Michigan Icers Saddle Up For Undefeated WMU Broncos
Posted at 6:00am — 11/4/2011
Michigan Icers Saddle Up For Undefeated WMU Broncos
#3 Michigan (6-1-1, 2-1-1-1 CCHA) vs. #4/6 Western Michigan Broncos (5-0-3, 3-0-1-1 CCHA)
7:35 p.m. Friday & Saturday, Yost Ice Arena. TV: Friday, FSD. Saturday, Comcast Local ch.900.
The Wolverines and Broncos first met in 1979 with Michigan holding a 67-27-10 edge, including a 40-11-2 advantage at Yost. The teams last met March 18th, 2011 with WMU shocking Michigan in the CCHA semi’s, 5-2. The last WMU regular season win against Michigan was a 2-1 decision at Yost on 11/14/08. Michigan won seven straight after that loss until that streak was snapped last March. The Broncos were 1-2-0 against the Wolverines last season, with Michigan sweeping at Yost, 6-3 and 4-3 in OT. The overtime game was tied up in the dying seconds by Carl Hagelin and won in dramatic fashion with seconds to go by the former Michigan captain.
Rewinding Michigan’s Previous Action:
The Wolverines got back on track with solid 5-2 and 4-0 wins over previously unbeaten Ferris State.
On Thursday, both teams played cautious hockey out of the gate, with neither netting a goal after one period. Michigan opened the scoring early in the second, though, when Phil DiGiuseppe (aka, “The Phil”) finished off a nice Chris Brown pass on the PP. for his fourth goal of the season. A little less than four minutes later, Michigan scored on a delayed penalty to stretch the lead to 2-0. Michigan’s Lee Moffie did a great job holding the puck in the Ferris zone, then set up partner Mac Bennett on the near boards. He walked in a lasered a shot that freshman Travis Lynch tipped high on the short side. Ferris netminder Taylor Nelson was frozen and never moved. Michigan was awarded a power play with the new rule wrinkle last season that allows an attacking team to still go on the PP after scoring on a delayed call. It took 1:34 to convert, as David Wohlberg smoked a drive from the top of the slot to stretch the lead to 3-0. Ferris countered, though, with an end to end PP rush by defenseman Chad Billins to close out the second period at 3-1. The Bulldogs controlled the play during the final period, but fell victim to a defensive lapse after a faceoff. Derek DeBlois slammed home a rebound to extend the lead to 4-1. Ferris came right back with seven minutes left on another PPG. But, “The Phil” scored his second goal of the night into an empty net to seal the win. Chris Brown earned another helper on the play.
On Friday night, the Wolverines received more balanced scoring and a little defensive luck in shutting out the Bulldogs. Alex Guptill scored in the first six minutes to give Michigan a 1-0 lead after one period. The Maize and Blue probably played one of their better offensive periods of the season in the second, scoring twice in the first five minutes on goals by Travis Lynch and AJ Treais. Chris Brown completed the barrage, scorching a wrister from about 18 feet over the outstretched glove of freshman phenom CJ Motte. Brown was set up on a nice feed from DiGiuseppe. The Wolverines outshot the Bulldogs 15-6 in the period, although Ferris cranked two shots off of pipe and came close numerous other times. The third period belonged to Ferris outshooting Michigan 9-3 and hitting a few more goalposts along the way. The Bulldogs came close especially in the last five minutes where Shawn Hunwick came up big to preserve the shutout. The game was rather chippy also, as Michigan was sentenced to 10 penalties for 23 minutes while FSU was sent off for 8 penalties for 19 minutes. Neither team scored on their PP chances.
Yostmeister Three Stars Of The Weekend:
1. Michigan – Phil DiGiuseppe – was a force with a 2-2-4 line for the weekend
2. Michigan – Chris Brown – also punched in a 1-3-4 weekend, playing with a broken thumb
3. Michigan – David Wohlberg – quietly added 1-2-3 and now is 5-6-11 against Ferris, all time
Scouting the Broncos:
Excuse me if this is sounding like a broken record, but WMU is another one of those up and coming teams that is looking to re-establish their program respect (longterm) at Michigan’s expense. New coach Andy Murray took over the reins for departed coach Jeff Blashill (who moved on to the Detroit Red Wings organization) and left the cupboard stocked with experienced and talented upperclassmen. Murray’s team is familiar with the Wolverines and is using this weekend as a measuring stick to see where their program is at this point. The Broncos have confidence knowing that their semi-final victory in last season’s CCHA playoffs was no fluke. This team is good, has depth and is ready to put to rest the recent past that saw Michigan own the Broncos (22-5 since 2001.) I preface this summary with that caution because the Broncos were nothing short of dreadful until last season’s awakening that saw WMU not only play in the CCHA championship game (a loss to Miami) but also led and could have beaten a very good Denver team in the NCAA tournament (they lost in OT.) The talent has matured and is spread across three solid lines. The defense is anchored with solid, experienced players. The goaltending is now split between another freshman phenom and a smooth veteran.
Murray has further tightened up what was a good defensive system last season. Just the same, the Broncos are an excellent transition team that can produce offense, too. They are currently led by soph. forwards Chase Balisy (3-6-9) and Shane Berschback (4-4-8). Junior forwards Trevor Elias (4-0-4) and Dane Walters (4-3-7) compliment the leadership of five seniors on the squad: JJ Crew (0-1-1), Ian Slater (1-4-5), Kyle O’Kane (0-1-1), Derek Roehl (1-2-3) and Greg Squires (2-2-4). The Broncos would be even stronger up front if it wasn’t for an unfortunate knee injury and academic suspension to redshirt juniors Ben Warda and Mike Leone. Both played key roles in last season’s resurgence and are expected to return sometime in the second half of the season. Freshman forward David Killips is also looking to add some punch already producing 2-3-5 for the season.
The defense is led by All-CCHA candidate (soph.) Dan DeKeyser (2-3-5). Junior iron men Matt Tennyson (2-3-5) and stay at home beast Luke Witkowski (0-2-2) are anchors in the other pairings, which feature freshman Garrett Haar (1-3-4).
The goaltending is in capable hands no matter what direction Murray turns to. He can ride junior Nick Pisellini who has posted a 2-0-2 record with a 1.68 GAA (12th) and a.931 save %. Or, he can turn to freshman Frank (okay, here goes… “The Big”) Slubowski who has a 3-0-1 mark with a 1.46 GAA (6th) and a .918 save %. My guess is that we will see the more experienced Pisellini at Yost this weekend.
The Broncos have played a pretty balanced schedule so far, beating up a bad UAH team to begin the season before skating on (future U-M opponent) #13 Union’s home ice and drawing twice. (Union is one of the ECAC conference favorites.) WMU went up to Alaska and took five out of six points, winning a game and tying/winning a shootout in the next. Last weekend they squeezed out a pair of wins over #17 NMU (4-2, 3-2 OT) and come into Yost brimming with optimism -even earning a first place vote in the USCHO poll.
WMU’s strength is still their defense. They do not allow many quality chances and shots on goal. They limited NMU to 14 and 15 shots respectively last weekend and surrendered 4 goals. They have the 4th best GA in the country at 1.62 per game. They stay out of the box, too, ranking 40th out of 58 schools at 12+ PM’s per game. Their PK has been solid at 88.6% (12th). On the flip side, their scoring is fairly potent at 3.62 GPG good for 12th also. They are having trouble converting PP’s, though, which is only at 15% (39th.)
Overall, there are few weaknesses on this team other than the PP or their blueline depth. Wikowski plays a ton of minutes and DeKeyser plays like a senior, so they cover up really well for their newcomers-three frosh d-men and one additional sophomore are on the WMU roster. They are comfortable in a tight game and will most likely be tested by the most balanced team they have played so far.
Charting The Wolverines:
Michigan seemed to have righted the ship last weekend against a very good opponent. They will now prepare for what will be a bigger test for them and one that I am sure they are willing to take on, especially at Yost. WMU and Michigan have continued a spirited and at times a nasty rivalry, even with the Wolverine’s dominance in this series. Games against the Broncos have always been intense battles especially when Michigan travels to Kalamazoo. The quirky eleven member conference doesn’t allow for the split type H&H series as in the past, and this will be the Broncos second consecutive series at Yost. It is a big advantage for the Wolverines and one they will have to take full use of.
The Wolverines are getting scoring from many sources now, something they lacked the past two seasons. Lindsay Sparks still leads the team (5-6-11) and is a consistent threat every shift. Sparks is 2-2-4 against WMU in four games. David Wohlberg has put together a nice start (3-7-10) and is really balancing his deft passing with his goal scoring touch. He has four goals in seven games to his credit against WMU and could be a factor. AJ Treais (5-4-9), Phil DiGiuseppe (5-4-9), Chris Brown (3-6-9) and Travis Lynch (4-3-7) carried the mail last weekend and appear to be Michigan’s hottest group of forwards. The only veteran that is struggling is Kevin Lynch, which is troubling. At some point Lynch will have to produce or see his ice time diminish. Ironically, Lynch has the most points against WMU than any other roster player with 3-5-8 in five games.
On defense, Greg Pateryn (2-4-6) continues to hold the fort during PK’s (and has 1-3-4 against WMU in seven games) and made several nice recoveries last week that would have resulted in scoring chances. Lee Moffie is starting to emerge as a solid two-way man, piling up assists (1-5-6) and holding a +13, second best on the blue line to surprising freshman Mike Chaisson’s +14. Mac Bennett has added 7 assists this season and has been given more time on the special teams.
Michigan moved up to 2nd overall in scoring with a 4.88 GPG average. The defense was solid last weekend, but Hunwick is still seeing too much rubber and too many good scoring chances. Still, the Wolverines moved up a spot to 9th in the country at 1.88 GPG allowed. The Wolverine’s PK, which is at 79.5% (36th) surrendered two more PP goals and now have surrendered 8 for the season in 39 attempts. The PP improved slightly up to an 18.4% conversion (T28th) potting a couple more PPG’s against Ferris. It remains a work in progress. Considering the stingy defense that the Bulldogs came in with, we’ll take it.
Shawn Hunwick remains the steady rock he is with a 6-0-1 mark, a dipping 1.37 GAA (3rd) and a .949 save%, 2nd best in the country. He’ll again have to outplay another opponent netminding tandem to secure success this weekend. I expect that he’ll have to be sharper than he was last weekend- and admits that he didn’t play his best even with the shutout last Saturday. His numbers in three games against WMU are not sharp, though: 2-1-0, 4.39 GAA and .852 sv%. He was eaten up by poor defensive play and an emotional outburst last March at JLA. As I previously mentioned, WMU got swept at Yost, yet Hunwick surrendered three goals in each game, with the last one a sure loss until some last minute heroics pulled it out.
Expectation:
The Wolverines are going to have to step up their game to another level against the Broncos. This will be the best team they will have faced so far and WMU is motivated to use this weekend as a stepping stone for the remainder of the season. Bronco fans are in full lather considering last season’s match in the CCHA semis, and expect their team- even with the recent history against Michigan and long Yost win string of 19 games against any opponent on Yost ice- to walk into our place and beat the Wolverines. Something tells me that this Michigan team will be prepared for the onslaught.
Friday: Michigan 3-2 (OT). Saturday: Michigan wins a shootout -2-1 after a 2-2 65 minute deadlock.
Yost Bits:
-New wrinkle at Yost: Michigan has added a scoring horn (resembling a train horn) after each goal now. I guess it is okay, as long as future marketing additions are not “me-too’s” exhibited at other rinks, be it college or the NHL. I like Yost the way it is- and the new twists- canned music, gimmicks etc. are passé.
-The Wolverines are actually riding a 20 game home win streak if you include the Big Chill game last season. Happily, poor exhibition outings do not count.
-WMU will move on to the newly formed National Collegiate Hockey Conference with current conference mate, Miami in two seasons. It will also feature North Dakota, UM-D, SCSU, UNO, CC and Denver.
-More Merrill News: Sophomore Forward Jon Merrill was given permission to begin practice with the team this week, but will not be allowed to play yet, according to coach Red Berenson. He still defines the suspension as “indefinite”. Best guess is that Merrill will be able to play after the holidays, pending a meeting with Berenson and Dave Brandon which will review Merrill’s progress towards the objectives set to re-join the team.
-Phil DiGiuseppe was named CCHA player of the week for the week ending October 31st AND player of the month for October for his efforts. He is ranked third in the country in rookie scoring and his +9 leads any Michigan forward. He also recently had his OHL rights traded from Niagara to the Windsor Spitfires fueling speculation that their aggressive (and disrespectful) GM (former NHL hack Warren Rychel) will squeeze “The Phil” into jumping to the OHL. DiGiuseppe’s NHL draft status projection is quickly rising, so hold on to your helmets. Hopefully the NHL team that selects DiGiuseppe will not press him into jumping into the professional ranks.
-Shawn Hunwick also was awarded by the CCHA as “Goaltender Of The Month” for his sterling play. Hunwick, aside from the top rankings in GAA and sv%, is also fourth in wins and tied for fifth in shutouts nationally.
-The Wolverines hit the road next weekend for a grudge match-up with their most recent arch-nemesis, Miami (aka, “tDynasty”.) They will finish November with home dates with Ohio State (2), Northeastern and Union.
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Written by GBMWolverine Staff — Yostmeister
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