Men’s Ice Hockey: Ohio State travels to Madison for weekend series with Badgers

Ohio State marched into the Kohl Center as the No. 7 seed in last season’s Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals to take on the No. 2 Wisconsin Badgers.

In an ultimate underdog effort, the Buckeyes secured the series, winning two of the three games and becoming the first No. 7-seeded team to win a series in the tournament’s nine-year history.

Now, seven months later, Ohio State (1-0-1, 0-0-0 Big Ten) will return to Madison for a weekend series against the No. 16 Wisconsin Badgers (1-1-0, 0-0-0 Big Ten) to begin conference play. Puck drop is set for 8 p.m. Friday and 7 p.m. Saturday — both at the Kohl Center in Madison.

Ohio State men’s ice hockey head coach Steve Rohlik said he recalled last season’s tournament quarterfinal matchup with Wisconsin as his team’s best stretch of hockey.

“We had a lot of buy-in,” Rohlik said. “I think we were very disciplined from our structure to taking penalties, which I think correlates to success, and when you’re playing one of the best teams in the country, that’s what you got to dial up.

Graduate forward Joe Dunlap said last season’s series will be something the Buckeyes need to replicate to have success this year.

“I feel like our buy-in was really important last year, especially towards the end,” Dunlap said. “Our whole team was bought in — special teams came up big, especially in penalty kill.”

After a disappointing last-place finish in the Big Ten with a 13-23-0, 6-18-0 Big Ten record in the 2022-23 season, the Badgers made a remarkable turnaround under first-year head coach Mike Hastings, closing last season with an impressive 26-12-2, 16-7-1 Big Ten resume.

Hastings, a six-time Western Collegiate Hockey Association champion and two-time Central Collegiate Hockey Association champion during his 12-year tenure at Minnesota State, received praise from Rohlik.

“Mike has had a ton of success in his career, just look at his track record,” Rohlik said. “We know his teams are going to compete from the drop of the puck, and you’ve got to be ready — and certainly we talk a lot about that.”

The Badgers had two large holes to fill this offseason, as they lost reigning Big Ten Goalie of the Year Kyle McClellan and forward Luis Cruz —who led the Badgers with 13 goals as a sophomore — both of whom departed for the American Hockey League.

To address its needs between the poles, Wisconsin happily welcomed senior goalie Tommy Scarfone, a transfer from Rochester Institute of Technology, to the program this offseason. He received a second-team Big Ten preseason selection prior to his debut in the conference. 

Scarfone has played in one of Wisconsin’s two games this season, allowing four goals in the Badgers’ opening night 4-2 loss to Lindenwood Oct. 11.

“[The Big Ten’s] the best conference in the country for a reason,” Rohlik said. “We’re going to play one of the best teams in the country, and we have to be at our best.”

Buckeye graduate forward Aiden Hansen-Bukata said the Buckeyes have room to improve, as they prepare for their upcoming games against Wisconsin this weekend.

“I think we have to work on our defensive zone a bit going into Wisconsin,” Hansen-Bukata said. “They’re a dangerous offensive team, so we have to work on that kind of stuff and make sure we shut them down. 

Hansen-Bukata said that he’s been impressed with the Buckeyes’ speed so far this season.

“Our puck movement and our speed have been two crucial parts of our success so far,” Hansen-Bukata said. “I think we’re a good team, and a dangerous team when we’re playing fast.”

The Buckeyes drew with American International 3-3 Friday before cruising past the Yellow Jackets Saturday 5-2.

Dunlap said he was proud of the team’s ability to operate as one unit in the season-opening two-game series.

“We stuck together and had a no-quit attitude,” Dunlap said. “I felt like we had a tough showing Friday night, and I think we really turned it around and made each other better on Saturday.

Hansen-Bukata said the Buckeyes need to ramp up their tempo starting from the puck drop if they want to have success against Wisconsin.

“I think it starts with our start,” Hansen-Bukata said. “A couple slow starts for us last weekend, and [Wisconsin is] obviously going to come out flying, and we have to match their intensity and their speed early.