The hockey Buckeyes’ tilt against their ancient nemesis had all the hallmarks of a great rivalry game: physicality, back-and-forth scoring, multiple overtimes. It didn’t end in an outright win. Still there was cause for celebration among Buckeye fans.
| scoring by period | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1OT | 2OT | final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 15/19 Ohio State | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Miami | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
OSU gained the upper hand in a rough and tumble first period. Dave Gust put the Buckeyes on the board with his first goal of the season. Midway through the frame the squads traded penalties. Special teams benefited neither side and at the first intermission the Bucks’ slim lead held up.
Miami hit the ice flying in the second period. Ohio State was caught flat-footed and, not surprisingly, was hit with two hooking penalties in just over a minute’s span. RedHawks captain Louie Belpedio promptly tied the score on the ensuing two-man advantage.
| pd | time | buckeye goal scorers (assists) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4:32 | Dave Gust (Dakota Joshua, Sasha Larocque) |
| SOW | Tanner Laczynski |
The Buckeyes fought off the remainder of Miami’s attacks with a combination of determination and good luck. The teams were all square heading into the final period of play. They traded chances in the third but when the horn sounded the scoreboard still read 1-1.
Ohio State outshot Miami 4-1 in the overtime session. The Bucks played the final 1:59 with the man advantage but couldn’t find the back of the net. Officially the game was recorded as a tie. However, after a second scoreless overtime session, Tanner Laczynski sniped a sudden death shootout winner to give Buckeye fans a little something to cheer about.
Penalty trouble and unofficial win aside, at the end of the day the result of this game wasn’t a loss. That’s more cause for celebration than Buckeye fans usually have at the end of a Miami game.
If that’s not enough of a silver lining for you, Matt Tomkins turned in a solid start for the Bucks. The Chicago Blackhawks draftee made 23 saves. The only black mark against him was a 5-on-3 tally. It’s hard to lay the fault for a two-man disadvantage goal on him.
The Buckeyes’ Ohio Cup tour continues next week with a home-and-home series against the No. 20 Bowling Green Falcons. Saturday’s contest will be Ohio State’s home opener. No start time for that game is yet listed.
Women Settle for Split with No. 8 Bemidji State
The women’s hockey Bucks came up a little short in their sweep bid against the Beavers. After a scoreless opening frame BSU powered ahead in the second period with three consecutive power play goals. The teams traded tallies in the third, but Ohio State couldn’t maintain its rally.
| scoring by period | 1 | 2 | 3 | final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| No. 8 Bemidji State | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
Emily Bergland (2g, 2a) was the star of the game for Bemidji State. Ariana DePinto scored OSU’s lone goal. The score was her first as a Buckeye which is a bit of a silver lining in the otherwise icky result. Kassidy Sauve stopped 32/36 for Ohio State. Brittni Mowat fended off 14/15.
While Saturday’s loss is a let down after Friday’s exciting upset, don’t lose sight of the fact that the Buckeyes split the overall series with very good, very experienced BSU squad. All things considered, that’s a fantastic big picture result.
| pd | time | buckeye goal scorer (assists) |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | 7:27 | Ariana DePinto (Jincy Dunne, Lauren Spring) |
Next up, Ohio State finally gets to skate in front of a friendly crowd, when the team returns to Columbus for its home opener against No. 2/3 Minnesota next week.
