Notre Dame hockey: Irish drop game one of Big 10 Tournament series against Wisconsin
Notre Dame graduate senior defenseman Adam Karashik ripped a shot from the point. Wisconsin goaltender Jared Moe made the save. Then he glanced awkwardly to his left and right as play ceased around him. He even did the, “Oh no, is the puck behind me?” look — generally a no-no in the net-minding world.
Moe seemed to be the only person at Compton Family Ice Arena on Friday who didn’t realize he had the puck secured somewhere in his pads. Ironic. He should have been the first person to know. The save was one of 49 denials of Notre Dame bids at the net. Without Moe, Wisconsin doesn’t win 3-1 and take a 1-0 lead in the best of three Big 10 quarterfinal series.
It was just one of those nights.
“He played well,” Notre Dame (25-9-0) head coach Jeff Jackson said. “He looked confident in net.”
A shot differential of 50-27 in Notre Dame’s favor suggests the Irish dominated the game and simply ran into a hot goalie. But that wasn’t necessarily the case. The only goal Notre Dame scored came from senior Graham Slaggert on the power play, a unit that went 1-for-5 with 15 shots. For large stretches of the game, Wisconsin took the Irish out of what they wanted to do.
It was tough sledding trying to get clean looks from the middle of the ice. When Notre Dame did feel comfortable enough to shoot, either Moe made a save or a Badger blocked a shot. Wisconsin (9-22-3) blocked 18 shots as a team. Notre Dame blocked nine. The 18 blocks were more than Michigan had against the Irish in both of last weekend’s games combined.
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Notre Dame is up against a different test this weekend. Knowing it has nothing to lose, Wisconsin came out playing with desperation and grit. Notre Dame eventually matched the intensity in the first period, but the Badgers outplayed the Irish in those departments in the second and third periods.
“Give them their due,” Jackson said. “They played playoff hockey. That’s what you have to be prepared for. Anything can happen in the playoffs.”
Two of Wisconsin’s goals came on odd-man rushes. The Badgers mastered a weather the storm then counterstrike strategy on multiple occasions. Most of Notre Dame’s chances came on structured setups in the offensive zone, meanwhile. The Irish hit the post upward of a handful of times, too. Wisconsin’s game-winning goal went off the post and in.
Again — it was just one of those nights.
“I just think we have to simplify our game offensively,” Jackson said. “We need better puck support in certain areas of the ice. We were above the puck too much tonight. Maybe too hyper. And it could have been the score. It could have been the goaltending. It could have been nerves. It’s hard to say.”
Whatever it was, it can’t be there Saturday at 6 p.m. — or else Notre Dame’s Big 10 Tournament will be over after just two games.
