Penn State headed to Columbus, OH, to take on their rival Ohio State, looking to improve upon a 4-6 overall record. They are coming off of a series split against Michigan State, in which they produced just one goal in each of their two games.

Game 1

In Game 1, Oskar Autio was in goal for the Nittany Lions, while Tommy Napier was between the pipes for Ohio State. The opening frame in Columbus was a tale of two periods. The Buckeyes opened up scoring just 2:20 into the game on a goal by Austin Pooley, his first of the season. Penn State has now allowed the first goal in seven of their 11 games played. Things would not get easier for the visiting Nittany Lions, as the Buckeyes would sneak a trickling shot past Oskar Autio at 8:39 to go up 2-0. Penn State would eventually get their feet moving after being awarded a timely power play. Jimmy Dowd got one back on a blistering slap shot from the blue line, making it a tight 2-1 contest. The chances kept coming for the Nittany Lions following their first goal of the night. Point blank shots by Connor McMenamin, Aarne Talvitie, and Alex Limoges were unsuccessful, but the tide began to take a turn in Penn State’s favor. Despite a sluggish start against their Big Ten rivals, the Lions were are down just one at the conclusion of the first. 

Coming off of a strong finish in the first, Penn State was unable to sustain their momentum heading into the middle frame. Ohio State once again put one in early, with a goal by Travis Treloar at the 1:30 mark to increase their lead to 3-1. Following the Buckeyes goal, Penn State would be awarded three separate power plays in a span of 11 minutes. On the first of their three attempts, the best Nittany Lion opportunity came on a Connor MacEachern wrist shot which rang of the crossbar. They would fail to convert once again on their next attempt, having countless shots blocked by a hostile Buckeye penalty kill. After heavy offensive zone pressure for the entirety of their third power play of the frame, Penn State would finally break the ice. Aarne Talvitie fired a toe drag wrist shot just seconds after the conclusion of the man advantage, making it a manageable 3-2 deficit. After giving up an early goal for the second straight period, the Nittany Lions found themselves down heading into the third period despite generating more chances than the Buckeyes.

Picked his spot nice with this one!!#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/pVtHRG8SMb

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) January 8, 2021

History would repeat itself once again to begin the third. Ohio State got on the board just 80 seconds into the frame after a poor offensive giveaway by Alex Limoges led to a Buckeye breakaway. Just two minutes later, Ohio State’s Travis Treloar would make it 5-2 on a quick turnaround shot off the faceoff. Veteran goaltender Tommy Nappier made a few key stops in the middle of the third, deterring an unlikely Penn State comeback. With 1:30 left in the game, an innocent snapshot by Evan Bell was tipped into the net by Tim Doherty. The Nittany Lions would pull Autio from his office upon the ensuing faceoff, resulting in an empty-net goal from Austin Pooley, his second of the game.

A game defined by slow starts in each of the three periods proved to be Penn State’s downfall in Game 1 of its series against Ohio State, losing by a final score of 5-3. They tallied goals from Jimmy Dowd, Aarne Talvitie, and Tim Doherty, one in each frame. They outshot the Buckeyes 43-21, but could not keep up with Ohio States’ high shot efficiency. Penn State will look to close out their four-game road trip with a victory in Columbus tomorrow night.

Game 2

For a second straight night in Columbus, OH, it was Oskar Autio and Tommy Nappier starting in goal. The early action was slow, and the first real opportunity of the contest came on a Penn State power play. Although not many chances were generated on this man advantage, the Nittany Lions would eventually find themselves on the board first, a feat they have had trouble accomplishing this season. Alex Limoges buried a point-blank shot eight minutes into the contest, giving them a much-desired 1-0 lead against their Big Ten foes. Penn State would pass their first real test of the game, killing off a quick-firing Buckeyes power play in which they struggled to clear the zone. Ohio State would soon head to the man advantage once again after a rough crosscheck against the boards by Penn State’s Evan Bell. The Lions staved off a few strong chances from the Buckeyes, but Ohio State’s Grant Gabriele was able to float one in the back of the net shortly after the conclusion of their power play. Christian Berger would be booked for holding at 18:58 of the period, the third penalty taken by the Nittany Lions in the first frame. Ohio State edged the Lions in shots 15-10, but the teams were deadlocked 1-1 in scoring.

Penn State easily killed off the final 62 seconds of power-play time carried over from the first period. Autio was challenged early, making a reaching glove save on OSU’s CJ Regula who broke free into the defensive zone. For the second time of the night, the Lions would be in the drivers’ seat after a nifty wraparound goal by Kevin Wall just 2:55 into the period. The best chance of Penn State’s ensuing power play came from the shorthanded Buckeyes, as Quinn Preston was denied on the 2-on-1 by a well-positioned Autio. After consistent pressure from the Lions, Tim Doherty was able to bury his second of the weekend on a beautiful feed by Christian Sarlo. Less than a minute after doubling their lead, Penn State found themselves in trouble taking back-to-back penalties by MacEachern and Talvitie. They would comfortably ward off the Buckeyes first attempt, with a few routine stops by Autio. The ladder attempt was no different, as Ohio State was not able to register a shot. With 5:53 left in the second, OSU’S Collin Peters was called for elbowing and awarded both a five-minute major and game misconduct. Tommy Nappier was given stick taps by his Buckeye teammates from the bench, shutting down a prime chance in close by Jared Westcott to begin the extended power play. The Lions were not able to capitalize after spending five minutes on the man advantage but held a 3-1 lead at the conclusion of the middle frame.

The Nittany Lions, in need of a strong period, maintained a steady flow of play throughout the first three minutes of the third. In what looked to be a possible Penn State breakaway, Christian Sarlo was called for tripping at 3:33. Ohio State would waste no time on this man-advantage, putting one past Autio on a wrister by Mark Cheremeta, his second of the night. Connor McMenamin and Evan Bell both had scoring opportunities, with McMenamin firing a wrist shot into the high-reaching glove of Tommy Nappier, and Bell missing the mark with an open near side. The Buckeyes brought heavy pressure Penn State’s way as the period winded down, but the Nittany Lions effectively cleared the puck away each time Ohio State entered their zone. At 18:13, Nappier was pulled from his station and it only took 8 seconds for Penn State’s Connor McMenamin to bury home the empty-netter. Kevin Wall would add insult to injury with an empty-net goal of his own, making it a 5-2 lead for the Lions.

In a game played tighter than the final score reflected, Penn State managed to outlast their division rivals and head back to State College with a victory, winning 5-2. The Nittany Lions improve to 5-7-0 on the year, and 3-7-0 in Big Ten Play. Oskar Autio had a solid performance in net, allowing two goals on 30 shots. Goals were added by Wall, who had a pair, McMenamin, Limoges, and Doherty. The Nittany Lions’ season continues on January 15th and 16th in a two-game set versus the Michigan State Spartans.

John Smark