{"id":85323,"date":"2018-03-14T08:00:55","date_gmt":"2018-03-14T13:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.uscho.com\/?p=85323"},"modified":"2020-08-24T15:07:29","modified_gmt":"2020-08-24T20:07:29","slug":"this-week-in-the-big-ten-notre-dame-knows-its-a-one-and-done-season-right-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp-admin.uscho.com\/2018\/03\/14\/this-week-in-the-big-ten-notre-dame-knows-its-a-one-and-done-season-right-now\/","title":{"rendered":"This Week in the Big Ten: Notre Dame knows ‘it’s a one-and-done season right now’"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"10<\/a>
Jordan Gross leads all Notre Dame blueliners with 25 points through 35 games (photo: Jim Rosvold).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Well, here we are.<\/p>\n

The top two teams in the Big Ten survived the season to meet for the championship this Saturday. Notre Dame is hosting.<\/p>\n

Many people will have something to say about the fact that Saturday is St. Patrick’s Day. I am not among them. I know that it will take more than luck for either Notre Dame or Ohio State to capture the Big Ten playoff crown.<\/p>\n

Jeff Jackson knows that, too.<\/p>\n

“It’s a one-and-done season right now,” said Jackson after the Irish beat Penn State 3-2 in last Saturday’s semifinal game. “You have to learn to embrace that. Every game at this time of the year is a championship game; you either win or it ends your chance at playing for a championship.”<\/p>\n

Notre Dame won that game against Penn State in impressive fashion, and luck had nothing to do with it. The Nittany Lions made the first period all about Penn State hockey: lots of back-and-forth play, 18 shots on goal to Notre Dame’s 16, and an answer to each of Notre Dame’s two goals to make it 2-2 at the end of the first.<\/p>\n

But Notre Dame beat Penn State by playing the game that the Nittany Lions dictated, and by playing it better than Penn State did. By the end of the game, the Irish had outshot the Nittany Lions 47-45, and with 31 seconds left in regulation, Jack Jenkins scored to give Notre Dame a 3-2 win. In short, the Irish did what good teams do \u2013 they found a way to win, even when they couldn’t change the way the game was being played to a style with which they were more comfortable. Very impressive.<\/p>\n

In Columbus, Ohio State found a way to turn a neutral site into a home venue and beat its arch-rival for the fifth time this season, 32 seconds into overtime. What the Buckeyes did was equally impressive, as Michigan in the second half of the season had become a team that no one wanted to play. In that game, the Wolverines outscored the Buckeyes in the second period, the only stretch in which they outshot the Buckeyes. Cooper Marody scored twice for Michigan, the second goal coming on the power play early in the third period to tie the game.<\/p>\n

But the Buckeyes’ proverbial big players did their proverbial stepping up in overtime. Goalie Sean Romeo made two tough saves in the opening half-minute of OT, and Tanner Laczynski connected with Matthew Weis to score the game-winning goal.<\/p>\n

For the championship, two talented teams are meeting. The first-place team stumbled into the playoffs with a record of 4-5-1 in its last 10 regular-season games, took the bye week to address whatever led to that skid, prepared well for Penn State, and adjusted mid-game against the Nittany Lions. The second-place team, the team that played the most consistent hockey in the Big Ten all season long, kept its cool in an emotional game and beat its primary nemesis for the fifth time this season.<\/p>\n

Here’s a quick look at this match by the overall numbers.<\/p>\n

Here’s a brief look at each series by the overall numbers.<\/p>\n

No. 2 Ohio State (24-8-5) at No. 1 Notre Dame (24-9-2)<\/b><\/p>\n