No luck for the Irish.  The Ohio State men’s hockey team’s lone senior elevated his play in his final postseason. Led by Mathieu Picard, the team swept Notre Dame in the first round of the conference tournament.

Picard led the Buckeyes with two goals in Friday night’s opener, propelling the Buckeyes to a 3-1 victory.

It was the first multi-goal game of his career.

“I like the playoffs,” Picard said. “Last kick of the can, so you’ve got to go all out, and it was a good night for sure. The playoffs are just a lot more fun than the regular season.”

OSU carried the momentum of Friday night’s win into Saturday as Picard and three other Buckeyes lit the lamp in the first period to take a 4-0 lead.

“To get up four goals in the first period was huge,” coach John Markell said.

The Buckeyes would not relinquish the lead and went on to win 8-2.

Two other Buckeyes, Zac Dalpe and Hunter Bishop, also stepped up big on the weekend. Dalpe continued to be one of the most productive players in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association, recording a goal and two assists on the weekend. Dalpe finished the regular season second in points and now has 20 goals and 20 assists on the season.

Bishop broke out for the Buckeyes on Saturday, recording a hat trick, and an assist for good measure. Bishop played a solid 60 minutes for OSU, marking in every period.
In the first, Bishop assisted on a goal by C.J. Severyn, which gave OSU the 4-0 lead.

Bishop went on to record two goals in the second period, one of which was short-handed. And finally in the third, Bishop completed his hat trick with help from teammate Sergio Somma.

“We went to the four-on-four and Sergio [Somma] looked back at coach and said, ‘Put us in.’ And he said ‘Bishop, I am going to get you one here,'” Bishop said. “I just went to the net, and I have to give it to Somma, he put it right where it needed to be.”

Markell has been looking for Bishop to step up big for his team, and he did at just the right time.

After Saturday night’s game, Bishop admitted he had been a little frustrated with his lack of scoring toward the end of the regular season.

“His job is to sustain that,” Markell said. “He’s capable of sustaining that kind of play.”
Overshadowed by the flurry of goals was the Buckeyes’ outstanding defense. Goaltender Dustin Carlson continued his dominance between the pipes and has allowed only three goals in as many games.

“Our goaltending came up big and I thought that was the difference,” Markell said. “Dusty had a good weekend. I say it all the time, it’s about goaltending.”

Carlson finished the weekend with an astounding 81 saves.

“[Carlson’s] been really hot lately,” said Chris Reed, who was plus five for the Buckeyes Saturday. “There’s definitely some confidence in him right now.”

Carlson and the Buckeyes will have to stay hot as they advance to take on, in all likelihood, the No. 1 seed Miami RedHawks next weekend in Oxford, Ohio.