GBMWolverine: Michigan Hockey -- Ferris State at Michigan -- Bulldogs Invade Yost Arena With Swagger -- Preview

Posted at 6:00am — 10/27/2011

GBMWolverine: Michigan Hockey — Ferris State at Michigan — Bulldogs Invade Yost Arena With Swagger — Preview

#4 Michigan (4-1-1, 0-1-1-1 CCHA) vs. #6/7 Ferris State Bulldogs (6-0-0, 2-0-0-0 CCHA)
7:35 p.m. Thursday & Friday, Yost Ice Arena.
TV: Thursday, Comcast Local ch.900 Friday: none.

The Wolverines and Bulldogs meet for the 98th & 99th times with Michigan holding a 65-28-4 edge, including a 39-10-0 advantage at Yost. The teams last met January, 2011 (3-2 away, 6-1 home wins.) The last FSU win against Michigan was January, 2010 a 3-2 decision in Big Rapids. The Bulldogs were 0-3-1-1 against the Wolverines last season.

Rewinding Michigan’s Previous Action:

Michigan traveled up to NMU wearing the #1 ranking and fell to a revved up Wildcat team last Friday, 5-3. The turning point in the game came just past the halfway point of the second period with the game knotted at 0-0. A NMU forward (Andrew Cherniwchan) had a partial breakaway and was upended by Lee Moffie just after getting off a shot. He was taken through the crease jarring the net off and ended up near the edge of the net. Meanwhile, a skirmish broke out in the corner after another NMU player (Reed Steckel) flew in and decked Luke Moffatt. Cherniwchan, in his haste to get into the fracas, skated back through the crease, incensing Michigan goaltender Shawn Hunwick, who was still down on the ice. Hunwick tripped the NMU forward then proceeded to drill Cherniwchan under the chin with his blocker after both players got up, setting off another skirmish. Michigan’s Luke Moffatt came in to his goaltender’s defense and knocked Cherniwchan to the ice. Both squared off, throwing punches. All three players were sent off for the evening, with Hunwick receiving a five minute major for contact to the head and a game misconduct, while the other two received fighting majors and game disqualifications. This meant that Moffatt would not play on Saturday night. Steckel was given a double minor for his handy work and Moffie ironically did not receive a penalty.

Back-up goaltender Adam Janecyk assumed the net-minding duties and promptly gave up two goals sandwiched by a Lindsay Sparks breakaway tally. The period ended 2-1, with all three goals scored within 1:30 of each other. In the third period, NMU stretched the lead to 3-1 before Michigan roared back with goals by Zach Hyman (his first career goal) and Travis Lynch, who tied the game with 3:46 left. Unfortunately, Janecyk surrendered the winning tally with just 1:24 left on what would be termed as a rather soft, short-side goal. The Wildcats added an empty net goal for the final margin.

On Saturday night, Michigan came out flying, taking a 2-0 lead to the dressing room on goals by AJ Treais and Sparks. In the second period, though, the Wolverines lost their momentum and surrendered two PP goals before junior Kevin Lynch finally notched his first goal of the season late in the period for a 3-2 Michigan lead after two periods. Hunwick was victimized just: 59 in the third period, though and both teams skated late into the period tied 3-3. The Wolverines then received a golden opportunity to win the game in regulation. Michigan’s Travis Lynch was skating for a loose puck near center ice and was blindsided with a borderline check that was ruled contact to the head. The NMU forward (Matt Thurber) was sent off for the evening and Michigan was given a five minute PP to work with- a minute left in regulation and the balance in OT if needed. Unfortunately, Michigan threatened a couple of times but couldn’t get the winner and held on for the remainder of overtime. AJ Treais came through for Michigan in the shootout, though and Hunwick stoned three NMU skaters for a 1-0 shootout win and a 4-3 final. NMU takes a single point for a tie/shootout loss and Michigan receives two points for a tie and a shootout win.

Yostmeister Three Stars Of The Weekend:

1. NMU – Tyler Gron – who potted three goals for the Cats, two on the PP.
2. Michigan – Lindsay Sparks – enjoyed a 2-2-4 weekend and was Michigan’s most dangerous forward
3. NMU – Mitch Jones – the NMU defender scored twice, including the game tying goal on Saturday

Scouting the Bulldogs:

Ferris State has to be one of the milder surprises so far in the CCHA and in college hockey. The Bulldogs are trying to rebound from missing the CCHA semi’s and the NCAA playoffs last season, after being on the cusp of a NCAA berth in 2009-10. They were expected to be a mid-pack team after losing some quality defensive talent last season but have jumped out of the gate so far this season. Ferris State is usually a team that will play a solid defensive game with outstanding goal-tending and penalty killing. To no one’s surprise, they have those ingredients so far this season, with better than expected offensive punch.

The ‘Dogs quietly swept St. Lawrence on the road before returning home to the friendly (and tiny) confines of Ewigleben Arena for a four game home swing. Ferris State completely shutdown a decent RPI team, earning shutouts both nights. The real test came last weekend, though, when Miami visited- the same Miami team that is favored to battle Notre Dame for league supremacy this season. Bob Daniel’s team took care of business both nights, shocking the Redhawks 4-2 and 2-0, with the latter behind super-freshman goaltender CJ Motte. The young net-minder earned CCHA GOTW honors for his work last weekend and has two of the three shutouts for the Bulldogs in 180 minutes of work, sporting a 3-0-0 record with a .33 GAA to go with a .986 save%. His partner, senior Taylor Nelson is no slouch, either. Nelson is also 3-0-0 on the season with a 1.34 GAA and a .943 save %. The sample size, albeit small, provides enough proof that this tandem is the real deal.

Overall, the Bulldogs rely on an eight member senior class to lead a well balanced roster of youth and experience. Three juniors are leading the offensive charge so far: Travis Ouellette (6-2-8), Kyle Bonis (5-1-6) and Eric Alexander (2-4-6) have provided balanced scoring across the two top lines. They are aided by senior Jordie Johnston (2-2-4) and junior Matt Kirzinger (0-4-4). Freshman TJ Schlueter has a nose for the net, too, potting 2-3-5 so far. It appears that the Bulldogs have the speed to jump into offensive opportunities while not foregoing their defensive responsibilities. But, as usual, the Bulldogs have a solid core of defense-men to rely on, too. CCHA DOTW Chad Billens has combined tough physical play with offensive skill, earning six helpers so far this season. Big hitting senior defense-man Brett Wysopal has also chipped in with 0-3-3. One of the telling statistics in this young season is how Ferris is not sitting back and hanging on to leads in the final period. So far the Bulldogs have outscored their opponents 12-1 in the last stanza-after grinding them down defensively. This, by far, is one of the biggest differences in this team- making good on their offensive chances and shutting down good offensive teams in the process. Ferris State is currently 14th in scoring at 3.5 goals per game, while allowing a miniscule .83 GPG (4th.) Their biggest x-factor- especially against the Wolverines- could be their special teams. Currently they are clicking at a 25% conversion on the PP (T-8th) and conversely have the 2nd best PK in the country at 96.4%. The Achilles Heel in the past for the Bulldogs has been their propensity for taking bad penalties. So far, though, they have remained rather disciplined (for them) at 17.3 PM’s per game. It’s still an area Michigan could exploit depending on whether the Wolverines do not fall into the same trap.

Charting The Wolverines:

The Wolverines limp home after being physically punished and losing their mental and emotional edge last weekend. NMU came out aggressively and pounded Michigan every chance they could. It was a difficult adjustment for the team after starting off the campaign at home for their first four regular season games. What the Wolverines cannot afford to do is lose their focus against bigger teams that can match their speed. They will have to stay disciplined- something that their upper-class leadership failed to do in a hostile arena. I can’t emphasize this enough, especially for Shawn Hunwick. The fifth year senior cannot be melting down at the first sign of adversity or intimidation. His antics essentially cost Michigan a conference game and more importantly gave opponents an opportunity to use the same strategy in the future. WMU, if you recall, also utilized the same tact in the CCHA semi-finals last season to their advantage. Full marks to Hunwick, though, who sent a sincere post-game apology on twitter. I’m sure he also caught a dose of Red Berenson, who, in classic style, minced no words about how he would address that situation.

In general, the Wolverines surrendered two winnable games against a good opponent and must re-focus against an even better team this week. Guys like Chris Brown and Kevin Lynch have to use their size to their advantage and not take careless penalties. NMU made Michigan pay, where in turn, the Wolverines did not. It is something that, especially at home, needs remedied.

Nine different Wolverines got on the score sheet last weekend, with Sparks (5-4-9) highlighting the offense. A.J. Treais has chipped in 4-3-7 and David Wohlberg has quietly posted 2-5-7. Defenseman Greg Pateryn has a 2-4-6 line. Six players share fifth overall in team scoring with five points.

Michigan now is ranked 3rd overall in scoring with a 5.0 GPG average. The defense hasn’t been too bad, but has given up goals at inopportune times- like last Friday’s winner and last Saturday’s game tying marker. Still, the Wolverines hold down the 10th spot in the country at 2.17 GPG allowed. The sore spot has to be the Wolverine’s PK, which is an underwhelming 79.3% (34th.) The PP is not exactly lights out, either, posting a 17.2% conversion (29th.) If these two areas are not improved this weekend, the Wolverines could be looking at the wrong end of the score sheet again.

Shawn Hunwick still is anchoring down a 4-0-1 mark with a 1.51 GAA and a .944 save%, 6th best in the country. He’ll have to outplay the Bulldog goaltender duo to keep his perfect mark in tact. Back-up goaltender Adam Janecyk was unfairly thrown into the fire last Friday and will have to re-group after a poor outing that saw him take his first decision.

Wohlberg (4-4-8), Moffie (2-1-3), Brown (1-2-3) and Pateryn (0-3-3) all have good offensive numbers against Ferris State and are counted on to lead the push this season, anyway. I particularly would like to see Brown breakout, especially on the PP.

Expectation:

The Wolverines are in the midst of a tough stretch of games against some of the better teams in the conference and must play with a keen sense of urgency. Ferris State is going to come into Yost with a core group of players that know how to handle the hostile environment. The Wolverines must avoid a slow start and stay patient and disciplined. Their chances will be few, especially early, so it will be vital to gain the lead on this team. The freshmen have showed some moxie offensively, but are struggling to put together good periods back to back, yet alone an entire game. Ferris is very opportunistic, so the mistakes have to be kept to a minimum. They will force Michigan to hurry passes, make bad reads, and force sloppy clears- a bugaboo that has yet to be improved. Score first, apply offensive pressure and take care of the puck against this team because they turn mistakes into goals. Yost is an advantage, so maybe the passes will be crisper and the defensive effort sharper. Still, I have my concerns, especially with the lack of mental discipline displayed last weekend. Hunwick will have to be the difference.

Thursday: Michigan 3-2. Friday: Ferris State-3-1

Yost Bits:
-Congratulations to freshman Zach Hyman who netted his first career goal last weekend.

-The Wolverines are 9-1 in their last ten meetings against the Bulldogs at Yost arena and have not lost since February, 2006, a 4-3 OT decision. These will be the only two regular season meetings this season.

-FSU, like NMU, will also move on to the re-vamped WCHA in two seasons. Michigan will make their last regular season trip to Big Rapids next season.

-Lindsay Sparks is seeking to extend a four game point streak in which he has scored 3G and 3A.

-Michigan will conclude its first month of the season at home next weekend against Western Michigan University.

-Merrill News: More optimistic word is leaking out that sophomore defense-man Jon Merrill is not considering a jump to Plymouth of the OHL and will continue to work towards resolving his issues and return to the team. Speculation is that he will join the team for practice next month, but may not be inserted into the lineup until after Christmas. This is a very fluid and fragile situation that could turn at any given time. Let’s all hope that Jon comes back fully committed to the program and to his studies.

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Written by GBMWolverine Staff — YostMeister

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