Went Right for the Badgers
Wisconsin remained composed the entire game. After two costly penalties in the first period, they were able to fight back to keep themselves in the game. They have star power all over the lineup and when they needed them most, players like Edwards, ล apovalivovรก, and Simms were there with the offense. The offense was the biggest game changer for the Badgers. While they average over five goals per game, they poured on 35 shots on goal in this game. That gave them good chances to score. They also didnโt let Penn State create a chance in overtime to get anything going even before the penalty. They took control of the game when they could and understood that. The Badgers hadn’t faced much adversity these playoffs. But though the Badgers gave up the game tying goal late, they found a way to stick to their winning identity.
The Buckeyes and Badgers will face off in the national championship game for the fourth straight year. Ohio State last defeated Wisconsin on Mar. 7 in the WCHA conference championship game. Itโs anyoneโs game come Sunday afternoon!
