BIG TEN PLAY OPENS AT THE KOHL CENTER
No. 10/12 Wisconsin (1-0-0, 0-0-0 Big Ten) opens its conference season on Friday and Saturday when No. 19 Ohio State (0-0-0, 0-0-0 Big Ten) visits the Kohl Center. Friday's game begins at 7 p.m., while Saturday's contest is a 5 p.m. puck drop.

The Badgers are 17-9-3 all-time against Ohio State after taking three of five games last season.

This year's Big Ten opener marks the earliest the Conference has started intraleague play. UW opened the inaugural Big Ten season in 2013–14 with a contest on Nov. 29 at Minnesota for the previous early start. The last three Big Ten seasons didn't start until December.

The coaching staffs of Wisconsin and Ohio State boast many connections. UW associate head coach Mark Osiecki spent three seasons (2010–13) as the Buckeyes' head coach, while UW associate head coach Mark Strobel spent the last two seasons in a similar capacity for OSU. OSU assistant coach JB Bittner served as a UW assistant coach during the 2015–16 campaign. Finally, OSU head coach Steve Rohlik is a Wisconsin alum, having captained the Badgers to their 1990 NCAA championship as a teammate of Osiecki.

SERIES NOTES
Ohio State
The Badgers are 17-9-3 all-time against Ohio State, and won three of the five meetings last season, including in the 2017 Big Ten Tournament semifinals.

Both teams won the others' building last year, with UW winning 3-1 in Columbus, Ohio, and OSU winning 5-1 and 3-1 at the Kohl Center. The Badgers won the two neutral site contests, at Madison Square Garden in New York and at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.

WISCONSIN-OHIO STATE CONNECTIONS
UW forward Seamus Malone and OSU defensemen Wyatt Ege and Sasha Larocque played together on the Dubuque Fighting Saints in the USHL during the 2014-15 season.

Wisconsin defenseman Jake Linhart played with Ohio State forward Ma?tthew Weiss on the Green Bay Gamblers in the USHL from 2012-14.

UW juniors Will Johnson and Jarod Zirbel played with Ohio State forwards Miguel Fidler and Freddy Gerard on the Madison Capitols in the USHL during the 2014-15 season.

Badgers' defenseman Cullen Hurley and Buckeyes' defenseman Janik Moser played on the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the USHL during the 2013-14 season. Hurley also played with OSU's Mason Jobst from 2012-14.

Wisconsin defenseman Jake Bunz played with OSU's Brendon Kearney on the Chicago Steel in the USHL during the 2013-14 season. Wisconsin sophmore Max Zimmer joined the pair for eight games during the 2014-15 campaign.

Ohio State head coach Steve Rohlik was the captain for the Badgers 1990 NCAA championship team and skated from 1986 through 1990 for the Badgers.

Rohlik served as an assistant coach under Mark Osiecki when Osiecki served as Ohio State head coach from 2010 to 2013. The two were teammates on the 1990 NCAA championship team.

UW associate head coach Mark Strobel served in a similar role for the Buckeyes the last two years.

OSU assistant coach JB Bittner was a Badger assistant coach during the 2015–16 season.

OSU associate head coach Steve Miller is from Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. 

LAST MEETINGS
Wisconsin 2, Ohio State 1
March 17, 2017
Will Johnson scored one minute and 30 seconds into the third frame to give Wisconsin a 2-1 lead and goaltender Jack Berry stopped all 11 shots he saw in the final period to preserve the win and advance the Badgers to the Big Ten Tournament championship game. Berry had a total of 23 saves.

Luke Kunin opened the scoring late in the fi rst period, assisted by JD Greenway and Tim Davison. OSU capitalized on a power play in the second period to tie the game, 1-1.

Ohio State 3, Wisconsin 1
March 11, 2017
The Badgers fell behind early with an OSU goal 2:46 into the first period and were unable to close the deficit after two second-period scores.

Matt Ustaski seemed to cut the Buckeyes' lead to 3-1, but the play was challenged and ruled offside.

Luke Kunin eventually scored a powerplay goal in the third period to keep the Buckeyes from getting the shutout. Jack Berry finished the game with 25 saves.

BEHIND THE BENCH
WISCONSIN BADGERS
Head Coach: Tony Granato
Record at WIS: 21-15-1 (2nd Year)
Overall: 21-15-1 (2nd Year)

OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
Head Coach: Steve Rohlik
Record at OSU: 67-63-18 (5thYear)
Overall: 67-63-18 (5thYear)

KEY NOTES TO CONSIDER
Wisconsin boasts eight newcomers, including All-American graduate transfer goaltender Kyle Hayton, as well as seven freshmen (Tarek Baker, F; Jason Dhooghe, F; Sean Dhooghe, F; Josh Ess, D; Tyler Inamoto, D; Wyatt Kalynuk, D; Linus Weissbach, F). Hayton and six of the seven freshmen made their first Badger appearance last Sunday against Michigan Tech.

Wisconsin head coach and 2017 Big Ten Coach of the Year Tony Granato was named head coach of the U.S. Olympic Team for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games set for PyeongChang, South Korea. The games take place Feb. 9-25, 2018. He is expected to miss four or six Wisconsin games because of the position.

Senior forward Cameron Hughes will captain the Badgers, with the help from four teammates. Assistant captains include seniors Ryan Wagner and Jake Linhart, junior Seamus Malone and sophomore Trent Frederic. The five captains are the most in UW history.

ABOUT LAST WEEK
Wisconsin won its first season-opening game since the 2013–14 season, and just its second in 10 seasons. UW had been 1-7-1 in the previous nine season openers beginning with 2008–09.

The win helped UW improve to 5-1-0 all-time in U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Games.

All-American graduate transfer goaltender Kyle Hayton made his Wisconsin debut and stopped 20 shots in UW's 3-2 victory over Michigan Tech. It was his 55th career collegiate victory (54 at St. Lawrence).

Junior forward Will Johnson scored UW's first goal of the season, just 5:51 into the year.

Three Badgers opened with multi-point games, including freshman forward Linus Weissbach (2 goals), Will Johnson (1 goal, 1 assist) and sophomore forward Trent Frederic (2 assists).

NUMBERS TO KNOW
2 - Freshman forward Linus Weissbach scored two goals in his debut last Sunday against Michigan Tech to become the first Badger since Michael Davies on Oct. 6, 2006 to scored two goals in his UW debut.

11 - Sophomore forward Trent Frederic recorded his 11th career multi-point game last Sunday in his 31st career game, one shy of current program leaders Cameron Hughes (103 GP) and Seamus Malone (71 GP).

+5 - Wisconsin outshot Michigan Tech by five shots, 27-22, in the opener, continuing a trend started last season when UW outshot its opponent in 24 of 36 contests.

SPECIAL TEAMS
Three of the five goals last Sunday in the UW-MTU game were tallied on the power play, with Wisconsin scoring once on two chances and Michigan Tech succeeded twice on four opportunities.

Wisconsin was +15 on special teams last season, but -9 at even strength. UW is already +2 at even strength this year.

THE HONOR IS OURS
After the Badgers' 3-2 win over Michigan Tech, Linus Weissbach, Will Johnson and Trent Frederic were named the three Big Ten Stars of the Week.

Senior goaltender Kyle Hayton was named to the 2018 Mike Richter Award watch list after having been one of five finalists for the award in 2015 while playing for St. Lawrence.

HEY, HAYTON
Goaltender Kyle Hayton is one of the two names on the watch list for the 2018 Mike Richter Award, which goes to the nation's top goaltender.

He joined the Badgers as a graduate transfer from St. Lawrence University, where he was named the ECAC Goaltender of the Year and a second-team All-American in 2016-17. 

Hayton, a native of Denver, was one of 10 semifinalists for the Mike Richter Award. He started 35 of the Saints' 37 contests while posting a .929 save percentage and five shutouts.

Hayton finished his time at SLU as the leader in career wins, appearances, saves, shutouts and goals-against average in just three seasons of play.

Had Hayton played his first three years at Wisconsin, he would currently rank in the top-five on the all-time UW list for career save percentage (.934, first), shutouts (13, second), wins (60, fourth) and saves (3,079, fifth).

Hayton entered the season with numbers that rank among the best in the country among the nation's goaltenders. His 3,079 saves were No. 1, as was his .934 save percentage. He ranked second with 54 victories in goal, while his 13 shutouts also ranked second. 

B1G ADDITION
Notre Dame is now the seventh member of the Big Ten for hockey after spending the last four seasons as a member of Hockey East. The Fighting Irish were CCHA members prior to that.

UND reached the 2017 NCAA Frozen Four semifinals, before eventual national champion Denver eliminated the Fighting Irish.

UND visits the Kohl Center for a Dec. 8-9 series, while UW visits South Bend, Indiana, for a series on Jan. 19-20.

The Big Ten moves to a three-week playoff with best-of-three series on campus sites, then a semifinal game and championship game at campus sites of the higher seed. The top seed will get a first-round bye.

OLYMPIC OPPORTUNITY
Badgers' head coach Tony Granato was named head coach of the United State's men's hockey team competing in the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

As a player, Granato represented Team USA in the 1988 Winter Games. He also served as an assistant coach for the Americans at the 2014 Olympics.

Joining Granato on the bench as an assistant coach will be former UW defenseman Chris Chelios, as well as general manager for Team USA Jim Johannson, who played with Granato at Wisconsin and on the 1988 Olympic team.

Granato joins Peter Laviolette, John Garrison, Jack Riley and Herb Brooks on a short list of coaches who have played in the Olympics for Team USA and later coached the American squad in the Games.

Granato joins Bob Johnson, who guided the Americans in 1976, as Wisconsin men's coaches who have been tabbed to coach Team USA.

ALL-LEAGUE RETURNS
The Badgers welcome the return of a pair of 2017 Second-Team All-Big Ten skaters in senior defenseman Jake Linhart and sophomore forward Trent Frederic, as well as a pair of honorable mention All-Big Ten players in junior defenseman Peter Tischke and sophomore goaltender Jack Berry. Graduate transfer goaltender Kyle Hayton joins the Badgers after being named the 2017 ECAC Goaltender of the Year.

RANKINGS
Wisconsin opened the season ranked No. 12 in the USCHO.com Preseason Poll and jumped one spot to No. 10 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll after defeating Michigan Tech in its season opener.

It marked the first preseason ranking for the Badgers since Sept. 29, 2014, when UW ranked No. 10 coming off Big Ten tourney title and No. 1 NCAA tournament seed.

The Badgers were one of five Big Ten schools to start the season ranked.

Wisconsin was picked to finish third in the Big Ten by Conference coaches. 

100 GAMES
Five Badgers have skated in at least 100 games played with senior forward Ryan Wagner leading the way (107 GP). Also over the 100 games-played threshold are senior defenseman Jake Linhart (106), senior forward Cameron Hughes (103) and senior defenseman Tim Davison (103). Graduate transfer goaltender Kyle Hayton has also played in 105 games.

Five others, including Jason Ford (86), Matt Ustaski (77) Seamus Malone (71), Will Johnson (71), and Peter Tischke (63), are within striking distance of 100 games played.

UW boasted seven skaters last season with at least 100 games played, the most since the 2013–14 Badgers had 11 skaters over 100 career games played.

CAPTAINS
Senior forward Cameron Hughes was named team captain after serving as an alternate captain in 2016-17. 

The four Badgers joining Hughes as alternate captains are senior forward Ryan Wagner and senior defenseman Jake Linhart, as well as junior forward Seamus Malone and sophomore forward Trent Frederic.

The five-member leadership crew is the largest in program history, not counting the three seasons during which the Badgers have rotated and had game captains.

UW has had combinations of four captains and assistant captains on six prior occasions, including most recently during the 2012-13 season when captain John Ramage had assistant help from Ryan Little, Derek Lee and Frankie Simonelli.

Other than Hughes, who served as one of UW's two alternate captains last season, the remaining four Badgers will wear a letter on their jersey's for the first time in their UW careers.

SCORING PUNCH
In the offensively-minded Big Ten, the Badgers scored with the best of them last season, averaging 3.39 goals per game to rank No. 9 in the country. That mark ranked fourth among Big Ten schools. 

Sophomore forward and 2017 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Trent Frederic enters the season as UW's leading returning scorer after posting 15 goals and 33 points as a rookie.

Four Badgers scored double figures, including three who return for the squad. Frederic led the returners with 15 goals, while both Seamus Malone and Will Johnson tallied 10 times last year. UW lost leader scorer Luke Kunin to the pros after the second-team All-American tallied 22 goals and 38 points last year.

The Badgers add some punch, as well, with freshman speedster Linus Weissbach joining the team. Weissbach led the USHL's Tri-City Storm last season with 47 points on 19 goals and 28 assists.

Frosh defenseman Wyatt Kalynuk enters after playing as one of the USHL's most offensive defenseman last season. With the Bloomington Thunder, Kalynuk paced the defense and ranked seventh in the USHL among rear guards with 31 points (6 g, 25 a).

DEFENSE GET TOUGH
The biggest area of improvement for the Badgers from last year might come in UW's own zone with the addition of three NHL drafted defensemen and All-American goaltender Kyle Hayton.

U.S. National Team Development product Tyler Inamoto is the highest drafted of the newcomers after he was picked by the Florida Panthers in the fifth round (133rd overall) this summer. Wyatt Kalynuk went in the seventh round (196th) to the Philadelphia Flyers and the Chicago Blackhawks drafted Josh Ess in the seventh round (215th).

UW ranked 46th out of 60 teams in the nation last season, allowing an average of 3.28 goals per game.

FEELING A DRAFT
Wisconsin begins the season with nine NHL draft picks on its roster. 

UW had four players selected in 2017, including three defensemen. That marks the first time since 2008 that three Badger defensemen were chosen by NHL teams.

Defenseman Tyler Inamoto (5th round, 133rd overall) was the highest pick for the Badgers in this year's draft, followed by defensemen Wyatt Kalynuk (196th) and Josh Ess (215th), both in the seventh round.

Forward Linus Weissbach was also selected in the seventh round, going 192nd overall.

This marks the second consecutive year that four Badgers were chosen in the NHL Draft.

CURRENT UW DRAFT PICKS    

NCAA ATTENDANCE RANKINGS
Wisconsin finished the season ranked second in the country in average attendance at 10,157.7 fans per game. North Dakota led the country at 11,504.9. 

Wisconsin has led the country in attendance 38 times all time, including most recently in the 2011–12 season.

COACHING THEM UP
All three Wisconsin coaches are Badgers' alumni with head coach Tony Granato (1983–87), associate head coach Mark Osiecki (1987–90) and associate head coach Mark Strobel (1991–95) all having skated for UW.

Granato, who completed his degree last year during his first season as UW head coach, will face a similar challenge this season as the 2018 U.S. Men's Olympic Hockey Team head coach. 

UW's director of hockey operations Shane Connelly gives UW two former Badger athletes with NCAA titles on their resume. Connelly was a member of UW's 2006 NCAA title-winning team, while Osiecki played for the Badgers' 1990 NCAA championship team. Osiecki also served as an assistant coach for the 2006 team during his first coaching stint at UW.

UP NEXT
Wisconsin hits the road for the first time this season Oct. 13-14, facing Boston College on Friday before traveling to Merrimack on Saturday. Both contests are set to start at 6 p.m. CT.