Ohio State then-sophomore forward Jennifer Gardiner (12) watches for the puck during the Ohio State – Wisconsin game on Nov. 28. Ohio State lost 0-5. Credit: Mackenzie Shanklin | Photo Editor
Revenge is a dish best served cold.
On the ice, cold.
The No. 2 Ohio State women’s ice hockey team beat No. 1 Wisconsin 3-0 at the Ohio State Ice Rink Friday, winning its 10th game in a row and dethroning the previously unbeaten Badgers (12-1-0, 8-1-0 WCHA) in the first meeting between the two teams since last season’s national championship game.
The Buckeyes (10-1-0, 9-0-0 WCHA) were propelled by graduate forward Jenn Gardiner’s two-goal frenzy at the start of the second period, as Gardiner scored back-to-back goals in 1:11 of game time to give Ohio State a lead that wouldn’t be lost.
Both goals came on a power play resulting from a major penalty by Wisconsin graduate forward Britta Curl.
The two-goal performance by Gardiner now gives the captain 12 multiple-goal games in her career.
“Heading into that power play, there was a pretty big hit on [Jocelyn Amos],” Gardiner said. “We wanted to make it clear that was not okay, and so scoring two power-play goals was a good way to reflect on our team there.”
The message sent by Gardiner was felt by the entire team, head coach Nadine Muzerall said.
“If you’re going to wear the ‘C,’ you have to represent leadership,” Muzerall said. “She did just that. It’s not just who is the loudest on the team but who is going to pull through in key moments for the team.”
Ohio State kept its foot on the gas the full 60 minutes, keeping the Badgers out of the net by riding senior goaltender Raygan Kirk’s 20-save performance.
“I did my best to communicate with my defense,” Kirk said. “It’s always loud at home, but we had some good movement behind the net and I think that helped us break the puck out and go down in their zone.”
Kirk notched her sixth-straight win with the shutout, having just allowed four goals in her last three outings and picking up her second shutout of the season.
“Wisconsin could have definitely gotten some goals tonight if [Kirk] wasn’t as fantastic as she was,” Muzerall said. “It wasn’t that she played the game, she was involved in every play. Overall, she was fantastic. It’s the best hockey game I’ve seen her play.”
As emotions ran high ahead of the matchup against the Badgers, Ohio State came out hot and ready for the test, Muzerall said.
“We did a lot of great things,” Muzerall said. “We hemmed them in, especially in the second period with our line changes.”
Ohio State outshot Wisconsin 14-6 and 8-6 in the first and second periods, respectively.
“Their strength is their offense,” Gardiner said. “They have a lot of depth and a lot of great players on that team so we tried to keep possession and be physical with them.”
After a 1-for-6 power-play performance against Minnesota Nov. 4, Ohio State hammered away at special teams during the recent off week, Muzerall said.
Ohio State went 2-for-4 and held the Badgers to 0-for-3 on the power play Friday.
“It wasn’t just our power play but also our penalty kill,” Muzerall said. “We had some unnecessary penalties. We talked to the team about how it’s going to come down to special teams and how we really need to make it count.”
With the win, Ohio State advances to 6-1-0 on the year against ranked teams and 4-1-0 against top-five teams.
Both teams return to the Ohio State Ice Rink on Saturday with puck drop set at 3 p.m.
