O’Brien, Harvey reach Badger milestones in St. Thomas sweep

Casey O’Brien and Caroline Harvey entered the record books as the Badgers took care of business.

The Wisconsin Badgers took care of business on a weekend that was anything but normal in college sports. We saw chaos among playoff hopefuls in college football, Badger football laid a pterodactyl-sized egg against Nebraska, and even Ohio State women’s hockey took a loss (nearly two) against Minnesota State. On weekends when nothing seems to go according to plan, it’s always nice to get two relatively stress-free wins.

The No. 1 Wisconsin Badgers (15-1 overall, 11-1 WCHA) did just that, scoring the first four goals en route to a 6-1 win Friday night that featured six different goal scorers.

Wisconsin’s offense overwhelmed the St. Thomas Tommies (5-10-1 overall, 2-9-1 WCHA), outshooting their opponent 43-13, with the lone St. Thomas tally coming late in the second period. With two first-period assists, fifth-year senior Casey O’Brien moved into a tie with Sara Bauer atop the Wisconsin record book with 138 career assists.

O’Brien also got the scoring started Saturday, giving the Badgers an early lead just 52 seconds into the opening period. Things got quiet for a bit before Maddie Brown tied it up for St. Thomas early in the second, but Wisconsin answered quickly to re-take the lead with a goal from sophomore Cassie Hall.

Then, with the Badgers leading 2-1, O’Brien fired a shot on net that Tommie goaltender Dani Strom could not corral. O’Brien found the loose puck, handing it off to junior Laila Edwards who took advantage of the open net. With her 139th career assist, O’Brien moved into sole ownership of the Wisconsin record.

But this is Casey O’Brien, so the fun didn’t end there. Following another Maddie Brown goal and nursing a 3-2 lead in the third period, the dangerous Badger power play got their first opportunity of the night, and it wouldn’t last long. Just 11 seconds into the advantage, O’Brien added another assist when she found junior Caroline Harvey in the slot, who went top shelf for her 100th career point. Harvey became the fastest Badger defender to reach the 100-point mark, doing it in her 91st game.

O’Brien then finished off the Tommies with her second goal of the game later in the third, solidifying Wisconsin’s 5-2 victory and capping off a four-point day.

It feels like beating a dead horse talking about all the things Casey O’Brien does on the ice, but that’s because she is one of the most consistently great players we’ve had the privilege of watching in women’s hockey. She finished with 73 points last season, and is on pace to eclipse that this year as she currently averages over two points per game. She leads the nation in points and assists, and has a knack for showing up in big games.

Badger fans know how lucky they are to watch O’Brien while she sports a Wisconsin sweater. She leads by example and, as evidenced by her assist record, is a selfless player who loves getting her teammates involved. O’Brien’s ultimate goal is to add another NCAA championship to her collection, but this writer wants her to also get some of the individual recognition she is due with another trophy this year: the Patty Kazmaier Award.

As long as she keeps doing what she’s done week in and week out for the last two years it should just be a formality. And as Casey O’Brien goes, so go the Badgers. It’s been a winning formula so far.