All Michigan needed last weekend was one point against Ferris State to clinch a top-four finish and a first-round bye in the CCHA playoffs.Luckily, one point was all the Wolverines needed as the Bulldogs tied Michigan, 3-3, Friday night in Big Rapids and then defeated U-M in overtime, 4-3, on Saturday night in Ann Arbor.
"I really don't know (what happened)," Michigan head coach Red Berenson said Saturday. "We sat in the locker room, we talked the whole (second) intermission about playing well without the puck, coming back, getting the puck in deep, finishing our checks, playing good defensive hockey, and all the things we needed to do well in the third period. We did not do any of it."
Friday night, Alex Spezia (pictured), Eric Vesely and Matt Verdone scored for FSU (15-13-8, 10-11-7 CCHA) and goaltender Mitch O'Keefe stopped 31 shots in net. It was also a Ferris school record eighth tie this year.
Brandon Kaleniecki scored a pair for Michigan and Travis Turnbull the other. Billy Sauer made 36 saves for U-M.
The Wolverines (18-13-5, 13-10-5 CCHA) then blew a three-goal lead in the third period Saturday and lost in the extra session on a goal by Zac Pearson.
Mark Bomersback, Matt Frank and Corey Couturier tied the game in the third period for the Bulldogs before Pearson's heroics won it 42 seconds into OT. O'Keefe finished with 15 stops.
Turnbull, Jack Johnson and Andrew Cogliano accounted for Michigan's goals and Sauer had 26 saves.
Ferris State finishes tied for sixth in the CCHA, but gets the seventh seed based on Lake Superior State having one more win. Both teams had 27 points. The Bulldogs will now host the No. 10 seed, Ohio State, for a best-of-three CCHA first-round matchup starting Friday night.
Michigan has earned a bye into the quarterfinal round of the CCHA Tournament and will be off the weekend of March 3-5. As the No. 3 seed, U-M will host the reseeded No. 6 team in a best-of-three series March 10-12 at Yost Ice Arena.
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