The No. 8 Ohio State men's hockey Buckeyes faced Wisconsin at the Schott on Thursday night. The squads were neck-and-neck in the Big Ten standings coming into the contest. We expected a physical battle and a special teams duel. That’s exactly what we got.
| scoring by period | 1 | 2 | 3 | final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wisconsin | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| No. 8 Ohio State | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
The Buckeyes haven’t been on the wrong end of the game opening goal often this season but the Badgers got the drop on them tonight. Luke Kunin potted a shorthanded tally at the 3:24 mark. The goal was a great highlight for Kunin and, as one might expect, an ugly play for Ohio State.
| buckeye goal scorer (assist) | pd | time |
|---|---|---|
| Matt Weis (Mason Jobst) | 2 | 4:28 |
The Bucks not only gave the puck up to Kunin in an offensive zone turnover, but they allowed it to be carried the length of the ice on an odd man rush which the team captain eventually finished off. Matthew Freytag followed up with a second Badger goal, capitalizing on another OSU turnover and an abbreviated 2-on-1.
Ohio State tried to turn the tide in the middle frame. The Bucks outshot Wisconsin 13-6. Matt Weis cut into the Badgers’ lead with his seventh goal of the season. He was deftly assisted on the play by Mason Jobst’s crafty faceoff winning and passing wizardry.
WATCH: Matthew Weis scores his seventh goal of the season to put the Buckeyes on the board! #GoBucks https://t.co/ZcBFiU7OeY
— Ohio State M Hockey (@OhioState_MHKY) January 27, 2017
Ultimately, though, Wisconsin prevailed. OSU couldn’t get another puck by Badger goalie Jack Berry. Ryan Wagner chipped in an empty netter to cap the scoring at 3-1 in favor of the visitors.
We mentioned the special teams battle in the series preview. Ohio State did half a great job in that area. The Bucks did avoid a shorthanded situation. Buckeyes made three trips to the sin bin but never without a matching call against the Badgers.
However, when it came to scoring they didn’t get the job done. Ohio State had an opportunity to take an early lead with a power play just 1:25 after the opening faceoff. Instead the Badgers turned their disadvantage into a 1-0 lead. OSU couldn’t generate any goals on their other two power plays either.
I don’t think OSU played terribly overall. The Bucks made some mistakes. A couple of those mistakes ended up in the back of the net. They’re short two of their regular defenseman now (defensive captain Drew Brevig and Tommy Parran) in addition to Nick Schilkey. Hats off to the Badgers. They skated an excellent game.
The Buckeyes regroup and head for New York where they resume hostilities with the Badgers on Saturday at Madison Square Garden. Game time is set for 7pm ET. The tilt airs live on BTN.
