Ohio State
14-8-6, 5-6-1-1
Minnesota
18-8-2, 9-3-0-0
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | 0 | 4 | 2 | 6 |
| Ohio State | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 |
No. 12/13 Buckeyes Fall to No. 5/4 Minnesota, 6-5
2/12/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Feb. 12, 2017
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 12/13-ranked Ohio State men’s hockey team lost to No. 5/4 Minnesota, 6-5, Saturday in Value City Arena. The loss gives the Buckeyes, who won 5-4 Friday, a weekend split with the Gophers. The games ended the regular season series between the teams this year, with each team winning twice.
The Buckeyes (14-8-6, 5-6-1-1 B1G) head to Michigan State for two games next weekend. The teams will meet at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday in Munn Ice Arena.
Minnesota 6, Ohio State 5
The Buckeyes led 1-0 after the first period on a Matt Miller power play goal and extended the lead to 3-0 by 5:32 of the second on goals from Mason Jobst and Dakota Joshua. The Gophers scored the next two for a one-goal game but Nick Schilkey tallied for the Buckeyes for a 4-2 lead at 14:10 of the second. Minnesota then took advantage of a five-minute major power play and converted twice to tie the game at four after 40 minutes. The Buckeyes regained the lead in the third on Joshua’s second goal of the night. A second major power play for the Gophers started at 11:00 and they tied the game and took the lead during the opportunity. In all, eight of the 11 goals in the game (including all six by Minnesota) were scored on the power play.
Quoting Buckeye head coach Steve Rohlik
On next steps after tonight’s game
“Where we go is back to work on Monday. We have a good hockey team, and we have eight games left. To be a great team, you have to do the little things and tonight we didn’t do the little things right.”
On changing goalies in the second period
“We were just trying to wake our team up more than anything. That’s kind of what I did last weekend. It’s a message to the guys that we can’t just leave our goalies out to hang and we can’t take penalties. It was more of trying to get momentum going.”
Quoting senior forward Nick Schilkey
On the 10 goal effort from the Buckeyes this weekend
“We’re just trying to get pucks in and pucks to the net. We’re talking about shooting a lot. Even tonight, we didn’t really get that many shots but for some reason they just find the back of the net. It’s just a matter of trying to stick with it. We’re working hard and good things are happening.”
On moving forward
“It’s a matter of keeping the guys in the right mindset, on the same track, coming together and making sure we don’t go opposite ways. I was actually really proud of the guys tonight. No matter what happened, we were positive on the bench I thought and we really did stick together. That’s a big positive to take away from tonight.”
Postgame comments from Coach Rohlik and captain Nick Schilkey: https://t.co/F9UoCHLGOG #GoBucks
— Ohio State M Hockey (@OhioState_MHKY) February 12, 2017
In the First …
The only goal of the first was scored by Buckeye freshman Matt Miller, marking his first career goal. With the Buckeyes on the power play, he one-timed a pass from Josh Healey at the point at 6:48. Freshman Tanner Laczynski also assisted on the goal, his 20th helper of the season.
The teams combined for just 12 shots in the period, with Minnesota ahead 7-5.
In the Second …
The teams scored seven goals in the second period and went into intermission tied at four.
The Buckeyes scored the first two goals. Just 1:34 in Mason Jobst took a pass from Sasha Larocque and scored from the high slot through a screen. Freshman Gordi Myer carried the puck up the wing and found Dakota Joshua coming down the far side, getting a pass across to Joshua for a wrist shot, putting Ohio State up 3-0 at 5:32.
At 6:18 Vinni Lettieri put the Gophers on the board with a power play goal and at 12:31 Brent Gates converted a power play chance to make it a one-goal game.
Buckeye Nick Schilkey notched his 22nd of the year at 14:10 on a 5-on-3 power play for Ohio State, set up by Matthew Weis and David Gust. The goal put the Buckeyes up 4-2.
Minnesota then converted twice during a major power play that started at 14:34. Justin Kloos tallied at 16:58, followed by a goal from Tyler Sheehy at 18:40.
Minnesota outshot the Buckeyes, 15-8, in the period.
In the Third …
The Buckeyes again opened the scoring in the third period, as Dakota Joshua scored his second of the night. Joshua and linemate Luke Stork worked to win the battle behind the net. The puck came out front and Stork was able to gather it and find Joshua with a drop pass, where he scored from in close with the goalie out of position. The goal put the Buckeyes up 5-4.
A major power play for Minnesota started at 11:00 and the Gophers again scored twice on the advantage, with Vinni Lettieri tying the game at 12:34 and Jake Bischoff notching the gamewinner three minutes later, scoring on a shot from up high.
Minnesota had 15 shots in the period, with the Buckeyes putting nine on net.
Buckeye scored five goals tonight vs. the Gophers: https://t.co/MqKlLapryA #GoBucks
— Ohio State M Hockey (@OhioState_MHKY) February 12, 2017
Blocking the Puck
The Buckeyes were outshot, 37-22, in the game. Matt Tomkins started for Ohio State and had 14 saves in 36:58, while Christian Frey made 17 stops in 21:46 and took the loss. Each goalie allowed three goals.
The Buckeyes blocked 15 Gopher shots in the game, led by Tommy Parran with three and Sasha Larocque, Janik Moser and Josh Healey with two each.
Special Teams
The Buckeyes were 2-for-5 on the power play in the game. The squad leads the NCAA on the power play, converting 29.7 percent of its chances (35-of-118).
Minnesota scored a Value City Arena record six power play goals in the game and had 10 opportunities. They are the first visiting squad with more than four power play tallies in a contest and surpassed the five power play goals scored by the Buckeyes twice (last in December 2008).
Jobst Extends Streak
Sophomore Mason Jobst extended his point streak to 14 games with a goal in the game. During the streak he has 28 points, on 11 goals and 17 assists, tying for the NCAA lead in points and points per game (2.00) since his streak started Dec. 3. He leads the Buckeyes with 26 assists and 40 points, the third Buckeye to hit the 40-point mark since 2011. Jobst is ninth in the NCAA in points per game (1.43) and assists per game (.93). He is second in the Big Ten in points overall and is tied for first in conference games only (9-14-23).
Schilkey Leading NCAA in Goals Per Game
Senior Nick Schilkey, on a four-game goal-scoring streak, notched his 22nd goal of the year in the win, tying All-American Ryan Dzingel (2014) for the most goals by a Buckeye since 2006. Schilkey leads the NCAA with .92 goals per game, ranking third in goals, and is 10th in the NCAA in points per game (1.42). He is second nationally in shooting percentage, scoring on 30.6 percent of his shots. Schilkey is second on the squad with 34 points, tying for third in the Big Ten overall. He is third in conference games only with 1.62 points per game.
Buckeye This and That
• The Buckeyes are second nationally in scoring offense, averaging 4.14 goals per game. The squad has at least five goals in each of the last three games.
• Dakota Joshua had the first multiple goal game of his Buckeye career. He has a goal in five of his last seven games and an 8-15-23 line on the year.
• Freshman Tanner Laczynski is on a four-game point streak (2g, 3a, 5p) and is fourth on the team with 28 points, ranking second with 20 assists.
• Matthew Weis has four assists and five points in his last three games combined and a point in all but one of his last eight games. On the year, he has eight goals and 17 assists for 25 points.
• David Gust is third on the team with 29 points and has an assist in each of his last three games.
