(3) Cornell vs. (2) Ohio State
Saturday at 4 p.m. central on ESPN+
3 keys for Cornell
- Balance. The Big Red play a spectacular defensive game from the goal out. They’re going to do a good job of forcing Ohio State to make plays if they want to win the game. But that can’t be at the expense of being offensive. This could be a 1-0 game like their win last weekend against UMD, but that seems unlikely. Cornell is likely going to have to pot more than one or two goals to win this game and Ohio State is going to try and really force turnovers and take off quickly in transition to put the stout defense on their heels. That can’t keep the Big Red from pressing forward. They have to find the right moments.
- Who steps up? Last season’s Patty Kaz winner Izzy Daniel was the team’s main playmaker and they haven’t had one individual player take on that role this season. At media day Ashley Messier said that the team has faith in each other that someone will always come through, but that’s easier said than done in these situations. The Big Red’s scoring has been really evenly dispersed and that should serve them well here, but when Joy Dunne has twice as many points as Cornell’s leading scorer, Avi Adam, it makes me wonder if the Big Red can keep pace.
- Controlling the nerves. All three of the other teams in Minneapolis have the benefit of Frozen Four experience and experience in Ridder Arena. Everyone will have butterflies of being on this biggest stage and the Big Red played in front of a big and loud crowd at home in the quarterfinals, but I think this is going to be a whole new environment. They can’t take a minute to get going, they can’t get overwhelmed and they have to be able to block it all out.
3 keys for Ohio State
- Clean defense. As much as I’ve harped on Cornell’s need to find defense, I think you could say the same in the opposite direction for Ohio State. They’re so strong on offense and love to forecheck and push, but that does leave them more vulnerable on defense. I have no doubt Cornell will be trying to exploit that and get in behind.
- Momentum. The Buckeyes have a tendency to score in bunches, but sometimes that can start later in the game. It behooves OSU to get on the board early and try to get that downhill momentum that has served them so well this season. The longer Cornell can keep them from doing that, the worse the outlook is for Ohio State.
- Goaltending. Cornell’s Annelies Bergmann is one of the top three goalies in the country and just pitched a shutout in the quarterfinals. The Buckeyes have been so overwhelming on offense that they haven’t had to worry too much about giving up goals. Assuming Amanda Thiele gets the start, she hasn’t been as strong this season, with a .884 save percentage and a 2.15 goals against average. That being said, Thiele is the goalie that came in late in the season and won the starting job and carried the Buckeyes to their first title in 2022. They need a strong showing from her here.
Quotable:
“It’s our fifth time representing the Buckeyes at the Frozen Four. We’re sitting amongst a small crowd that has done that, so I think it speaks volumes for what this program has accomplished over the years.” Ohio State coach Nadine Muzerall
“I know we played Cornell, but that seemed like forever ago. I’ve told the ladies to erase that from their memory, because it’s irrelevant.” – Muzerall
“They have some very solid defensive play, systematic, great goaltending, and I think Doug is one of the best coaches in the country, and I have a lot of admiration for him and his style of hockey. So I think it’s going to be a fantastic Friday night.” – Muzerall
“Every team that is in the Frozen Four we have played before and we know how to beat them. We learned from our mistakes against them. So we’re just super excited and really confident.” – Ohio State F Makenna Webster
“We had to do a little bit of restructuring and rebuilding, and we’re just really excited and happy to be back.” – Cornell coach Doug Derraugh, on his top-ranked team missing out on the 2020 tournament due to Covid shutdowns and what it took to get back to the Frozen Four.
“It’s certainly a huge challenge because you’ve got to be solid defensively against Ohio State to give yourself a chance, but you’ve also got to score some goals. So it’s managing risk versus reward and being smart and managing the puck well.” – Derraugh
“We have such a great dynamic between the defensive core and the goalies, and we’re always communicating with each other. I think that’s really what’s carried us through. Each weekend gets bigger and bigger, and I think that our dynamic allows us to grow with that, which I think has been a key part of our success.” – Cornell G Annelies Bergmann
“Everyone gets nervous. We know that. I’m nervous. The other team’s nervous. We all are. But what makes me feel personally a lot better, is reminding myself I love this. I’m good at this. My team’s good at this. It’s not just me. It’s never just one person. I have 20-some other girls around me and an amazing coaching staff, and they’re all feeling the same way. They believe in me and I believe in them, and that’s a good feeling. That’s a good place to be.” Cornell D Ashley Messier
(4) Minnesota vs. (1) Wisconsin
Saturday, 7:30 p.m. central on ESPN+
3 keys for Minnesota
- Abbey Murphy. Is it fair to put everything on her? Probably not, but you simply cannot escape that as she goes, this team goes. She has eight goals and five assists in the team’s six postseason games so far. BUT she has just two assists in the Gophers’ five games against Wisconsin this season. If the Badgers do keep Murphy in check, Minnesota still has to find a way to light the lamp. UW outscored the Gophers 27-9 over five games this season and overall, they average 5.4 goals scored per game.
- Utilize the tv timeouts. Wisconsin has more depth and will get last change to be able to work the matchups. But with longer tv timeouts, the Gophers can double-shift and worry a lot less about getting caught out against the Badgers.
- Staying out of the penalty box. Wisconsin carries the nation’s best power play, scoring 36% of the time while Minnesota’s penalty kill is 23rd in the country at 82.40%. Minnesota simply cannot afford to give the Badgers any advantages.
3 keys for Wisconsin
- Fast start. The Badgers can be slow out of the gate at times and in the past few weeks they’ve given up early goals and had to dig themselves out of a hole. They’ve been successful thus far, but despite being the top seed, it’s going to be an uphill battle against Minnesota on their home ice.
- Puck possession. Wisconsin’s biggest asset is its ability to keep the other team from having the puck. That means holding it in the zone and making smart choices, but it also means quickly shutting down zone entries and not letting Minnesota get set up. If Abbey Murphy is skating circles around the zone looking for a lane, it does not bode well for the Badgers. They have to close quickly on defense and not be reckless with the puck on offense.
- Depth. Wisconsin has all three Patty Kazmaier finalists, but three of their four goals in the WCHA title game were scored by second and third liners, including a defender. TV timeouts take away some of the advantage they have here, but ultimately, they have the ability to win most head to head matchups. While Minnesota has some uncertainties in terms of who scores if their top scorer is neutralized, the Badgers have seven players with more points than the Gophers’ number three scorer.
Quotable:
“At the beginning of the year, it was the goal of ours to be in the position that we’re in right now. The players fought through a lot of adversity and a lot of pressure to get here, and now we’re excited to drop the puck tomorrow.” – Gophers coach Brad Frost
“We’re going to have to execute at a really high level. [The Badgers] are super dangerous on turnovers. They’ve got some of the best offensive players in the history of the women’s game. We believe we can win, first and foremost, but it’s going to take a great effort. No shortcuts and no shifts off. But like our players said, we feel real good about how we’re playing and excited to show that tomorrow.” – Frost
“Obviously we’ve had pretty tough losses this year, but I think that honestly that adversity has been great for us. We’ve learned from it. And coming into this weekend, we almost like that we went through that adversity because now we know how to react if we face any this weekend.” Gophers F Ella Huber
“The WCHA Final Faceoff was the best we’ve played all year. I think after that weekend, we were like, ‘we can really do this thing.’ It brought a lot of belief into our locker room.” – Huber
“Both teams are playing at a high level right now. Both have difference makers. Both goaltenders are playing well. It just sets up for a great semifinal game. The place is sold I don’t know how much better it gets than that.” – Wisconsin coach Mark Johnson
“It’s irrelevant what happened the previous five games. That shouldn’t be in our mind. It should be about where our capability individually and collectively to play our best game. You get in that space and you hope it’s enough. It may not be enough, but you hope it is. Don’t look in your rear view mirror too long, because you’ll crash. I’m looking forward and ahead, and I hope everybody on our team is doing the same thing.” – Johnson
“Maybe in the back of your head, you know how they played last time, and maybe where you need to to improve to make sure that we play our best tomorrow. But I think looking forward is the most important aspect of tomorrow, because what happened in the past is in the past, and we’re just trying to win 60 minutes tomorrow.” – Wisconsin G Ava McNaughton
