Missed opportunities plagued the No. 16 men’s hockey Buckeyes in Friday’s 4-1 loss to No. 10 Notre Dame. On Saturday Ohio State head coach Steve Rohlik shook up the roster and shuffled his lines but the Buckeyes still failed to capitalize on their early opportunities. They fell to the Fighting Irish by a final score of 3-2.

Neither team yielded much ground in the first period. Ohio State had slightly better chances in the opening minutes, including a 2-on-1. Each side had a power play in the frame but came up empty on the advantage.

The pace picked up in the second stanza. The Buckeyes put seven shots on goal in the first five minutes of the period. The Fighting Irish rang a puck off the pipe. This loosening up led to a series of penalties. OSU fended off back-to-back Notre Dame power plays. Then the Irish shut down a Buckeye advantage.

The visitors had the best chance of the frame in the waning minutes. Sean Romeo made a huge save on an Irish 2-on-1 to keep the game scoreless. Unfortunately he didn’t fare so well on the ensuing faceoff. Notre Dame won the draw and Cal Burke swept a squirrelly, rolling puck into the back of the net. 

Things went from bad to worse for Romeo. Early in the third period the Irish dinged him twice in just 34 seconds. (In fairness, he also had little help from the Buckeye defenders.) That would do it for the Bucks’ starter. He exited the ice. Freshman Tommy Nappier entered, making his first appearance in the Buckeye net.

With his team trailing by three goals Rohlik rolled the dice in the third period. The Buckeyes went on the power play near the midway mark. Rohlik pulled Nappier for the extra attacker and a 6-on-4 advantage. The gamble paid off as captain Mason Jobst cashed in and cut the Irish lead to 3-1.

The Bucks played the last five minutes of the game with an empty net and the extra attacker on. With just under two minutes to play Dakota Joshua drew Ohio State within a single goal, swatting home a rebound. The Scarlet and Gray rally would fall just short, though. Notre Dame squeaked by with a 3-2 win and swept the weekend series. 

The Buckeyes outshot the Irish 41-23 in the game, including a 24-8 margin in the third period. OSU went 1-for-4 on the power play. The penalty killers shut Notre Dame out in all three of their advantages.

It's difficult not to wonder what might have been in this series. UND played well but the Buckeyes had their chances. The outcome of either game could have been markedly different if Ohio State had played with that late game focus and fire prior to the last ten minutes of Saturday's contest. 

Now the Buckeyes regroup and head out to Connecticut to face the Huskies in a non-conference match. Games are set for Friday at 7:05 p.m. ET and Saturday at 3:35 p.m. ET.