A tale of two hockey teams

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times

by

The No. 1-ranked University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team is 16-0-0 for the first time in program history, and that 16-game winning streak is the fifth longest in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association’s 17-year existence.

The Badgers aren’t just winning; they’re shutting out opponents by wide margins. Since the season began on Oct. 2, Wisconsin has outscored all eight teams it has played by a shocking 79-6 in 16 games. That’s an average of 4.94 goals per game. Three of the Badgers’ goals in last Saturday’s 4-0 win against Dartmouth came in a span of about six minutes during the second period, and junior goalie Ann-Renée Desbiens recorded her ninth shutout of the season.

Wisconsin and No. 2 Boston College are the only undefeated teams remaining in the country, and if you don’t have plans for Friday night, Dec. 4, or Saturday afternoon, Dec. 5, consider heading to LaBahn Arena to check out this team for yourself. The Badgers take on No. 3 Minnesota (15-1-0) in a border battle that has the makings of a classic series.

At the other end of the skating spectrum is the UW men’s hockey team.

Although the Badgers have endured worse seasons (2014-15’s overall 4-26-5 record comes to mind), they head into Big Ten play this weekend at Michigan with a 3-5-4 record and no signature wins — unless you count a sweep of sunbaked Arizona State and a series split with North Dakota.

As UWBadgers.com writer Andy Baggot recently noted, Wisconsin faced a challenging nonconference schedule that included four nationally ranked teams. While Michigan was 7-2-2 and Penn State was 7-2-3 as of Nov. 28, the good news is that only a few games separate the best from the worst in the Big Ten. (Ohio State also has only three wins, but the Buckeyes have lost nine with no ties, so technically the Badgers aren’t in last place.)

The men won’t be back in action at the Kohl Center until a New Year’s Day exhibition with Trinity Western, followed by a home series against Ohio State on Jan. 8 and 9.

But hey, it’s only early December. The Badgers men and women both have a lot of hockey left to play.