Ohio State and Wisconsin concluded their weekend and season series on the ice on Saturday. Like many previous meetings between the teams, this one was messy and high scoring. Though this game ended short of a shootout, it did go down to the wire in an exciting finish.
| scoring by period | 1 | 2 | 3 | final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wisconsin | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| Ohio State | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
The Buckeye offense was slow to arrive, but built through the middle part of the opening period. The Bucks' skates were moving and creating separation from the Wisconsin defenders. They rattled off about three decent scoring opportunities. Badger goalie Matt Jurusik sharply denied them all.
Despite the OSU pressure, Wisconsin was the first team on the board. Grant Besse struck in anti-climactic fashion, stabbing at a loose puck near the crease until the official blew the play dead. The players lined up for the ensuing faceoff. Then the refs skated over to take a look at the replay. When they returned, they signaled a Badger goal.
The Bucks found an answer on their second power play of the game. The team set up in the zone immediately and kept consistent pressure on Wisconsin for 1:40. Then Dave Gust threaded a cross ice pass through traffic that Drew Brevig hammered home.
| pd | time | buckeye goal scorers (assists) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16:03 | PP - Drew Brevig (Dave Gust, Matt Weis) |
| 2 | 2:16 | Freddy Gerard (Matt Weis, Nick Schilkey) |
| 2 | 8:07 | Miguel Fidler (Brendon Kearney, Kevin Miller) |
| 2 | 17:30 | Nick Schilkey (Josh Healey, Matt Weis) |
| 3 | 2:54 | Luke Stork (Nick Schilkey, Tommy Parran) |
| 3 | 17:11 | John Wiitala (Mason Jobst, Dave Gust) |
Mental mistakes by Ohio State helped the Badgers regain and extend the lead in the latter part of the period. An unnecessary roughing penalty by Miguel Fidler gifted Wisconsin a power play chance. Luke Kunin netted a man-advantage goal. With just nine ticks left on the clock, Jake Linhart took advantage of an utter breakdown by the Buckeyes to give the Badgers a 3-1 lead at the break.
When the second period began, Freddy Gerard scored his third of the season to draw OSU within a goal. The freshman found a soft spot in the Badger defense. He took a quick centering pass from Matt Weis and tickled the twine behind Jurusik.
Wisconsin swiftly bumped its advantage back to two goals. Will Johnson edged around Buckeye defenseman Janik Moser and tapped a pass in past an outstretched Christian Frey. The fast and furious scoring continued as Fidler wove his way through the Badger defense and potted a third Ohio State tally.
The Bucks knotted the score late in the second. Again it was the Schilkey-Weis-Gerard line coming up big for the Scarlet and Gray. Schilkey slipped inside the Wisconsin defense and was in prime position to swat in Josh Healey’s point shot.
All square with one period to play, Ohio State tightened up its game considerably. Wisconsin was not allowed easy access to juicy scoring areas. Early in the frame Luke Stork gave the Bucks their first lead of the contest. Schilkey dangled through the neutral zone. Then Stork took over and finished the play, smoothly beating Jurusik on the blocker side.
Despite OSU’s much improved defensive effort, the Badgers evened the score again at the 14:03 mark. Cameron Hughes reared back and ripped a rising shot that whistled past the ear of Christian Frey. The game appeared to be headed for overtime, but the Buckeyes had a little more offense left in the tank.
With three minutes to play the team swarmed the Wisconsin net. Mason Jobst chucked the puck on goal. It popped high. John Wiitala held his ground in front of the net and, when the puck landed, whacked home the game winning tally.
The Bucks outshot the Badgers 38-30 in the contest, including a 13-7 advantage in the third period. Frey finished with 25 saves. Jurusik registered 32 stops. Each side went 1-for-2 on the power play.
Much like last night’s contest this was not a pretty outing for Ohio State. The Buckeyes persevered, though, and found a way to get the job done. With the win they better their record to 10-17-3 overall and 5-8-3-1 in the Big Ten.
Next up for the Bucks is a home-and-home series against No. 6 Michigan. The teams play in Ann Arbor next Friday. The series moves to Columbus on Sunday for a showdown at Nationwide Arena.
- The Schilkey-Weis Gerard line had a monster series, racking up four goals and six assists. Schilkey led the group with three goals and two assists. (S, W, G...Swag Line?)
- With four games remaining for each team the B1G standings are as follows: Minnesota 36 points, Michigan 35, Penn State 26, Ohio State 19, Michigan State 16, Wisconsin 9.
- Earlier this evening Minnesota eliminated Ohio State women’s hockey from the WCHA tournament. Dani Cameranesi recorded a hat trick as the Gophers earned a 5-0 win and series sweep of the Buckeyes. The Bucks kept trucking right to the end, actually outshooting Minnesota 9-8 in the third period, but ultimately fell to a highly skilled and red hot Gopher crew.
