 "Photo: David Heasley")
Despite peppering Bowling Green with 43 shots on goal, the No. 2 Ohio State men's hockey team tied the Falcons 2-2 in the home opener Friday night at the Schottenstein Center.
The tie came a night after the Buckeyes (2-1-1, 1-0-1 Central Collegiate Hockey Association) hung a 7-2 drubbing on the Falcons in the BGSU Ice Arena. Friday, the scarlet and gray dominated play, but could not solve senior goaltender Jon Horrell. Searching for his first career win, he saved 41 shots while keeping the Falcons (0-3-1, 0-1-1 CCHA) in the game.
"We got some terrific saves out of Horrell," said Bowling Green coach Scott Paluch. "To rebound from the first power-play goal they got, that shows quite a bit. He did a great job with rebound control."
That first power-play goal put the Buckeyes up 1-0 less than three minutes into the game. Sophomore forward Kyle Hood sent a wrister from the blue line that Horrell got a piece of, but the puck trickled through his equipment and into the net for Hood's second goal of the season.
The Buckeyes continued pressuring the Falcons, notching 20 shots in the first period, but went into the locker room down 2-1 after a period despite holding Bowling Green to four shots on goal.
Sophomore forward Alex Foster found a loose puck behind the net and snuck it under OSU senior goalie Dave Caruso just 61 seconds after Hood's goal to equal the score. Then, with less than three minutes remaining in the period, Falcon senior forward Mike Falk cycled off the boards, took a pass from sophomore forward Jonathan Matsumoto and beat Caruso one-on-one.
OSU coach John Markell said he was surprised to see the Buckeyes down after a period despite their early play.
"It kind of puzzles you, but that's hockey," the 11th-year coach said.
After a penalty-marred second period, OSU sophomore forward John Dingle got the equalizer 4:03 into the third, skating into the zone and beat Horrell with a five-hole shot from 50 feet. The Buckeyes continued pressuring, but could not get a game-winner past Horrell.
"We were peppering him pretty good there, and he was making some pretty good saves," Dingle said. "Coaches were screaming at us to get the puck high and get it moving, and that's what we have to work on."
The Buckeyes lacked the open ice and deep passing lanes that led to Thursday night's offensive explosion. The Falcon defense played well, limiting rebound opportunities and letting Horrell see shots cleanly.
"We had too many odd-man rushes and too many backdoor goals (Thursday)," Paluch said. "There were more shots (Friday) but a lot more manageable ones for our goaltender than there was (Thursday)."
The Falcons were outshot 5-0 in overtime, but Matsumoto nearly gave them the win with an actual shot on goal - a blast from the top of the zone that beat Caruso but ringed off the crossbar.
All in all, fans saw end-to-end action, some quality goaltending and, in the end, Paluch's first point ever as a coach against OSU.
"I thought it was a terrific college hockey game and I think a real important game for our club after (Thursday) night," he said. "This has been an extremely tough place for us to play the past couple years and I think our guys really rallied this morning."
It was the second time in as many series that the Buckeyes could not convert scoring chances during the second game of the set.
"We have to learn how to score on goalies that are having a good night, and there's a way to do that," Markell said. "You have to get outside shots, you have to jam the front of the net."
Thursday the Buckeyes got all the shots they needed to post the 7-2 win. Thanks to a power-play goal by junior defenseman Sean Collins, a short-handed tally from sophomore forward Tom Fritsche and an even-strength score from junior forward Rod Pelley, the Buckeyes were ahead 3-0 after one period and did not look back. Eleven Buckeyes had at least one point, led by Fritsche's two goals and an assist.
In all, the Buckeyes took three points out of the CCHA-opening series.
"We're a new hockey club. I'm excited about it. I'm excited about what we're doing," Markell said. "We have to continue the learning process. If we don't learn a lesson from this, and it's lost, then it's not a lesson at all."
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