NOTRE DAME, Ind. – A late power-play goal from Charlie Stramel pushed the No. 5 Wisconsin men's hockey team past Notre Dame, 2-1, on Friday Night at Compton Family Ice Arena. The victory moved the Badgers into first place in the Big Ten and gave them their eighth consecutive victory.
Wisconsin (17-4-0, 9-2-0 Big Ten) and Notre Dame (10-9-2, 4-5-2) entered the third period even at one before sophomore forward Stramel lit the lamp with just over eight minutes remaining in the game to give the Badgers the victory. Senior goaltender Kyle McClellan had another spectacular night between the pipes, stopping 33 of 34 Fighting Irish shots on goal.
The opening period was quiet with neither team finding the back of the net. Both Wisconsin and Notre Dame received a power play opportunity, but no one could capitalize on any scoring chances.
The Badgers opened the scoring 12:40 into the second period. Freshman forward William Whitelaw picked up the puck at the boards on the left side of the Fighting Irish zone before passing it back to freshman defenseman Joe Palodichuk at the blue line. Palodichuk fired a long shot that graduate student forward Owen Lindmark tipped to make it 1-0, Wisconsin.
Notre Dame tied the game up at one with 35 seconds remaining in the period on a short-handed goal from Hunter Strand in the final second of a Badger power play.
Charlie Stramel scored the go-ahead goal for Wisconsin 11:58 into the third period on the power play. In the middle of Notre Dame territory, Sophomore forward
Tyson Dyck passed behind him to let the puck ricochet off the boards and into
Owen Lindmark's possession at the bottom of the right circle. Lindmark passed up to find
Charlie Stramel in the middle of the zone who let a one-time shot fly past netminder Ryan Bischel for his third of the season.
The Fighting Irish continued to push but the Badgers shut them down, killing off a crucial five-minute penalty in the final 10 minutes of the third period to keep their lead and secure the victory.
A
Kyle McClellan two-on-one save in the last five minutes proved large and helped keep UW in the lead the rest of the way.
Wisconsin went 1-for-5 on the power play and killed off all three Notre Dame power plays.
Notes to know:
- Wisconsin climbed into first place with 27 points and a 9-2-0 Big Ten record
- UW's current eight-game win streak marks Wisconsin's longest since 2000
- Tonight's contest lowered UW's national-leading scoring defense number to 1.52 opponent goals per game
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Charlie Stramel scored his second-career power play goal tonight (Last at Minnesota on Dec. 9, 2022)
Up Next: The Badgers continue their series at Notre Dame on Saturday, Jan. 6 at 4 p.m. The game streams live on Peacock while audio play-by-play airs on 1310 WIBA in the Madison area, 97.3 The Game in Milwaukee, as well as on the Badgers app and The Varsity Network app. You can also follow along on X/Twitter and Instagram @BadgerMHockey.
