Last week the men’s hockey Buckeyes defeated Michigan in back-to-back games, earning both a series and a season sweep of their northern rivals. Redshirt junior goaltender Sean Romeo was the cornerstone of that success. Today Big Ten Hockey recognized his outstanding performance with First Star of the Week honors.
| Men's Hockey | Individual Honors | Week |
|---|---|---|
| Mason Jobst, Jr. F | B1G First Star of the Week | No. 2 |
| Sean Romeo, RS-Jr. G | B1G Third Star of the Week | No. 4 |
| Tanner Laczynski, So. F | NCAA First Star of the Week | No. 5 |
| Tanner Laczynski, So. F | B1G Second Star of the Week | No. 5 |
| Tanner Laczynski, So. F | B1G Second Star of the Week | No. 9 |
| Sean Romeo, RS-Jr. G | B1G First Star of the Week | No. 11 |
| Matt Weis, Sr. F | B1G Second Star of the Week | No. 13 |
| Tanner Laczynski, So. F | B1G Second Star of the Week | No. 15 |
| Sean Romeo, RS-Jr. G | B1G First Star of the Week | No. 17 |
Romeo stole the show last Friday with a 32 save shutout. The whitewash was the second of his career and his first Big Ten blanking. Romeo took a back seat to the Bucks’ scorers early in Saturday’s sweep-clinching victory but he was center stage again in the third period. He nabbed a staggering 17 of his 28 saves in that frame alone.
The Wolverines’ high powered offense boasts two of the top scorers in the Big Ten. It came into the series averaging upwards of three goals per game. Romeo allowed Michigan just three goals all weekend.
In retrospect, it’s pretty hilarious that goaltending was considered the Buckeyes’ biggest weakness coming into this season. Romeo has performed above and beyond anyone’s expectations from the season opener on. His 1.99 goals against average and .927 save percentage rank eighth and sixth, respectively, in the NCAA.
This is Romeo's third conference honor of the season and his second stint as First Star. This week’s Second Star went to Wisconsin forward Ryan Wagner for his four points in a win and shoot victory over Penn State. Notre Dame goalie Cale Morris, who recorded 49 total saves in a split with Minnesota, is the conference's Third Star.
Poll Watch and Coming Attractions
The men’s hockey Bucks (17-5-4, 10-5-1-0 B1G) move up to No. 5 in this week’s USCHO poll and stand pat at No. 6 in the USA Today/USA Hockey poll. (You can check those out here.) Ohio State remains sixth in the PairWise rankings, which mimic the process used by the NCAA tournament selection committee. The Buckeyes are back in action later this week hosting Michigan State. Both Friday and Saturday’s contests have a 7pm ET puck drop.
After being swept by Duluth the OSU women (17-7-4, 10-4-4-3 WCHA) drop to No. 6 in both polls. They stay at No. 5 in the women’s PairWise rankings. The Bucks have a huge home series on tap this week. The team hosts former Buckeye Claudia Kepler and No. 1 Wisconsin. Games are scheduled for 6pm ET Friday and 3pm ET Saturday.
