Joe Palodichuk

Vasily Zelenov

/ Men's Hockey

Photo by: Meg Kelly

Wisconsin Men's Hockey vs Michigan State - 2026 NCAA Tournament Regional Final

Photo by: Meg Kelly

Photo by: Taylor Wolfram

Owen Lindmark in front of the Ohio State net

Photo by: Lily Wakefield

The Badger men's hockey team celebrates scoring a goal over Penn State.

Photo by: Dan Sanger

The Wisconsin men's hockey team celebrates a goal.

Photo by: Tom Lynn

Position:
Defenseman
Ht./Wt.:
6-0 / 180
Class:
Junior
S/C:
L
Hometown:
Cottage Grove, Minn.

Badger Bites
Shoots left ... born February 2003 ... major is personal finance ... parents are Sara and Adam ... has one brother, Jake

2025-26 / Junior Season
Appeared in 36 games … assistant captain … notched three goals and 18 points to tie career highs in both categories set as a freshman … ranked third among defensemen in scoring and tied for fifth among all skaters in assists … led roster with 74 blocks and plus-18 rating … posted 33 shots … notched first point of the season with an assist in 3-0 win at Lindenwood on Oct. 3 … scored first goal of the year in 5-3 win against Alaska on Oct. 24 … scored two goals and added an assist to post first-career three-point night in 7-4 comeback win at Notre Dame on Dec. 5 … notched an assist in 9-2 win at Notre Dame on Dec. 6 to total four points in series in Indiana … led Big Ten defensemen with five points in Dec. … three-game point streak from 12/5-12/28, tallying two goals and five points over the stretch … two assists in 5-4 win over Notre Dame on Feb. 7 and in 7-3 win at No. 6 Penn State on March 5 … set up game-winner in 2-1 win over North Dakota in 2026 NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Tournament Frozen Four national semifinals on April 9 … skated in 100th NCAA game on April 9 in win over North Dakota … notched three multi-point games on the year to sit sixth on the roster with eight career multi-point contests

2024-25 / Sophomore Season
Appeared in 25 games … tallied one goal and three assists for four points … missed some of the season due to injury … scored first goal of the year in 3-2 overtime loss at No. 9/10 Ohio State in game two of the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals on March 8 … added an assist at Ohio State on March 8 to record only multi-point game of the season … tallied first point of the season with assist in 4-3 overtime loss against No. 1 Michigan State at Wrigley Field on Jan. 2 … 39 blocks ranked fourth on the team … posted 19 shots on the season … named Academic All-Big Ten

2023-24 / Freshman Season
Appeared in all 40 games ... tallied three goals and 15 assists for 18 points ... led all freshmen on the roster with 18 points ... notched two assists in 4-0 victory in home-opener vs. Augustana on Oct. 7 ... first-career goal came in 4-3 overtime victory on Oct. 13 at Bemidji State ... tallied four assists in four-game point streak from Jan. 5 through Jan. 13 ... earned first NCAA Tournament goal after scoring UW’s go-ahead tally midway through the second period in 3-2 overtime loss vs. Quinnipiac on March 29 ... on the Tim Taylor Rookie of the Year watch list ... named to the 2023 Ice Breaker All-Tournament Team ... recorded four two-assist games ... blocked 62 shots to rank second on the roster ... 64 shots on the season good for second among Badger defensemen ... Mark Johnson Rookie of the Year team award recipient

Before Palodichuk was a Badger
Posted eight goals and 29 points in 44 games as a defenseman and alternate captain for the USHL's Fargo Force in 2022-23 ... collected one assist in nine postseason contests ... skated for Team USA at the 2023 World Junior A Challenge, scoring two goals and four points in six games to help the Americans win the tournament ... netted six goals and 25 points in 53 games during the 2021-22 season for Fargo ... previously skated for the NAHL's Bismarck Bobcats and Hill-Murray High School in Minnesota.

CAREER HIGHS
GAME
Goals: 2; at Notre Dame, 12/5/25
Assists: 2 (6x); last at Penn State, 3/5/26
Points: 3; at Notre Dame, 12/5/25
Point Streak: 4; 1/5-1/13, 2024
Multi-point Games: 8; last at Penn State, 3/5/26
Overtime Goals: None

SERIES
Goals: 2; at Notre Dame, 12/5/25
Assists: 2 (10x); last at Penn State, 3/5-3/6, 2026
Points: 4; at Notre Dame, 12/5-12/6, 2025