Men’s Hockey Steps Away From League Play with Game vs. U.S. National Under-18 Team – Ohio State Buckeyes
1/10/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Ohio State
vs. U.S. U-18 Team
Friday, Jan. 11 – 7:05 p.m.
Value City Arena, Columbus, Ohio
Buckeye Bullets
Five current Buckeyes played for the U.S. National Under-18 Team – seniors Jason DeSantis and Tom Fritsche, sophomore Joseph Palmer and freshmen John Albert and C.J. Severyn.
Freshman Sergio Somma scored his second game-winning goal of the season in the third period vs. Alaska last Saturday. He is second on the team with seven goals and four power-play tallies and shares the lead for GWG with classmate Peter Boyd.
Ohio State is in the midst of a seven-game homestand, with six regular-season games and the exhibition game with the U.S. National Under-18 Team Friday.
Seven Buckeyes have 10 or more points this season. Every Buckeye skater who has played this season, along with goalie Joseph Palmer, has posted at least one point this year, with 17 scoring at least one goal.
Faceoff
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio State men’s hockey team (7-15-2, 3-10-1 CCHA) will host the U.S. National Under-18 team, part of the U.S. National Team Development Program, in an exhibition game this weekend. The teams will meet at 7:05 p.m. Friday in Value City Arena in Columbus.
Live Online
Live stats from the game can be accessed from the men’s hockey schedule page online at OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
Script Ohio on Ice!
The Buckeyes will return to CCHA play with a two-game home series against defending NCAA-champion Michigan State next weekend (Jan. 18-19).
The Ohio State band will perform Script Ohio on Ice during the Friday game. Rally towels will be handed out to fans pregame Saturday. Seniors Johann Kroll and John Dingle will have a postgame autograph session after the Saturday contest.
Last Time Out
The Buckeyes are coming off a series split vs. Alaska at home last weekend. Ohio State lost, 4-2, in the series opener before rebounding for a 5-2 victory in game two.
A Buckeye Brief
Overall, the Buckeyes are 7-15-2 and 3-10-1 in Central Collegiate Hockey Association action this season. The team is averaging 2.4 goals a game, while allowing 3.2.
The Buckeyes have converted 15.7 percent of their power-play chances (18-121) and have stopped 83.3 percent of their opponents’ chances (100-120).
Senior Tommy Goebel leads the Buckeye offense this year. He has a team-best 11 goals and 19 points. Senior Tom Fritsche has a team-high 10 assists and is second on the squad with 14 points. Senior Matt McIlvane, who had a team-best three points last weekend, is third with 13 points and second with nine assists. Rookie Peter Boyd follows with 12 points on four goals and eight assists, while three Buckeyes have 10 points each – freshmen Sergio Somma (7g, 3a) and John Albert (2g, 8a) and senior Jason DeSantis (2g, 8a).
In net, sophomore Joseph Palmer started 19 of the team’s first 20 games, with a 3.22 goals-against average and .887 save percentage. Freshman Dustin Carlson started the last four games with Palmer at the IIHF World Junior Championship with Team USA. In five starts, Carlson has a 3.24 gaa and .891 svpct.
NTDP notes
The U.S. National Under-18 Team is part of the U.S. National Team Development Program, based in Ann Arbor, Mich. The program was created in 1996 to prepare student-athletes for participation on U.S. National Teams and success in their future hockey careers. The 46 players in the program are split into two squads – the U.S. National Under-18 and Under-17 Teams.
Buckeyes and the NTDP
Ohio State has five current players that participated in the U.S. National Team Development Program – seniors Jason DeSantis and Tom Fritsche, sophomore Joseph Palmer and freshmen John Albert and C.J. Severyn. Ohio State is tied for fourth for current NTDP players on its roster, behind Boston University with seven and Michigan and Minnesota with six each. Notre Dame also has five NTDP alums on its 2007-08 roster.
Four former Buckeyes also played in the NTDP – Scott Titus (1999-00, 02-03), Dave Steckel (2001-04), R.J. Umberger (2001-03) and Ryan Kelser (2003).
Last Time We Met
Ohio State and the U.S. National Under-18 Team met Oct. 13, 2001, with the U-18 team posting a 4-3 win. NTDP alums Dave Steckel (2 goals) and R.J. Umberger (2 assists) led the Buckeyes in the game.
A Look at the U-18 Team
John Hynes is in his fifth season as the head coach of the U.S. Under-18 Team. He recently coached the U.S. National Junior Team, including Buckeye sophomore goalie Joseph Palmer, at the IIHF World Junior Championship.
Hynes has led the squad to a 5-8-1 record against NCAA opponents this season, including wins over Yale, Harvard and Minnesota Duluth. The squad is coming off a 5-1 loss at No. 1-ranked Michigan Tuesday night.
Coming Soon
Current U.S. Under-18 Team player Steven West, a 6-foot, 190-pound right-shot defenseman, signed an NCAA National Letter of Intent in November to enroll at Ohio State and play hockey for the Buckeyes beginning in 2008-09.
West, from Milford, Mich., has played in 27 games this season, posting two assists. He spent 2006-07 with the U.S. Under-17 Team and played with Honeybaked AAA in 2005-06, posting 63 points (22g, 41a).
A Look Back at OSU vs. UA
The Buckeyes split a two-game series with Alaska in Value City Arena last weekend, losing game one, 4-2, before posting a 5-2 victory.
Friday, Alaska’s Ryan Muspratt opened the scoring just 1:13 into the game and Dion Knelsen put the Nanooks up by two with his goal 3:53 into the second period. Buckeye Matt McIlvane cut the UA lead to one with a power-play goal at 10:12 of the second. Alaska then extended its lead to 4-1 with goals by Dustin Sather and Nathan Lawrence in the first 4:30 of the third period. The Buckeyes changed goalies and took a timeout following Lawrence’s goal and the squad controlled play through the rest of the game, including skating with an open net for the final 2:20, but could get just one puck past Rogers. Junior Nick Biondo scored for the Buckeyes at 11:47, cutting the UA lead to 4-2.
Freshman Dustin Carlson started the game for the Buckeyes and played the first 44:30, making 27 saves and allowing four goals. Sophomore Nick Filion replaced him at 4:30 of the third, making three saves and allowing no goals in 13:10.
Saturday, the Buckeyes took a one-goal lead in both the first and second periods before the Nanooks tied the score. Ohio State took control in the third period, outscoring Alaska, 3-0, for the 5-2 win.
Senior Tom Fritsche opened the scoring with a goal just 6:31 into the game, but Alaska’s Kevin Petovello tied the game with a tally at 15:47.
In the second, Buckeye sophomore Mathieu Picard again put the Buckeyes on top, tallying at 4:20, but Alaska’s Derek Klassen tied the game at 2 with a goal with just 45 seconds left in the period.
Sergio Somma scored the go-ahead goal on the power play at 5:08 of the third, followed by Shane Sims’ tally at 13:49. Picard ended the scoring with his second goal of the game, scoring into an empty net at 18:04.
Carlson stopped 17-of-19 shots he faced in the game.
Multiple Multiples
Five Buckeyes had multiple points in the win over Alaska last Saturday. Freshman Sergio Somma had the game-winning goal and added an assist for his second-career two-point game. Sophomore Mathieu Picard’s two-goal effort was the first of his career, while senior Tom Fritsche had a goal and an assist and now has 102 career points. Senior Matt McIlvane and junior Corey Elkins each had a season-best two assists. McIlvane has three multiple-point games this season, while Elkins tied his career best for assists, first set Feb. 24, 2007 vs. Michigan. Freshman Peter Boyd had his first career two-assist and two-point game vs. Alaska Friday.
On the PK
The Buckeye penalty kill stopped Alaska on all seven power-play chances in the series last weekend, including a 5-for-5 performance Saturday. The team has held its opponent scoreless in four of the last six games.
Over the last four games since returning from break, the Buckeyes have allowed just one power-play goal, stopping 17-of-18 opponent chances (94.4 percent).
50 for Two
Senior defenseman Jason DeSantis’ assist vs. Alaska Saturday was the 50th point of his career. He has 13 goals and 37 assists in 127 games as a Buckeye.
Notes on No. 26
Freshman Peter Boyd had the first two-assist and multiple-point game of his career last Friday vs. Alaska. He is tied for second on the team and leads all rookies with 12 points, on four goals and eight assists. He has at least one assist in each of his last three games (0-4-4).
Two for Mathieu
Sophomore Mathieu Picard scored twice in the win vs. Alaska last Saturday, marking the first two-goal game of his career. It also was his career best for points in a game and doubled his point total for the season entering the game.
It was the Buckeyes’ fourth two-goal performance this season, joining Tommy Goebel (at Michigan Nov. 30), Sergio Somma (vs. Robert Morris Nov. 18) and Todd Rudasill (vs. Ferris State Nov. 4).
Score!
Freshman defenseman Shane Sims scored his first career goal vs. Alaska last Saturday. He is the 17th Buckeye with a score this season. He had an assist in the opener vs. the Nanooks and now has a 1-5-6 line this year.
Back in Action
Buckeye sophomore goalie Joseph Palmer returned to the United States late Sunday after playing for the U.S. National Junior Team in the IIHF World Junior Championship. Palmer missed the Buckeyes’ games in the Ohio Hockey Classic and against Alaska while with Team USA.
Palmer saw action in two games for the Red, White and Blue. He played in the team’s last pool-play game and also appeared in the bronze medal game. Palmer played the final two periods vs. Russia in the medal-round game, stopping 16-of-17 shots he faced.
Palmer is the fifth Buckeye but first goalie to play for the U.S. National Junior Team, joining current senior Tom Fritsche (2006) and former Buckeyes Ryan Kesler (2003, ’04), Dave Steckel (2001, ’02) and R.J. Umberger (2001, ’02).
Helping the Cause
Junior Corey Elkins had two assists in the win over Alaska, matching his career best first set Feb. 24, 2007 vs. Michigan. Elkins, who has five points on two goals and three assists this year, set his career best vs. Bowling Green last season with three goals and points. He had four multiple-point games as a sophomore.
Stopping the Shooters
The Buckeyes held Alaska to just 19 shots last Saturday, the second-lowest total for a Buckeye opponent this season, behind only the 16 shots Western Michigan put on goal Nov. 24. Alaska is the only team to put 40 or more shots on the Buckeye net, as the Nanooks had 41 shots Dec. 14 in Fairbanks.
He’s In the Club
Buckeye senior Tom Fritsche’s assist vs. Harvard Dec. 29 marked the 100th point of his Buckeye career. He had two points vs. Alaska last Saturday and now has 102 points as a Buckeye to rank 46th (tied) in program history. Fritsche is the first Buckeye to hit 100 points since Paul Caponigri, Scott May and Dave Steckel all did in 2003-04.
2×3
Senior captain Matt McIlvane had his third two-point game of the season with two assists against Alaska last Saturday. He had a goal and an assist vs. both Wisconsin Oct. 13 and Nebraska-Omaha Nov. 9. McIlvane’s two-assist game was his first since Oct. 21, 2006 vs. Minnesota. His career high for helpers in a game is three, set vs. Miami Oct. 21, 2004.
Getting Closer
Senior Tommy Goebel has 98 collegiate points, with a 23-22-45 line at Ohio State and 21-32-53 line at Michigan State. Goebel had his six-game point-scoring streak ended vs. Alaska last Friday and missed the game vs. the Nanooks Saturday because of injury.
Steady
Six Buckeyes, including three freshmen, have played in all 24 games this season. Seniors Matt McIlvane, Jason DeSantis and John Dingle have appeared in every game, along with rookies John Albert, Peter Boyd and Sergio Somma.
BTN Broadcast Cancelled
The Buckeyes’ game vs. Northern Michigan Feb. 16 will no longer be televised by the Big Ten Network. The Buckeyes will make their only appearance on the Network vs. Michigan State Jan. 18.
Chipping In
Twenty-three Buckeyes (every skater who has played this season, along with goalie Joseph Palmer) have at least one point this season, with 17 scoring a goal and 21 having an assist. Fifteen Buckeyes have at least one goal and one assist this year.
Comeback Kids
The Buckeyes came from behind to win for the third time this season in the victory over Harvard Dec. 29. Against the Crimson, the Buckeyes were down 2-1 after the first before pulling out the 4-2 win.
In the season opener Oct. 12, Ohio State trailed Mercyhurst, 1-0, after the second period but rallied for a 2-1 victory.
Against St. Lawrence Dec. 7, the Buckeyes were down 2-0 after the first and 2-1 after the second before winning in overtime, 3-2.
At Alaska in their last game before break Dec. 14, the Buckeyes were down 2-0 vs. the Nanooks midway through the second before tallying the final two goals of the game for a 2-all tie.
Against Alaska last Saturday, the teams were tied after two periods before Ohio State scored three times in the third for the win.
The Man with the Man Advantage
Senior Tommy Goebel has a team-high and career-best seven power-play goals this season to tie for fifth nationally and fourth in the CCHA. Goebel’s previous high for power-play goals in a season was four, set as a freshman at Michigan State in 2003-04. Last season, four Buckeyes shared the team lead with four power-play goals on the year (37 games).
The Young Ones
The Buckeyes have dressed at least 10 freshmen in each of their last 11 games. In the last time out vs. Alaska, the squad had 10 freshmen skaters, along with rookie goalie Dustin Carlson. The team has had 10 freshmen play in 10 games, nine rookie skaters play in eight games and dressed eight freshmen in four other contests.
So far this season, 13 Buckeye freshmen have seen game action, with 12 skaters and one goalie. Each rookie forward and defenseman that has played has at least one point. Peter Boyd leads the Buckeye rookies with 12 points, Sergio Somma has a rookie-best seven goals and John Albert and Boyd share the rookie lead with eight assist each.
We’re On the Air
Nov. 26 marked the debut of Buckeye Hockey Weekly, head coach John Markell’s weekly radio show, for 2007-08. The show is broadcast on 1460 AM in Columbus and online at 1460thefan.com. The show returned Thursday and will run from 8-8:30 p.m. on Mondays for seven-consecutive weeks beginning Jan. 14. More shows may be added depending on the Buckeyes’ postseason schedule.
Finishing Up
Former Buckeye Mike McCormick (1999-02) returned to campus this quarter to complete his undergraduate degree. McCormick, who has been playing in Germany since completing his eligibility at Ohio State, worked with the Student-Athlete Support Services Office (SASSO) and its degree completion program to wrap up his requirements. He took 20 credit hours and worked in SASSO each week to earn his sociology degree. He walked in commencement ceremonies Dec. 9 in St. John Arena.
In the Bigs
R.J. Umberger, a member of the Philadelphia Flyers this season, has played in 38 games and has six goals and 20 assists for 26 points. A Buckeye from 2001-03, he has seen action in 192 career NHL games and has 42 goals, 50 assists and 92 points.
Former Buckeye and current Washington Capital Dave Steckel, who played for the Buckeyes from 2001-04, has played in 55 career NHL games, including 43 this season. He has seven points, including four goals and three assists, this season with all three goals coming against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Rod Pelley, a Buckeye from 2003-06, and a member of the New Jersey Devils this season, now has five points, on two goals and three assists, in 42 games this season. He played nine games for the Devils last season.
Ryan Kesler, the fourth former Buckeye currently in the NHL, has 10-9-19 totals in 40 games for the Vancouver Canucks this season. A Buckeye in 2003, he has played in 198 career games in the NHL, with 28 goals, 35 assists and 63 points.
Nate Guenin, who played at Ohio State from 2003-06, has spent time with both the Philadelphia Flyers (NHL) and Phantoms (AHL) this season. He has played in two NHL games this year after playing in nine a season ago.
Former Buckeyes Scott May (Binghamton Senators) and Sean Collins (Hershey Bears) also are playing in the AHL.
Starting Off Right
Four Buckeyes had points in their first collegiate games – Peter Boyd (goal) and John Albert (assist) vs. Mercyhurst Oct. 12, Patrick Schafer (goal) against Wisconsin Oct. 13 and Todd Rudasill (two goals) vs. Ferris State Nov. 2. They were the first Buckeye freshmen to score points in their first collegiate games since NHL first-round draft picks R.J. Umberger had a goal and two assists and Dave Steckel had two goals at Northern Michigan Oct. 13, 2000.
The Year that Was
Ohio State was 15-17-5 last year and finished seventh in the CCHA with a 12-12-4 mark.
The squad returned 12 letterwinners. Senior Tommy Goebel is the leading returning scorer, posting 26 points last year and ranking second on the squad with 12 goals. Senior defenseman Jason DeSantis was second among blueliners last season with a career-best 25 points, including a team-high 20 assists.
The Buckeye State
Nine Buckeyes hail from the state of Ohio, including the first three Central Ohio products in head coach John Markell’s tenure in Patrick Schafer of Hilliard, Todd Rudasill of Columbus (Powell) and Ryan Markell of Pickerington. Three Buckeyes are from Parma (Tom Fritsche, Nick Biondo, Tommy Goebel), along with John Albert from Concord, John Dingle from Shaker Heights and Chris Reed from Solon.
I Feel a Draft
On the Buckeyes’ 2007-08 roster, six players are NHL draft picks, including seniors Tom Fritsche (Colorado 2005) and Matt McIlvane (Ottawa 2004), sophomore Joseph Palmer (Chicago 2006) and freshmen John Albert (Atlanta 2007), C.J. Severyn (Calgary 2007) and Shane Sims (New York Islanders 2006).
Break it Down
The Ohio State roster for 2007-08 includes nine seniors and 14 freshmen, along with just two juniors and three sophomores. The 14 freshmen mark the biggest rookie class for the Buckeyes since the 1992-93 squad opened the year with 13 freshmen. Head coach John Markell has opened a season with 11 freshmen three times (1996, 2000, 2004).
Up Next
Ohio State will host CCHA foe Michigan State for a two-game series Jan. 18-19. The teams will meet at 7:05 p.m. in the first game, televised on the Big Ten Network. Game two will be at 7:35 p.m. and will be televised live on FSN Detroit.
Jan. 18 the Ohio State Band will perform Script Ohio on Ice during intermission. Jan. 19 free rally towels will be provided to the first 12,000 fans courtesy of Nationwide. There will be a postgame autograph session with seniors John Dingle and Johann Kroll.
