Ohio will head to Wentzville, Missouri to play in the Central States Collegiate Hockey League Tournament.
The Bobcats head to their league tournament as the No. 2 seed. The top three teams of the five team league all receive a first-round bye. Along with Ohio, top-seeded Lindenwood and No. 3 Iowa State all make it to Saturday.
The first round features a matchup between Illinois and Robert Morris-Illinois. The bottom two teams of the league will play, and the winner will play Lindenwood.
Ohio and Iowa State play at 7 p.m. on Saturday after Lindenwood and the winner of the first round square off.
The winners of Saturday’s games will play Sunday at 2 p.m.
Here’s how Ohio fared against each league opponent this season:
Iowa State — 3-1
The Bobcats seemed to get the better of the Cyclones this season. The teams’ first matchup was Ohio’s first full roadtrip of the season. Ohio won the first game 4-1, but lost the second half of the series, 5-3, with an empty net goal coming at the end.
In the series at Bird Arena, Ohio swept. It didn’t always look the best, but it only gave up one goal that weekend.
The two teams play close games, and will likely have a rematch in the American Collegiate Hockey Association Tournament.
Lindenwood — 0-1-1
The Bobcats and the Lions didn’t get to play a full slate of games. When Ohio and Lindenwood faced off in Bird, the first game went to overtime, and Ohio lost one of its six overtime games.
On Nov. 17, Ohio lost one of its four regulation games, 3-0. Frustration on the Ohio bench was clear, as Ohio lost five skaters due to fighting and other game misconducts.
On the return trip to the site of the CSCHL Tournament, Ohio and Lindenwood were not able to play due to weather conditions. The Bobcats should be hoping for a rematch against the No. 1 team in the country.
Robert Morris — 2-0-2
The series was flipped in each team’s home series. The games in Bird Arena, Ohio swept and played really well.
When the teams played at Robert Morris, the Eagles won two overtime games. One came in a nine-round shootout, and the other came during the three-on-three overtime period.
Ohio is probably the better team, it just needs to capitalize on chances and not allow bad penalties that lead to power play goals.
Illinois — 2-1-1
The first series between the Bobcats and the Fighting Illini was split. The first game was a 4-0 Illinois win. The second was Ohio’s first — and only — overtime win this season. Matt Rudin deflected the puck in off his helmet.
When the teams played at the “Big Pond,” Ohio won 1-0 on a first period Garrett Jenkins goal in the first game, and lost in a shootout in the second half of the series.
