Wisconsin Hockey: Badgers resume action, will host Michigan State in weekend series
After nearly a month break, the Wisconsin hockey team will resume Big Ten action against Michigan State this weekend.
The Wisconsin Badgers men’s hockey team will return to action on Friday and Saturday when they host the Michigan State Spartans for a two-game conference showdown at the Kohl Center.
The unofficial second half of the season starts Friday. Five home series at Kohl Center. Make sure to join us -- https://t.co/jRvRWkRtoq pic.twitter.com/g8M0pHkPb2
— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey) January 3, 2017
The Badgers (8-7-1) have played exceptionally well this year under first-year head coach Tony Granato, above .500 and already matching their win total from last season.
Michigan State is currently riding a five-game losing streak after enjoying a three-week unbeaten streak. The Spartans have just four wins on the season and nine of their 11 losses have by come by more than one goal.
This will be the 103rd and 104th meeting between the two clubs. The Spartans own the series of late, winning six of the last eight matchups. Before that span, Wisconsin had won eight of ten. Their last meeting came in February 2016, a Michigan State 3-1 victory.
Senior Grant Besse leads the Badgers with 19 points in just 15 games played. Besse is on pace to surpass 40 points for the season, which would make him just the second Badgers player to reach that mark since the 2012-13 campaign.
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Wisconsin has used a successful power play to propel them this season, scoring on 23 percent of their opportunities, good for eighth best in the NCAA. Michigan State is coming off a brutal end to the first half of the season, allowing five power play goals on nine attempts. The Badgers are also killing nearly 87 percent of their opponents’ power plays, while the Spartans are struggling, converting on just 13.8 percent.
If the Badgers can control the penalty differential this series, it should set up plenty of opportunities to come away with two victories.
Friday’s matchup will begin at 8:00pm. Saturday will face off at 7:00pm.