With another national title appearance in mind, the Bobcats needed to re-discover the road that took them there last season.
After a 6-0 shutout win over John Carroll at Bird Arena on Friday night, Ohio found it.
The Bobcats shut out the Blue Streaks 20-0 in their pair of opening weekend games last year, and the scene for Ohio's 60th Anniversary season opener looked no different.
"I like where we're going," coach Sean Hogan said of his team's first-game effort. "One day at a time. It's just one win."
Hot start from Harkins
It's easy to overlook Tyler Harkins.
At 5 foot 8 inches tall, he's almost always the smallest player on the ice.
But Harkins overcame any concerns of his size with his flashy speed and sneaky stick-handling abilities on Friday night.
The sophomore netted a pair of goals and excelled in finding holes in John Carroll's defense en route to earning first star of the game honors.
"I think it helps getting used to playing with different players," Harkins said on the significance of his Friday night performance. "Getting that first game under your belt, I think it builds on out."
Harkins finished tenth on the team in scoring last season with 24 points. With two of Ohio's top five scorers in 2016-17 having graduated, Harkins has an opportunity to slide into one of those spots.
But he prefers a more humble approach to his game. Finishing at the top isn't on his mind yet.
"I think whoever I'm with will help me get some point production," Harkins said. "I think we have a lot of young, new guys that will get a lot of points and guys who were on the bottom in scoring last year will come up big for us. It's going to be a big shift in who's going to score."
Newcomers make loud welcome
Ohio added eight players to compensate for its 10 departures from last season, and Hogan hoped his new players would fill the missing void sooner rather than later.
Even though it's just the first game, his new players looked poised to fulfill the promise. Three of the five skaters who put an Ohio sweater on for the first time contributed a point on Friday night.
"Expect more out of the young guys," freshman Shawn Baird said. "We're coming up and being pushed by the seniors. They're leading by example and there's a lot more to come."
After senior Jake Faiella's first-period goal to open the scoring, Ohio's plethora of youth took over to put the game out of reach.
Eight of the Bobcat's next 11 points came from players that were sophomores or freshman. Baird and freshman Kyle Craddick contributed an assist each, and Timmy Thurnau, a sophomore NCAA recruit from Elmira College, scored a goal.
While Baird's first Ohio assist looks nice on the scoresheet, the native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, kept the atmosphere at Bird Arena lively with a string of heavy hits to open the game.
"That's definitely my biggest asset of my game," Baird said on his physical night. "Everyone plays their own role. My role is a physical defenseman. I know my role, so that's what you can expect to see from me. ... When the hit is there, I'm definitely not going to shy away."
Up next
Ohio will hope to add to its momentum Saturday night against John Carroll. The puck drop is slated for 7:30 p.m. at Bird Arena.
