After a brief stay at home, No. 7 Ohio heads west again to Ames, Iowa, for a weekend series against No. 24 Iowa State.
As the season begins to wind down, the Bobcats are strapping in for some of their toughest series yet, especially against a league opponent like the Cyclones.
“It’s always tough,” Bell said. “We can’t look past them because every league game is tough.”
Game information
Opponent: Iowa State University
Puck drop: 8:30 p.m. EST
Venue: Ames ISU Ice Arena
How to watch: ISU Live Hockey
Meet the opponent
Top point scorers
No. 18 Dylan Goggin (11 goals, 10 assists)
No. 47 Ray Zimmerman (12 goals, 5 assists)
No. 6 Payton McSharry (6 goals, 9 assists)
Goalie play
No. 32 Nikita Kozak (14-12, .938 save percentage, 1.81 goals against average )
No. 35 Aaron LaChance (3-2, .904 save percentage, 2.37 goals against average)
Penalty minutes
No. 24 Matty Moran (30)
No. 5 Stuart Pearson (16)
No. 22 C.J. Banser (14)
Last matchup
The Bobcats and Cyclones last played each other on Oct. 25-26. Ohio won game one 4-2 after scoring all of its goals in the first period. Iowa State responded by shutting the Bobcats out 2-0 the next night.
What this series means
Ohio is currently ranked second in the Central States Collegiate Hockey League. If the Bobcats split the series this weekend, they will successfully clinch the No. 2 seed in the CSCHL tournament.
Bell is choosing to focus on Ohio’s morale instead. What matters the most to Ohio is that it wins the games before it worries about the rankings.
“We know going down the stretch that we have to string some wins together,” Bell said. “This is obviously a big game for the rankings, but it also is for us. We want to build off of what we’ve accomplished.”
Injury report
It is uncertain if Drew Magyar will play this weekend. Magyar sustained an injury last Saturday against Stony Brook and was seen at practice this week in a non-contact jersey.
