Buckeyes Begin Home Slate vs. No. 13 Augustana

Friday, October 23

Columbus, Ohio

6:30 p.m.

Ohio State

Augustana

Ohio State Men's Hockey at RPI - Oct. 9, 2026

Photo by: Ohio State Athletics

10/21/2026 4:59:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey

Teams wll face off Friday and Saturday

The Basics

After four road games, the Ohio State men's hockey team opens its slate in Columbus with a four-game homestand.
This weekend, the Buckeyes host No. 13 Augustana at 6:30 p.m. Friday and 5 p.m. Saturday in the Schottenstein Center.
The series vs. the Vikings will be streamed through B1G+. Ohio State Radio will carry the action (1460 AM Columbus, WBNS-FM-HD2, streamed on espncolumbus.com and OhioStateBuckeyes.com and on the Ohio State Buckeyes app). Live stats can be linked from OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
It is Youth Weekend, with complimentary tickets available for youth 12 and under (must be purchased online prior to game day).
- Claim Youth Weekend Tickets and discounted tickets for parents/guardians. Families with multiple children can email athletic.tix@osu.edu or call 1-800-GOBUCKS to sit together.
Friday features a schedule magnet giveaway. Saturday is an Ohio State squishy giveaway and postgame team autograph session.
Ohio State, coming off a series split at Sacred Heart, enters the weekend 2-2, with the Vikings 3-0-1.
The Buckeyes' homestand wraps up with games vs. No. 1 Michigan at 6 p.m. Oct. 31 and 7:30 p.m. Nov. 1.
Parking is free for all home games in the Schottenstein Center. Ticket Information

Buckeyes vs. Vikings

The series marks the first games between Ohio State and Augustana, which joined the Division I men's hockey ranks in 2023-24.
The Vikings started the year with three home games, with an overtime win (4-3) and tie (1-1) vs. Minnesota Duluth and a 2-1 victory over Omaha. Last Saturday Augustana prevailed in overtime at Omaha, 3-2.
Augustana is part of the Central Collegiate Hockey Conference.
Last year, the team was 22-11-4 overall and 14-8-4 in CCHA play, reaching the Mason Cup semifinals.

Freshman Firsts

At Sacred Heart last weekend, four Buckeye freshmen notched their first goals, along with a first collegiate goalie win.
Evan Jardine scored twice in game one for his first goals as a Buckeye, with the first on the power play. He added three assists in game two, the first three-assist game for a Buckeye since Aiden Hansen-Bukata March 22, 2025 at Penn State. Jardine was selected B1G Second Star of the Week for his performance.
Saturday, rookies tallied three straight goals, all the first of their careers. Will Tomko and Benjamin Wilmott scored at even strength, followed by a Ryan Rucinski power play tally. Wilmott added an assist for a two-point night.
In goal, Jakub Milota had 17 saves on 18 shots for his first collegiate win.

Last Time Out

Ohio State split a series at Sacred Heart last week, with a 5-3 loss and 5-1 win.
In game one, the Pioneers led 1-0 after the first period and stretched the advantage to 3-0 7:04 into the second. Buckeye Evan Jardine tallied twice (10:58 and 19:13) for a one-goal game through 40 minutes. Sacred Heart regained the two-goal lead early in the third. Ryan Gordon tallied shorthanded at 17:20 to again draw Ohio State within one, but an SHU empty net goal sealed the win
In game two, Ohio State led 2-0 after the first on goals from Nathan Lewis and Will Tomko, both set up by Jardine. Benjamin Wilmott and Ryan Rucinski scored early in the second and a Felix Caron goal pushed the Buckeye lead to 5-0. SHU got on the board with a PPG at 13:53, which was the final goal of the contest.

Buckeye This and That

The Buckeyes are third in the NCAA in faceoff winning percentage (.577). Ryan Gordon leads Ohio State with 36 wins, Max Montes has 34 and Jake Karabela has 33 victories.
Gordon's shorthanded goal at Sacred Heart Saturday was the first of his career.
Ohio State is outshooting opponents 133-78 on the year, averaging 33.25 per night and allowing 19.5 per contest.
Freshman Evan Jardine leads the Buckeyes in goals (2), assists (3) and points (5).
Rookie Ryan Rucinski has a point in each of his last three games (1g, 2a, 3p).
Sophomore Jake Karabela posted two assists Saturday vs. Sacred Heart, his eighth career game with two points and his sixth two-assist night.
Freshman Benjamin Wilmott posted his first career goal and added an assist Saturday for his first multi-point outing.
Nathan McBrayer had a two-assist game Friday vs. the Pioneers, the third two-point outing of his career and first since Jan. 10, 2025 vs. Minnesota.
The Buckeyes were 3-for-10 on the power play last weekend and are 3-for-16 on the year.
Max Montes notched the seventh gamewinning goal of his Buckeye career at RPI Oct. 10. He is tied for 11th among current NCAA skaters in gwg. Montes is tied for ninth among current NCAA players in games played with 118.

Noting the #ProBucks

Last spring, Riley Thompson signed a two-way entry-level contact with the Philadelphia Flyers. He was the eighth Buckeye in the last four years to sign an entry-level contract with an NHL team, with five of the eight free agents.
Ohio State has a program-high 10 NHL draft picks on the roster this season - Sascha Boumedienne (2025, Round 1, Winnipeg), Jackson Crowder (2025, Round 5, Washington), Jakub Fibigr (2024 Round 7, Seattle), Evan Jardine (2026 Round 4, Columbus), Jake Karabela (2022 Round 5, Washington), Jakub Milota (2024 Round 4, Nashville), Erik Påhlsson (2024 Round 7, Nashville), Ryan Rucinski (2025 Round 7, Buffalo), Tomko (2026 Round 3, Vegas) and Wilmott (2026 Round 7, Seattle).
Boumedienne and Tomko are two of 11 Buckeyes selected in the first three rounds of the NHL draft (Ryan Kesler/1st, Dave Steckel/1st, RJ Umberger/1st, Zac Dalpe/2nd, Tom Fritsche/2nd, Mason Lohrei/2nd, Layton Ahac/3rd, Jason Crain/3rd, Jake Wise/3rd)
Five Buckeyes were on NHL opening day rosters – Mason Lohrei (Boston), Jakub Dobes (Montreal), Stephen Halliday (Ottawa), Dakota Joshua (Toronto/injured reserve) and Georgii Merkulov (Colorado/injured-non roster).
Buckeye alums in the AHL this season include Tanner Laczynski (Henderson), Damien Carfagna (Bakersfield), Matt Tomkins (Bakersfield), Davis Burnside (Manitoba), Cole McWard (Toronto), Cam Thiesing (Hamilton), Adam Eisele (San Jose), Carson Meyer (Rochester), Jake Wise (Colorado), Tate Singleton (Cleveland) and Riley Thompson (Lehigh Valley).
Ohio State players in the ECHL include Patrick Guzzo (Fort Wayne), Logan Terness (Kansas City), Quinn Preston (Toledo), Will Riedell (Savannah), Riley Hughes (Savannah), Ethan Straky (Kansas City), Broten Sabo (Florida), Brent Johnson (Florida), Michael Gildon (Allen) and Sam Jardine (Idaho).
ProBucks in Europe include Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, Scooter Brickey, Tanner Fritz, Aiden Hansen-Bukata, Mason Klee and Andrew Schembri.