At the OSU Ice Rink 2/29/92:
 
                1   2   3--T
Lake Superior   0   0   2--2
Ohio State      4   2   2--8
 
FIRST PERIOD
 
Scoring
1. OSU White (D.Smith, Beaucage) 2:09
2. OSU Loney (D.Smith, White) 8:24 (pp)
3. OSU D.Smith (Richards, Loney) 17:35 (pp)
4. OSU Burke (Schriner, Guilbault) 18:08
 
Penalties
OSU schriner, high sticking, 3:41: LSSU Barnes, holding, 4:26; LSSU Wetherill,
hitting from behind, 8:15; OSU White, interference, 8:48; OSU Richards,
roughing, 10:17; LSSU Moger, roughing, 10:17; OSU Green, hooking, 10:45; LSSU
Moger,roughing, 13:06; OSU Riedel, slashing, 15:58; LSSU Moger boarding, 16:08;
LSSU bench minor, delay of game, 16:08; OSU Burke, interference, 18:21; LSSU
Constantin, high sticking, 19:47; OSU Cadman, high sticking, 19:47
 
SECOND PERIOD
 
Scoring
5. OSU White (Loney, Richards) 19:03 (pp)
6. OSU White (D.Smith) 19:44 (pp)
 
Penalties
OSU Fraser, holding, 5:34;OSU Green, high sticking, 10:11; LSSU Barnes, high
sticking, 10:11; OSU Burke, high sticking, 14:37; LSSU Morin, charging, 17:27;
LSSU Hendry, (bench minor), too many men on the ice, 18:16; LSSU Wetherill,
cross-checking, 18:58
 
THIRD PERIOD
 
Scoring
7. OSU Bladrica 6:02 (en)
8. LSSU Moger (Strachan, Beddoes) 14:40
9. OSU White (Burke) 16:57 (en)
10. LSSU Beddoes 17:09
 
Penalties
LSSU Beddoes, tripping, 7:27; OSU Walsh, interference, 7:48; LSSU Hulett,
roughing, 8:44; OSU Fraser, holding, 8:44; LSSU Valicevic, (bench minor),
trainer verbally abused ref)--ejected, 8:44;OSU Schriner, interference, 12:39;
OSU Beaucage, elbowing, 15:24; LSSU Angelleli, roughing, 15:24; LSSU Strachan,
roughing, 18:12; OSU A.Smith, roughing 18:12
 
Shots
 
                 1   2   3--T
Lake Superior    13  15  19--47
Ohio State       15  7  8--30
 
Saves
LSSU Lacher (28 shots, 22 saves)
OSU Bales (47 shots, 45 saves)
 
Power plays
LSSU 1 for 7
OSU 4 for 11 (lots of 20 and 30 second power plays)
 
Referee: Petterle
Linesmen: Lulich, Breach
 
A--1400
 
Had I been able to get this out yesterday, I would have mentioned that the OSU
sweep of LSSU combined with the Michigan win Saturday night at Ferris gave the
Wolverines the CCHA championship.  Congrats to the Wolverine fans out there.
 
After watching Cornell lose to Union in Ithaca, I thought that there could be
nothing worse than being a Cornell fan over the last couple of weekends.  How
could a team playing for home ice come out so flat against a team that had only
1 league win?  However, this weekend I found something worse: being a Laker
fan.  How does a team who has the league CHAMPIONSHIP at stake come out and not
only lose to the last place team on consecutive nights, but also get pummelled
both nights in the process. I watched the Laker radio announcers throughout
both games.  They shook their heads so much they probably both had concussions
by the end of the Saturday games.  There were also several Laker faithful who
made the 12 hour drive down from the Sault.  What a horribly long trip back.
However, I didn't mind being on the other end of one of these unlikely upsets
for once, and my simpathy only went so far, especially since a group of Laker
"faithful" left Friday's game with over 16 minutes left in the game and their
team down 6-2.  Fairweather has a new definition.
 
Before I get into any details, I want to say that I have never watched a team
of Lake Superior's caliber crumble so completely.  I can point to certain
events in both games where I knew that the Lakers were going to lose.  They had
no focus, no desire, no character, and no class...at least for this weekend.
Even when the Bucks were up 6-0 after the second period, many of the fans
around me were wary, having seen OSU blow so many leads, but I told them, "The
Lakers did not answer the bell last night, and unless they get a sudden
infusion of heart, they won't tonight either." It was sad that a team so
talented could be counted out so early, but even after the first period (4-0,
Bucks), I knew that the Lakers did not have it in them to come back.  With all
that was at stake, you just have to wonder.  (3 bench minors in the game is
another telling stat for LSSU)
 
Now that I have pretty much finished ripping the Lakers, how about them Bucks?
Mike Bales was unconscious most of the game and Ron White had 4 goals and 1
assist to go with his 3 goals and 1 assist from Friday.  With White collecting
7 goals and 2 assists and Bales stopping 79 of 85 shots, they should share the
honor of CCHA players of the week.  While Ron White put in anpother stellar
performance Saturday, the real story was Bales as he gave the Bucks the spark
in goal.  Twice he made saves while sprawled on the ice .  Once, the LSSU
player tried to lift it over him and he swatted the air with his glove and
deflected the puck away.  The second time, he threw his stick in the air (only
about 2 or 3 inches) and it caught the puck and caused it to fall harmlessly on
his chest.
 
OSU created their chances in this game.  There was really nothing that Lacher
could do about any of the 6 goals he let in.  They were all scored by men left
alone in fron of him.  The Bucks also capitalized on the power-plays, going
4-11 against one of the nation's best kills (7-17 for the weekend).  The Bucks
also held the LSSU power-play at bay, only allowing 1 of 7 for the evening and
4-16 overall.  Also, OSU scored on the power-plays from 2 of the 3 bench
minors, and I believe that this was psychologically devastating.
 
OSU's first goal came as they worked hard in the corner.  Smith worked the puck
free and walked in from Lacher's left, drew the defense to him and fed White
for the tap-in.  The next two goals came on power-palys as OSU showed great
organization and puck movement.  Loney knocked in the rebound of a bad angle
shot by Dave Smith, and Smith knocked in a rebound of a Steve Richards blast
from the point after passing to Richards and crashing the net.  The final goal
of the period wwas from Greg Burke of a goal mouth scramble where LSSU could
not clear and OSU made them pay.
 
The second power-play goal was after coach Jackson started protesting a call by
Petterle (who did a reasonable job...he just called everything, no matter how
minor.  Given last nights melee between Peters and Peters, not a bad idea), and
then was insensed when he couldn't put a substitute on the ice.  Jackson
refused to recall the player and was slapped with a bench minor for delay. This
was where the Lakers lost the game.  They had come out focused and physical,
but had still given up two goals.  They were a little frustrated, and this
scene between their coach and Petterle, along with the OSU goal that resluted
from it (3-0 OSU) tool this team apart.  Their heads were never in the game
from that point on, and I knew (in the first period!) that OSU would win.
 
The Lakers came out with a little fire in the second, but Bales' outstanding
play snuffed it, and a series of three LSSU penaltied late in the period
(including another bench minor for too many men on the ice), allowed OSU to
score twice in the final minute, both times with a 5-3 advantage.  The first
was a beautiful give and go between Loney and White that White just fired over
the right leg of Lacher, and the second was another goal mouth scramble that
saw White recover the puck in front of Lacher, line him up, and beat him to the
glove side on the top shelf.  (No hats thrown, no one arrested) This put the
final psychological nail in the Laker's coffin.  I would have loved to have
heard the reaction at other rinks when the 6-0 score after 2 periods was
announced.  I imagine that everyone figured that LSSU would come out and kill
OSU after losing 7-4 Friday night.  It must have been a shocker.
 
This set up one of the more unusual third periods that I have ever witnessed.
By my count, Jackson pulled Lacher 8 times for a total of 5:34, and the first
pull came at about the 2:30 mark of thethird.  OSU was thus able to get two
empty net goals spaced 10 minutes and 55 seconds apart.  Does anyone keep stats
as to the record for longest time differential between en goals?  OSU's
Baldrica intercepted an attempt by LSSU to break out of its own zone after OSU
narrowly missed the empty net seconds earlier.  Baldrica's shot as he was
falling to the ice at the blue-line sailed in at 6:02.  LSSU managed a goal at
14:40 on a goal mouth scramble.  They beat Bales on the third try as he stuffed
the first two Laker shots.
 
 
The amusement for the evening had come just 6 minute prior to the first Laker
goal.  The LSSU bench was incensed at another Petterle call (a bit justified
here as Petterle began defining intereference as merely skating in front of
another player regardless of contact), and the LSSU trainer said a few choice
words about things that are anatomically impossible for Petterle to accomplish.
 Anyway, Petterle invited him to take an early shower.  As he was being almost
dragged from the bench by a linesman, the trainer shoved the linesman and
angrily stormed off the ice.  On the way out though, he let OSU fans know how
he
felt about them and gave both sides of the rink the finger.  Nice guy.  Nice
class.  Nice composure.  I have never seen any team fall apart so completely
from the player to the coaches to even the trainer.  It was thiis fact that
made the game such a horrible mark in LSSU hockey, much more so than just
losing.
 
OSU got another empty netter at 16:57 when Ron White tapped in a pass from Greg
Burke after Burke had intercepted another LSSU breakout attempt.  It was
fitting that White should cap the OSU scoring with his 7th goal of the series.
LSSU got a cosmetic goal at 17:09 from Beddoes as his shot from the right
circle deflected under Bales' glove and in, but the damage was done and the
game was over.  Game, set, and match, OSU: 7-4, 8-2.
 
Congrats again to any U of M fans who might actually still be reading this.  Do
I get the Bill Fenwick Award for longest post yet?
 
--
Dave [log in to unmask]
Cornell '91 OSU Med '95
Let's Go Red!