Halfway through the second period, Syracuse head coach Paul Flanagan became visibly distraught.

His team, trailing by a goal to top-ranked Wisconsin, had already committed four penalties in the first period and, while SU was able to get one of the two allowed goals back, the team simply didn’t possess the puck enough to create another chance.

This was a usual theme for Flanagan, as a lack of control in the offensive zone along with penalties frustrated both Flanagan and his players. On Saturday afternoon at Tennity Ice Pavilion, Syracuse (0-3-1) committed eight penalties and, though it only resulted in two goals, the Orange needed to remain on the defensive against Wisconsin (6-0), which beat the Orange, 5-2. Shots streamed toward Miller and any possible Orange momentum flagged.

While the Badgers commanded the course of action, Flanagan blamed the penalties on the refs; not mistakes by the Orange.

“There was a bad call right off the bat and the flow just wasn’t there,” he said. “Wisconsin carried the flow. Just a real poor job of officiating. For us, it’s tough. We held our own. The officiating (contributed to the more physicality). … They didn’t do a very good job managing the game.”

In the previous two games of SU’s series with UW, the Orange surrendered 38 shots to the Badgers. Yet, as SU was able to tally the team’s first two goals of the season on , the Badgers offense ignited in the third period.

Abbey Miller, the Orange’s senior goalkeeper, felt that the scoreboard did not justify how the team was playing.

“I felt like we played pretty well,” she said. “They are a really good team, but bounces and calls really weren’t going our way. It was kind of a goofy game.”

Freshman Victoria Klimek’s tripping penalty forced the Orange shorthanded 36 seconds into action. Even though they escaped with no goal allowed, the call set the tone to the Orange’s physical play. SU went without a skater four times in the first period, with two resulting in goals.

The aggression was a specific game plan, said junior defender Allie Munroe.

“Playing against the number one team in the country,” she said, “we knew that if we wanted to compete with them we were going to have to get in their faces and win the battles. We knew that we needed to step it up a little bit.”

The Badgers’ power-play opportunities allowed them to control the puck. They were able to advance into the offensive zone and fire shots at Miller consistently throughout most of the game.

Even while SU was left on the defensive for the majority of the action, the forwards displayed poise in front of the net, converting 24 shots into the first two goals of the season. After sophomore Kelli Rowswell scored a minute into the second period on a power play, freshman Emma Polaski netted her first career goal. For her, though SU lost, she’ll remember the game.

But excluding a ten-minute stretch in the second period that included Polaski’s goal, Syracuse struggled to find quality chances on a consistent basis.

“It is something that we just have to really harp upon,” Flanagan said. “When you get an opportunity, don’t just pass the puck aimlessly to someone.

“Take the time to get your eyes up and get real good shots on net.”

Published on October 7, 2017 at 7:31 pm

Contact Adam: adhillma@syr.edu | @_adamhillman