The No. 6 University of Minnesota Duluth women's hockey team will continue on with its grueling schedule of nationally ranked teams this weekend when the Bulldogs travel to Madison, Wis. to face the No. 2 University of Wisconsin in LaBahn Arena. The Saturday-Sunday Western Collegiate Hockey Association series will get underway at 4:00 p.m. Saturday and conclude with a 3:00 p.m. puck drop Sunday.


RUNNING TO THE RANKED: The Bulldogs are in the midst of a four-week stretch of top-10 teams -- eight games in all against pollster foes.

So far, UMD is 1-2-1 over that span, but the Bulldogs are coming of a strong weekend against then No. 2 Colgate a week ago at home, with a 3-0 win and 1-1 overtime win.

Wisconsin will mark the second-straight series for UMD against a No. 2 squad.

LET'S GET DEFENSIVE: UMD currently owns the nation's fourth best defense and second lowest goals against average  (1.29) in the WCHA. The Bulldogs also own the fourth most shutouts -- tied with the Badgers with five.

Last weekend, the Raiders entered the series averaging 5.00 goals a game, the second most in the NCAA. Wisconsin will enter this weekend's series as the nation's top scoring team -- the Badgers are averaging 6.00 goals a game.

GOALTENDING GALORE: The Bulldogs may have one of the best goaltending tandems in all of the NCAA between sophomore Hailey MacLeod and freshman Ève Gascon.

MacLeod is the reigning WCHA Goaltender of the Month and Week after holding Colgate to just one goal in 124 minutes of action last weekend. Currently leading the NCAA with a .973 saves percentage, MacLeod also has the nation's second lowest GAA in the nation with a 0.65. With two shutouts, MacLeod is still undefeated so far this season with a record of 5-0-1. (For her career, MacLeod has never lost a game with a record of 10-0-2 over the past two seasons).

Gascon has already earned both WCHA Goaltender and WCHA Goalie of the Week honors, and currently sits eighth in the NCAA with a .947 saves percentage, fifth most shutouts and 12th with a 1.51 GAA.

Gascon has already tied  the third most shutouts recorded by a Bulldog freshman goaltender. With three shutouts in her first eight games, Gascon is in rare company, and trails only Jennifer Harss, who had five shutouts as a rookie in 2009-10 and Kayla Black, who turned in four during the 2011-12 season.

Gascon has tied both Kim Martin (three shutouts in 2006-07) and Tuula Puputti (three in 1999-00). Martin piled up her three shutouts immediately -- the eventual All-American racked up three clean sheets in her first four starts at UMD.

THE SERIES: UMD is 36-59-15 against the Badgers all-time after going 3-1 against them in 2022-23. In fact, UMD's three regular season with three wins against UW was the first time a Bulldog squad hung three triumphs on the Badgers since the 2007-08 season (UMD went 5-1 against Wisconsin that season, defeating the Badgers 4-0 in the NCAA title game at the DECC.)

In their last head-to-head series On Jan. 7-8, UMD put up its first-ever series sweep for the Bulldog program at LaBahn Arena in Madison, Wisc. The sweep was just the sixth-ever by UMD against Wisconsin and fourth-ever in Madison (Nov. 30-Dec.1, 2007, Nov. 2-3, 2001 and Oct. 8-9, 1999). The Bulldogs were 0-15-2 at La Bahn Arena entering the 2021-22, but since the 2021-22 season, UMD has flipped their luck at LaBahn, going 3-1 in its last four games there. 

On Jan. 7, the Bulldogs fell behind Saturday at 8:42 of the first period, in what would be the only goal the Badgers would score for the rest of the series. UMD answered with a goal from Anneke Linser at 2:59 of the second period, and took a 2-1 lead on a backhand from Katie Davis. Gabbie Hughes iced game one for the Bulldogs with a goal at 18:35 of the third period. UW outshot UMD 45-31, but the Bulldogs got 44 saves from goaltender Emma Soderberg.

In game two Sunday, Linser scored the game's only goal at 7:47 of the third period, and Soderberg and the defense did the rest.  Soderberg stopped all 28 shots she faced, and UMD kept the Badgers scoreless in three power play attempts (and a total of five on the weekend).

Of note, after allowing a goal at 8:42 of the first period to the Badgers in game one, the Bulldogs ran off 111:18 minute of scoreless hockey against the then NCAA's hightest-scoring squad.

UMD vs. Wisconsin - 36-59-15 All-Time

(Last 10 games)

Jan. 8, 2023 1-0 Win Away

Jan. 7, 2023 3-1 Win Away

Oct. 29, 2022 3-4 Loss Home

Oct. 28, 2022 2-1 Win OT Home

Feb. 5, 2022 1-5 Loss Away

Feb. 4, 2022 3-0 Win Away

Oct. 17, 2021 4-5 Loss OT Home

Oct. 15, 2021 0-3 Loss Home

Feb. 27, 2021 3-4 Loss OT Home

Feb. 26, 2021 4-2 Win Home

LAST TIME OUT: The Bulldogs were unbeaten against No. 2 Colgate University at AMSOIL over the holiday weekend, putting up a 3-0 win Friday night, followed by a 1-1 overtime tie on Saturday afternoon. 

Friday night, UMD's offense found its sync in the second period and never looked back, starting with Clara Van Wieren's seventh goal of the season at 3:51 of the frame. 

At 18:26, the Bulldogs doubled that lead when Hanna Baskin hit Olivia Wallin from blueline to blueline, and Wallin found Danielle Burgen on the top of the crease for the sophomore's first goal of the season.

UMD's defense clamped down for good in the third, and Baskin and Wallin connected again on what would be the Bulldogs final goal at the 14:39 mark of the frame. Wallin ripped the puck off the boards backhanded and Reece Hunt got on the end of it to take the 3-0 lead.

MacLeod was phenomenal in between the pipes en route to her fifth win of the season and second shutout. 

Like Friday night, UMD broke open a scoreless game early in the second period. Just 2:23 into the frame, Grace Sadura tracked down a rebound and slapped it home for the rookie forward's first goal of her career and the 1-0 UMD lead.

That Bulldog lead would hold until the final minute of regulation. With just 43.3 seconds left, the Raiders pulled their goaltender on the penalty kill and finally snuck a puck past MacLeod, ending her series shutout streak at 119:17.

Overtime ensued, with UMD landing the only three shots on goal in extra time, but the score held up as a 1-1 final. MacLeod's 37 saves in the game brought her series total to an impressive 66 stops. 

NOTES FROM THE COLGATE SERIES: UMD is now 4-0-1 all-time against the Raiders. The Bulldogs have landed 12 goals against Colgate all-time for a 2.40 goals per game average, while the Raiders have managed just three in those five meetings -- a 0.60 goals a game average against UMD.

--UMD still has a 10-game unbeaten streak intact against the  ECAC, and has outscored ECAC opponents 22-5 in their last six games over the past two seasons.  

Overall, the Bulldogs program has played 70 games against the ECAC (Known as the Eastern College Athletic Conference until 2004 and the ECAC Hockey League until 2007, it is now just referred to as the ECAC), and owns an overall record of 43-19-5 all-time.

PERFECT FITS: New arrivals Reece Hunt and Olivia Wallin have taken no time to make an offensive impact for the Bulldogs.

Hunt is tied for the most points for UMD points through 14 games, averaging 1.00 ppg with seven goals and seven assists. Wallin has 11 points, including a Bulldog-best eight assists.

MCMAHON STREAKS ON: Graduate senior Mannon McMahon has now played the fourth most consecutive games in program history. 

The forward has skated in 148 straight-games to date behind former teammates Ashton Bell at No. 2 with 164, and Anna Klein, who owns a program-best 165 consecutive games played. 

UMD's all-time games played record was set last season by Naomi Rogge, and stands at 168 games. McMahon is currently 19 games away from cracking into the top-10 games played of all-time and right now ranks 12th in a tie with former Bulldogs Kacy Ambroz and Tara Gray.