Ohio will face off against UNLV in its first game of the American Collegiate Hockey Association on March 22 in Frisco, Texas.
In last year’s tournament, the Bobcats defeated the Rebels 3-2 behind then-junior forward Gabe Lampron’s overtime winning goal. Ohio would then go on to lose to league-foe Illinois in the quarterfinals.
UNLV won its first tournament game this season in 4-3 win over Robert Morris-Pennsylvania.
Game information
Opponent: UNLV
Puck drop: 10 a.m. CST
Venue: Comerica Center, Frisco, Texas
How to watch: ACHA Scoreboard
Meet the opponent
Top point scorers*
7 Paxton Malone (32 total points, 16 goals, 16 assists)
9 Cody Williams (32 total points, 15 goals, 17 assists)
8 Joe Kaszupski (30 total points, 11 goals, 19 assists)
Goalie play
29 Ben Giesbrecht (15-4, 2.17 goals against average, .925 save percentage)
27 Erik Eidissen (3-3, 2.91 goals against average, .891 save percentage)
Penalty minutes
8 Joe Kaszupski (80)
37 Jared Turcotte (76)
39 Bryce Woodward (46)
*all stats are regular season
A glance at Ohio
Top point scorers
11 Jake Houston (37 total points, 8 goals, 29 assists)
7 Gianni Evangelisti (35 total points, 15 goals, 20 assists)
22 Tyler Harkins (34 total points, 13 goals, 21 assists)
Goalie play
30 Jimmy Thomas (18-4, 1.86 goals against average, .929 save percentage)
1 Jackson Chilberg (1-1, 4.36 goals against average, .822 save percentage0
31 Mason Koster (1-0, 4 goals against average, .778 save percentage)
Penalty minutes
4 Tom Pokorney (106)
11 Jake Houston (67)
14 Shawn Baird (57)
*all stats are regular season
Last match up
Aside from the meeting on the national stage, Ohio hosted UNLV last season on Oct. 13-14 where it swept its guests in a combined 10-2 weekend.
Then-sophomore winger Harkins led all scorers with five total points on the weekend (four goals, one assist). Then-sophomore Thomas posted a weekend total .932 save percentage.
Three stars to watch
Who’s in and who’s out: Up and down the Bobcats roster the injury bug is nestled in their gear. Thomas was pulled from the Central States Collegiate Hockey League Championship game on March 17 because of a lower-body injury. Koster has also been dealing with a lower-body injury.
Time to shine: Evangelisti and Houston missed the last regular season series because of their roster spots on Team USA in the 2019 Winter World University Games in Russia. They rejoined the Bobcats for the CSCHL Tournament.
Bottom-line success: In last year’s nationals, Ohio found success with its third and fourth lines. With points from Lampron, Zach Frank and Kyle Craddick a season ago on the national stage, Ohio’s bottom lines will play a crucial role in its ability to advance forward in the tournament.
