Brian Kaufman out races the Buckeyes' defense in a rare breakaway moment during Miami's 2-1 victory Sunday. (Jeff Creech)
Little known fact: Miami University sophomore goaltender Jeff Zatkoff is really good at acrobatics. He has quite a few tricks up his sleeve, but in Sunday's contest against the Ohio State Buckeyes, Zatkoff busted out some new material. Most impressive was a save while doing a headstand in the RedHawks' 2-1 victory, a win that snapped the Buckeyes' six-game unbeaten streak.
Zatkoff's play helped Miami climb to within one point of CCHA-leading Notre Dame, whom the Red and White will face off against in the upcoming weekend's series.
In their fifth and final regular season matchup, the RedHawks and the Buckeyes battled for the complete 60 minutes. After skating to a 4-4 draw Friday in Columbus, both teams were poised and ready for Sunday afternoon's rubber match.
Those in attendance in Steve Cady Arena got their money's worth.
"It was a little more intense than in the past," said MU captain Ryan Jones.
In a game filled with broken sticks, roughing penalties, questionable calls, bone-shattering hits and an atmosphere filled to the brim with tension, both teams left it all out on the ice. But in the end it was only Miami that claimed victory, giving MU a 2-1-2 record in the season's series against its in-state rival.
"At the end, I looked at our bench and their bench, no one had anything left," said Miami Head Coach Enrico Blasi.
The RedHawks drew first blood when Jones got the better of the Buckeyes' freshman goaltender Joseph Palmer at the 2:57 mark, Jones' 17th goal of the season. Fellow forwards Nate Davis and Dane Hetland were credited with assists on the goal, upping Davis' total to 25, second most in the CCHA.
Ohio State responded just minutes later when forward Tommy Goebel went top shelf on Zatkoff, tying the game at 1-1 early in the first period.
For the next 37 minutes, both teams wailed on each other with unmitigated ferocity. Neither missed an opportunity to throw an elbow or go for the big hit and each was penalized four times for roughing afterthe whistle.
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In light of the physical play, the biggest controversy came in the second period when a Buckeye slap shot ricocheted off the left post, spawning officials' debate over whether it crossed the goal line. The shot was ultimately ruled no goal, a decision that didn't sit well with the Buckeyes.
Ohio State Head Coach John Markell was upset over the incident, questioning the point of having video and replay equipment and not using it in such situations.
"I'm disappointed because it was something that was reviewable, and it wasn't reviewed," Markell said. "Every goal is reviewed in the National Hockey League, every one. It should have been reviewed."
Two minutes into the third period, Miami's defenseman Raymond Eichenlaub broke the stalemate when he tapped in the go-ahead goal to put the RedHawks up 2-1. Eichenlaub was set up by freshman forward Jarod Palmer who now has 16 assists on the season.
For the rest of the contest, the Red and White defense was constantly kept on its toes with OSU having offensive opportunities aplenty. In the third period alone, the Buckeyes had four power-play opportunities, none of which resulted in any OSU goals. The RedHawks reminded the Buckeyes why they are ranked second nationally in penalty killing, blanking the Buckeyes on all six of their power-play shots.
Zatkoff finished the game with 26 saves, highlighted by his upside down save. Not surprisingly, Blasi was very pleased with Zatkoff's performance between the pipes.
"At this time of the year, you need goaltending," Blasi said.
Davis put the victory in a larger context.
"It was a game we knew we needed to win," Davis said. "We played them five times in the last few weeks and we knew it wasn't going to be pretty ... We stepped up to the challenge."
Blasi was excited about the win but declined to comment on the game's season-long implications.
"Our focus is one game at a time," Blasi said. "That's our philosophy and we don't care about rankings. This is a big win for us."
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