Lerg named CCHA's best for March

The Central Collegiate Hockey Association announced today that freshman goaltender Jeff Lerg of Michigan State University has been named the RBC Financial Group CCHA Player of the Month for March.

The 19-year old from Livonia, Mich., named the CCHA Rookie of the Year at the CCHA Awards banquet on March 16, added another honor to his collection just two days later when he was captured the Bill Beagan trophy as the most valuable player of the CCHA Playoffs by allowing just two goals on 47 shots, backstopping the Spartans to their 11th CCHA Tournament title and an automatic berth in the NCAA Division I Tournament. In the East Regional semifinals, Lerg turned aside all 36 New Hampshire shots for his third shutout of the season as the Spartans advanced to the championship game with a 1-0 win over New Hampshire of Hockey East.

The 5-foot-6, 150-pound netminder opened the month by recording 80 saves in a three-game series against Alaska Fairbanks, helping the Spartans advance to CCHA Championship Weekend at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. Lerg stopped 25-of-26 shots against Michigan in the semifi nals as the Spartans defeated the Wolverines, 4-1, to move into the title game against CCHA regular-season champion Miami. The diminutive Lerg made 22 saves against the RedHawks to lead Michigan State to a 2-1 victory, and the Mason Cup crown. He finished the month with a 5-2-0 record, 1.87 goals-against average and a .937 save percentage.

Lerg, named the Hockey Commissioners Association (HCA) National Rookie of the Month for January, enjoyed a standout rookie campaign. In 19 CCHA contests, he posted a 9-3-6 mark with a 2.03 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage. Lerg ranks third nationally in overall goals-against average at 1.96 and seventh nationally with a .928 save percentage.

Special mention for RBC Financial Group CCHA Player of the Month honors goes to Bowling Green sophomore forward Jonathan Matsumoto, Michigan senior forward Andrew Ebbett, Miami sophomore forward Ryan Jones, Alaska Fairbanks sophomore forward Aaron Lee, Northern Michigan senior defenseman Nathan Oystrick, Ferris State freshman forward Dan Riedel and Western Michigan senior forward Brent Walton.

2005-06 RBC Financial Group Players of the Month
March - Jeff Lerg, FR, G, Michigan State
February - David Brown, JR, G, Notre Dame
January - Andy Greene (Trenton), SR, D, Miami
December - Bill Thomas SO, F, Nebraska-Omaha
November - Alex Foster (Canton), SO, F, Bowling Green
October - Bill Zaniboni, SO, G, Northern Michigan

Johnson staying at Michigan...for now

From TSN...

Despite the best efforts of the Carolina Hurricanes, defenceman Jack Johnson has decided to remain at the University of Michigan for at least one more year.

Johnson, the third overall pick in last summer's NHL Entry Draft, informed the Hurricanes through his family advisor on Tuesday that he would not turn pro at this time, even though the Hurricanes made a concerted bid to sign him and immediately insert him into the NHL team's lineup for the stretch drive and playoffs.

The Hurricanes feel as though he's ready to contribute now at the NHL level, but Johnson, a freshman at Michigan, decided he would rather get more seasoning in the college game than make a move now.

"Jack thought long and hard about it," said Pat Brisson, the family advisor. "It was very flattering for him that Carolina was so interested but Jack just feels his development is best served by staying another year at school. It was a tough decision but Jack feels good about it."

The Wolverines were eliminated from the NCAA playoffs last week.

Photo courtesy Getty Images/NHL.

MSU ousted in East Regional Final by Maine

By JOHN KEKIS, The Associated Press

The Black Bears are going back to the Frozen Four.

John Hopson scored twice, Derek Damon had a goal and an assist, and Greg Moore's empty-netter in the final minute proved the game-winner as Maine beat Michigan State, 5-4, on Sunday in the East Regional final.

Maine (28-11-2), which earned an at-large bid after losing to Boston College in the semifinals of the Hockey East tournament, has been to nine Frozen Fours and won titles in 1993 and 1999. The Black Bears will play the winner of the Midwest Regional final between Wisconsin (27-10-3) and Cornell (22-8-4), played later Sunday in Green Bay, Wis.

It was the fifth time the teams had met in the tournament, and the Spartans were 4-0.

Freshman goalie Jeff Lerg was the hero in Michigan State's 1-0 opening-round victory over New Hampshire, making 36 stops. He entered Sunday's game with a 1.51 goals-against average and .948 save percentage, but the Black Bears scored three times in the first period and the Spartans were unable to rally all the way back.

Maine began the game just as it did in beating Harvard 6-1 in Saturday's first-round game. The Black Bears repeatedly pinned the Spartans in their own zone and took a 1-0 lead off a faceoff in the Michigan State zone.

Damon, fresh from a one-game suspension for violating the athletic department's student code of conduct, won the draw back to Matt Duffy, and his shot through a screen sailed past Lerg, who never saw it, at 3:13. It was just the third goal of the year for the freshman defenseman.

The Black Bears made it 2-0 midway through the period. Seconds after being stopped by Lerg, Hopson gained control of the puck along the left-wing boards and flipped a shot that deflected off a player in front and through Lerg's pads at 10:21.

At that point, Maine was outshooting Michigan State 12-3, and the Black Bears struck again just over six minutes later on a power play. Hopson scored on a deflection with only one second left in the extra man-advantage.

Michigan State finally began to exert some pressure on Maine goalie Ben Bishop in the closing minutes of the period and gained a 4-on-3 skating advantage with 1:07 left. With more open ice, the Spartans broke through when Tim Crowder split the defense and flipped a backhander just inside the left post with 44 seconds left in the period. It was his 16th goal of the season and second of the tournament.

But just when the Spartans were gaining momentum, Maine capitalized on a penalty to Michigan State's Tim Kennedy early in the second period. On the ensuing power play, Josh Soares whipped a cross-ice pass to Damon, who was standing just to the right of the cage, and he one-timed it past Lerg at 3:35 to put Maine up 4-1.

Undaunted, the Spartans came right back. Crowder scored from in front at 8:00 on another power play after David Booth made a great play at the left point to keep the puck in the zone.
After scoring two straight power-play goals against the best penalty-killing team in the nation -- Maine killed 89.7 percent of its penalties during the season -- the Spartans continued to press the attack.

The pressure paid off again in a startling way. The Spartans' Jim McKenzie (pictured) carried the puck deep along the right-wing boards on a rush, and just as he neared the goal line he flipped a high, rising shot toward the net that somehow sailed over the 6-foot-7 Bishop's left shoulder with a minute left in the period to make it 4-3.

Michigan State nearly tied it late in the third. Colton Fretter circled the net and his wraparound backhander hit the crossbar and caromed straight down into the crease. Bishop managed to cover the puck with 4:48 left before Drew Miller could get his stick on it.

Michigan State pulled Lerg for an extra skater with 79 seconds remaining, but Moore scored an empty-net goal with 36 seconds left to make it 5-3.

That proved huge when Miller scored unassisted off a goalmouth scramble with five seconds left, and it kept Maine's amazing record intact. The Black Bears are now unbeaten in the last 108 games in which they've entered the third period with a lead (102 wins and six ties).

The anticipated goaltending duel between the 5-6 Lerg and Bishop never materialized. Lerg finished with 29 saves and Bishop had 33.

Wolverines eliminated by North Dakota

The No. 12-ranked Michigan Wolverines fell behind 3-0 to No. 6-ranked North Dakota on two power-play goals and one shorthanded tally and could not recover, falling 5-1 Friday night in the first round of the NCAA West Regional at UND's Ralph Engelstad Arena.

Chad Kolarik (above) had U-M's lone tally, while Noah Ruden made 22 saves in net in his final collegiate game.

"They got the crowd into it, obviously," UM senior captain Andrew Ebbett said. "And just the two power-play goals, you've got to have good penalty kills if you're going to have a chance against a good team like this. You can't give them a power-play goal like that. We got behind and I thought we were alright. We came back and then that shorthanded goal was pretty much the killer of the game, that was pretty costly."

Michigan's run of 11 consecutive seasons with at least one NCAA Tournament victory came to an end. The last time U-M did not earn a win in the NCAA Tournament was in 1994 when it fell to Lake Superior State (5-4 OT) in the second round.

The three Michigan seniors - Ebbett, Ruden and forward Brandon Kaleniecki - played their final game in the Maize and Blue Friday night.

"Brandon Kaleniecki, Andrew Ebbett and Noah Ruden are the greatest teammates I've ever had and the the greatest captain and assistant captains, and I could go on and on," Kolarik said. "They're just great guys, guys you'd want in your wedding, guys you're going to keep in touch with the rest of your life."

"It's disappointing to come out on the short end," Michigan head coach Red Berenson said. "We had to come up with an upset and it just didn't happen."

The Sioux advanced to meet Holy Cross, who upset Minnesota Friday night, and beat the Crusaders, 5-2 on Saturday, to go to the Frozen Four in two weeks in Milwaukee.

Photo by Mike Mohaupt