Ohio State and Michigan finish the season series against one another in a pivotal Big Ten Conference matchup. The first game of the weekend will take place at Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor on Friday at 6:30 p.m., while the second and final regular season game between the two foes will be held in Columbus at Nationwide Arena, home of the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets, on Sunday at 1 p.m.
By Miles McQuinn
If there was any time for Ohio State to make a statement to the Big Ten, along with the NCAA that they are a legitimate contender for not only a Big Ten tournament title, but an NCAA tournament at-large bid, this would be the weekend to do it.
Ohio State (15-10-3) enters this weekend series matchup with their No.13 ranked archrivals Michigan (15-10-3) sitting just outside the top 20 in the latest uscho.com poll. The last time these two faced off it was back around the time where Ohio State students were making their famous “Mirror Lake jump” in the last weekend of November. The Wolverines swept the Buckeyes in dramatic fashion. In the first official Big Ten Conference matchup between the two teams in front of a sold out crowd at historic Yost Ice Arena on Nov. 29, Hobey Baker candidate, sophomore Andrew Copp, netted the game winner 3:38 into overtime to send the Michigan faithful home a 4-3 winner. The following Monday (Dec. 2), in the first Big Ten game at the Jerome Schottenstein Center at Value City Arena, the 5,353 in attendance got their money's worth. Ohio State mounted a spectacular comeback, scoring three goals in a span of 3:54 to even the score at 4 late in the third period. With only 1:35 left to play, senior captain Mac Bennett stunned the energetic Buckeye crowd by catching the OSU defense puck-watching in their defensive zone, slipping behind the defense unnoticed, and taking a beautiful feed off the stick of Mike Chiasson to beat Logan Davis on the backdoor giving Michigan a 5-4 victory.
This time around, the rosters have a few changes, but each are incredibly impactful. For the maize and blue, they are without Bennett, who will be sidelined for a week, potentially longer, with an upper-body injury. This is significant for a Wolverines squad that have lost four out of their last five games and have given up at least three goals in five out of the last six. To make matters worse, Ohio State rolls into Ann Arbor Friday night as the seventh ranked offense in the country, averaging 3.39 goals per game.
Although the Buckeye offense has cooled off lately, only scoring more than three goals once in the past five games, the play of goalie Christian Frey has helped carry this Ohio State team from a pretender to a contender in the Big Ten.
Frey was called up for the second half of the season from the Dubuque Fighting Saints of the United States Hockey League (USHL). If there were Oscar awards given to goaltenders, Frey would be a lock for one because the act he puts on night after night is nothing short of superb. The netminder from Arlington, Texas, currently holds a 6-2-2 record and is giving up only 2.10 goals per game while posting a .934 save percentage. He, along with a healthy Matt Tomkins (if he is used this weekend), will be the X factors, as a few goals that freshman goalie Logan Davis wished he could have back proved to be the difference in the last series between the two teams.
The fact of the matter is, Michigan hockey, is Michigan hockey. The series between the two, dating back to 1964, has been dominated by “That Team Up North”. Michigan holds a commanding 74-33-11 lead. The Wolverines have won 8 of the last 10 against the Buckeyes including wins in the last six games. Michigan currently is 8-2-2 at home while Ohio State has struggled on the road this season, having just two of their fifteen wins outside of Columbus (2-6-2).
The Wolverine attack is led by freshman JT Compher (11 goals, 16 assists) and Copp (13 goals, 10 assists). Both underclassmen will eventually find themselves in the pro ranks, as they were drafted by the NHL's Buffalo Sabres and Winnipeg Jets, respectively. The underclassmen also command the job in-between the pipes. Freshman Zach Nagelvoort (.927 save%, 2.26 goals against avg.) has established himself as the go-to man while sophomore Steve Racine (.914 save%, 2.96 goals against avg.) has seen action in 10 games this season. Michigan is seeking to pad their resume to get back to the NCAA tournament after having its' unprecedented 22-year streak snapped last season.
Ohio State, who stands only three points behind third placed Michigan in the Big Ten Conference standings, will need the 'A games' of their offensive stars in juniors Ryan Dzingel (17 goals, 21 assists, 1st in the Big Ten), Max McCormick (11 goals, 15 assists), and Tanner Fritz (5 goals, 20 assists) as well as standout performances from their defense and the goaltending pair of Frey and Tomkins if they are to have the breakthrough weekend that Buckeye hockey fans are waiting for.
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