University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, December 5
Columbus, OH
5:00 PM
University of Minnesota
8-10-1, 4-4-0
5
at
6
Ohio State
6-10-0, 2-6-0
1
2
3
OT 1
F
Minnesota
2
1
2
0
5
Ohio State
1
3
1
1
6
Team Stats
MIN
OSU
Shots
19
36
PPG
1
2
SHG
0
0
Penalties
3
1
Penalty Mins
6
2
Faceoffs Won
18
41
Game Leaders
+/-
1
Goals
2
Sh
5
A
1
+/-
-1
Goals
0
Sh
0
A
2
+/-
-1
Goals
1
Sh
3
A
0
Players Mentioned
Goaltender
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's Hockey
Defense
/ Men's Hockey
Forward
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's HockeyForward
/ Men's Hockey
Photo by: Ohio State Athletics
Gophers Fall in OT at Ohio State Friday
12/5/2025 7:45:00 PM | Men's Hockey
Three-point effort from Ziemer to close 2025
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Golden Gophers men's hockey team traded goals all night but came up short in overtime, falling 6-5 to Ohio State Friday evening at Value City Arena. Despite a three-point performance from Brodie Ziemer and two assists each from freshmen LJ Mooney and Javon Moore, their four-game win streak over the Buckeyes was snapped.
Minnesota (8-10-1 overall, 4-4-0 B1G) built leads in both the first and third periods but could not hold off the Buckeyes (6-10-0 overall, 2-6-0 B1G), which pushed the game to overtime and struck 61 seconds into the extra frame for the extra point in the Big Ten Conference standings.
The Buckeyes opened with urgency, pinning the Gophers in their own zone and forcing goaltender Nathan Airey into seven early saves. Ohio State capitalized on its first power play at 9:34 when a centering pass deflected off a Minnesota skate for a 1–0 lead. The Gophers responded with a late surge in the period. Moore split through defenders and fed Tate Pritchard, who kicked the puck to his stick and tucked home the tying goal at 17:34. Just over a minute later, Mason Moe followed his own rebound and chipped in the tally off a setup from Mooney and Ziemer, giving Minnesota a 2-1 advantage after 20 minutes.
Ohio State quickly tied the game 2:07 into the second, and the team's traded chances until a hit to the head sent Minnesota to its first and only power play. The Maroon and Gold capitalized as Mooney drove the goal line and set up Ziemer alone in the slot for a 3-2 lead at 9:58. A too-many-men penalty proved costly minutes later, allowing OSU to tie the game again on its second power-play marker. A late deflection with 2:59 remaining put the Buckeyes back on top, 4-3, entering the second intermission.
Minnesota surged early in the third. Jimmy Clark used his speed to wrap around the net and finished a setup from Beckett Hendrickson at 4:41, tying the game 4-4. Ziemer followed with his second of the night just three minutes later, sprinting onto an outlet pass from Moore and sliding in the go-ahead goal on a breakaway. But the Buckeyes answered quickly, capitalizing on a bounce off the end boards for a one-timer to knot the game 5-5 less than two minutes later. Airey stood tall through a series of dangerous chances as Ohio State pressed for the lead.
A late Minnesota penalty brought one more defensive test, and the Gophers delivered a key kill to push the game to overtime. However, OSU needed just one chance in the extra session, scoring from the left wing at 1:01 to close out the 6–5 decision.
Noteworthy
After scoring twice Thursday night, Ziemer would not be stopped again as the Chaska, Minn., native put away his 11th and 12th goals, including his seventh on the man advantage, which is tied for the NCAA lead, to go with an assist ... It was his third-straight multi-point effort, 11th of his career, and the second time posting at least three points in a game ... Pritchard picked up his second goal over his past three appearances, reaching six points on his third goal ... Moe finds his way to the scoresheet for the second night during the series and marked the fourth time the freshman has points in back-to-back contests, totaling eight points this season ... Clark continued his offensive production of late, registering his fourth goal of the campaign, all in the eight games since Nov. 8, and has points in three-consecutive contests, tying the long stretch of his career ... Mooney was held without a point Thursday, but collected a pair of helpers in the series finale, increasing his point total to 15 behind the fourth time with multiple points over his last eight games ... Moore's multiple assists were his seventh and eighth of the year and the freshman now has 10 points across the last eight outings, totaling 12 overall ... Ludtke tacked on his eighth point and stretched his point streak to four games thanks to his fifth assist, while Luke Mittelstadt also collected an assist, his 11th this season ... Hendrickson made it three-straight games with a point and has five points in his last three appearances ... Airey finished the night by making 30 saves and allowed a season-high six goals ... The Gophers went 1-for-1 on the power play Friday and have scored on the man advantage in each of the last six games, posting a 9-for-18 effort in that stretch, but gave up a pair of power-play tallies in three chances to OSU.
Coach Motzko's Comments
"The coach in me is going to come out," Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. "We had two leads in the game, one early in the first and one in the third. We made some pretty glaring mistakes, but it wasn't for a lack of effort. We're trying to finish on a strong note, and I give our guys a lot of credit; what we went through in October, they battled back. We get a break now, and we've got to come back and pick up where we left off, and we've got to become even a better team."
Next Up: Away at Bemidji State (Jan. 2)
The Gophers will take an extended holiday break before returning to the ice Jan. 2 for an exhibition clash at Bemidji State which will air live on FOX9+. The time off does not mean there won't be hockey on campus as the University of Minnesota gets set to host the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship inside 3M Arena at Mariucci for 13 games between Dec. 26 to Jan. 2. Single-game tickets for the event are on sale now HERE.
Minnesota (8-10-1 overall, 4-4-0 B1G) built leads in both the first and third periods but could not hold off the Buckeyes (6-10-0 overall, 2-6-0 B1G), which pushed the game to overtime and struck 61 seconds into the extra frame for the extra point in the Big Ten Conference standings.
The Buckeyes opened with urgency, pinning the Gophers in their own zone and forcing goaltender Nathan Airey into seven early saves. Ohio State capitalized on its first power play at 9:34 when a centering pass deflected off a Minnesota skate for a 1–0 lead. The Gophers responded with a late surge in the period. Moore split through defenders and fed Tate Pritchard, who kicked the puck to his stick and tucked home the tying goal at 17:34. Just over a minute later, Mason Moe followed his own rebound and chipped in the tally off a setup from Mooney and Ziemer, giving Minnesota a 2-1 advantage after 20 minutes.
Ohio State quickly tied the game 2:07 into the second, and the team's traded chances until a hit to the head sent Minnesota to its first and only power play. The Maroon and Gold capitalized as Mooney drove the goal line and set up Ziemer alone in the slot for a 3-2 lead at 9:58. A too-many-men penalty proved costly minutes later, allowing OSU to tie the game again on its second power-play marker. A late deflection with 2:59 remaining put the Buckeyes back on top, 4-3, entering the second intermission.
Minnesota surged early in the third. Jimmy Clark used his speed to wrap around the net and finished a setup from Beckett Hendrickson at 4:41, tying the game 4-4. Ziemer followed with his second of the night just three minutes later, sprinting onto an outlet pass from Moore and sliding in the go-ahead goal on a breakaway. But the Buckeyes answered quickly, capitalizing on a bounce off the end boards for a one-timer to knot the game 5-5 less than two minutes later. Airey stood tall through a series of dangerous chances as Ohio State pressed for the lead.
A late Minnesota penalty brought one more defensive test, and the Gophers delivered a key kill to push the game to overtime. However, OSU needed just one chance in the extra session, scoring from the left wing at 1:01 to close out the 6–5 decision.
Noteworthy
After scoring twice Thursday night, Ziemer would not be stopped again as the Chaska, Minn., native put away his 11th and 12th goals, including his seventh on the man advantage, which is tied for the NCAA lead, to go with an assist ... It was his third-straight multi-point effort, 11th of his career, and the second time posting at least three points in a game ... Pritchard picked up his second goal over his past three appearances, reaching six points on his third goal ... Moe finds his way to the scoresheet for the second night during the series and marked the fourth time the freshman has points in back-to-back contests, totaling eight points this season ... Clark continued his offensive production of late, registering his fourth goal of the campaign, all in the eight games since Nov. 8, and has points in three-consecutive contests, tying the long stretch of his career ... Mooney was held without a point Thursday, but collected a pair of helpers in the series finale, increasing his point total to 15 behind the fourth time with multiple points over his last eight games ... Moore's multiple assists were his seventh and eighth of the year and the freshman now has 10 points across the last eight outings, totaling 12 overall ... Ludtke tacked on his eighth point and stretched his point streak to four games thanks to his fifth assist, while Luke Mittelstadt also collected an assist, his 11th this season ... Hendrickson made it three-straight games with a point and has five points in his last three appearances ... Airey finished the night by making 30 saves and allowed a season-high six goals ... The Gophers went 1-for-1 on the power play Friday and have scored on the man advantage in each of the last six games, posting a 9-for-18 effort in that stretch, but gave up a pair of power-play tallies in three chances to OSU.
Coach Motzko's Comments
"The coach in me is going to come out," Minnesota head coach Bob Motzko said. "We had two leads in the game, one early in the first and one in the third. We made some pretty glaring mistakes, but it wasn't for a lack of effort. We're trying to finish on a strong note, and I give our guys a lot of credit; what we went through in October, they battled back. We get a break now, and we've got to come back and pick up where we left off, and we've got to become even a better team."
Next Up: Away at Bemidji State (Jan. 2)
The Gophers will take an extended holiday break before returning to the ice Jan. 2 for an exhibition clash at Bemidji State which will air live on FOX9+. The time off does not mean there won't be hockey on campus as the University of Minnesota gets set to host the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship inside 3M Arena at Mariucci for 13 games between Dec. 26 to Jan. 2. Single-game tickets for the event are on sale now HERE.
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