Wisconsin Badgers men's hockey advances to Kwik Trip Face-Off final at Fiserv Forum after a shutout win

Wisconsin’s defense didn’t break Wednesday.

The Badgers outshot Lake Superior State in each period, denied each of its four power plays and got 24 saves from senior Jared Moe in a 4-0 victory over the Lakers in the opening round of the Kwik Trip Holiday Face-Off in front of 6,533 at Fiserv Forum.

The victory snapped a three-game skid for the Badgers (8-11) and sent them to the championship game of the event for the second straight year. The Lakers, who will face No. 15 Massachusetts in the consolation game at 4 p.m. Thursday, dropped to 3-14-2.

Up next for Wisconsin is Clarkson, which rallied from three goals down, to score a 6-3 victory over UMass in the first game Wednesday. The puck drops at 7:30 p.m.

“You go into a game like this where we don’t practice for two weeks because of finals and the holidays and then all of sudden jump on the ice, you always worry how is that first game going to go,” UW coach Tony Granato said. “We were fortunate enough to play smart enough to stay in the game early and then gradually as the game went on, we got our legs a little bit, we got a little bit more flow to the game.”

Wisconsin Badgers get contributions from many players on way to 4-0 victory over Lake Superior State

Wisconsin natives scored three of the team’s goals, including the first two of the night.

Senior Brock Caufield Sam Stange, who hails from Stevens Point, posted what proved to be the game-winner at the 2:36 mark of the second period when he put away a shot from the rear center of the zone that was set up by passes from junior Mathieu De St. Phalle and freshman Cruz Lucius.

De St. Phalle and Lucius struck again 4 ½ minutes later, this time setting up Onalaska native Carson Bantle’s third goal of the season. The power-play goal came after a hooking call on Lake Superior State's Benito Posa. De St. Phalle made the play with an excellent pass from the left circle to the right side of the net that Bantle was able to tap it in.

Sam Stange, a junior from Eau Claire, and sophomore Liam Malmquist scored in the final five minutes to give UW its final margin of victory.

“You’ve got to build off what we did today,” Moe said. “We’re playing a tougher opponent tomorrow. It should be a tight game. We played them last year, so we know how they’re going to play. They’re going to be a big, strong team. We’re going to have to be better than we were tonight to give them a run.”

Wisconsin goalie Jared Moe continues strong play in the net during the Holiday Face-Off

The shutout was UW’s first since a 3-0 win at Minnesota-Duluth on Oct. 22. For Moe, he continued the strong play he displayed at the Face-Off last year when he stopped 5 of 6 shootout attempts in the final.

“You could see the emphasis on us trying to block shots tonight,” he said. “I think that was pretty evident. I remember (Luke) La Master took one off the back of his neck, so I think guys really selling out to do that makes my job a lot easier.

“There were a few hiccups at the end – it got a little scary – but overall it was a really good game and really defensively sound. They didn’t make it too hard on me.”

The final will be a rematch of an early-season series the programs played last season. Clarkson came to the Kohl Center and scored a tie in the first game before posting a 3-0 win the next night.

“We always play to win in hockey and play to win championships,” Caufield said. “It’s a great opportunity for our team and proves we can win tough games. We’re looking forward to the opportunity.”

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin hockey advances to Holiday Face-Off final at Fiserv Forum