BGSU hockey finishes its seventh week of regular season competition in a contrasting two-game sweep of Princeton, the program’s second total and first sweep of the Tigers in Bowling Green since 1987.
In maybe one of the best games of hockey played this season, Bowling Green held a 4-1 victory over Princeton after game one, scoring four in a row through two before Princeton’s lone goal in the third period.
“The second was by far our best period in my whole time here [at Bowling Green]. It was pretty good,” said head coach Dennis Williams after Friday’s win.
Coach may have undersized the quality of that second period a bit.
Most notably, BG was able to score three times in the middle frame: two freshman goals by forwards Connor Levis and Dominik Rymon, and a goal by junior transfer Tyler Hotson. The forwards scored, but the blue line set them up, defensemen Breck McKinley and Dalton Norris with a hand on all three goals (Norris assisted twice).
All of this scoring came around a penalty kill that lasted five minutes, a major penalty to Ivan Korodiuk for boarding at the 4:55 mark. As per the rules, Korodiuk was also granted a game misconduct and 10 more minutes of penalty. He did not play the last 35:05 of the game.
BG’s block leader (19) and arguably the best defensive penalty killer on the team, Korodiuk, undressed while his team killed all five minutes, allowing just two shots on goal, in fact recording two of their own. They additionally added 1:13 of kill time at the end of the period, allowing no shots.
In over 30% of the period with a man disadvantage, the Falcons allowed only two shots on goal. In the remaining 70% they registered three goals, five assists, and 14 shots while allowing just two.
“Last night [Friday], I recall saying I think we played the best period of hockey I had seen here in my 18 months in the second period, just to match it with the worst period of hockey I’ve seen us play in 18 months in the second period [tonight],” said Williams after Saturday’s win.
He may not be too off base in this instance, either. BG allowed two goals to Princeton on 10 shots allowed in the second period, blowing a 2-1 lead into a 3-2 deficit to a team they dominated the night before. Even beyond the stat sheet, the Tigers dominated possession and controlled the play of the game through 20 straight minutes.
Great teams find a way, and BG was able to score a last-minute game-tying power-play goal in the second, Hotson’s second of the weekend, fifth of the season, and third on the power play.
Then, in the third period, senior Quinn Emerson scored a power-play slapshot, giving the Falcons a 4-3 lead they held through the final three minutes of the game.
Second periods have been a bane for the Falcons this season, being starkly outscored by opponents and struggling to find quality play in the middle 20 minutes. The first game was a nice contrast to this trend, but the second was an even poorer addition to this weakness.
Bowling Green next plays Northern Michigan at home, a team that is yet to win a game this season in or out of conference play. BG then has a three-week break before their first series of 2026 against Ohio State, a home-and-home for their third of four nonconference opponents this season.
