UW men’s hockey victory sets up Big Ten title shot
Wisconsin bounced back impressively Friday night.
The sixth-ranked Badgers men’s hockey team shut out Penn State, 6-0, in front of 6,403 at Pegula Ice Arena in State College, Pennsylvania, to snap a two-game losing streak.
Senior Kyle McClellan turned away 27 shots to record his seventh shutout of the season, one short of the program’s single-season record. Sophomore Cruz Lucius recorded two goals and one assist for the Badgers, who fell one goal short of their single-game season high.
Senior Mathieu De St. Phalle also scored twice for Wisconsin, which raised its record to 23-8-2 overall and 14-6-1 — 45 points — Big Ten. Senior David Silye had three assists and sophomore Ben Dexheimer had two.
Freshman William Whitelaw’s goal at the 6-minute 11-second mark of the first period proved to be the only score Wisconsin would need.
As a bonus for its work, UW gained ground on Big Ten leader Michigan State, which lost to Ohio State, 6-2, Friday night. The outcome allowed the Badgers to pull within one point of the lead and guaranteed the Big Ten title will be decided when the teams meet next week at the Kohl Center.
Wisconsin wrapped up its series with the Nittany Lions, the Big Ten’s sixthplace team, at 5 p.m. Saturday.