Ohio State
18-12-3, 11-10-2
Minnesota
24-8-1, 18-4-1
No. 8/7 Buckeyes Fall to No. 1 Gophers
2/24/2023 11:49:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 8/7 Ohio State men's hockey team lost to No. 1 Minnesota, 4-0, Friday evening at 3M Arena at Mariucci in Minneapolis. After a scoreless first, the Gophers scored four times in the second period, including two power play goals, en route to the win.
Ohio State is now 18-12-3 on the year and 11-10-2-0-0-1 in the Big Ten, standing in third place with one game remaining. The Buckeyes have 36 points, two ahead of Penn State and idle Michigan State and three up on Notre Dame. The Gophers, who have clinched the B1G regular season title, are 24-8-1, with a an 18-4-1-2-1-0 B1G ledger. Seeds 2-4 host quarterfinal series next weekend.
The Buckeyes and Golden Gophers will close the regular season at 5:30 p.m. ET Saturday, with the game on BTN, the Fox Sports app and Ohio State Radio.
How it Happened
There were no goals in the first period. The Buckeyes were outshot, 14-9, as they killed three Gopher power plays in the stanza.
In the second, Minnesota opened the scoring at 11:57 on a Brock Faber goal. The Golden Gophers then scored three times in just over two minutes, with 5×3 power play goals at 16:09 and 16:53 and an even strength tally at 18:16. Minnesota outshot Ohio State, 12-5, in the stanza and had four power play chances. Ohio State had one five-second opportunity in the period.
There were no goals in the third, with Minnesota outshooting the Buckeyes, 12-9. Ohio State had the period's only two power play chances.
For the game, the Buckeyes were outshot, 38-23. Buckeye goalie Jakub Dobes made 34 saves in 59:11. Ohio State blocked 13 Gopher shot attempts, led by Mason Lohrei with four and CJ Regula and Patrick Guzzo with two each. The Buckeyes were shut out for the fourth time this season.
Minnesota was 2-for-7 on the power play, with Ohio State 0-for-3. The Gopher power play goal ended a streak of 17 consecutive penalties killed by the Buckeyes. Ohio State is 122-for-137 (.891) on the penalty kill this year, among the NCAA leaders.
Photo credit: Jim Rosvold
