Michigan scores four in third period, beats Ohio State to win Big Ten
· Yahoo Sports
Ann Arbor — It was a great day to be a Michigan Wolverines fan.
First the men's basketball team dominated the Saint Louis Billikens, 95-72, to advance to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.
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Then for the nightcap, the No. 1 seed men's hockey team scored four unanswered goals in the third period to defeat No. 5 Ohio State, 7-3, and win the Big Ten Tournament championship.
It was the first time the Big Ten title game was held at Yost Ice Arena.
Michigan improved to 5-0 against Ohio State this season, 5-2 and 8-1 at Yost and 6-4 and 3-2 (overtime) in Columbus. All-time, the Wolverines are 103-53-16 against the Buckeyes.
"I don't know if that's ever going to happen again," Michigan coach Brandon Naurato said on the ice after the game. "It's a good team. They were playing really good hockey. And that game could have went either way."
It is Michigan's fourth Big Ten Tournament victory. They also took the crown in 2016, 2022 and 2023.
The Buckeyes came out of the gate a little faster, getting the first five shots of the game before Josh Eernisse registered Michigan’s first shot on goaltender Kristoffer Eberly nearly five minutes into the first.
At 6:23, Adam Valentini was called for tripping.
The Wolverines had almost killed off the penalty when William Smith’s shot from the right circle beat goalie Jack Ivankovic at 8:18.
Michigan responded late in the period when Garrett Schifsky beat Eberly from the high slot, tying the score at 1-1. Ben Robertson and Drew Schock assisted.
Early in the second, the Wolverines took a 2-1 lead when Will Horcoff directed a rebound past Eberly from the right side of the net. It was Horcoff’s 24th goal of the season.
But the Buckeyes tied it at 9:12 of the second when Jake Karabela scored from the mid-slot.
With Nick Moldenhauer in the box for interference, Ohio State got its second power-play goal, this one from Adam Eisele in front of the net at 16:31.
Michigan again had a late-period response as Malcolm Spence got a spectacular pass from T.J. Hughes and buried it past Eberly with 42.1 seconds left in the second.
Hughes, who was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Big Ten Tournament, broke the 3-3 tie at 8:19 of the third, going to the right side of the net to rebound Jayden Perron's shot.
It was Hughes' 20th goal of the season.
"That guy's been so good for us," defenseman Luca Fantilli said. "All year, Big Ten Player of the Year. He's going to play in the NHL. I mean, that guy's unbelievable, unbelievable human. But to see him get that one, it's just another game he's contributing and helping us win. He's unbelievable."
Hughes, who had the winning goal plus two assists, is also a top-10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award.
"It's just in him," Naurato said. "When you recruit these guys, you think you have an idea but then they go through different experiences. T.J.'s had a lot of success and he's grown from a lot of other scenarios, too.
"It's really cool to see, he just keeps putting the team on his back."
Perron scored on the power play at 9:44, assisted by Hughes. Fantilli scored at 12:43 and then after one empty-net goal was called back for being offside, Nick Moldenhauer picked the puck off at the Ohio State blue line and finished the scoring with the empty-netter.
"The atmosphere, like tonight, like, it's unbelievable," Hughes said. "It's the best I've seen Yost in all four years, and it gave me goosebumps coming out and see the fans, how loud they were, how happy they were to cheer us on, and I'm just so happy that we could get it done for them."
Although the Wolverines won't play at Yost again this season, they know they're not done.
"This feels great," Hughes said. "Obviously, we're gonna spend some time with friends and family. But, yeah, like, tomorrow, it's back to business. We know we got the selection show, and after that, it's all business, so enjoy this for a few hours and then get right back to it tomorrow."
The 2026 NCAA Division I Men's Hockey Championship selection show is at 3 p.m. Sunday on ESPNU.
The Regionals will be held at four sites: Worcester, Massachusetts; Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Albany, New York; and Loveland, Colorado.
Special moment for seniors
Hughes, Fantilli and Kienan Draper shared a moment after the game.
All three are seniors and were playing their final game at Yost.
"Those guys are my best friends, we looked at each other earlier this week, we said, 'Hey, we got a chance to make some history here, and we got the team to do it," Fantilli said. "We got the boys to do it. The closest group of guys that I played with in my life."
Hughes admitted it was extra special sharing the Big Ten Tournament championship with Fantilli and Draper.
"I was roommates with Drapes in the dorms, and Luca was in that class, too, we're so tight," Hughes said. "We do a lot of stuff together, and we hang out a lot, and I just love them so much. So happy we could do it together. And, yeah, that embrace was definitely emotional, yeah."
Hage expected to be ready for NCAA Tournament
Center Michael Hage, who came into the game as one of the leading scorers with 13 points and and NCAA-leading 37 assists, left the game with an injury but returned to sit on the bench.
"He couldn't play but he jumped out on the power play out of nowhere," Naurato said. "He was joking that he was a decoy."
Naurato said Hage has a lower-body injury but should be ready for the NCAA Tournament.
"I think he's going to be OK," Naurato said.
Draper, Horcoff, Whittingham in the house
Even though the Detroit Red Wings were playing the Boston Bruins at Little Caesars Arena, two of the top front-office members were at Yost Ice Arena.
Kris Draper, the assistant general manager and director of amateur scouting, and Shawn Horcoff, assistant general manager and general manager of the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins, were there to watch their sons, Kienan Draper and Will Horcoff.
Kienan Draper had an assist and Will Horcoff scored Michigan's second goal.
Kyle Whittingham, Michigan's new head football coach, was shown in the crowd and received lots of cheers.
Dana Wakiji is a freelance writer.
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Michigan scores four in third period, beats Ohio State to win Big Ten