A 27-second surge ignited Wisconsin's offense, propelling them to the 2026 National Championship with clutch penalty kill and stellar goaltending.
Las Vegas, NV–27 Seconds worth of offensive was the difference maker for Wisconsin as they advanced to the 2026 NCAA Championship. The Badgers were a perfect five for five on the penalty kill while freshman goaltender Daniel Hauser stopped 21 of 22 shots on goals.
After a few strong chances early for North Dakota, Wisconsin turned up the heat. This pressure paid off with two tallies in 27 seconds for the Badgers. First, Vasily Zelenov swung the puck from below the goal to Simon Tassy. Tassy went bar down at 12:54 to open the scoring. Less than 30 seconds following Tassy's goal, Ryan Botterill's shot trickled through Jan Śpunar doubling the Wisconsin advantage. After the opening twenty, shots were 18-4 favoring the Badgers.
Like the first period, the Fighting Hawks came out strong early. Both sides had streaking end to end plays that ultimately came up empty. After a quiet stretch, North Dakota had a huge opportunity to even the game with a 5 on 3 power play for 1:56. The Hawks were unable to covert and got just two shots on goal during that span, per the ESPN Broadcast. Ben Dexheimer laid out his body for an incredible shot block, one of the penalty kill's defining moments.
Ollie Josephson nearly got North Dakota on the board via a center ice breakaway with 55 ticks left in the second. However, Oliver Tulk flew back to stymie the opportunity, preserving the two goal advantage into the third with shots favoring the Badgers 25-16
Cody Croal nearly hit pay dirt for North Dakota on the first shot of the final frame, but Hauser dished out a denial. Wisconsin continued winning board battles into the third period, but North Dakota gave themselves life late. Ellis Rickwood scored in the final minute off a beautiful wraparound but Wisconsin finished the job and will play for their first National Championship in 20 years Sunday at 4:30pm CT