Ohio State sophomore forward Sofie Lundin (28) awaits the puck drop during the then-No.1 Ohio State-No.8 Bemidji State game Feb. 23. Ohio State won 2-1. Credit: Katie Good | Lantern File Photo
Two weeks removed from splitting its opening series against then-No. 4 Colgate, Ohio State women’s ice hockey will take a trip to No. 6 Minnesota Duluth for its Western Collegiate Hockey Association opener Friday and Saturday.
The No. 2 Buckeyes (1-1-0, 0-0-0 WCHA) lost 3-2 on a goal in the final 30 seconds Sept. 29 but bounced back with a 3-2 win, punctuated by an overtime game-winning goal by senior forward and captain Jenna Buglioni on Sept. 30.
The tilt against Minnesota Duluth will kick off the 25th season of WCHA play for the Buckeyes and will provide the second top-10 game in as many matchups.
“I’ve always thought Duluth is very physical and a very systematic team,” head coach Nadine Muzerall said. “There’s not much gap between their first and fourth line.”
Minnesota Duluth (2-0-0, 0-0-0 WCHA) bested Long Island University in the Bulldogs’ first series of the season, a 6-0 win Friday followed by a 4-0 victory Saturday, led by Mannon McMahon’s four-goal performance in the season opener and Clara Van Wieren’s hat trick in game two.
“We know very well who they are,” Muzerall said. “[McMahon] is very fast and creates a lot of opportunities and Van Wieren has been pretty big and aggressive.”
Senior goaltender Raygan Kirk, who earned WCHA Goaltender of the Week honors following her performance in the Sept. 30 game, as well as WCHA Goaltender of the Month for September, said she’s looking forward to the offensive threat the Bulldogs possess.
“I think it’ll be a really good matchup between two very good, gritty teams,” Kirk said. “We are really excited to get conference play started, for sure.”
The last time the Buckeyes were in Duluth, Minnesota, Wisconsin hoisted the national championship trophy after beating Ohio State 1-0.
In her first trip back to AMSOIL Arena since the loss on March 19, Buglioni said she knows the test that is ahead, both physically and mentally.
“AMSOIL is definitely a hard rink to play in,” Buglioni said. “We’re trying to come in with a clean slate. This is a totally new team for us.”
Following the weekend series in Hamilton, New York, Ohio State had an off-week before continuous play until winter break.
The time off allowed the team to regroup and iron out important issues that plagued it in games one and two: the penalty kill.
Ohio State allowed two power-play goals in the season opener, and while it was able to hold Colgate to one goal on four advantages in the following game, Muzerall said the penalty kill issues will fix itself.
“The penalty kill is just not set yet,” Muzerall said. “We have a lot of new forwards and it is a very aggressive penalty kill. We’ve been working on our PK and we will get back to where we need to be.”
The second of three road series to start the year, the Buckeyes will not play their first home game until Oct. 27, when they welcome Minnesota to the Ohio State University Ice Rink.
However, Buglioni said being on the road is always a highlight of the season.
“It’s such an awesome opportunity to connect and get to know each other,” Buglioni said.
Graduate forward and Boston College transfer Hannah Bilka, who netted her first goal as a Buckeye Sept. 29, will play in her first WCHA matchup and take on Minnesota Duluth for the first time in her career.
“I’ve heard Duluth is a really gritty, hard team to play against,” Bilka said. “It should be a battle.”
Puck drop will be at 4 p.m. ET, 3 p.m. CT both Friday and Saturday and will be streamed on Big Ten+.
