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Lansing State Journal sports report Nathaniel Bott breaks down No. 1 Michigan State's 4-3 double-overtime victory over No. 9 Ohio State in the Big Ten tournament championship game Saturday night at Munn Ice Arena.
What happened
The MSU hockey program was looking to repeat as Big Ten tournament champions on Saturday night, facing an Ohio State team it had beaten three of the four meetings in the regular season.
With so much on the line, this game needed overtime — make that double overtime — and the Big Ten's Most Outstanding Player delivered in the biggest moment. With 4:51 remaining in double overtime, junior forward Isaac Howard fired a shot past OSU goaltender Logan Terness to lift the Spartans to the title as Munn Arena nearly lost its roof.
The Spartans jumped in front after getting two goals on the man advantage in the first period, but the Buckeyes erased a two-goal deficit in the third period to force overtime.
MSU had four opportunities on the power play in the opening frame, and junior forward Karsen Dorwart gave MSU the lead on a quick release shot from the right circle that beat OSU goaltender Logan Terness.
On MSU's next man advantage, Dorwart won a faceoff in the OSU zone that went right to Howard, who snapped it past Terness to give the Spartans a two-goal lead.
OSU got on the board when defenseman Damien Carfagna drove into the MSU zone and found trailing forward Joe Dunlop, who fired a shot past MSU goaltender Trey Augustine late in the first period.
MSU restored its two-goal cushion just 42 seconds into the third period after both sides skated the middle stanza with good pace but no results. Howard took the puck at the MSU blue line, weaved through OSU defenders, and flung a pass across the Buckeyes' crease where senior forward buried the puck into the net.
Carfagna was involved again for the Buckeyes to get back into it, collecting a puck behind MSU's net and banking it off the back of Augustine's pads and over the goal line.
OSU forward Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, who scored the overtime winner in the tournament semifinals against Penn State last weekend, gathered a loose puck and fired a shot that found its way through tons of traffic in front of MSU's net to tie the game with 2:21 remaining in regulation.
What's next
The Spartans will await its destination and opponent for the NCAA tournament, with the Selection Show being aired at 3 p.m. Sunday on ESPNU.
Contact Nathaniel Bott at [email protected] and follow him on X @Nathaniel_Bott
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU hockey captures Big Ten tournament in double-overtime win
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