Last Week: Swept Minnesota State
The Buckeye women prevailed in both halves of their WCHA opening series. They rolled to a commanding win in Friday’s game. Saturday’s victory was more difficult to secure, but the Bucks found a way. Ohio State improved to 5-1-0 overall on the season and moved up to No. 4 in both national polls.
| Game Info | Friday | Saturday |
|---|---|---|
| Opening Faceoff | 8pm ET | 4pm ET |
| Online Video | BTN Plus ($) | BTN Plus ($) |
Scoring continues to be spread throughout the lineup. Six different players recorded OSU’s six goals last week. Returning points leader Emma Maltais kept up her red hot start. She is tied for the national scoring lead (10) and has points in six straight games. The sophomore notched career point No. 50 against MSU.
While the Bucks sizzled up front, goaltender Andrea Braendli turned in a notable series in net. The freshman anchored the sweep with 55 saves on 56 shots. For her efforts the WCHA named her its Rookie of the Week.
This Week: Top-5 Fight at No. 3 Minnesota
| Team Stats | Ohio State | Minnesota |
|---|---|---|
| Records | 5-1-0, 2-0-0-0 WCHA | 5-0-1, 3-0-1-0 WCHA |
| National Polls | No. 4 / No. 4 | No. 3 / No. 3 |
| Avg. Goals For / Against | 3.00 / 2.17 | 4.33 / 1.50 |
| Power Play / Penalty Kill | 5.3% / 96.2% | 19.1% / 71.4% |
| Points Leader | Emma Maltais (10) | Nicole Schammel (9) |
| Top Goal Scorer | Tatum Skaggs (4) | Grace Zumwinkle (4) |
| Leading Goaltender | Andrea Braendli (1.64/.946) | Sydney Scobee (0.98/.938) |
Now the Bucks face a battle with the third-ranked Gophers. Minnesota is back to full strength this season with the return of its Olympians (and those who centralized with their respective national teams but did not make the final cut). In news you 100% totally did not see coming, the Gophers are expected to be elite contenders in both the WCHA and the NCAA this year.
Minnesota booked a sweep of No. 10 Mercyhurst to kick off the 2018-19 season. The Gophers then defeated No. 4 Duluth. The following day they were down two goals in the third period of their rematch with the Bulldogs, but rallied to force a shootout. Last week Minnesota solidly swept St. Cloud State.
The Buckeyes took last year’s regular season series with the Gophers, 3-0-1-1. It was Ohio State’s best ever result against Minnesota. But the Gophers had the last laugh in the WCHA tournament. They ousted the Bucks, 2-0, in the conference semifinals.
Minnesota is executing its game a little better than Ohio State is right now. The Buckeyes have a tough series ahead. OSU has scoring depth and a team-wide commitment to shot-blocking in its favor. Working against the Bucks’ is the team’s unproductive power play (1-for-19 on the year) and ho-hum starts.
The first period could be especially crucial this week. Ohio State hasn’t been lighting it up out of the gate. The Bucks have outscored their opponents just 4-2 in the opening frame this season. The Gophers, on the other hand, hold an 11-3 first period advantage over their opponents.
Around the WCHA
Things continue to play out as expected. The conference is sharply divided between the haves and the have-nots. Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Ohio State are the only teams with WCHA victories.
The only semi-odd result so far is that Duluth is 0-3-1-1 but the Bulldogs ran the gauntlet early this season. After opening with a sweep of No. 4 Boston College, they tangled with both No. 3 Minnesota and No. 2 Wisconsin. It’s a testament to how elite those teams are that, even with zero conference wins, Duluth is still ranked No. 5 in the nation.
There isn’t much to note in this week’s action. The Buckeyes and Gophers are the marquee match-up. Other series include St. Cloud visiting Minnesota State, Bemidji State taking on Duluth, and Wisconsin going out-of-conference to face Princeton.
