Late Push Falls Short for MSU in 3-1 Loss at OSU

Columbus Ohio. -     A goaltending battle was the story in Columbus on Friday, with Ohio State netminder Jakub Dobes making 36 saves to backstop his team to a 3-1 victory.

Dylan St. Cyr made 34 saves for the Spartans (12-10-1, 6-6-1 B1G), surrendering a goal less than two minutes into the game and a second with the Spartans skating down a man in the final minutes of the second. St. Cyr's busiest period was that second frame, where he made 19 stops.   The final goal for the Buckeyes (13-8-1, 6-5-1 B1G) was scored into an empty net with St. Cyr on the bench with 15 seconds remaining.

MSU got better as the game wore on, and generated chances that forced Dobes to at times be great – and the goalie was, turning away several second-chance opportunities for MSU. Jesse Tucker was the one Spartan who solved Dobes, shooting a loose puck on the doorstep for his sixth goal of the season midway through the third period.

Michigan State and Ohio State play for the fourth and final time in the regular season on Saturday at 4 pm. The game will air live on Big Ten Network.

STATISTICS OF NOTE

MSU took 4-2 and 4-3 wins over the Buckeyes in East Lansing back in October.
Each team had two power play chances, with OSU converting one of the two.
MSU dropped its fourth straight game, all by one or two goals. The Spartans have lost two straight Big Ten contests.
Jesse Tucker scored his second goal in as many games with his third-period maker. It was his sixth goal of the season.
Tanner Kelly had his 11^th assist of the season and first since the Spartans' home win over Michigan on Dec. 9.

First Period: Ohio State jumped on the scoreboard before the game was two minutes old, as the puck came to him out of the right corner and he one-timed a shot from the right hash for his fourth goal of the season. The Spartans had a bit of a slow start to the period, being outshot by their hosts 7-2 at the near midpoint of the frame – but were a much stronger squad in the second half of the period, getting in front of Jakub Dobes and making the goalie work to the tune of 11 shots a side at the final buzzer. The Spartans did have a pair of power play chances in the period, but were kept off the board.

Second Period: The teams played evenly for much of the period, but the Buckeyes were getting more shots to the net. A 20-8 edge in shots for the home team meant that both netminders came up big to keep their teas in it in a tight game. With 75 seconds remaining in the period, the Buckeyes got a second goal – Stephen Halliday's shot from the left point went off a defender in front and past St. Cyr for a more comfortable 2-0 OSU lead as they headed into the locker room.

Third Period: MSU stuck to its game plan, and its consistency paid off at the midpoint of the frame when Jesse Tucker pounced on a loose puck off a feed from Tanner Kelly that bounced off a defenseman in front. The Spartans limited their hosts to just six shots in the third period as they continued to press for an equalizer, but the home team also did their part in keeping double-digit shots from reaching Dobes, and the goaltender was stretched to make several quality saves to keep an equalizer from materializing. With 15 seconds remaining and St. Cyr on the bench in favor of an extra skater, the Buckeyes were finally able to ice the game with an empty netter from Joe Dunlop.

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Team Stats

Jesse Tucker

Tanner Kelly

Matt Basgall

Zach Dubinsky

Players Mentioned

Tanner Kelly

Dylan St. Cyr

Jesse Tucker

Players Mentioned

Tanner Kelly

Dylan St. Cyr

Jesse Tucker