Gophers men’s hockey team bounces back with 6-1 win at Ohio State

The third-ranked Golden Gophers men’s hockey team put together a dominating performance on the road at No. 11 Ohio State and skated to a 6-1 victory inside Value City Arena Saturday night.

Mike Koster buried a pair of power-play tallies and Minnesota (18-4-2 overall, 9-2-1 B1G) scored three times in the first nine minutes of the Big Ten Conference matchup with the Buckeyes (15-6-1 overall, 8-4-0 B1G). The three graduate students were the difference Saturday as Koster, Mason Nevers, and netminder Liam Souliere combined for three goals and 32 saves to split the series.

The visitors were gifted an early power-play chance as OSU was called for having too many players on the ice 86 seconds into the contest. The Maroon and Gold peppered the Buckeyes goaltender with four shots before Koster got one through to open the scoring at the 2:48 mark. Following a faceoff win, the captain ripped a slapshot through traffic for the early edge. The momentum helped the Gophers sustain pressure in the offensive zone and Jimmy Clark nearly doubled the advantage, but his shot was stopped by a pad save.

It was all Minnesota over the next two shifts as it scored twice in a span of 15 seconds that drove the Buckeyes into using their timeout after eight minutes had elapsed. Beckett Hendrickson forced a center ice turnover and Mason Nevers made it 2-0 when he fought through a stick check and chipped a shot over the goalie’s glove at 7:49. Even a line change could not stop the Gophers’ attack as Oliver Moore won a footrace to the puck behind the net and fed Connor Kurth at the left side of the crease. Kurth buried the quick pass before the OSU netminder could get back in position and the Maroon and Gold held a 3-0 lead with 11:56 to play in the first period. The margin stayed through to intermission.

Less than two minutes into the middle frame, Minnesota moved to its second man advantage where Koster delivered for the second time. This time he buried a one-timer from the blue line off a pass from Luke Mittelstadt 3:36 into the period. The Buckeyes battled back to test Souliere where the goaltender shut down each chance, allowing his offense to go back to work and earned another crack with the power play.

The Gophers converted for the third-straight man advantage as Jimmy Snuggerud finished off a beautiful passing play between Sam Rinzel and Matthew Wood with a one-timer from the left faceoff dot, giving the visitors a 5-0 cushion with six minutes remaining in the stanza. The tally also chased the OSU goalie after the NCAA’s goals-against leader allowed a season-high five. With the second period clock winding down, Minnesota was called for two penalties 14 seconds apart but fought off the Buckeyes’ extended 5-on-3 to maintain the five-goal edge after two completed frames.

The visitors were content to get pucks deep in the attacking zone to limit OSU’s possession beginning the third period. The Maroon and Gold were still able to create chances on target, leading to the sixth goal of the night at the 8:24 mark. A shot from Brodie Ziemer bounced hard off the end boards to a waiting Ryan Chesley at the near post. The junior followed the play and tapped home the loose puck, extending the Gophers’ advantage.

A power-play for the Buckeyes in the middle of the period was promptly erased but another penalty on the Gophers late in the contest proved costly. Souliere’s shutout bid was snapped with 2:15 on the clock as OSU scored on a cross-ice one-timer. The Montreal, Quebec, product finished the night with a season-best 32 saves during the 6-1 road win.