Michigan
24-9-2, 18-7-2CCHA
Ohio State
22-10-4, 16-8-3CCHA
Michigan Rallies for Tie at OSU, Clinches Second Place
3/7/2003 12:00:00 AM | Ice Hockey
Site: Columbus, Ohio (Value City Arena)
Score: #8 Michigan 4, #15 Ohio State 4 (OT)
Records: U-M (24-9-2, 18-7-2 CCHA), OSU (22-10-4, 16-8-3 CCHA)
Attendance: 12,696
Next U-M Event: Saturday, March 8 -- at Ohio State (Columbus, Ohio), 8:05 p.m.
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Freshman forward Andrew Ebbett's (Vernon, B.C.) goal with one second remaining in regulation lifted the University of Michigan ice hockey team to a 4-4 overtime tie against Ohio State on Friday (March 7) at the Value City Arena, locking up second place in the CCHA for the Wolverines. The win also guarantees U-M a bye into the semifinals of the CCHA Super Six should it advance past next weekend's best-of-three series to open the CCHA Tournament.
Ebbett's goal capped a wild third period that saw the Buckeyes take a two-goal lead with 12:37 to go in regulation. Michigan, which scored the first two goals of the contest, allowed four straight OSU goals and had to score twice in the final 10:30 of the contest to come away with the tie. Ebbett's marker found its way past Betz after he had initially stopped a shot by sophomore defenseman Brandon Rogers (Rochester, N.H.).
The Wolverines, who are unbeaten in the last five meetings with the Buckeyes (4-0-1), will host Bowling Green next Friday through Sunday, March 14-16, as the Falcons have been guaranteed an 11th-place finish in the league.
Michigan outshot the Buckeyes 37-31, including a 15-5 margin in the final stanza as it mounted its comeback. Each team scored once on the power play, with U-M going 1-for-5Â while OSU was 1-for-4.
The Wolverines jumped to an early 2-0 lead, scoring twice in the first 8:30 of the first period, but the Buckeyes responded late in the stanza, scoring with less than five minutes remaining in the frame to cut their deficit in half. Sophomore forward Eric Nystrom (Syosset, N.Y.) gave U-M a 1-0 advantage on the power play when he poked a rebound past OSU netminder Mike Betz at 5:35. Nystrom, who was camped out in front of the net, corralled a rebound from freshman forward Jeff Tambellini's (Port Moody, B.C.) shot and slid it past an unsuspecting Betz.
Sophomore forward Jason Ryznar (Anchorage, Alaska) doubled the lead less than three minutes later off a faceoff in the Ohio State zone, taking the draw from sophomore forward David Moss (Livonia, Mich.) and wristing it past Betz. Ohio State got on the board at 16:04, just as its power play was expiring, when Rod Pelley fired a turnaround shot past the stick side of freshman goaltender Al Montoya (Glenview, Ill.).
In the second period, Ohio State scored two goals, including one on the power play, to take a 3-2 lead and head into the final 20 minutes ahead by one goal. Pelley tied the game at 8:33, tipping a shot by Scott Titus past Montoya from the left side of the crease, while Lee Spector gave OSU its first lead of the game, wristing a rebound past Montoya's blocker side with 5:30 left in the period. Michigan had a chance to tie the game late in the frame when senior forward John Shouneyia (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.) lifted a shot over an empty net from the left side of the net after having his initial scoring attempt stopped by Betz.
The Buckeyes continued their scoring streak in the final period when Ryan Kesler banked a shot off Montoya's shoulder from behind the net, giving OSU a 4-2 lead with 12:37 remaining in regulation. Nystrom cut the deficit in half less than two minutes later with his second of the night, backhanding a rebound past Betz to make the score 4-3 with just over 10 minutes left.
Michigan pulled Montoya with 1:22 remaining and immediately generated offense, but Betz halted each chance, setting up a faceoff in the Ohio State zone with 1:06 to go. Michigan called a timeout to set up its faceoff play, which it nearly scored on as Tambellini's shot deflected off an OSU defender just wide of the net. Michigan got another chance in the OSU zone after the Buckeyes iced the puck with 44 seconds remaining and nearly scoring again when Tambellini's shot from the right point trickled past Betz and to the left post, where OSU's Erik Skaug pulled it safely away from the net.
With 17.7 seconds to go and another faceoff in the OSU zone, a flurry of activity in front of the OSU net resulted in the goal by Ebbett, who tied the game with one second left on the clock. Betz finished the game with 23 saves, while Montoya stopped 27 shots in his second career tie.
The Wolverines and Buckeyes will conclude the series on Saturday (March 8) at Value City Arena. Opening faceoff, which is pushed back because of the Michigan State-Ohio State men's basketball game at Value City Arena Saturday afternoon, is slated for 8:05 p.m., with the game being televised live on Fox Sports Net Detroit.
Contact: Paul Thomas (734) 763-4423
