No. 19 Buckeyes Fall in B1G Tourney Final to No. 1 Wolverines

Saturday, March 21

Ann Arbor, Mich.

8 p.m.

Ohio State

14-21-2, 8-16-1

Michigan (Final)

29-7-1, 18-6-1

Ohio St.

Michigan

No. 19 Buckeyes Fall in B1G Tourney Final to No. 1 Wolverines

3/22/2026 12:02:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey

Box Score

Karabela and Smith named to all-tournament teamKarabela and Smith named to all-tournament team

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 19 Ohio State men's hockey team lost to No. 1 Michigan, 7-3, Saturday in the championship game of the Big Ten Tournament in Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor, Mich. The teams were tied at one after the first and at three after the second. The Wolverines scored twice in less than two minutes nearly midway through the third to take control of the game.

The loss ends the season for the Buckeyes (14-21-2). Ohio State was the tournament's No. 5 seed and reached the final with wins at No. 4 Wisconsin (7-1) and No. 1 Michigan State (3-2 OT). Michigan (29-7-1), the No. 2 seed, earns the league's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament. Ohio State was making its fourth appearance in the B1G final and its second in a row.

Freshman forward Jake Karabela and junior defenseman William Smith were named to the B1G All-Tournament Team. Karabela had a team-high three goals and six points in the three tournament games combined, while Smith had a goal and three assists for four points.

The Short Story
The Buckeyes converted their first power play chance with a William Smith goal at 8:18 of the first, answered by the Wolverines at 17:49. In the second, Michigan pushed ahead at 1:50. Ohio State notched the next two – at 9:12 from Jake Karabela and at 16:31 from Adam Eisele on the power play – for a 3-2 lead. A Michigan power play goal in the final minute again deadlocked the game. Three Wolverine goals in a span of less than five minutes put the home team ahead 6-3 and an empty net tally at 17:58 closed out the scoring.

Ohio State was outshot, 29-28, in the game. The Buckeyes blocked 19 Michigan shot attempts, led by Nathan McBrayer and Sam Deckhut with three each. Each team was 2-for-3 on the power play.

How it Happened

On the first power play of the game, a blast by Buckeye defenseman William Smith gave Ohio State a 1-0 lead at 8:18, assisted by Bryce Ingles and Ryan Gordon, who started the play with a faceoff win.
Michigan tied the game at 17:49 and the teams ended the first deadlocked at one. The Buckeyes were ahead in shots, 9-7, in the first 20 minutes.
In the second, the Wolverines tied the game at 1:50.
Ohio State tallied the next two for a 3-2 lead. At 9:12 Jake Karabela scored far side, set up by Felix Caron. Adam Eisele followed with a power play goal at 16:31, knocking in a rebound. Gordon and Max Montes assisted on the PPG.
A power play goal by Michigan with 42 seconds left again knotted the score (3-3). Each team put 10 shots on goal in the second.
In the third. Michigan broke the tie at 8:19 and moved the lead to 5-3 with a power play goal at 9:44, adding a score at 12:43 for a 6-3 advantage. An empty net tally at 17:58 was the final goal of the game.
Michigan was ahead in shots in the third, 12-9, and ended the game with the advantage, 29-28.
Buckeye goalie Kristoffer Eberly had 22 saves in 58:37 and the Wolverine goalie made 25 stops in all 60 minutes.
The Buckeyes blocked 19 Wolverine shot attempts. Nathan McBrayer and Sam Deckhut were first for Ohio State with three shot blocks each. Michigan had 18 shot blocks.
Each team was 2-for-3 with the man advantage in the game.

Buckeye This and That

The game marked the final collegiate contest for Buckeye seniors Davis Burnside, Jake Dunlap, Eisele and Ethan Straky.
Karabela ends the season first for the Buckeyes with 22 assists and 37 points, sharing the goal lead with Montes with 15 each. Karabela ends the season on a seven-game point streak (6g, 6a, 12p), with a goal in each of the last four. His six points in the Big Ten Tournament tie for the most in Buckeye history with five other players.
Two-time captain Burnside, the first Buckeye to hit 100 points since 2020, ends his career with 49 goals and 63 assists for 112 points in 155 games. He is second in school history with 16 Big Ten Tournament games played.
Smith has a career-high 12 points this year, with four goals and seven assists.
Eisele matched his career best with 13 goals on the year, with two on the power play.
Gordon had his fourth career two-assist game and his seventh career two-point night. He had a career-high 18 assists and 23 points this year.
The Buckeyes scored at least three goals in each of the last nine games and averaged 3.22 goals per game this season.
The Buckeyes were 34-for-136 (.250) on the power play this year.