Women's Hockey Series of the Week: No. 1 Wisconsin vs No. 2 Minnesota

The top two teams in the country are preparing for a highly anticipated women’s hockey match-up.

The No. 1 Wisconsin Badgers are set to travel North in preparation for their weekend series against the No. 2 Minnesota Golden Gophers.

The Wisconsin Badgers reclaimed the No. 1 spot after sweeping the top-5 ranked Minnesota Duluth in a lopsided series and look to do the same to the Golden Gophers.

Wisconsin has remained undefeated in their first three series of the season and won by a large margin in each one.

They currently scored 46 goals on the season, averaging 7.7 per game, thanks to the help of 14 different players. Of those players, forward Casey O’Brien leads the team with 17 points (5G, 12A).

O’Brien has been a dominant force in the past couple of series and will likely play a big factor in this top-two matchup.

Their netminders also play a key factor in this team's success.

Through six games, the Badgers only allowed six goals. Sophomore Ava McNaughton has been in the net for each of them. Despite that, McNaughton still saved the other 98 (.942%) shots that came her way.

The Badgers have two other redshirt goalies playing behind McNaughton who both played the length of one game and faced a minute eight total shots, part of which stems from the team’s offensive dominance.

Minnesota is coming off a tough series against Ohio State, who was previously the best team in the county. They lost the series after the Buckeyes took Game 1, 4-3, and then tied Game 2, 1-1.

They enter this series 4-1-1 and have the capability to beat this high-caliber Wisconsin team.

While they aren't as efficient as the Badgers, the Golden Gophers still have 17 goals on the season. That ranks fourth in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA).

Those goals stem from their 209 shots on net which is over double their previous three opponents.

Senior forward Abbey Murphey, who leads the team in points, recorded two points (1G, 1A) against the Buckeyes to bring her total to nine (6G, 3A).

One big issue, however, is the amount of penalties the team takes. Minnesota has 22 penalties on the year, which ranks third in the WCHA right behind Minnesota Duluth and Ohio State.

The Badgers are great with the man advantage, finding the back of the cage seven times through 25 attempts (.280%).

It will be crucial for the Golden Gophers to limit those chances and remain at even strength for most of the game to be able to edge past the best team in the country..

These two teams are relatively even all time. Minnesota has the better of the Badgers with a 57-52-11 overall record dating back to 1999. In recent years, however, Wisconsin holds a 7-2-1 record.

This two-game weekend series is set to begin starting Friday, Oct. 18, at 6 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 19, at 3 p.m.

Carlin Whalen is a fourth-year student majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email cjw6426@psu.edu.