Ohio State
17-8-6, 8-6-1-1
Michigan
9-17-3, 2-11-2-2
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Ohio State | 1 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
No. 12 Buckeyes Post 4-2 Win over Wolverines
2/24/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Feb. 24, 2017
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The No. 12-ranked Ohio State men’s hockey team defeated Michigan, 4-2, Friday in Value City Arena, improving to 17-8-6 overall this season and 8-6-1-1 in Big Ten play.
The Buckeyes scored on the power play in the final 10 seconds of the first and second periods for the victory. In the win, Kevin Miller scored twice for the Buckeyes, Dakota Joshua had three assists, David Gust (1g, 1a) and Mason Jobst (2a) each had two points and Nick Schilkey notched his 24th goal of the year.
The Buckeyes and Wolverines will close their regular season series at 5 p.m. Saturday in Value City Arena.
Ohio State 4, Michigan 2
Michigan opened the scoring at 12:12 of the first period. The Buckeyes tied the game with a power play goal with less than a second left in the opening stanza on a David Gust score. Kevin Miller scored back-to-back goals at 2:41 and 9:50 of the second to extend the advantage to 3-1. Michigan drew within one at 15:06 with a power play tally, but the Buckeyes again had a late power play goal, with Nick Schilkey scoring with seven seconds left in the middle period, for a 4-2 lead. Neither team scored in the third. Buckeye senior goalie Christian Frey had 14 of his 32 saves in the final stanza, while the Buckeye penalty killed four straight minutes of a UM power play to maintain the lead.
Kevin Miller scored twice and David Gust and Nick Schilkey each scored a goal in the Buckeyes’ 4-2 win over UM tonight. #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/vfGikXPPp8
— Ohio State M Hockey (@OhioState_MHKY) February 25, 2017
In the First …
At 12:12 Michigan’s Evan Allen opened the scoring, as he scored on the rush off a pass from Nolan De Jong. The Buckeyes tied the game with less than a second remaining in the period. With Ohio State on the power play, a shot from Dakota Joshua was saved, but the rebound came to David Gust and he was able to backhand a shot in before the buzzer for his 13th goal of the year. Mason Jobst also assisted on the tally, which tied the game at one.
Ohio State had 20 shots in the period, with UM putting 11 on net.
In the Second …
At 2:41 Buckeye freshman Matt Miller made a play along the wall and the puck came to Kevin Miller, whose shot beat the Wolverines’ goalie for Ohio State’s first lead of the night. At 9:20 the Buckeyes had a goal overturned for contact with the goalie. Just 30 seconds later the Buckeyes put a goal on the board for a 3-1 lead. Dakota Joshua carried the puck into the zone and threw it toward the net, where it redirected off Kevin Miller and in. David Gust also assisted on the tally.
Michigan ended the three-goal Buckeye run when Evan Allen scored on the power play at 15:06. The Buckeyes went on the power play with 14 seconds left in the period and seven seconds later Ohio State converted. Joshua put a shot on net and Nick Schilkey got to the rebound in front for his 24th goal of the year. Mason Jobst also assisted on the tally, which came at 19:53.
Ohio State outshot the Wolverines, 14-9, in the period.
In the Third …
Neither team scored in the third period, with Michigan outshooting the Buckeyes, 14-12. Ohio State was unsuccessful on two power play chances in the period. At 13:02 two minor penalties were called on the same Buckeye, putting the Wolverines on back-to-back power plays. The Buckeyes allowed just three shots during the four minutes of power play time.
Blocking the Puck
The Buckeyes outshot the Wolverines, 46-34, the second-highest shot total for the Buckeyes this season. Senior goalie Christian Frey made 32 saves in the Buckeye net in all 60 minutes. The Wolverines’ Jack LaFontaine had 42 stops in 59:07.
Special Teams
The Buckeyes were 2-for-5 on the power play in the game. The squad leads the NCAA on the power play at 30 percent (39-for-130).
The Buckeye penalty kill was 3-for-4 in the game.
Buckeye This and That
• Kevin Miller had the first two-goal game of his Buckeye career. He has a career-high eight goals and 11 points this season.
• Dakota Joshua had his second three-point night as a Buckeye and first career three-assist game. He has a 9-18-27 line on the year.
• Senior Nick Schilkey notched his 24th goal of the year, the most for a Buckeye since RJ Umberger had 26 in 2003. He has a 24-12-36 line this season, ranking 14th in the NCAA in points per game. He leads the NCAA in goals per game (.89) and is fourth in total goals, leading the B1G.
• Mason Jobst picked up two assists for the eighth time this season. He has a team-high 42 points, ranking 11th in the NCAA in points per game (1.35). He is second in the Big Ten in points overall and in Big Ten play (9g, 16, 25p).
• David Gust has a point in five of the last six games, with a 1-6-7 line in the stretch. On the year he is third on the team with 32 points, on 13 goals and 19 assists.
• The Buckeyes are third nationally in scoring offense, averaging 4.10 goals per game.
Postgame comments from Coach Rohlik, Dakota Joshua and Kevin Miller. https://t.co/5jHR77cVpu #GoBucks
— Ohio State M Hockey (@OhioState_MHKY) February 25, 2017
Postgame Quotes
Steve Rohlik, Ohio State head coach
On the importance of scoring last-second goals in the first two periods
“It was a difference in the game. There’s no question. When you score with a second left in the first period and six seconds left in the second, it’s a heartbreaker for the other team. It was certainly the difference in the game tonight.”
On scoring right after a disallowed goal in the second period
“It was a great answer by our guys. Our guys could have gotten down, but when you can score right back like that, it’s pretty deflating for the other team. It was a good bounce-back for our guys.”
On the performance of goalie Christian Frey
“At times we can be a very good hockey team, and at times you can see the inconsistency. It’s almost like we depend on (Matt) Tomkins or Frey in the net. We gave up way too many opportunities later in the game, and Frey made some ridiculous saves. Certainly when you talk about the difference, he was the difference at the end there.”
Dakota Joshua, Ohio State sophomore forward
On goals at the end of the first and second periods
Personally, it was good to see everybody going hard, we’ve struggled with that lately. It boosted the team morale and obviously to be able to get one goal at the end of both periods really helped us today.
On what went right for their line
“I think we were just getting pucks to the net, bodies to the net. Obviously that is something that we preach every day at practice. Tonight, it just happened to click for our line.”
Kevin Miller, Ohio State junior forward
On a last second goal in the first giving OSU momentum in the second
“It definitely relates, you see it all of the time in hockey. You score a late goal at the end of the period and it really passes the momentum through the intermission.”
