MADISON, Wis. – No. 20 Minnesota State skated to a 1-1 overtime tie at No. 17 Wisconsin Thursday night at Kohl Center in non-conference men’s hockey. With no additional points awarded in non-conference play, the Badgers won a shootout after overtime 1-0 in the fourth round. The teams will be back on the ice Friday night at 7 p.m. to conclude the series.
Following a scoreless opening 20 minutes, the Mavericks went without a shot on goal for nearly 12 minutes to open the second period. Then Luigi Benincasa buried a wrist shot in the low slot after a pass in front from Tristan Lemyre. Benincasa was rewarded with his first goal of the season following a dominant shift by the junior in the offensive zone. Lemyre tallied his first assist in the Purple and Gold as Benincasa went high over the glove of Daniel Hauser at 12:59. Jacob Conrad also collected his first assist of the year.
Quinn Finley nearly had the equalizer for Wisconsin when he rang iron, but Minnesota State held its one-goal lead heading into the third period.
The Badgers tied the game at 7:17. After a faceoff win by Jack Phelan, Oliver Tulk tipped in Simon Tassy’s shot from the point at the top of the zone. It was Tulk’s first collegiate goal.
Continuing his strong night, Benincasa recorded the first shot of 3-on-3 overtime with a short-angle try for the Mavericks. Then on his second shift, his shot generated a rebound, but Lemyre couldn’t find the puck as he hit the ice. The teams traded 2-on-1 rushes approaching one minute to play and Alex Zetterberg’s shot was turned aside by Hauser. MSU led overtime shots on goal 3-1.
MSU goaltender Alex Tracy stopped three consecutive tries in the exhibition shootout before Bruno Idzan converted for Wisconsin.
The Badgers outshot the Mavericks 30-22 and won the faceoff battle 31-16. Benincasa and Jakob Stender helped the Mavericks with four shots apiece. Mason Wheeler posted five blocked shots on the blueline. Neither team found success on the power play, and each finished 0-3 on the man advantage.
Minnesota State (1-1-1) and Wisconsin (2-0-1) are playing a series for the first time since the 2012-13 season. MSU’s last 1-1 overtime tie came on Feb. 28, 2025 against Bemidji State.
