Minnesota completed a weekend sweep of Ohio State tonight. Much like last night’s contest the Gophers opened up an early lead and secured victory with impressively efficient special teams.
The Bucks did do a better overall job of containing the Gophers this time around. Matt Tomkins only had to contend with 28 shots in this outing compared to the 42 Christian Frey faced last night. And they were able to generate more scoring chances this time around.
However the Gophers were efficient in exploiting OSU's defensive breakdowns. They also owned the special teams battle again, converting three of their four man-advantages. The Buckeyes were one-for-five on their power plays and missed several opportunities in the first and second periods to seize momentum.
| goals by period | 1 | 2 | 3 | final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Minnesota | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
However the Gophers were efficient in exploiting OSU's defensive breakdowns. They also owned the special teams battle again, converting three of their four man-advantages. The Buckeyes were one-for-five on their power plays and missed several opportunities in the first and second periods to seize momentum.
Ohio State was awarded their first power play chance two minutes into the game. The team generated zero shots and no energy. In the second period, with the score standing at 3-1 Minnesota, the Bucks had two man-advantage opportunities to get back into the game but still couldn't put a quality shot on Adam Wilcox.
The Buckeyes did finally cash in on their fourth try. Victor Bjorkung's point shot bomb navigated a mass of bodies and found the back of the net. The goal was the freshman defenseman's second of the season.
Though the Swede unleashed his shot from the blue line, he didn't win the prize for longest goal of the night. That honor went to Sam Jardine. On a seemingly innocent play the blue-liner dumped the puck in from the red line. It knuckled off the end wall, hit the skate of Adam Wilcox, and slid in. Nothing but net. Give the man the Big Mac.
| pd | time | buckeye goal scorer (assists) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9:41 | Sam Jardine (Craig Dalrymple) |
| 3 | 12:42 | Victor Bjorkung - PP (Matt Weis, Anthony Greco) |
Being swept was an unpleasant result for Ohio State but hardly a surprising one. We knew Minnesota to be a highly skilled team. We also knew that every night it's a challenge for the Buckeyes to play sixty minutes of solid, basic hockey. It was more disappointing not to see much improvement within OSU's game than to see two more ticks in the loss column.
Fortunately for the road weary Bucks they’re about to return to Columbus for their first extended homestand since November. They begin by welcoming Wisconsin, a team struggling even more than Ohio State. The teams will take the ice at the Schott next Friday and Saturday nights.
