Gophers Edge Hockey Bucks with Six Power Play Goals

By Aubrey Nelson on February 11, 2017 at 11:46 pm
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No. 12/13 Ohio State and No. 5/4 Minnesota concluded their regular season series on Saturday night in a wild and woolly, penalty-filled affair. As you would expect in such a game, special teams were key. This time it was an area decisively controlled by the Gophers, though they did not hold a lead until the late stages of the game.

scoring by period 1 2 3 final
No. 5/4 Minnesota  0 4 2 6
No. 12/13 Ohio State 1 3 1 5

The first period was relatively quiet compared to the fireworks which would erupt in the middle frame. The Buckeyes took a modest 1-0 lead thanks to a power play goal by Matt Miller. It was the first goal of the freshman's career. He is the nineteenth OSU player to light the lamp this season.

Scoring skyrocketed in the second period. The teams exploded for seven total tallies. The first two scores belonged to Ohio State. Even strength markers from Mason Jobst and Dakota Joshua stretched the Buckeye lead to 3-0.

buckeye goal scorers (assists) pd time
PP - Matt Miller (Josh Healey, Tanner LaczynskI) 1 6:48
Mason Jobst (Sasha Larocque) 2 1:34
Dakota Joshua (Gordi Myer) 2 5:32
PP - Nick Schilkey (Matt Weis, Dave Gust) 2 14:10
Dakota Joshua (Luke Stork) 3 8:24

Then a deluge of penalties opened up the ice for two of the nation’s top power plays. Nick Schilkey chipped in a fourth OSU goal. But Minnesota capitalized on its opportunities as well, ringing up four goals in the period, all with the man-advantage.

Two of these Gopher tallies came during a major penalty to Josh Healey (who was also excused from the remainder of game). The sequence was an especially poor one for the Bucks as Healey’s penalty negated a Buckeye power play, gave Minnesota an extended advantage, and reduced OSU’s defensive corps for the final 25 minutes of the game.

Ohio State managed to stop the bleeding and the teams headed to the third period knotted at 4-4. The Buckeyes edged ahead near the midway mark on Joshua’s second goal of the night. The tally was a refreshingly dirty one following the skills showcase of the second period.

Good old fashioned hard work by Joshua forced a turnover deep in the Minnesota end. Luke Stork collected the loose puck and fed the big man for a doorstep stuff, his second score of the night. This was the first multi-goal game of Joshua's collegiate career.

It looked as though the Buckeyes might still snatch victory, but a second major penalty was whistled against Ohio State. This one sent Stork to the showers. (In the opinion of this writer - and judging by his body language, head coach Steve Rohlik - it was not nearly as cut and dried as the call against Healey.)

Minnesota’s power play went to work as effectively as it had in the second period. The Gophers set up another two goals to take a 6-5 lead. Although the Bucks put some pressure on Eric Schierhorn with the extra attacker in the final minute of the game, they couldn’t net the equalizer. Minnesota took the win with a school record six power play goals.

With tonight’s result Ohio State and Minnesota split their season series 2-2-0-0. The Buckeyes head to Michigan State next week. The series will be the first meeting for the teams in 2016-17.

  • OSU was 2-for-5 on the power play in this one. Minnesota was 6-for-10.
  • With tonight's goal, Jobst has points in fourteen consecutive outings dating back to December.
  • Coming so soon on the heels of a suspension for the same type of hit, it would not surprise me to see further discipline for Healey from the Big Ten.
  • Other Big Ten results: Penn State made it a sweep at Wisconsin with a 5-2 win. Michigan State topped Michigan, 4-1.  
  • The Buckeye women closed out their home schedule with a 4-2 victory over Minnesota State. Both OSU seniors, Breanne Grant and Katie Matheny, tallied goals in the contest. Julianna Iafallo and Jessica Dunne also chipped in scores. Eight different Buckeyes recorded points. Kassidy Sauve made 24 saves in her twelfth win of the year. Ohio State wraps up its regular season next week at North Dakota. 
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