This week has already been a historic one for the Wisconsin Badgers women’s hockey team, and the Badgers have a chance to put a cherry on top with a couple of wins against St. Cloud.
Former Badger Hilary Knight and current Badger Laila Edwards combined for a dramatic goal in the final minutes of the Olympic gold medal game against Canada, setting the stage for Megan Keller’s golden goal for Team USA in overtime.
The United States couldn’t crack Ann-Renée Desbiens (also a former Badger) for nearly 58
minutes of game time, despite sweeping Canada by a score of 24-7 over four games of the Rivalry Series prior to the Olympics, and beating them 5-0 in the Olympic preliminary round. But with the extra attacker, Team USA won an offensive zone faceoff and cycled the puck around to Edwards, who fired a low slapshot toward the net where Knight was waiting to deliver a timely deflection.
Knight’s goal not only turned the tide for a Team USA that was struggling to find any footing in the gold medal game, but it also solidified Knight as the top goal scorer and point producer in United States Olympic history.
Another bit of Olympic history, current Badger defender Caroline Harvey was named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player after leading the Olympic field in points and assists. Harvey, who is a shoo-in to win her third-consecutive WCHA Defender of the Year award, will return to Madison for the postseason as an Olympic gold medalist, joined by teammates Laila Edwards, Kirsten Simms, and Ava McNaughton.
There was conjecture that freshman center Adéla Šapovalivová, rostered by Team Czechia in the Olympics, could return for this weekend’s series against St. Cloud State after Czechia was eliminated on February 13, but head coach Mark Johnson said Šapovalivová is expected to return on Sunday. The Team USA Olympians are expected back Monday, but Johnson mentioned they will take a day-by-day approach with their return to action.
As for the Badgers who are still stateside, they will gear up for the regular season finale this weekend. No. 1 Wisconsin (27-3-2, 21-3-2 WCHA) navigated some difficult waters with a limited roster, splitting back-to-back series with Minnesota and Ohio State before sweeping Minnesota State last weekend to remain atop the WCHA with two games to play.
Those two games will take place Saturday and Sunday against the St. Cloud State Huskies (11-19-2, 7-17-2 WCHA). If Wisconsin wants to hold its two-point lead over Ohio State, it will likely need to sweep the Huskies. The Buckeyes are squaring off with last-place Bemidji State and already won their opener on Friday night, meaning the Badgers do not have any room for error.
St. Cloud has a knack for playing Wisconsin tough, securing at least a win or a tie against the Badgers in four of the last five years. In fact, the Huskies already posted a tie with Wisconsin earlier this year, hopefully getting it out of the way before having a chance to play spoiler this weekend.
Fifth-year senior Lacey Eden has a chance this weekend to overtake Minnesota’s Abbey Murphy for the national lead in points and teammate Caroline Harvey for the national lead in assists while both have been busy winning gold at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games. Eden currently sits at 60 points, one behind Murphy, and is tied with Harvey at 37 assists.
On the other side of the ice, freshman Rhyah Stewart is performing admirably in net. She’s surrendered no more than one goal in four of her six starts, and a similar performance this weekend will likely be enough to claim the WCHA title. McNaughton will return for the postseason and her senior year, but there is a very bright future in Madison for Stewart if she sticks around.
Another encouraging sight for Badger fans has been Marianne Picard’s play since returning from injury. Initially thought to be lost for the year, Picard posted two goals and two assists last weekend in addition to going 17-for-24 in the faceoff circle. Her return has been a breath of fresh air, and she is now playing a pivotal role in navigating this ship across the finish line.
Saturday and Sunday afternoon will hopefully be the last time we see a shorthanded Wisconsin roster, but this group has already shown they are capable of playing with (and beating) the best. Now they will look to finish the season strong and deliver another WCHA regular-season championship to Madison ahead of the postseason.
Game Info
Date: February 21-22
Time: Saturday – 1 p.m. | Saturday – 11 a.m.
Place: Madison, Wis. | LaBahn Arena
TV: B1G+ | Radio: 1070 AM
