Ohio State got on the board at 6:53 when sophomore Taylor Stefishen beat a Denver defenseman down low and his shot went off a Pioneer and into the net. Severyn and Sims assisted on the goal, Stefishen's first of the season. Sophomore Zac Dalpe added to the lead at 14:17, scoring on a rush with the Buckeyes on the power play. Somma and sophomore Sean Duddy picked up the helpers, as they got the puck up to Dalpe in the neutral zone. The Buckeye penalty kill stopped two Denver chances in the period, including a 5-minute major after Buckeye junior Peter Boyd was given a game misconduct for hitting from behind just 34 seconds into the game. The Pioneers took a too many men on the ice penalty during their power play to limit their advantage to three minutes. Ohio State tallied on its only power play of the stanza. Heeter stopped all 12 shots he faced in the period, with Ohio State putting eight shots on net.

In the second period, the Buckeyes' lone goal came at 10:25 shorthanded. Somma blocked a Pioneer shot at the Ohio State blueline. John Albert picked up the puck and raced in 2-on-1 with Sims. He one-timed Albert's pass for his team-best second goal of the year. Shots were 13-11 in favor of Ohio State in the period, which was extended by a goal review and a scrum after the whistle. Denver had three power play chances and was limited to just two shots on net with the man advantage. Ohio State was 0-for-2 on the PP.

Denver controlled play in the third as the Buckeyes protected their lead, with Heeter stopping 16 shots on net to preserve the shutout. The Pioneers pulled their goalie with 3:36 remaining and Ohio State quickly converted. The d-pair of Devon Krogh and Chris Reed passed up to  Severyn, who skated in and scored into the empty net from the high slot at 16:34. The assist was Krogh's first career point. Ohio State had the only power-play chance in the period and put five shots on net in the stanza.  

Ohio State was outshot, 39-26, in the game. Heeter played all 60 minutes and had 39 saves for his first career shutout. Denver's Adam Murray had 22 stops in 56:42.

The Buckeyes were 1-for-4 on the power play and held the Pioneers scoreless on five chances.

Ohio State begins conference action on the road next weekend when it travels to Lake Superior State for a two-game series. The teams will meet at 7:05 p.m. Oct. 23-24 in Taffy Abel Arena in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.

John Markell, Ohio State head coach
On Denver's aggressiveness
"Denver is a good hockey club. They kept coming at us tough, but our guys won the battle and we had the hot goaltender."

On the shorthanded goal in the third period
"Our guys performed well during the power play and by blocking shots. We watched more tape than normal and we will do it again tomorrow. As long as they give good effort, they are going to win, and they are fun to coach that way."

Cal Heeter, sophomore goaltender
On the shutout
"Anytime a goalie picks up a shutout, you have to give ultimate, complete credit to the defense and the forwards. They got down and blocked shots, and Albert helped on the wraparound near the end of the game. I kicked out the loose rebounds and the defense took the puck out of the zone."

On the early 5-minute penalty
"After I saw it was a 5-minute penalty, I was a little worried. Denver has a great power play unit, but our defense and forwards played well and killed it."

On the first win
"This win was huge. The entire team played well. The win is huge for our spirits as we head out on the road next weekend."

Sergio Somma, junior forward
On the third goal
"I didn't do a lot, I just blocked the shot and it bounced in front of me and I got it to Johnny (Albert). He did the work and put the puck in the net."

On the first win
"It's a huge monkey off all of our backs. We felt like we were in a position where we deserved to win last night, but things didn't work out. We can build some confidence after this game as we head on the road."

George Gwozdecky, Denver head coach
On the game
"Last night, I mentioned how both teams displayed outstanding goaltending. Tonight, OSU only had great goaltending. Both outstanding goaltending and opportunistic forwards are the reasons they came out with the win tonight."

On the loss
"We lost tonight because we did not take opportunities.  We created chances but just could not take advantage of them. OSU deserves full credit. They took advantage of our mistakes."