Buckeyes Take on In-State Foe Bowling Green – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/12/2014 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Nov. 12, 2014
OHIO STATE vs. BOWLING GREEN
Ohio State PDF Notes
VIDEO: Coach Rohlik on – The Series | The Freshmen | The Goaltenders
Date: Friday, November 14 | Time: 8:07 p.m. ET | Venue: BGSU Ice Arena | Location: Bowling Green, Ohio
Live Stats: BGSUFalcons.com | Radio: WBGUFM.com | Watch: WCHA.tv ($)
Date: Saturday, November 15 | Time: 7 p.m. ET | Venue: Value City Arena | Location: Columbus, Ohio
Live Stats: OhioStateBuckeyes.com | Radio: 1460 AM Online ($) | Watch: Buckeye Vision
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio State men’s hockey team takes on No. 19 Bowling Green in a home-and-home series this weekend. The Buckeyes (2-5-1, 0-0-0 B1G) and Falcons (7-2-1, 5-1-0 WCHA) will meet at 8:07 p.m. Friday in BGSU Ice Arena in Bowling Green, Ohio, and at 7 p.m. Saturday in Value City Arena in Columbus.
Follow Along
- Audio, video and live stats for the game at Bowling Green is available through BGSUFalcons.com. Scarlet and Gray Sports Radio, Ohio State’s student radio, will also carry the game online through OhioStateSports.net.
- The game Saturday will be carried by 1460 AM in Columbus and a video stream will be online through the Buckeye Vision subscription package on OhioStateBuckeyes.com. GameTracker live stats can also be accessed through OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
- Links to all audio, video and stats can be found on the men’s hockey gameday page: go.osu.edu/mhkygameday. In-game updates will also be on Twitter @OhioState_MHKY.
Promotional Calendar – Script Ohio On Ice, Canned Food Drive, Postgame Skate
- Following the first period Saturday in Value City Arena, Script Ohio on Ice will be performed.
- A canned food drive for the Mid-Ohio Foodbank is being held. Bring a can to donate and receive a buy one, get one free ticket voucher for that night. And, for each can donated, fans will receive a $1 off coupon to use that night at the concession stands (up to $5).
- Postgame Saturday, fans are welcome to skate on the Value City Arena ice. Fans must bring their own skates. Ohio State players will join the fans for a portion of the skate.
Ticket Talk
- Tickets for all Buckeye hockey home games can be purchased at the arena on game night, from the Ohio State Athletics Ticket Office or a Ticketmaster outlet in person, through Ticketmaster online (ticketmaster.com) or by calling 1-800-GOBUCKS. For more information, call 1-800-GOBUCKS or look under tickets on OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
- For adults, single-game tickets are $11 for non-conference games and $15 for Big Ten games, while senior citizen/youth tickets are $8 and $10, respectively. A Power Play pack is available, with fans able to choose any four regular season games for $8 (non-conference) or $12 (B1G) each. (Note service fees may apply.) Ohio State students are admitted free to all home games with a valid BuckID.
- Group tickets are available for $6 for non-conference games and $8 for Big Ten games for groups of 10 or more. For information on group tickets, contact the Ohio State Athletic Ticket Sales office at 1-800-GOBUCKS (select option 2) or email AthleticSales@osu.edu to speak with an account executive. The ticket sales staff can also provide information on season ticket packages.
Buckeye Snapshot
- Ohio State is 2-5-1 this season after falling to Omaha, 4-1 and 4-3, last weekend in Columbus. The team opens its Big Ten schedule next week (Nov. 20-21) vs. Michigan State.
- Bowling Green is the fourth ranked team the Buckeyes are facing this year (in five series), after opening the campaign vs. then-No. 3 Providence and then facing then-No. 11 Miami in a home-and-home series. Omaha was ranked No. 19 last week, with Bowling Green ranked No. 19 this week.
- The team is averaging 2.4 goals a game and allowing 3.1 goals a contest. The power play is 6-for-33 (18.2 percent) and the penalty kill is 23-for-28 (.821).
- Senior Tanner Fritz has a team-best nine points and six assists. Freshman Matthew Weis is second with five helpers. Junior Anthony Greco leads the squad with four goals, followed by Fritz with three. Seniors Darik Angeli, Nick Oddo and Matt Johnson and freshman Luke Stork each have two goals.
- In goal, Christian Frey and Matt Tomkins have split time. Frey, who had 60 saves on 62 shots at Miami Oct. 18, is 1-2 with a 4.01 goals-against average and .903 save percentage, while Tomkins has a 2.35 gaa and .906 sv% and 1-3-1 ledger.
- The squad has blocked 138 shots, led by senior Justin DaSilva and sophomore Drew Brevig and with 25 and 20, respectively. Opponents have blocked 89 Buckeye attempts.
- Ohio State is averaging 28.8 shots on goal per game and allowing 31.6 an outing.
Last Time Out
- Ohio State lost two games against Omaha last week, falling 4-1 and 4-3. It was the first time the team was swept in a home series since Feb. 22-23, 2013 vs. Michigan.
- Game 1 (Omaha 4, Ohio State 1): On Military Appreciation Night, Ohio State lost to Omaha, 4-1. UNO led 1-0 after the first period and 2-0 after the second. Ohio State cut the lead to 2-1 at 6:32 of the third on a goal from Matt Johnson, but the Mavericks scored on the power play less than three minutes later to regain the two-goal advantage and sealed the win with an empty net goal. The Mavericks won the special teams battle, going 2-for-4 on the power play and stopping Ohio State on five power play chances. The Buckeyes outshot the Mavericks, 26-19, in the game.
- Game 2 (Omaha 4, Ohio State 3): In game two, the Mavericks scored the last three goals of the game en route to a 4-3 win. The teams scored three goals in less than two minutes in the first period, as Buckeyes Tanner Fritz and Chad Niddery had goals at 4:05 and 6:02 sandwiched around a score at 5:02 from UNO’s Avery Peterson. Darik Angeli then put the Buckeyes up by two (3-1) at 16:11, but Peterson answered again quickly for UNO to cut the Buckeye lead to one (3-2) after the first period. UNO scored the only goal of the second to tie the game and then took the lead early in the third, skating to the 4-3 road win. Each team had 30 shots on goal and Ohio State scored the only power play goal (on four chances). UNO was scoreless on three opportunities.
The Series – Ohio State vs. Bowling Green
- All-time, Ohio State and Bowling Green have met 176 times (dating to 1966), with the Falcons ahead, 94-73-9, including 57-27-6 in Bowling Green. In Columbus, the Buckeyes have the advantage, 43-35-3. The game in Columbus last year ended a streak of seven-consecutive games between the teams on the Falcons’ home ice.
- In the last 18 meetings Ohio State is ahead, 13-2-3. After tying three of four games (with Ohio State winnning the other), the squads split a home-and-home series last season. The Falcons won 4-3 in Bowling Green Oct. 15, 2013, and Ohio State claimed a 5-3 victory Oct. 29, 2013 in Columbus.
- The games last year were the first between the teams as as non-conference foes since Jan. 16, 1976. Ohio State and Bowling Green were founding members of the CCHA in 1971-72. The Buckeyes skated as an independent in 1973-74 and 1974-75, but rejoined in 1975-76 and remained in the league until it was disbanded in 2012-13.
OSU vs. BG by the Numbers
Ohio State is averaging 2.28 goals a game this season, with the Falcons scoring 3.2 a contest. The Falcons are allowing 2.2 goals per game, with Ohio State giving up 3.12 a contest. The Buckeyes’ power play is 6-for-33 (.182) and Bowling Green has eight goals on 39 chances (.205). On the penalty kill, Ohio State is 23-for-28 (.821) and Bowling Green is 33-for-37 (.892). Ohio State averages 12.6 penalty minutes a game and the Falcons have had 9.4 penalty minutes per outing.
Falcon Facts
Bowling Green, a member of the WCHA, enters the series on a three-game winning streak and is coming off a sweep at Alaska with two 3-2 victories. Kevin Dufour is tied for the NCAA lead with nine goals this year, with three scored on the power play. Dufour is first on the team with 10 points, with Matt Pohlkamp second with nine points. Pohlkamp ranks second with six assists, behind Pierre-Luc Mercier’s seven. In goal, Tommy Burke has played in five games and has a 3-1-1 ledger, 1.97 goals-against average and .933 save percentage.
Scoring This and That
- The Buckeyes are averaging 2.38 goals a game this season and have been held to one goal four times in eight games. In the last four games, however, the squad has scored three or more goals three times and is averaging 2.75 a game in the stretch.
- Senior Tanner Fritz was the Big Ten’s leading returning scorer in points per game entering the season after averaging 1.0 points per contest last season. He leads the Buckeyes and is seventh in the B1G with 1.12 points per outing this year. Fritz’s team-best six assists are tied for fifth in the Big Ten. Fritz has 92 points in his 114-game Buckeye career, with 28 goals and 64 assists. Fritz had a goal and an assist Saturday vs. Omaha and has a point in five of eight games this year.
- Sophomore Nick Schilkey, who missed three games with an injury, had two assists vs. Omaha Saturday for his first points of the year. He had 26 points, with 13 goals and 13 assists, as a rookie last season. It was his third career two-assist night.
- Chad Niddery scored his first goal of the season Saturday vs. Omaha. It was his first goal since Dec. 29, 2013 vs. Mercyhurst.
Keeping it Close
- In all, four of the Buckeyes’ eight games this season have been decided by one goal, with the squad 1-3 in those outings.
- Three of the Buckeyes’ eight games this season have gone to overtime, with the squad 1-1-1 in those outings.
- Going back to last season, five of the squad’s last 10 contests have needed extra time. The team beat Michigan State, 2-1 in overtime, in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals before falling to Wisconsin, 5-4 in overtime, in the tourney championship.
Shooting Stats
- Omaha had an Ohio State opponent season-low 19 shots on goal Friday.
- The Buckeyes are giving up 31.6 shots on goal per game this season. After Miami had 62 shots Oct. 18, Ohio State has held its opponents to 30 or less in each of the last four games.
- The Buckeyes are putting 28.8 shots on goal a game this year. The team had a season-high 41 at Canisius Nov. 1, one of only three games with 30 or more this season. The squad had a season-low 20 at Miami Oct. 18.
Special Teams
- Ohio State was 1-for-4 on the power play Saturday vs. Omaha, converting with the man advantage for the first time in four games. The power play goal by Darik Angeli ended a streak of 17 scoreless chances for the Buckeyes.
- The Buckeyes allowed two power play goals on four chances Friday vs. Omaha. The squad has allowed power play goals in just two of eight games this year, but in those games, Miami was 3-for-5 Oct. 17 and Omaha was 2-for-4 Friday.
- Ohio State is 6-for-33 on the power play this season, converting 18.2 percent of its chances. After scoring five goals on its first 15 opportunities through the first four games of the season, the squad was scoreless on nine chances in two games at Canisius Oct. 31-Nov. 1 and 1-for-9 vs. Omaha last weekend.
- The Buckeyes are 23-for-28 (.821) on the penalty kill this year. Ohio State has faced three major power plays this season and has not allowed a goal on any of the three opportunities. Tanner Fritz leads the Buckeyes with six power play points, with two goals and four assists.
- Freshman Matthew Weis and Fritz are tied for 11th in the NCAA with four power play assists each.
- After taking seven penalties for 36 minutes Oct. 17 vs. Miami, Ohio State has had four or fewer penalties (for eight or fewer minutes) in each of the last five games.
Blocking Out
- Ohio State has blocked 138 opponent shot attempts this season, led by Justin DaSilva with 25 and Drew Brevig with 20.
- DaSilva, who led the NCAA with 2.74 blocks per game a season ago, is first nationally with 3.57 blocked shots a game this year. Brevig is second in the Big Ten (and 17th in the NCAA) with 2.50 blocked shots an outing.
- Against Miami Oct. 17-18, the Buckeyes blocked 22 shots in game one and a season-high 27 in game two. Last weekend vs. Omaha, the Buckeyes had 13 blocked shots in the opener and 14 in the second game.
The Buckeye Rookies
- Seven freshmen joined the Buckeye roster this season – Victor Björkung (Stockholm, Sweden), Nicholas Jones (Edmonton, Alberta), Christian Lampasso (Amherst, N.Y.), Janik Möser (Mannheim, Germany), Kevin Miller (Stony Plain, Alberta), Luke Stork (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and Matthew Weis (Freehold, N.J.). All seven Buckeye rookies have seen game time this season.
- Matthew Weis is tied for first among Big Ten freshmen with five assists and is fourth among league rookies with five points.
- Against Omaha Saturday, Lampasso had an assist for the first point of his collegiate career. Luke Stork scored vs. Providence Oct. 11 to record the first goal for a Buckeye freshman and added his second goal at Canisius Oct. 31. He is one of four Big Ten freshmen with two or more goals. He had his first career assist Friday vs. Omaha.
- Miller had a goal and an assist at Canisius Nov. 1 for his first collegiate points.
- Björkung and Möser could become just the second and third Buckeye letterwinners to hail from a European country, joining Finland native Mark Kreus, who earned a letter in 1989.
UP NEXT
- The Buckeyes will open Big Ten play next week when they host Michigan State at 7 p.m. Thursday-Friday, Nov. 20-21, in Value City Arena.
- The second game (Nov. 21) is Youth Hockey Night. Children (8th grade and younger) wearing a youth hockey jersey will receive a free popcorn and access to a locker room tour and meet and greet with the team postgame.
- There is also a postgame meet and greet with select Buckeyes scheduled for postgame Nov. 21.
No videos available.
