Ranta, Gophers take down No. 6 Ohio State 6-3

Sampo Ranta scored two goals, Brannon McManus tallied three points and the Minnesota Gophers men’s hockey team defeated sixth-ranked Ohio State 6-3 on Friday night.

The Buckeyes struck first 11:06 into the opening period on a goal by Quinn Preston and had another lead at 2-1 in the middle frame. But the Gophers tied it at 2 thanks to Ranta’s first goal of the evening and took their first lead of the game 13:39 into the second period when Jonny Sorenson lit the lamp.

Leading 3-2 with six minutes to play, the Gophers added to their advantage on a fluky goal by Jaxon Nelson. Weaving his way between defenders, Nelson fired a shot at Ohio State goaltender Jack Nappier but missed high. The puck bounced off the plexiglass behind the net and found its way onto the back of Nappier, who fell into the net for a Gophers goal.

McManus and Ranta secured the win with empty net goals late in the third period.

Jack LaFontaine made 21 saves in goal to pick up the win for Minnesota, improving to 5-6-3 on the season. As a team, the Gophers move to 9-10-4 overall and 4-5-4-3 in the Big Ten.

UP NEXT

The Gophers go for the two-game series sweep Saturday night against the Buckeyes on “Doug Woog Night” at 3M Arena at Mariucci.