Ohio State
5-3-1
Alabama-Huntsville
0-8-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Alabama-Huntsville | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Dries Nets Hat Trick as Buckeyes Shut Out Chargers, 4-0 – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/4/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Nov. 4, 2011
COLUMBUS, Ohio – A four-point night, including his first career hat trick, from senior Danny Dries, as well as 21 saves from junior goalie Brady Hjelle, led the Ohio State men’s hockey team to a 4-0 road victory at Alabama-Huntsville Friday night. Sophomore Alex Szczechura had two assists in the victory, which lifted Ohio State’s record to 5-3-1 on the year and extended its unbeaten streak to four (3-0-1). The Buckeyes led 1-0 after the first period, added two tallies in the second and Dries scored the lone third-period goal to complete his hat trick.
The Buckeyes and Chargers (0-8-1) will close the series at 7 p.m. CT Saturday at Propst Arena at the Van Braun Center in Huntsville, Ala.
Ohio State wasted little time getting on the scoreboard as freshman Darik Angeli tallied 2:23 into the first period, with Dries and Hjelle setting up the tally. Shots were 10-8 in favor of the Chargers in the period, with Hjelle stopping all 10 UAH attempts. Alabama-Huntsville had the only two power play chances in the stanza.
Dries scored twice in the second period for a 3-0 Buckeye lead. His first tally came on the power play at 2:27, with freshman Ryan Dzingel and junior Devon Krogh posting the helpers. At 10:33 Dries converted passes from Szczechura and Travis Statchuk for his second goal of the night. The Buckeyes controlled play in the period, outshooting the Chargers, 18-2. Ohio State converted 1-of-2 power play opportunities during the period and stopped one UAH chance.
Dries completed his hat trick at 13:31 of the third, with a 5-on-3 power-play goal. Szczechura and Gedig both picked up assists on the goal to give each two helpers on the night. Shots were 13-9 in favor of the Buckeyes in the period. Ohio State was 1-for-2 on the power play with four shots. The Chargers had one power-play chance.
In the game, Hjelle played all 60 minutes and had 21 saves. UAH’s Clarke Saunders had 35 stops in 60 minutes.
Ohio State was 2-for-4 on the power play in the win and was 4-for-4 on the penalty kill.
Postgame Notes
• Dries had the first hat trick for the Buckeyes since Hunter Bishop March 6, 2010 vs. Notre Dame in the CCHA tournament. Dries has four career two-goal games, including two this season. It was his second career four-point night and first since Nov. 5, 2010 vs. Alabama-Huntsville when he had three assists.
• The shutout was the second in a row for the Buckeyes after a 6-0 win over Alaska last week with senior Cal Heeter between the pipes. Ohio State last had two straight shutouts as a team Nov. 18-19, 2005, against Lake Superior State in Columbus.
• Hjelle, a newcomer to Ohio State as a junior this season, posted his first shutout as a Buckeye in his second start at Ohio State. He had one shutout victory in his last year at Minnesota Duluth in 2009-10. The assist was the first of his Buckeye career.
• Szczechura had his second two-assist game and first since Jan. 2 vs. Army. He has five career two-point nights.
• Dries leads Ohio State with nine points, including a team-best seven goals. Krogh is first with seven assists. Dzingel, Krogh and Chris Crane are tied for second with eight points each.
• Streakers: Angeli has points in four straight games (3-1-4) and Krogh has assists in four consecutive games (0-6-6). Gedig is on three-game assist and point streaks with three points in the stretch. Dzingel is on a three-game point streak (0-3-3). Dries has five goals in his last two games combined. Szczechura has four points in the last two games (1-3-4).
• The 39 shots were a season best for the Buckeyes and the squad has 33 or more in three of the last four games. The 21 shots by UAH were an Ohio State season low.
• Ohio State had a season-low four penalties and eight penalty minutes in the game vs. the Chargers.
• The Buckeye power play is 6-for-11 in the last two games, with the penalty kill 12-for-12 in the stretch. The team has a power-play goal in four consecutive games.
