Dalton Messina; Men’s ice hockey vs Michigan; Faceoff on The Lake Jan. 14, 2023. Credit: Lantern File Photo
The Buckeyes successfully fended off the Fighting Irish to earn their first Big Ten victory of the season in 11 conference tries thus far.
The mid-season break is officially over as Ohio State (9-8-4, 1-8-2 Big Ten) resumed conference play with a narrow 3-2 victory over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (10-11-2, 4-7-2 Big Ten) in Value City Arena at the Schottenstein Center Friday night.
“We would hope to have a few more by now, but we are going to keep bringing it every night,” Dalton Messina, graduate senior forward and opening goal scorer, said.
Notre Dame’s freshman forward Danny Nelson scored a mid-third period equalizer as the Irish attempted to come back from a 2-0 deficit in the third period. Nelson placed the puck through the five-hole of junior goalie Logan Terness as he came down the wing, warning off a Buckeye defender.
That Fighting Irish goal was quickly upstaged by redshirt-senior defenseman Scooter Brickey. Only three minutes after the goal by Nelson, Brickey scored his team-leading ninth goal of the season on the fourth Buckeye power play of the night, making the score 3-2.
The Buckeyes opened the scoring late in the first period with a blocker-side rebound goal from Messina who was assisted by freshman defenseman Nathan McBrayer and senior forward Joe Dunlap as all three passed through the neutral zone together and scored on their rush at the 16:16 mark of the period.
The first period was highlighted from the three tripping penalties committed by the Fighting Irish. However, the Buckeyes could not capitalize on the opportunities as they registered six shots on goal without putting the puck behind graduate senior and 2023 Big Ten goaltender of the year Ryan Bischel.
Ohio State built on its 1-0 lead with a mid-second period goal by its leading point getter Stephen Halliday, who lifted the puck from his backhand and roofed it past Bischel. Halliday’s goal was assisted by sophomore forward Davis Burnside and McBrayer, who netted his second point of the game.
Notre Dame subsequently had a 3-on-1 due to a Buckeye line change at an inopportune time and looked prime to cut the Buckeye lead in half but was shut down by sophomore defenseman Damien Carfagna.
As the third period got underway, it did not take long for the Fighting Irish to cut the Buckeye lead in half. A shot from the point by senior defenseman Drew Bavaro found its way past Terness only one minute into the final frame.
Just over five minutes into the third, Bischel was called into action once again, as a tic-tac-toe play left Burnside all alone in the slot, and Bischel showed his skill by denying him a prominent chance.
McBrayer shined in this game as he recorded his first multi-point game. Head coach Steve Rohlik said he’s excited for McBrayer’s opportunity to showcase his talents as a freshman.
“I believe he [McBrayer] is the youngest guy on our team, and to go out there and get the minutes he’s getting, I’m happy for him,” Rohlik said.
