Ohio State
12-3-1, 9-2-1-1
Lake Superior State
10-6-2, 6-5-1-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Superior State | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Ohio State | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
No. 7 Buckeyes Complete Sweep of No. 11 Lakers with 2-1 Victory – Ohio State Buckeyes
12/4/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Dec. 4, 2011
Box Score
OSU vs. LSSU Box Score 1203
Highlight video
Press Conference video: Coach Osiecki | Student Athletes (Nick Oddo and Chris Crane)
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Buckeye sophomore Chris Crane’s third-period goal broke a 1-all tie and carried the No. 7-ranked Ohio State men’s hockey team to a 2-1 victory over No. 11 Lake Superior State Saturday night in Value City Arena. The win, Ohio State’s ninth in a row, extended the team’s unbeaten streak to 11. The squad is now 12-3-1 on the year and in first place in the CCHA with a 9-2-1 record. The Lakers are 10-6-2 and 6-5-1-1 in the league.
After a scoreless first period, Lake Superior State opened the scoring at 9:55 of the second. The lead lasted just 37 seconds, as freshman Nick Oddo responded for the Buckeyes and tied the game. Crane put Ohio State ahead with a goal at 6:59 of the third period. Buckeye goalie Cal Heeter had 29 saves in the victory, moving to 11-1-1 on the year.
There was no scoring in the first period. Heeter had nine saves in the Buckeye net, with Kevin Murdock stopping all 11 Buckeye attempts. Ohio State stopped Lake Superior State on one power-play chance. Ohio State’s first chance with the man advantage started with 17 seconds remaining in the stanza.
In the second period, Lake Superior State opened the scoring at 9:55 when Fred Cassiani broke up a Buckeye clearing attempt and the puck got to Chris Ciotti, who was able to score on a quick shot. The Buckeyes took just 37 seconds to respond, as Oddo tapped the puck in from the post after Tanner Fritz sent the rebound of a Sean Duddy shot through the crease. The teams were 0-for-3 on the power play in the period, with Ohio State 0-for-2. The Buckeyes outshot the Lakers, 12-11, in the stanza.
In the third, Ryan Dzingel carried the puck into the zone and Alex Lippincott was able to get a shot on net. Murdock had the save but Crane was there for the rebound, recording his ninth goal of the year. Each team had 10 shots in the period. Ohio State had the only two power-play chances.
The Buckeyes outshot the Lakers, 33-30, in the game. Heeter played 59:36 and had 29 saves. Murdock had 31 saves in 59:04 between the pipes for LSSU.
Neither team was able to score on the power play – Ohio State was 0-for-4 and LSSU was 0-for-2.
Postgame Notes
• Ohio State will close out the first half of the season with a home-and-home series against Miami next weekend. The teams will meet at 7:05 p.m. Friday (Dec. 9) in Value City Arena in Columbus and at 7:05 p.m. Saturday (Dec. 10) in Steve Cady Arena in Oxford, Ohio.
• Crane leads the Buckeyes with 17 points, ranking second with nine goals. He has a goal in each of his last three games.
• Duddy has an assist in the last three games and in five of his last six outings. He has a career-high seven assists this year.
• Lippincott extended his point streak to four (4-3-7).
• Dzingel is on a three-game point streak (2-4-6). He is first on the team with 10 assists and tied with Danny Dries for second with 15 points. He is tied for fifth nationally in points per game among rookies, averaging 1.0 points an outing.
• Heeter dropped his goals-against average to 1.89 and upped his save percentage to .932. He is in the Top 10 in the NCAA in both categories and ranks second nationally in goalie winning percentage (.885).
• The Buckeyes have allowed two goals or less in 10 of the last 11 games.
Postgame Quotes
Mark Osiecki, Ohio State head coach
On the game
“We had a very good talk this morning. Our guys responded really well. They have been taking criticism and coaching very well. The captains settled guys down and did a good job of getting the guys ready to play.”
On correcting mistakes
“We did some very good things against a good team. We did the little things well – we are always concerned with finding a way to get better. We told the guys to enjoy tonight, but to come in Monday with their hard hats on and ready to work.”
On the team’s fifth comeback win this season
“Being able to come back has been a strength for our team. Our ability to respond to tough situations has been outstanding. Tonight they scored first but we answered within a minute. Our bench does a great job of keeping their heads up and staying focused.”
Nick Oddo, Ohio State freshman forward
On his second-period, game-tying goal
“The team went out looking to find some energy after [Lake Superior] scored that first goal. We were lucky, getting some good bounces down in their zone and tying the game up. All of us were gunning to get the goal and it didn’t matter who got it, we were all happy. It was a good feeling.”
Chris Crane, Ohio State sophomore forward
On Ohio State’s confidence
“It is the Ohio State mentality to throw the first punch every period. I think we did that to start the game last night and tonight we came out and threw the first punch for all three periods.”
On the comeback victory
“It goes back to our mentality. We were down 1-0 tonight and the coaches told us to keep playing Ohio State hockey no matter what. In the end I think we just wore down Lake Superior and came out on top.”
Jim Roque, Lake Superior State head coach
On his team’s performance
“I can’t fault our effort at all. We played good hockey on the road and had plenty of chances to score, so I really don’t have any complaints. Ohio State just made a few more plays in the end.”
On his decision to play Kevin Murdock in goal in place of Friday starter Kevin Kapalka
“Murdock’s been playing well in practice and Kapalka has played in a lot of close games lately, so I felt it was a good opportunity to give one of our guys a rest and the other a chance to show what he could do. I though Murdock played a great game.”
On his impressions of Ohio State
“They’re playing hard and getting some great goaltending from [Cal] Heeter. They’ve been getting a lot of pucks deep and aren’t making mistakes to beat themselves.”
On the competition in the CCHA
“There is a lot of parity right now. It’s great for the league because every week is competitive – if you want to win, you have to bring it every week.”
