VANCOUVER – The University of Wisconsin Badgers scored once in each period en route to handing the UBC Thunderbirds a 3-0 defeat Friday night at Father David Bauer Arena, an historic evening for both programs in front of nearly 1,000 fans.
Montreal Canadiens' first round draft pick Cole Caufield scored his first collegiate goal on the power play late in the opening frame which stood up as the game winner. Projected 2020 first round NHL draft pick Dylan Holloway also tallied on the man advantage for the visitors who outshot the T-Birds 38-26 with Daniel Lebedoff earning the shutout.
"I thought we started off great, the first ten minutes I loved our game, loved our composure and structure then they got that power play goal and it took the wind out of our sails a little bit," said UBC head coach
Sven Butenschon. "But it was a pretty competitive game and I was really impressed with how well they defended. They got sticks in there and blocked a lot of shots, very impressive."
Rylan Toth made 35 saves, many of the five-alarm variety, in a strong performance between UBC's pipes. Despite being upended midway through the first period after a crash into the net, Toth got up and just minutes later denied LA Kings first-round pick Alex Turcotte on a one-timer on the power play.
Later on the same Badgers man advantage, however, Caufield was fed a cross-ice pass by Linus Weissbach (Buffalo, 7
th round, 2017) and the freshman right winger tapped in the puck for his first goal in a Badger jersey.
UBC nearly tied the game midway through the second when
Austin Vetterl fired a quick shot from the low slot, but Lebedoff turned it aside.
The Badgers earned a power play late in the period and with just 15 seconds on the clock Holloway scored his first collegiate goal off a feed from sophomore Brock Caufield.
Wisconsin went ahead by three early in the final frame when junior winger Jason Dhooghe found the back of the net in tight. Freshman Owen Lindmark (Florida, 5
th round, 2019) earned the lone assist.
The Badgers went 2-for-5 on the power play while the Thunderbirds failed to score on seven man advantages, many of them cut short in what was a feisty affair, especially in the third period.
"We got to learn how to play a little bit faster," Butenschon said after seeing how quickly the Badgers were able to close in on the 'Birds in the defensive zone. "Every time we tried to stick handle the play disappeared on us."
UBC and Wisconsin will conclude their two-game exhibition series Sunday afternoon at Father Bauer Arena. Puck drop is set for 3:00 p.m. PT and admission is once again by donation.
