So close ... and yet so far. The Wisconsin men's hockey season came to an end Sunday evening, as the Badgers lost in the Midwest Regional Final to the No. 1 seed North Dakota Fighting Sioux 3-2 in overtime at the Kohl Center.
After taking a 2-0 lead into the third period, Wisconsin surrendered two goals in 47 seconds and gave up the game-winning goal at the 1:47 mark in overtime. North Dakota senior forwards Rylan Kaip and Ryan Duncan scored the two goals in the third period, while junior forward Andrew Kozek scored the game-winner.
Most of the 9,816 fans stood in shock as Kozek gathered a shot that freshman forward Kyle Turris blocked and slid it past junior goaltender Shane Connelly's right skate, while the small patches of green North Dakota fans erupted in excitement.
The loss leaves a bitter taste in the mouth of Wisconsin players and coaches considering how most of the game went.
We got off to the start that we wanted, had a two nothing lead and hit about four posts, and couldn't get that next goal that would have given us a spread that might have been a little harder to come back from,"" head coach Mike Eaves said. ""[North Dakota] may have worn us down, I'm not sure. But their veteran guys played well at the end and got the job done.""
Wisconsin (16-17-7) had multiple chances to score throughout the game but was unable to capitalize on any of those opportunities. Sophomore forward Aaron Bendickson got a puck past North Dakota senior goaltender and Hobey Baker Award semifinalist Jean-Phillipe Lamoureux five minutes into the contest, but head official Matt Shegos called off the goal because of a blown whistle.
Later in the period, the Badgers once again came close to scoring, this time on the power play. Turris shot a wrister from the top of the left circle that hit off the left post, and although the goal light did go off. Shegos once again signaled a no-goal.
The Badgers took control of the game in the second period, scoring two goals with a one-man advantage. As an early power play ended, Turris flicked the puck from the top of the left circle diagonally across the ice, hitting sophomore defenseman Jamie McBain in stride. McBain deflected the puck past Lamoureux's left leg pad, giving UW a 1-0 lead.
Wisconsin's lead grew at the 19:21 mark of the second, as freshman defenseman Cody Goloubef's missed slap shot from the top of the slot resulted in a goal after ricocheting off the boards to the right of the net, bouncing off the ice and then off of Lamoureux's backside.
The goal was Goloubef's second goal of the regional to happen in such a strange fashion.
However, the Fighting Sioux (27-10-4) responded quickly in the third period. Senior forward Rylan Kaip notched the first North Dakota goal at the 3:33 mark of the final period, collecting a pass from freshman forward Matt Frattin and putting it past Connelly to his left.
The puck seemed to bounce over Connelly's left leg pad, one of only a few bounces that had not gone in favor of the Badgers.
Junior forward Ryan Duncan quickly scored the equalizer for North Dakota. After scoring three goals in Saturday's victory over Princeton, Duncan crossed the blue line and quickly shot the puck from the top of the left circle. The shot seemed invisible, and only the clink of the puck hitting the post as it went into the net signified the goal.
""We fell in there a little bit after those two quick goals,"" Drewiske said. ""I still felt like we were going to pull through.""
However, even with some momentum still on their side, the Badgers were unable to score that one last goal or get one extra bounce in their favor, giving the Fighting Sioux the advantage and, eventually, the victory.
The Badgers made it to the Midwest Regional Final by defeating the Denver Pioneers (26-14-1) 6-2 in Saturday's semifinal game. A four-goal third period propelled Wisconsin to victory.
