GREEN BAY, WIS.—It only took one hundred total shots and one hundred and eleven minutes of scoreless hockey, but the Wisconsin Badgers men's hockey team persevered, advancing to the Frozen Four in Milwaukee, Wis.
Freshman right wing Jack Skille got the game winner on a one timer after a great pass from sophomore defenseman Josh Engel as the Badgers outlasted the Cornell Big Red in the third period of sudden death overtime. It was the longest scoreless match of NCAA history, and the second longest game overall.
Engel made Badger history with only the second point of his career. After a game dominated by defense, Engel jumped into the offense and made the dish to Skille.
I wasn't gonna go right away but at the last second I decided to go and that's when I heard Jack,\ Engel said. ""I heard ‘Engel, Engel' really loud. Then I just passed it to him and he did the rest.""
Skille's goal came minutes after a shot off the freshman's stick hit the pipe and was ruled a no-goal after referees reviewed the play.
From start to finish the game was a battle between second team all Western Collegiate Hockey Conference junior goaltender Brian Elliott and Cornell junior All-American goaltender David McKee. While McKee finished with more saves (59), Elliott had 40 himself and extended his shutout streak to three games, the longest in Wisconsin history.
Despite his individual accolades, McKee was more than a little disappointed in the result.
""A loss is a loss, we wanted to move on, it's pretty bitter,"" McKee said.
Elliott gave most of the credit for the historic win to his teammates, especially the hard working and high-energy fourth line.
""The way we played in the offensive zone was great too, we were just like sandpaper all along the wall there,"" Elliott said.
UW head coach Mike Eaves was understandably happy with his team after what has been a successful but often frustrating season.
""When you play in a game like this, the will has to be greater than the skill,"" Eaves said.
Despite 19 third period shots and a ferocious attack on the power play, Wisconsin was unable to put away the Big Red in regulation.
The game appeared to end on multiple occasions. Junior forward Robbie Earl found himself with the puck, space and enough time to fire several powerful slapshots with scarcely two minutes remaining in regulation.
From the beginning of the game it was apparent that it would be a hard hitting affair. Despite the Big Red's large size advantage Wisconsin refused to back down. Five-foot-eight, 182 lb senior left wing Nick Licari was among several Badgers able to knock down Cornell players of a much bigger stature.
The 8,086 mostly Wisconsin fans in attendance were less than welcoming to visiting and red-clad Cornell fans and players. At one point the Crease Creatures began a chant of ""Harvard rejects,"" making light of the visitors' Ivy League status.
The game was one of the most physical in recent memory. Senior defenseman Tom Gilbert nearly knocked Cornell senior forward Cam Abbott out of the game with a devastating body check at the midway point of the second period. As Abbot came on the rush, Gilbert forced his body into the air and then into the boards protecting the Cornell bench.
Physical play and goaltending were the story of the game, but in the end Skille had the last word with his auspicious shot. Skille refused to take credit for the win, explaining that it was a team effort and anyone could have gotten the goal, it just happened to be him.
""I don't even remember how many chances I had. I remember hearing the pipe a couple of times. But I just kept moving on and keeping my head high,"" Skille said. ""It could have gone to anyone on the team tonight because of the effort by everyone.""
After almost six periods of grueling hockey, Skille managed to put it all in perspective.
""We're going to the Frozen Four and we're going to Milwaukee"" Skille said.\
