Badgers fall 4-2 to Gophers after high-scoring 3rd

Published Feb. 10, 2018 1:26 a.m. ET

Round 3 of this year's border battle goes to the Gophers.

The No. 17 Badgers fell 4-2 to No. 12 Minnesota following a wild third period, as the two teams combined for four goals in the final frame.

Matthew Freytag scored on a delayed penalty at 12:45 of the first period, as the Badgers escaped the opening frame with a 1-0 lead despite the Gophers' 16-9 edge in shots on goal.

Minnesota tied it up less than two minutes into the second, but Wisconsin responded with an onslaught, outshooting Minnesota 23-11 in an otherwise scoreless second period.

It was a different story in the third.

Minnesota's Tyler Sheehy scored just 39 seconds into the third period to make it 2-1 Gophers, but Matt Ustaski responded just over a minute later, scoring at 2:14 to make it 2-2.

However, Sheehy and the Gophers struck back again with less than five minutes to play, before Darian Romanko's empty-netter put Minnesota ahead 4-2 at 18:23.

The Badgers had a slight edge in shots on goal, outshooting the Gophers 40-39, while both teams went 0-for-4 on the power play.

Kyle Hayton got the start in goal for Wisconsin, finishing with 35 saves.