Opponent: #13/15 Michigan Wolverines
Where: Value City Arena; Columbus, OH (Friday) – 7:30 p.m.
Progressive Field; Cleveland, OH (Sunday) – 5 p.m.
Despite skating to two ties (and shootout losses) against the lowly Bowling Green Falcons last weekend, the Ohio State Buckeyes men’s hockey team enters their series against rival Michigan this weekend ranked second in the nation behind only Minnesota Duluth. The Buckeyes are first in the CCHA with 34 points and a conference record of 10-3-3-1. Despite getting only two points last weekend in Bowling Green, Ohio State has a seven point lead over the second place team in the CCHA: Notre Dame. (In their last 16 games, OSU is 12-1-3.) The Buckeyes are in a great position going into the tail end of the season, but this does not diminish the importance of this series against the Wolverines.
Despite a subpar start, the Michigan Wolverines have put together an impressive string of games heading into this crucial series. As a result, they’ve been able to re-enter the national rankings. They have not outright lost a game since December 2, and since then they’ve gone 5-0-2. They remain in seventh place in the CCHA, but with a sweep vs. OSU they could potentially move up second place. However, that would require some outside help.
The big story this weekend is, of course, the Frozen Diamond Faceoff on Sunday at Progressive Field in Cleveland. While the series gets started at home for the Buckeyes on Friday—with Script Ohio on ice, no less—it will be interesting to see how both teams react when they take the game outside. Despite some unseasonably warm weather in Ohio of late, all seems like it will cooperate on Sunday, with highs in the 20s and a chance of snow. This spares us all the possibility of the game turning into a water polo match.
With all the external forces that could throw the rhythm of Sunday’s game out of whack, it is vitally important for the Buckeyes to get a win on Friday to put themselves in a good position before they take it outside. In a game like the Frozen Diamond Faceoff, anything could happen. It would be in OSU’s best interest to take advantage of what is sure to be a charged home crowd at the Schott. If the Buckeyes can sweep the Wolverines up in Ann Arbor, they should be able to turn this into a productive series.
The good news for the Buckeyes? They currently have both the highest scoring offense and the best scoring defense in the CCHA. The potential problem? Michigan’s got the second highest scoring offense in the CCHA. If these games turn into offensive shootouts, this may benefit the Wolverines more than the Buckeyes. The key for both teams to get the lead early, then spend the rest of the game playing from ahead.
Weekend prediction: The Buckeyes win one for the home fans on Friday, and then skate to a tie at Progressive Field on Sunday. The Wolverines will take the shootout.
Free Internet broadcasts for both games can be heard on Scarlet and Gray Sports Radio and OhioStateSports.net. Sam Obermyer and I will be on the call.
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