Oh, Canada.
Yes, it was an exhibition game. Yes, it was against the University of Victoria (UVic) Vikes, a non-varsity, self-funded club that had to pay for its own flights from British Columbia.
But you know, sometimes, when you’ve had a couple of really bad years, including a horrorshow season that gets your old coach fired, a good old-fashioned blowout in front of your home faithful is just what the doctor ordered.
The Badgers, in a display of firepower not seen since a 10-3 beatdown of Colorado College in 1993, took the wood to our friendly neighbors to the north on Saturday, beating the Vikes 10-1. Poor UVic goaltender Scott Legault faced a total of 63 shots while freshmen counterparts Jack Berry and Johan Blomquist saw just 10 combined, with only Blomquist letting in a goal.
Junior Matt Utaski kicked off the shelling with a short-handed goal midway through the first period. The Badgers would score three more before the end of the period and the route was on.
A successful debut for @TonyGranato and the 2016-17 Badgers. UW takes this one 10-1 over Victoria. pic.twitter.com/DW6q5B4OSk
— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey) October 2, 2016
When the dust settled, sophomore captain Luke Kunin led the way with a total of three goals. Seamus Malone netted two, and five other players (Dan Labosky, Ryan Wagner, Jason Ford, Will Johnson and Utaski) scored.
"Tonight was a night where you saw a lot of our skill players make plays," coach Tony Granato said in his postgame press conference. Noting that 25 players saw ice time, he added, "Everybody had a positive night, everybody did something really well; something we’ve asked them to do from a concept standpoint ... it was a good night for us."
The Badgers match up with Northern Michigan on Friday and Saturday at the Resch Center in Green Bay. Puck drops for both games at 7:07 p.m.