After a week off, the Gophers failed to secure the 2022-23 Big Ten Regular Season Championship label. They lost 3-1 on Saturday against the Badgers, splitting the weekend series in rival territory.

Close dazzles in between the pipes

The Badgers came out peppering the Gophers to a 21-3 shots on goal advantage during Friday’s game. Most of that offensive onslaught was due to a five-minute major penalty on Jackson LaCombe for game misconduct.

Even though a chunk of the man-advantage was negated with a Wisconsin penalty, the Badgers were buzzing. However, the brick wall that is Justen Close kept them at bay for the period; he made his best save of the season, gliding from one side of the crease to the other to make a terrific glove save. With a Logan Cooley goal from a Matthew Knies forced turnover, the Gophers somehow were ahead 1-0 at the end of the first period.

The next two periods played out better for Minnesota because they were more consistent offensively. Just over a minute into the second period, Ryan Johnson found Jimmy Snuggerud near the top of the left circle to make it a 2-0 game. Bryce Brodzinski blasted a one-time shot, fed from Rhett Pitlick with about eight minutes left in the period, which would remove Badger goalie Jared Moe, who saved four of seven shots.

Brodzinski didn’t take his foot off the gas pedal as he nailed a shot from in front of new Badger goaltender Kyle McClellan. This was the senior’s second two-goal game in the last four games.

Not long after, Wisconsin broke Close’s shutout bid. Close still made 36 total saves in the game, and the Gophers closed out the match 4-1.

“Justen was the difference in the game tonight,” Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. “They could have really gotten some momentum early in the game. Our penalty kill did a decent job, but Justen was our best penalty killer.”

Ticky-Tack call burns Gophers

A positive for Minnesota on Saturday compared to Friday’s contest was their aggression, finding more than a few good opportunities to take a 1-0 lead. They cashed in with 92 seconds remaining in the first period with Cooley picking up the assist for a Mike Koster shot from the point. The Badgers would battle back to send the game to a 1-1 draw at the end of the first thanks to Cruz Lucius, who was formerly committed to Minnesota in summer 2022.

Wisconsin wore out the Gophers in the second period in a back-and-forth affair with shots flying on both sides of the ice at a consistent clip. Daniel Laatsch broke the tie for the Badgers and Wisconsin took its first lead of the season series. This lead would diminish, briefly.

Connor Kurth managed to get the equalizing goal, but the play was challenged by the Badgers’ bench for too many men on the ice, and the goal was wiped away. The Gophers attempted to claw back with a Brody Lamb shot ricocheting off the crossbar. Carson Bantle increased Wisconsin’s lead by juking out Jaxon Nelson and striking from the right circle.

In the final period, Minnesota put up a valiant effort to come back, putting up 14 shots compared to Wisconsin’s nine, but the Badgers walked away victorious, upsetting the top team in the nation 3-1. This is the Gophers’ first regulation Big Ten Conference loss since November.

“Wisconsin deserved to win,” Motzko said. “The ref told me our guy was at the center circle and he touched it 10 feet from the boards…they [Wisconsin] played with desperation and outworked us in stretches of the game.”

The now second ranked Gophers (Quinnipiac taking the top spot Monday) will travel to Penn State to take on the Nittany Lions on Friday and Saturday. Both games commence at 5:30 p.m. on the Big Ten Network.