Friday, October 20
Ann Arbor, Mich.
6:00 PM
Ohio State
at
University of Michigan
Photo by: Ohio State Athletics
No. 13 Buckeyes Start B1G Play against No. 7 Wolverines
10/18/2023 10:43:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
The Basics
As a team ...Â
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- The No. 13-ranked Ohio State men's hockey team begins Big Ten play with two games at No. 7 Michigan this weekend.Â
- The teams will meet at 6 p.m. Friday and 7 p.m. Saturday in Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor, Mich.Â
- The opener will be televised on BTN, with Fred Pletsch and Ben Holden on the call, with game two streamed on Big Ten Plus. Ohio State Radio will carry the action, with Neil Sika and John Mowat providing commentary. Live statistics will also be available.Â
- Ohio State is 2-0-1 on the year after a 1-0-1 weekend vs. Lindenwood to begin its home slate. Michigan is 2-2-0 and coming off a split at UMass. Â
- In the preseason USCHO.com poll, Ohio State was 13th, while the Buckeyes were No. 15 in the USA Hockey/The Rink Live preseason rankings. The squad was No. 13 in both polls this week after a week at 14th.
- Through three games, 13 Buckeyes have gotten on the scoresheet, including seven goal scorers.Â
- Davis Burnside, who was second for the Buckeyes with 14 goals as a freshman last season, leads the team with three goals so far this year.Â
- Eleven players returned from last year's Buckeye squad that reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament, was 21-16-3 on the year and advanced to the Big Ten Tournament semifinals after finishing third in the regular season standings.
- Ohio State has added 15 newcomers to the roster for 2023-24. The group, with six forwards, seven defensemen and two goalies, includes eight freshmen and seven transfers (two graduate students). The new Buckeyes hail from 11 states in the US and two Canadian provinces, along with a native of Sweden. Thirteen of the newcomers have seen game action.
- The Buckeye roster includes 26 players, who hail from three countries (United States, Canada, Sweden), comprising 15 U.S. states and two Canadian provinces.Â
- Head coach Steve Rohlik is in his 11th year at the helm and his 14th year at Ohio State.Â
- New to the Buckeye staff are assistant coaches Paul Kirtland and Nate Guenin, who both are Ohio State alums. Kirtland joined the Buckeyes after coaching stints at Sacred Heart, Yale and Minnesota State. After an 11-year professional career that included more than 200 NHL appearances, Guenin is in his first year on a collegiate staff.
- Assistant coach JB Bittner, also an Ohio State alum, started his second stint on the Buckeye staff in 2017-18.
- Alum Dave Caruso is a goaltending consultant for the Buckeyes this season.
- Ohio State and Michigan faced off for the first time in 1964 and after games in 1969-70, 1974-75 and 1978-79, have met at least once each season since 1981-82 when Michigan joined Ohio State in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association.
- The Wolverines lead the all-time series, 93-51-15, including 48-20-8 in Ann Arbor.Â
- Last year, the Buckeyes and Wolverines met five times, with all five games in the second half of the year. The teams split the series, 2-2-1.
- The first series was in Ann Arbor Jan. 13-14, with a 7-2 Ohio State win and 4-2 Wolverine victory. In Columbus Feb. 16 the teams tied, 3-3, and Ohio State won the shootout. Outside in Cleveland Feb. 18, the Buckeyes were 4-2 winners. In the Big Ten Tournament semifinals, the Wolverines won 7-3 on their home ice.
- This is the third time Ohio State is opening its Big Ten slate vs. Michigan. The first was in 2013-14, when the teams played the first B1G games in conference history. The Wolverines won the first game, 4-3 in overtime, Nov. 29, 2013, in Ann Arbor and then claimed a 5-4 win in Columbus Dec. 2, 2013.
- In 2019-20, Ohio State swept Michigan, 3-2 and 2-1, in Columbus to open its B1G slate.Â
- The teams have met just nine times in October in the  159-game series, with the last time Oct. 31, 2008 in Ann Arbor (a 4-3 UM win). The games this weekend will be the earliest between the teams all-time.Â
As a team ...Â
- Ohio State has a power play goal in each of the first three games this season, going 3-for-16.
- The Buckeye penalty kill, which led the NCAA a season ago, is 7-for-8 (.875) so far this year.
- The Buckeyes have outshot their opponent in the first three games and are averaging 42.67 shots a night, giving up 25.67. The squad was second nationally in shots on goal a game (36.3).
- Four Buckeyes have four points through the first three games to lead the team in scoring. Davis Burnside has a team-high three goals, while Michael Gildon, Stephen Halliday and Theo Wallberg each have a goal and an assist. Max Montes shares the team assist lead with three and Scooter Brickey is second in goals with two.
- Logan Terness started the first three games between the pipes and has a 2.28 goals-against average and .909 save percentage.Â
- Wallberg, who had three assists at Mercyhurst in his first collegiate game, tallied vs. Lindenwood last Saturday and is the first Buckeye rookie to score a goal this season.
- Transfers Jake Dunlap and Brent Johnson have both netted their first goals in the Scarlet and Gray.Â
- Scooter Brickey marked his 100th collegiate game at Mercyhurst and Patrick Guzzo skated in his 100th game at Ohio State Saturday.
- A non-conference series at Omaha is up next Oct. 27-28, with puck drop set for 8:07 p.m. ET both nights.Â
- The Buckeyes will be back home Nov. 3-4 when they host Michigan State, with puck drop at 7 and 5 p.m., respectively. Game one is Greek Night and there will be an Ohio State flag giveaway for Ohio State students. Script Ohio on Ice will be performed during the first intermission of game two.
- Season, mini-plan, group and single game tickets for all regular season home games are on sale now. More information and purchasing options are online on OhioStateBuckeyes.com.Â
- Parking is free for all men's hockey games in Value City Arena.
- The Buckeyes' 5-plus goals in their series vs. Lindenwood unlocked a $5 off deal for tickets to the series vs. Princeton Nov. 24-25. Purchase HERE.
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Players Mentioned
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