Notre Dame goaltender Bischel named Big Ten First Star of Week
SOUTH BEND – Goaltender Ryan Bischel’s weekend between the pipes for No. 20 Notre Dame’s hockey team didn’t end the way he wanted. But what occurred before it certainly was spectacular.
Notre Dame honored its seniors and graduate players on Saturday night just moments after Minnesota’s Jimmy Snuggerud beat a partially screened Bischel at 1:18 of overtime for a 3-2 Golden Gophers victory. But it was just one of four goals Bischel allowed all weekend against the eighth-ranked Gophers, backstopping the Irish to a 6-1 victory Friday night and to a four-point weekend. The overall performance earned Bischel the Big Ten’s First Star of the Week.
Bischel, a graduate student from Medina, Minn., who earned Big Ten goaltender of the year and West All-America honors last season, finished the weekend with a 1.98 goals-against average while stopping 67 of 71 shots (.944 save percentage) against the Gophers. It was Bischel’s second time winning the Big Ten First Star this season (he previously won for the Nov. 14 week) and third time honored (he was Third Star for the Dec. 5 week). During his career, Bischel has been honored nine times (four firsts, one second and four thirds) by the Big Ten.
Bischel has started every one of Notre Dame’s 32 games this season and missed just 40 minutes — Jack Williams played the final two periods in Notre Dame’ 8-2 home non-conference loss to No. 2 Boston University on Oct. 21 — while compiling a 15-15-2 record with three shutouts (fourth nationally), a .929 saves percentage (fourth) and a 2.43 goals-against average (19th).
Bischel has played in 101 games for the Irish and has a 2.40 goals-against average, a .926 saves percentage and 10 shutouts.
The Big Ten named fifth-year senior defenseman Scooter Brickey its Second Star of the Week and freshman forward Reese Laubach its Third Star. Brickey had a four-point weekend as the last-place Buckeyes took five of six possible points from second-place Wisconsin. Laubach had three goals and four points as the Nittany Lions split their home series with Michigan.
The Irish, currently in fourth place in the Big Ten with 31 points, travel to Ann Arbor to finish their regular season with a series against fifth-place Michigan (28 points) with both games Friday (8 p.m.) and Saturday (6:30 p.m.) to be televised by the Big Ten Network. Notre Dame is idle the final weekend (March 1-2) while Michigan travels to third-place Minnesota. The Big Ten Postseason Tournament best-of-three quarterfinals begin March 8 at the schools finishing second through fourth in the regular season.