Iowa State is the first of three remaining CSCHL teams on the Bobcats’ schedule, all to be played at home.
For the second straight weekend, No. 3 Ohio will begin its series with a chance to move into first place in the Central States Collegiate Hockey League.
This time around, however, what Lindenwood does won’t have any effect on the Bobcats’ position.
Ohio (20-4-2) will take on No. 13 Iowa State at Bird Arena Friday and Saturday. The Bobcats enter the weekend two games behind Lindenwood in the CSCHL standings, but could make that up this weekend as Lindenwood plays a pair of non-division games.
“We’re in a position where we can control our own destiny, both with our national ranking and our division ranking,” forward Derek Rahme said. “We all know we’re in a good position. As long as we take care of what we need to take care of, and move forward with the attitude that we’re the better team, it doesn’t matter what the rest of the division does.”
The series against Iowa State (15-9-5) will be Ohio’s first at home since returning from winter break. The Bobcats are 15-0 at home this season, outscoring its opponents 82-11 in those games.
Those numbers are important to an Ohio team that played all but one of its divisional series on the road in the first half of the season. Starting with Iowa State, the Bobcats will play out the rest of their CSCHL schedule at home.
“We’re just happy to be home,” Rahme said. “Bird is just a different feeling. We’re glad we got that grind out at the beginning of the season so we have a chance to finish strong at home.”
Ohio began its series at Iowa State in October with an overtime loss, but came back strong on Saturday and defeated the Cyclones 4-2.
Coach Sean Hogan said he expects to see the Bobcats’ forecheck improve against Iowa State on home ice.
“We’ll be able to get to those pucks a little quicker, and bring our D down the wall and make it hard on those guys,” Hogan said. “That’s always an advantage when we play at home, and it will benefit us a lot this weekend.”
Ohio is coming off a 1-1 weekend against Lindenwood — a series in which the Bobcats dug themselves a hole early in both games, falling behind 2-0 each night.
The Bobcats’ ability to get ahead early will play an important role in getting the crowd into the game, as well as avoiding the need to play from behind.
Forward Michael Harris leads the team with 30 points entering the weekend, with Joe Breslin, another forward, close behind with 28 points. After solid weekends against Lindenwood, Liam Geither and Patrick Spellacy, both forwards, now have 22 and 20 points, respectively.
The weekend will also be significant for the Bobcats as they’ll play in front of the 1994-95 national championship team. Alumni from the team will be honored on the ice prior to Saturday night’s game.
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