After winning eight of its past nine games, the 4th-ranked Michigan hockey team (20-9-1, 12-8-0 Big Ten) is gearing up for a massive road series against the 10th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes (17-11-2, 10-9-1 Big Ten) — one game will be played in Columbus, the other will be the ‘Faceoff on the Lake’ game at First Energy Stadium in Cleveland, OH.
The series is the Wolverines’ second-to-last of the season and its final two road games of the regular season. Next weekend, for senior weekend, Michigan hockey will host the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor, MI.
Michigan hockey rising winning-streak into OSU series
The Wolverines and Buckeyes have already met once this season — the two split their first series at Yost Ice Arena during the 100th-anniversary celebration of Michigan hockey.
Ohio State took game one, 7-2, which seemed to serve as a reality check for a young Michigan team as they entered the season’s final stages. In game two, the Wolverines came back and won 4-2 before splitting with No. 1 Minnesota the week after. Since the Minnesota split, Michigan hockey has done nothing but win — the Wolverines have series sweeps over No. 6 Penn State, Wisconsin, and No. 15 Michigan State over the past three weekends.
Michigan, Ohio State set to do battle
This massive top-10 matchup will be huge for both teams as we focus on the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments. The Wolverines already rank in the top-4 after sweeping No. 15 Michigan State last weekend, and a pair of wins over another top-10 team would be massive for Michigan’s resume.
If Michigan hockey can grab another sweep, it will improve to 22-9-1 on the season and stay hot on Minnesota’s tail — the Gophers are only three games ahead of the Wolverines with four games remaining on the schedule.
Michigan’s series with Ohio State will also be the Wolverines’ final big test before entering the Big Ten tournament — Notre Dame is solid, but the Fighting Irish are not the beast they have been in years past.
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