Friday, December 29: Live Video | Live Audio | Live Stats | Game Notes (Niagara) | Game Notes (Ohio State)
Saturday, December 30: Live Video | Live Audio | Live Stats | Game Notes (Niagara) | Game Notes (Ohio State)

Games 17-18
Niagara Purple Eagles (9-7-2, 8-4-1 AHC) vs. No. 9/9 Ohio State Buckeyes (10-4-4, 5-4-1 B1G)
Friday, December 29 – 7:00 PM / Saturday, December 30 - 8:00 PM
Value City Arena at the Jerome Schottenstein Center – Columbus, Ohio
Broadcast: Big Ten Network Plus
Radio: WLVL 1340 AM - Jeremy White
Internet: Niagara Sports Network

After a three-week holiday hiatus, the Niagara Purple Eagles hockey team is back in action, wrapping up the 2017 portion of the schedule with a two-game series at Ohio State. The Buckeyes, ranked No. 9 in the USCHO.com and USA Hockey national polls, play host to the Purple Eagles at 7 p.m. on Friday and 8 p.m. on Saturday this weekend.

What to Watch For
• After being selected last in both the Atlantic Hockey preseason coaches' and media polls, the Purple Eagles are second in the conference midway through the year. Niagara has 17 points in conference play (8-4-1) with a 9-7-1 overall record.
• Niagara has now appeared in the USCHO Men's Division I national poll for six straight weeks, earning its first national ranking in four seasons at No. 20 back on Dec. 4.
• Senior forward Derian Plouffe entered the holiday break on a seven-game point streak with six goals and four assists in that time. He leads Niagara and ranks fourth in the AHC with a career-high 21 points (11+10) in 17 games.
• Sophomore defenseman Noah Delmas is tied for first among all NCAA defensemen with 19 points (1+18) through 17 games.
• Junior forward Tanner Lomsnes has a career-high 17 points (12+5) in 17 games; his 12 goals are second in the AHC and tied for seventh nationally.
• This weekend's matchup features two of the top penalty-kill units in the nation; Ohio State leads the nation at 92.8 percent (64-for-69) while Niagara is fifth at 87.2 percent (68-for-78) and is tied for the NCAA lead with five shorthanded goals.
• Freshman goaltender Brian Wilson has led the way in goal for Niagara, accumulating a 7-6-1 record in the first half of the season with a 2.67 goals-against average and .901 save percentage. 
• Niagara is 5-1 in one-goal games this season, including two wins in three overtime contests. 

Scouting the Buckeyes
• Ohio State sits at 10-4-4 this season after closing the first half of the season with a two-game home sweep, taking wins of 2-1 and 4-1 over Minnesota.
• Ohio State moved up to No. 9 in both the USCHO and USA Hockey national polls after a sweep of Minnesota to close the first half of the season.
• Niagara is 1-5-0 all-time against the Buckeyes, with the Purple Eagles' lone win coming on Oct. 31, 1998, a 6-3 victory at the former Marine Midland Arena (now KeyBank Center) in Buffalo.
• Last season while ranked at No. 14, Ohio State swept Niagara at Dwyer Arena on Oct. 28 and 29, 2016.
• Sophomore forward Tanner Laczynski leads the Buckeyes and is tied for 12th nationally with 23 points (8+15) in 18 games. He had one goal and four assists in the two-game series at Niagara last year.
• As a team, Ohio State is fifth in the NCAA averaging 2.11 goals against per game. Goaltender Sean Romeo leads the Buckeyes with a 1.93 goals-against average and .928 save percentage.