Michigan
13-8-1, 5-7-0
Ohio State
15-8-1, 8-6-0
Michigan Rebounds, Earns Split With Win Over No. 8 Ohio State
1/14/2023 7:30:00 PM | Ice Hockey
» Jacob Truscott notched points on Michigan's first three goals, scoring one and assisting on two.
» Adam Fantilli collected a pair of assists to run his season total up to 29 points in 18 games.
» Erik Portillo stopped 37 of the 39 shots he faced, ending the weekend with 82 saves.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The sixth-ranked University of Michigan ice hockey team knocked off eighth-ranked Ohio State 4-2 on Saturday (Jan. 14) to earn a weekend split inside a sold-out Yost Ice Arena.
Junior goalie Erik Portillo was outstanding in net for the Wolverines, making 37 saves on the 39 shots he faced to earn the win just one night after setting a career-high in saves (45).
Ohio State (15-8-1, 8-6-0 Big Ten) opened the scoring in its first rush when a shot from in-tight worked its way through the pads of Portillo to give the visitors an early 1-0 lead.
Mackie Samoskevich tied the game at 7:23 of the first period, rifling a wrist shot from the top of the left circle that found twine to send Yost into a frenzy. Adam Fantilli and Jacob Truscott assisted on Samoskevich's 13th lamp-lighter of the season.
Fresh off the equalizer, a post-whistle scrum near the Michigan crease saw Kienan Draper sent to the box for roughing after the whistle. The penalty-kill unit succeeded in dismissing the first OSU chance.
Michigan embarked on its first power play of the night at 10:04, but it was snuffed out as well to force each team's power play to a 0-for-1 start.
With 7:12 remaining in the first period, Ethan Edwards was assessed a five-minute major penalty and a game misconduct for contact to the head as he defended a rush in transition.
Thirty-five seconds into the major penalty, Nolan Moyle dashed down the ice on a shorthanded rush. As he made his way through the right circle, he was brought down and earned a minor penalty call to even play at 4-on-4 for two minutes.
Samoskevich came close to burying his second tally of the game while playing at four skaters per side, but the crowd's gratification was only momentarily delayed. With the rebound available, Truscott positioned himself near the right post and banged the puck through a tiny window to give Michigan a 2-1 lead with 5:38 left in the first period. Fantilli earned his second assist on the play.
A late penalty on U-M allowed the Buckeyes to end the period with 13 seconds of a man-advantage before the remaining time carried over to the middle frame.
After one period, Michigan held a 2-1 lead along with a 16-13 edge in shots on goal.
U-M was whistled for too many skaters on the ice at 4:04, but the PK unit came through again to kill off the OSU opportunity.
The Wolverines doubled their lead and made it 3-1 with 4:42 left in the second period when Gavin Brindley finished off a long sequence of offensive-zone pressure by depositing a fluttering shot over Ohio State's goalie and into the back of the net. Seamus Casey made a beautiful backhand pass to get the puck back into the slot after a Buckeye had attempted to clear the danger area. Truscott picked up the secondary assist for his third point on the night, the most in a single game for the blueliner since racking up four on Oct. 21 at Lake Superior State.
With one period left to play in the weekend series, the Wolverines ascended the steps to the dressing room with a 3-1 lead on the scoreboard, despite trailing 25-21 in shots on goal.
Ohio State ramped up the pressure after an uneventful start to the period and notched its second goal of the night to cut the deficit in half with 11 minutes to go. A shot from the left point carved its way through traffic and made it 3-2 for the home stretch.
The visitors were penalized for holding with 5:22 left in regulation when Samoskevich was brought down while flying into the OSU zone along the right wall. Michigan's power-play unit took the ice with a one-goal lead in hopes of regaining the team's two-goal advantage.
Working his magic to quarterback the group on the man-advantage, Luke Hughes swung the puck from one flank to the other to disrupt the Buckeye penalty kill structure. After cycling it over to Rutger McGroarty on the right side multiple times, the freshman unleashed a one-timer off of a perfect pass to his wheelhouse by Hughes. Jackson Hallum collected the secondary helper on McGroarty's power-play strike with 3:56 left.
Michigan withstood OSU's late push after the visitors had pulled their netminder to close out the critical rivalry-game win and earn three points in the Big Ten standings. Ohio State did end the night with a 39-27 edge in shots on goal, but Michigan bested the Buckeyes in the faceoff circle (25-23) as well as where it matters most.
Next week, the Wolverines travel west for a two-game series on Friday and Saturday (Jan. 20-21) against top-ranked Minnesota. Friday night's (Jan. 20) contest will be broadcast live on Bally Sports Detroit, while the Saturday (Jan. 21) matchup will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network. Puck drop for both games is set for 7 p.m. CST.
