Two months into a season that could last six, we still don't have the definitive goods on the University of Wisconsin men's hockey team.

An 0-6-1 record in October followed by a 7-1-1 mark in November suggests schizophrenic leanings that can't be ignored, at least for the moment.

But there is no getting around the fact the Badgers have made remarkable gains, the kind you can see on the stat sheet, in their attitude and everywhere in between.

UW reached a modest, but significant milestone Saturday night when it sucked the life out of No. 14 Michigan en route to a 3-0 victory in their College Hockey Showcase game before a crowd of 14,025 at the Kohl Center.

Coupled with a 3-1 triumph over Michigan State in the Showcase opener Friday night, the Badgers reached the .500 mark (7-7-2 overall) and all but erased the misery of that awful school-record start.

"They can feel real good about the distance they've come," UW coach Mike Eaves said of his players.

Junior left winger Michael Davies (power play), senior right winger Tom Gorowsky (power play) and freshman left winger Jordy Murray (empty net) scored for the Badgers, all in the third period.

Senior goaltender Shane Connelly was credited with 19 saves en route to his second shutout of the season and seventh of his career.

It's pretty amazing how far UW has come in the last two months.

In October, the Badgers were outscored 33-20 — including five games in which the opponent scored five goals or more — allowed an average of 38 shots per outing and were 1-6-1 against ranked opponents.

In November, UW outscored opponents 30-15 — six of the goals allowed came in one game — limited them to an average of 26 shots and went 3-1 against ranked teams.

"It's almost been two different seasons so far," Gorowsky said.

The Badgers prevailed against Michigan (9-7) because two players seeking redemption — Davies and Gorowsky — found it.

Davies was a healthy scratch for six straight games leading up to the Showcase, despite being the most prolific career goal-scorer on the team.

"We want him to play at a higher level," Eaves said. "That was our goal in having him sit out and watch.

"We just don't want him to be a power-play guy. We know that's his strength. We need him to be more for this team than just that. Hopefully, this process that he's gone through he's learned that."

Davies converted on the power play 2 minutes, 55 seconds into the third, but not before a sweet individual effort by UW freshman defenseman Jake Gardiner.

Gardiner broke the puck out of the defensive zone, zoomed to the right point and executed a 360-degree spin to draw a hooking penalty on Wolverines defenseman Greg Pateryn.

The conversion came after goaltender Billy Sauer (27 saves) denied a blast from the right circle by sophomore defenseman Brendan Smith. The rebound found its way to Davies in the slot for the putback, his first goal since Oct. 17.

"I just kept working hard in practice," Davies said of his return. "That's really all I can do."

Gorowsky had a hard time sleeping after the Michigan State game because he missed at least four quality scoring opportunities.