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Wisconsin vs. Penn State: Big Ten hockey tournament semifinal line charts

The Badgers will drop the puck in a semifinal contest against Penn State Friday afternoon at 2 p.m. CT on the Big Ten Network.

Jake McCabe is back in the lineup for Wisconsin after missing last Saturday's game vs. Michigan State.
Jake McCabe is back in the lineup for Wisconsin after missing last Saturday's game vs. Michigan State.
Richard T Gagnon - Getty Images

I'm here at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn., reporting live for you today. Make sure you're following me on Twitter (@AndyJohnsonB5Q) for live updates during the game.

By virtue of finishing second in the regular season, Wisconsin earned a bye in the first round of the tournament. Sixth-seeded Penn State advanced to the semifinals by defeating third-seeded Michigan in a wild double overtime contest Thursday afternoon.

UW matched up with the Nittany Lions just two weeks ago in Happy Valley and escaped with a two-game sweep. The Badgers won 4-2 on Friday, but PSU took Wisconsin to overtime in the finale. Mark Zengerle played hero for UW on Saturday, registering the OT winner on a nice give-and-go play with Nic Kerdiles with just 21 seconds remaining in the extra session.

The Xcel Energy Center is a familiar building for the Badgers, as they won the 2013 WCHA Final Five tournament here last season. The Badgers went 3-0 in St. Paul during that run, defeating Minnesota State, St. Cloud State and Colorado College. Wisconsin is 6-0 in its past six games in St. Paul.

One player to watch today for the Badgers is Nic Kerdiles, who has goals in each of his last four games. Kerdiles also has goals in six of his last seven contests. The Irvine, Calif., native has points in 18 of his 25 games played this season, and has scored at least two points in 12 of those games.

What you need to know:

Who: Penn State (8-25-2, 3-16-1-0 Big Ten) vs. Wisconsin (22-10-2, 13-6-1-0 Big Ten)
What: Big Ten hockey tournament semifinal
Where: Xcel Energy Center (St. Paul, Minn.)
Capacity: 18,568
Rink Dimensions: 200x85
Game Time: 2:00 p.m CT
Television: Big Ten Network
Streaming: BTN2Go.com
Live Stats: Link
Radio: Badger Sports Network, WIBA 1310

Wisconsin line chart

Nic Kerdiles - Mark Zengerle - Tyler Barnes
Morgan Zulinick - Jefferson Dahl - Michael Mersch
Grant Besse - Joseph LaBate - Sean Little
Brad Navin - Keegan Meuer - Jedd Soleway

Kevin Schulze - Frankie Simonelli
Jake McCabe - Joe Faust
Eddie Wittchow - Chase Drake

Joel Rumpel
Landon Peterson

Penn State line chart

Casey Bailey - Eric Scheid - Ricky DeRosa
David Goodwin - Taylor Holstrom - Jonathan Milley
Curtis Loik - David Glen - Kenny Brooks
Tommy Olczyk - Dylan Richard - Zach Saar

Mike Williamson - Connor Varley
Patrick Koudys - David Thompson
Nate Jensen - Luke Juha

Matthew Skoff
PJ Musico
Eamon McAdam

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You can also reach Andy via e-mail (AndyJohnsonB5Q@gmail.com)