No. 12 UConn holds on to beat No. 16 Ohio State, 3-2

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No. 12 UConn men’s hockey held on to beat the No. 16 Ohio State Buckeyes in the home opener on Friday night at Toscano Family Ice Forum, 3-2. The Huskies took a 3-1 lead into the final period but made it hard on themselves with a pair of ill-timed penalties down to the stretch. The former allowed the Buckeyes to get back within one while the latter gave the visitors a 6-on-4 advantage in the final minute.

Ultimately, UConn did just enough to secure the victory.

Mike Murtagh and Kevin Fitzgerald each scored their first career goals while Tristan Fraser also found the back of the net. Tyler Muszelik started his third straight game in goal and stopped 32 of the 34 pucks that came his way.

UConn started on the front foot with Ryan Tattle creating two good looks on the opening shift, only to have both turned away. That proved to be a harbinger for the rest of the first period — the Huskies gave Ohio State fits and piled up grade-A chances from every line, though they struggled to capitalize on those opportunities.

Finally, Murtagh broke through by taking the puck to the net himself and tucking it top shelf to give UConn the 1-0 lead. From there, the Huskies continued to dominate the o-zone but couldn’t extend the lead.

Despite the lopsided play, UConn went into the first intermission tied at 1-1 after Ohio State buried a rebound with 1:43 left in the period.

The Huskies opened the second frame on a power play and although they failed to convert, they soon pulled back ahead anyways. A loose puck found Fitzgerald at the top of the slot and the freshman drilled it into the twine to make it 2-1 UConn.

10 minutes later, Tabor Heaslip threaded a pass to Fraser in the slot, who collected the puck and sniped a shot through a crowd of bodies into the top right corner of the net. That extended the Huskies’ lead to two — a score that held into the second intermission.

Midway through the third, UConn let Ohio State back into the game with an avoidable penalty. Jake Richard recklessly tried a poke check from his knees and committed a tripping penalty. The Buckeyes needed just three seconds on the ensuing power play to cut the Huskies’ lead to 3-2.

Ohio State pulled the goalie with 1:37 remaining then got a 6-on-4 advantage with 43.6 seconds remaining after a holding penalty on Tom Messineo. While UConn couldn’t clear the zone, the defense held strong and Muszelik made a crucial glove save with 15 ticks to go. The Huskies drained the final seconds by pinning the puck along the boards in the corner to secure the 3-2 win.

UConn improves to 2-1-0 on the season with the victory. The Huskies will go for the sweep when they take on the Buckeyes at PeoplesBank Arena (formerly the XL Center) on Saturday.

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