Luke LaMaster, Jared Moe lead Wisconsin hockey to shutout of seventh-ranked Ohio State

MADISON – This was an emphatic start to the final half of the season for the Wisconsin men’s hockey team.

Sparked by the first career goal for junior Luke LaMaster, fueled by a bounce-back effort by the defense and punctuated by a three-goal final period, the Badgers scored a 4-0 victory over seventh-ranked Ohio State in front of 7,414 fans at the Kohl Center on Friday night.

The victory was Wisconsin’s fifth over a ranked opponent and served as a bit of payback for two losses the Badgers experienced at the hands of Ohio State during the opening weekend of the season.

The win also could be considered therapeutic for a team that has struggled to score. Eleven plays recorded a point in the win, which raised the Badgers’ record to 10-13 overall and 3-10 in the Big Ten.

Ohio State, a winner of six of its last seven, dropped 15-9-1 and 8-7.

UW coach Tony Granato noted a seriousness and intensity with which the team practiced this week and it showed.

“I give credit to all our guys because the preparation this week was what we needed to do to beat a team like Ohio State,” he said. “That’s a good team. It took a lot of energy. We paid the price in lots of different areas of the rink tonight to put ourselves in position to win.”

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Senior Jared Moe recorded his fourth shutout of the season and posted 22 saves in his first appearance since giving up four goals against Notre Dame on Jan. 7. In front of him, the Badgers blocked 21 shots, nine more than their season average.

Daniel Laatsch, Corson Ceuelemans return to action

The shutout coincided with the return of blueliners Daniel Laatsch and Corson Ceuelemans, who sat out the exhibition last weekend to nurse injuries. Moe sat out the exhibition game, too, as Granato gave his backups some ice time.

“We played with four (defenders) basically last weekend and that’s always tough,” Granato said. “Getting those guys back, maybe they were a little fresher and there was a little more desperation to their play, but let’s face it, tonight’s game was the start of the second half of the year.

“We’ve played every Big Ten team. In the first half it didn’t go the way we wanted it to, but we know the Big Ten now. We feel we can have some success, but to be successful we have to be sharp and respectful of our opponents.”

The tone for the night was set during the first 10 minutes when Wisconsin spent most of its time in the Buckeyes' zone. The Badgers, who finished with a 34-22 edge in shots on goal, had a 10-1 advantage to start the game.

It wasn’t until the second period, however, that they were rewarded for their work.

LaMaster played in 50 games at UW before getting his first goal. It came off a pass from senior Owen Lindmark. Junior Ty Smalanic didn’t get an assist but his pick on the play set up LaMaster nicely for the shot.

He had plenty of time to make the play.

“It’s a big one (to) get the boys going for sure,” he said. “In a game like that goals can be rare. The important thing is we got on the scoreboard and got a win out of it.”

Badgers dominate third period against Buckeyes

The goal served as the game-winner but the victory wasn't truly secured until a 6½-minute stretch in the third period when senior Jack Gorniak and freshmen Tyson Jugnauth and Cruz Lucius scored.

Gorniak’s score was an even-strength goal that came off passes from junior Sam Stange and senior Shay Donovan. The final two tallies were power play opportunities created by a major penalty on Tate Singleton for charging into Moe.

The goals were UW’s seventh off the power play in the last three games. They were part of a dominating final period for the Badgers, who outshot Ohio State, 16-3, during that stretch.

Perhaps it will set the stage for the second game of the series, which begins at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Most of Wisconsin’s big victories this season have come in the first game of the series. Maintaining that momentum has been a problem, but the team could get a boost from the return of Carson Bantle, who had to sit out Friday as a result of his ejection for fighting last week.

Putting together back-to-back strong performances was the challenge Granato left the team with Friday.

“Tonight was a good game, but we’ve got to reset, enjoy it for a little bit and get back to work tomorrow,” LaMaster said. “Same game plan, same recipe. We know what we’ve got to do, it’s just a matter of us doing it now.”

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Luke LaMaster, Jared Moe lead Wisconsin hockey past No. 7 Ohio State