No. 11 Buckeyes Fall to No. 1 Gophers, 4-2, for Series Split – Ohio State Buckeyes

Box Score

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The No. 11 Ohio State men’s hockey team fell to No. 1-ranked Minnesota, 4-2, Saturday in Value City Arena. The teams end the weekend with a split after a 6-4 Buckeye win Friday. Ohio State is now 7-2-1 on the year and 3-1-0 in the Big Ten, while the Gophers move to 5-3-0 and 1-1-0 in B1G play. The loss was the Buckeyes’ first at home this season (5-1).

The teams were tied at one after the first period but two Minnesota goals in just over a minute late in the second gave the Gophers the lead and Ohio State was unable to rally. Each team scored once in the third – Minnesota on the power play and Ohio State shorthanded.

Quoting Head Coach Steve Rohlik
On his thoughts on the game
“Just disappointing. You put yourself in a great spot any time you win on a Friday night in this league because it’s so hard to win one, nonetheless have a chance to sweep. We had a great opportunity tonight. I thought we shot ourselves in the foot a little too much tonight. But you know what, we’re here to get better and we’re back to work on Monday.”

Shorthanded Scores

Freshman Davis Burnside notched both Buckeye goals, with each coming on the penalty kill. He is the fourth Buckeye with two shorthanded goals in a game, joining Paul Pooley (Feb. 14, 1981 at Bowling Green), Dave Steckel (Nov. 29, 2003 at Bowling Green) and Kenny Bernard (Nov. 9, 2006 vs. Western Michigan). The Buckeyes’ last game with two shorthanded goals as a team was Nov. 24, 2018 vs. Penn State (Sasha Larocque, Brendan Kearney).

The Buckeyes were 7-for-8 on the penalty kill in the game, including on a late major in the third. The squad is 35-for-37 (.946) this season, with five shorthanded goals.

How it Happened

• Minnesota opened the scoring at 11:40 of the first period when a shot from Jackson LaCombe snuck through.
• The Buckeyes tied the game less than a minute later. A Gopher was unable to keep the puck in at the point and Burnside won the race to the puck in the neutral zone, leading to a breakaway and he converted at 12:37 for his third goal of the season.
• The game remained deadlocked until Minnesota scored twice in 1:03 in the second. Mason Nevers put the Gophers ahead at 15:38, scoring on a rebound, followed by a goal from Matthew Knies at 16:41.
• Minnesota pushed the lead to 4-1 at 9:09 of the third, as Jimmy Snuggerud tallied on the power play from the faceoff circle.
• A Gopher goal was overturned at 14:33 after Ohio State challenged for offside. At the…