Thursday, October 30
Columbus, Ohio
6:30 p.m.
Ohio State
vs
Penn State
No. 17 Buckeyes Open B1G Play with Series vs. No. 4 Penn State
10/28/2025 10:46:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Teams will meet Thursday and Friday in Value City Arena
The Basics
- The No. 17 Ohio State men's hockey team begins Big Ten play this week with a home series vs. No. 4 Penn State.
- The Buckeyes and Nittany Lions will meet at 6:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday in Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
- Game one will be televised by BTN and available on the Fox Sports app, with game two streamed through B1G+.
- Ohio State Radio will carry both games and live stats will be available on OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
- Ohio State is 4-2 on the year, coming off a split at home vs. Sacred Heart (L 1-2 OT, W 3-0). Penn State is 7-1 and swept Stonehill at home last weekend (3-2, 4-2).Â
- Fans are encouraged to Wear Black both nights.Â
- Thursday is Dollar Dog night and there will be a Brutus shirt giveaway for the first 500 students.Â
- Friday, Script Ohio on Ice will be performed during the first intermission. There will be a black THE towel giveaway for the first 2,000 fans, along with trick-or-treating on the concourse, featuring student-athletes from other Ohio State teams.
- It is men's hockey Alumni Weekend, with the group recognized pregame Friday.
- Season tickets, Power Play mini plans, group tickets and single game tickets are all available now. Admission is free for Ohio State students with a valid BuckID.
- Parking is free for all home games in Value City Arena.
- Ohio State leads the all-time series with Penn State, 28-19-5, including a 17-11-2 ledger in Columbus.
- The teams last met March 15, with the Buckeyes posting a 4-3 win in overtime in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals in Columbus. The Buckeyes led 1-0 after the first period on a Gunnarwolfe Fontaine goal, but were down 2-1 heading into the third. Ohio State's Patrick Guzzo and Nathan Lewis scored back-to-back for a 3-2 lead and Penn State then tied the game with less than six minutes remaining. Fontaine tallied in overtime for the victory.
- in the regular season last year, Ohio State was 2-1-1 vs. Penn State. The squads faced off in Columbus Dec. 5-6, 2024, with the Buckeyes posting a sweep with 4-0 and 4-2 wins. In University Park, the teams met Jan. 24-25. Game one ended with a 6-6 overtime tie and Penn State shootout win and the Nittany Lions prevailed in overtime in game two, 3-2.
- Davis Burnside leads the current Buckeyes with 16 games played against Penn State. He has a team-best eight assists and 11 points vs. the Nittany Lions and shares the team goal lead with Riley Thompson (5 games played) with three each vs. PSU. Max Montes has five assists in nine career games vs. PSU, adding two goals for seven points. Ryan Gordon, Nathan McBrayer and Thomas Weis have also played nine games against Penn State.Â
- Penn State is 7-1 overall this year, with a 5-1 home mark and 2-0 road ledger. The Nittany Lions are third in the country in scoring offense (4.25 goals per game) and are allowing 2.63 goals a night. The power play has converted 25.6 percent of its chances and the penalty kill has stopped 92.3 percent of its opponents' opportunities, ranking fifth in the NCAA.Â
- The teams will face off on Penn State home ice Feb. 20-21, with BTN television both contests.
- Ohio State is No. 17 in the USCHO.com and USA Hockey polls this week. The Buckeyes were a season-high No. 14 last week.Â
- The Buckeyes are fifth nationally in faceoff winning percentage (.567) and rank seventh on the penalty kill (.909) and in scoring defense (1.67 goals allowed per game.)
- The series vs. Penn State marks the Buckeyes' last home games until hosting Minnesota Dec. 4-5. After an open weekend, the squad has two road Big Ten series before heading to Arizona State Thanksgiving weekend.Â
- Nineteen Buckeyes have posted at least one point this year, with 10 scoring a goal and 17 notching at least one assist.Â
- The Buckeyes are seventh nationally in scoring defense, allowing 1.67 goals per game. The squad has allowed two or fewer goals in all but one game.Â
- Ohio State is 20-for-22 (.909) on the penalty kill this season, ranking seventh in the NCAA on the PK. The squad was 8-for-9 against Sacred Heart last week, including a 5-for-5 night in game two.
- The Buckeyes are 4-for-21 (.190) with the man advantage through six games. Nathan Lewis notched his first career power play goal in game one against Sacred Heart, with Davis Burnside tallying with the man advantage in game two.Â
- Ohio State is fifth nationally with a .567 faceoff winning percentage (211-161). Max Montes leads the squad with a 53-38 ledger and Ryan Gordon (45), Riley Thompson (45) and Jake Karabela (42) each posting more than 40 wins.Â
- The Buckeyes are averaging 34.33 shots on goal a night, allowing 24.83 a contest.Â
- The Buckeyes were 1-1 last weekend in Columbus against Sacred Heart. The Pioneers won the opener in overtime, 2-1, before a 3-0 Buckeye victory in game two.
- Game One: After a scoreless first, the Buckeyes led 1-0 after the second period on a Nathan Lewis power play tally. A Pioneer power play goal tied the game in the third and SHU won in the first minute of overtime. The Buckeyes, who were outshot 24-23, were 1-for-3 on the power play and the penalty kill was 3-for-4.
- Game Two: Neither team scored in the first period. In the second, the Buckeyes took control, finding the back of the net three times. A power play goal from Davis Burnside opened the scoring and Niall Crocker doubled the lead less than two minutes later. Defenseman William Smith made it 3-0 late in the stanza. Buckeye goalie Kristoffer Eberly stopped all 10 shots he faced in the third to end the game with 21 saves and his third career shutout. Ohio State, which put 29 shots on net, was 5-for-5 on the penalty kill and the power play was 1-for-6.
- Freshman Niall Crocker had a goal and an assist in game two vs. Sacred Heart. The goal was the first of his collegiate career and the first for a Buckeye freshman this season.
- Junior Ryan Gordon had his second two-assist night of the season in game two vs. the Pioneers. He has a team-best four assists on the year.
- Riley Thompson, Max Montes and Felix Caron lead the Buckeyes with three goals each.Â
- Caron is first on the team with six points (3g, 3a).
- Goalie Kristoffer Eberly, a Preseason All-Big Ten Second Team selection, started the first six games. He has a 1.67 goals-against average and .933 save percentage. His 21-save shutout last Saturday was the third of his career and his first since Dec. 5, 2024 vs. Penn State. He also shut out Bowling Green Oct. 26, 2024.Â
- Davis Burnside entered the season tied for fourth in goals (37) and tied for eighth in points (80) among current Division I players while standing tied for second in games played (118). He now has 39 goals and 84 points, along with 124 games played.
- Among current NCAA players entering the year, Adam Eisele was tied for third overall with nine gamewinning tallies (and now has 10) and Broten Sabo was tied for third among defensemen in gamewinning goals with four.Â
- After a bye the weekend of Nov. 7-8, three road series follow for the Buckeyes (at No. 14 Wisconsin, at No. 2 Michigan, at Arizona State) before the first half ends with a home series against No. 19/18 Minnesota Dec. 4-5.
Players Mentioned
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