Quick's time expires with Wolverines

By Matt Mackinder/Michigan Beat Writer

Michigan freshman defenseman Kevin Quick has been dismissed from the Wolverines hockey team, Michigan College Hockey has learned.

"He's gone," said a source in an email to MiCHO. "All (Michigan head coach) Red (Berenson) would say is that it wasn't a one-time violation of team rules and that it was egregious enough that a suspension wouldn't suffice. I don't know if he'll end up in Sarnia or not. He always seemed like a nice, polite kid. This is a big surprise to everybody."

Quick's Ontario Hockey League rights, and his younger brother Kyle's, belong to the Sarnia Sting after both were taken with back-to-back picks last May out of Salisbury Prep School.

Kevin, a 19-year-old Buffalo native, was drafted by Tampa Bay in the third round (78th overall) of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft

This year for U-M, Quick registered two goals and two assists in 21 games.

Photo courtesy University of Michigan

Lerg gains national monthly honors

Michigan State junior goalie Jeff Lerg, who backstopped the Spartans to a 5-0-3 record and posted a career-best shutout streak of 190:54, is a unanimous choice as the Hockey Commissioners’ Association National Division I Player of the Month for January.

Lerg, a 21-year old native of Livonia, posted a 1.32 goals-against average and .959 save percentage while sweeping all four CCHA Goaltender of the Week awards in January. He’s led the Spartans to the nation’s current longest unbeaten streak (5-0-3) and an undefeated run of 12 games (9-0-3) in conference action. The 5-foot-6, 155-pound product of the Omaha Lancers (USHL), who has lowered his GAA by half a goal in the past eight games, leads the nation in minutes played (1574:05) and ranks fifth among netminders in percentage of his team’s minutes played.

Lerg boasts a 0.81 GAA and .971 SV %. in his team’s last six contests, which includes two games each against No. 6 Notre Dame, Ohio State and No. 1 Michigan. Lerg allowed just 10 goals overall in January and only two goals in four road games while pitching shutouts at Ohio State on Jan. 19 and at Michigan on Jan. 25 for the first back-to-back shutouts of his career. His two shutouts in January give him eight for his career, which is fourth-best in team history.

Lerg named CCHA's best for January

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

Lerg, a 21-year old native of Livonia, went 5-0-3 with a 1.32 goals-against average and .959 save percentage while sweeping all four CCHA Goaltender of the Week awards in January. He’s backstopped the Spartans to the nation’s current longest unbeaten streak (5-0-3) and an unbeaten run of 12 games (9-0-3) in conference action. The 5-foot-6, 155-pound product of the Omaha Lancers (USHL), who has lowered his GAA by half a goal in the past eight games, leads the nation in minutes played (1574:05) and ranks fifth among netminders in percentage of his team’s minutes played.

In MSU’s last six contests, which includes two games each against No. 6 Notre Dame, Ohio State and No. 1 Michigan, Lerg boasts a 0.81 GAA and .971 SV %. Four of those games were played on the road - Lerg allowed just two goals in those four road games and pitched shutouts at Ohio State on Jan. 19 (4-0) and at Michigan (1-0) on Jan. 25 for the first consecutive shutouts of his career and the first by a Michigan State goalie since Feb. 20-21, 2004 at Munn Arena against Nebraska-Omaha.

Lerg’s two shutouts in January give him eight for his career, which is fourth-best in MSU history. He also established a new career mark by not allowing a goal in 190:54 of action. The shutout streak started on Jan. 18 following a goal late in the first period of a 4-1 win at Ohio State and extended through all or parts of 11 periods before being snapped by a power-play goal scored by Michigan in the second period of a 2-2 tie on Jan. 26.

Special mention for RBC Financial Group CCHA Player of the Month honors goes to Bowling Green senior forward Derek Whitmore, Ferris State junior forward Brendan Connolly, Miami senior forward Ryan Jones, Michigan junior goalie Billy Sauer, Nebraska-Omaha senior forward Bryan Marshall (Livonia), Notre Dame junior goalie Jordan Pearce and Western Michigan senior defenseman Nathan Ansell.

MSU takes three points from Michigan

By Matt Mackinder/Michigan & Michigan State Beat Writer

The Michigan State Spartans seem to be peaking at the right time and last weekend looked like the defending national champions by beating and tying then top-ranked Michigan in a home-and-home series.

MSU beat the Wolverines, 1-0, Friday night at Yost Ice Arena, but then gave up a late goal Saturday night for a 2-2 tie in East Lansing.

“(Michigan ) is the No.1 team in the country coming in,” Michigan State head coach Rick Comley said. “They were fortunate to be able to leave with a point. When two good teams go at each other, things happen.”

In Friday’s game, senior captain Bryan Lerg scored the lone goal and goalie Jeff Lerg stopped all 26 shots he faced for the win.

"I thought it was a very good game; I wanted to see how we would react and handle their speed," noted Comley. "I thought (Michigan goaltender Billy) Sauer kept them in the game for about the first 30 minutes. I thought he made some really good saves. It was up and down and I thought we got better as the game went on. Their power play got them going in the second and Jeff (Lerg) came up really big after that."

Sauer finished with 27 saves for U-M.

"Obviously, they came in and played a strong game on the road,” Wolverines head coach Red Berenson said. “We knew the power play could be a factor, and it was. They had just one goal, and that's all it took in this game. You never know how these games are going to go, but look at the past 20 games -- there are probably not more than a handful of goals that separate the winning and losing team. It was one goal; they're precious. So, that was a factor in the game and obviously we have to play better when we get the puck.”

Saturday at Munn Ice Arena, Matt Rust scored a controversial goal with 1:38 left in the game to pull Michigan into the 2-all statemate in front of 7,072 spectators (sixth largest in Munn history).

Rust cross-checked MSU defenseman Mike Ratchuk to the ice in front of Jeff Lerg and then scored the goal. The Spartans contested, but the goal stood.

“There should have been a penalty, but (the referees) didn't see it,” said Comley. “If they didn't see it, then they can't make a call.”

Max Pacioretty scored the game’s first goal for the Wolverines, but Daniel Vukovic and Tim Crowder answered with power-play goals 46 seconds apart.

"I think it was a hard-fought game,” Michigan senior captain Kevin Porter said. “Both teams were playing well. We both had our chances. Both goalies played great. Luckily, we got one in there at the end. I thought we had a lot of chances. Maybe that last goal was lucky, but to come out with a tie, I don't feel lucky at all. We could have won."

Sauer made 32 saves and Lerg turned aside 29 in the tie.

Michigan 's all-time record against Michigan State is 127-117-18. In East Lansing , U-M trails 41-57-8 and is winless in its last four (0-2-2).

The Spartans (17-5-5, 13-2-3 CCHA) host Nebraska-Omaha this weekend, while Michigan (22-3-1, 15-2-1 CCHA) hosts Northern Michigan for a pair.

Western Michigan tames Bulldogs

By Tom Morelli/WMU Beat Writer

Having lost their first two matchups with Ferris State University back in November, Western Michigan University refused to back down from their opponent this time around.

Just shy of 2,300 fans at the Lawson Arena in Kalamazoo, the Broncos gave an all-out effort from the opening face-off to the final whistle en route to a 4-3 win.

Freshman Ryan Watson led the charge for Western Michigan, scoring his third goal of the season with only 1:06 gone by in the first period.

The Bulldogs came back with a vengeance though, as Brendan Connolly and Mike Fillinger scored their goals just 23 seconds apart from one another for their first lead of the game.

With Fillinger and Evan Case in the penalty box, the Broncos took advantage of a 5 on 3 power-play, as defenseman Nate Ansell outmaneuvered FSU goaltender Pat Nagle for a game-tying goal. Helping out on the power-play goal was Patrick Gallivan and Tyler Ludwig.

Cody Chupp put the Bulldogs ahead once again, garnering a goal with the man-advantage at the 15:15 mark. Ferris State went into the locker room after the opening period ahead by a 3-2 score.

After a silent and scoreless second period, center Max Campbell put the Broncos back in contention, taking a pass from Ansell and Gallivan for the game-tying goal just a minute into the final stanza.

Junior Matt Clackson sealed the deal in front of the home crowd with 7:25 elapsed, thanks to the set-up by his brother Chris and winger Adam Flink.

Goaltender Riley Gill stopped 29 shots and registered his fifth win of the season for Western Michigan.

The win was also a milestone of sorts for WMU. Friday’s victory was the first for the Bulldogs in CCHA play since beating Ohio State on Nov. 23. 2007.

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Broncos make it 3 of 4
by Tom Balog / Ferris State Beat Writer

Western Michigan nearly evened the season series with their foes from “Up North”, but fell just short in a 3-3 tie with the Bulldogs in Big Rapids.

Ferris Freshman Mike Fillinger started the scoring with his second goal of the series and fourth of the year at 5:22 of the first period.

The Broncos responded with back-to-back goals from Jeff Pierce to lead 2-1 after 20 minutes.

The Bulldogs looked like they might take control in the second period starting with Brendan Connolly’s second shorthanded goal of the season at 7:09.

Connolly's goal gave him the FSU lead with 10 goals in 23 games and he is just one short of matching his career high of 11 goals in 38 games last season.

Justin Menke provided FSU with the lead again, scoring with a 5-on-3 advantage at 9:52.

The seesaw tilted back in the third period as Max Campbell scored the equalizer on the powerplay at 8:04.

Ferris outshot Western 5-4 in the extra frame, but were held scoreless to drop to 1-3-2 since winning the UConn Hockey Classic Championship in late December.

Mitch O'Keefe turned aside 27 of 30 shots in the FSU net. Riley Gill stopped 25 shots on the other end.

Ferris State (10-11-3, 7-9-2 CCHA) will now head out on a four-game road trip beginning at Lake Superior starting on Friday night.

Western Michigan (7-17-2, 3-14-1 CCHA) makes the long flight west this weekend for a pair of games against the Alaska Nanooks in Fairbanks.

Wildcats handled by USNTDP Saturday

Compiled by MiCHO Staff

Northern Michigan suffered a 5-2 exhibition loss to the U.S. National Under-18 Team Saturday night in Marquette behind two goals from Notre Dame recruit Patrick Gaul.

The Wildcats got two third-period goals from Erik Spady and Derek May, both assisted by Jared Brown, but that's as close as they came to being in the game.

Future Michigan Wolverines forward David Wohlberg scored 66 seconds into the game for the NTDP and David Warsofsky (Boston University recruit) and Jeremy Morin also scored for Team USA.

Reid Ellingson stopped 19 shots in net for NMU, while Joe Cannata (Merrimack recruit) made 21 stops at the other end.

This was Team USA's first-ever win over the Wildcats as NMU had enjoyed a 3-0-1 record all-time against the Americans.

Northern Michigan (10-15-1, 7-11-0 CCHA) travels to Michigan this weekend for two CCHA contests.

Lakers split with visiting Buckeyes

By Mike Burrill/LSSU Beat Writer

The Lake Superior State Lakers split a hard-fought series with the Ohio State Buckeyes at Taffy Abel Arena over the weekend. Both games were decided by one goal, with Saturday's victory coming in overtime.

Friday night, OSU scored with eight seconds left in the game to steal the 4-3 win. The Buckeyes would open the scoring in the first, but junior Carter Lee would tie the game minutes later, scoring his first goal as a Laker since transferring from Northeastern. John Scrymgeour would earn the only assist.

Pat Aubry would give LSSU its first lead of the game, snapping a shot under the crossbar early in the second. Scrymgeour and defenseman Steve Oleksy nicely set up the play. With the game tied at two going into the third, Zac MacVoy would score a goal assisted by Dan Eaves and Chad Nehring to give the Lakers their second lead of the game. Lake State would give up two power-play goals in the last ten minutes of the game.

The Lakers were 0-3 on the power-play, however, they did put the puck in the net during a first period opportunity. Overzealous referee Brian Hill blew the whistle after losing sight of the puck to void the goal, but he had no problem letting the Buckeye players run and bang away at Laker netminder Brian Mahoney-Wilson in order to score, despite him covering the puck.

Mahoney-Wilson was excellent in goal despite that fact, making 35 saves in the game.

Saturday night, it was the Lakers who came out strong, scoring three goals in the first period in route to the 6-5 overtime win. Team captain Troy Schwab would get the first two goals for LSSU. His first was on the power play assisted by Steve Kaunisto, while the second goal was an even-strength tally assisted by Nathan Perkovich.

In the second, LSSU would add two more power-play goals to hold off the Buckeyes at the end of the second. Will Acton's goal was assisted by MacVoy and Matt Cowie. Perkovich would then score a goal of his own with Schwab getting the only helper.

The Lakers gave up two more third period power-play goals to send the game into overtime, where MacVoy would beat the Ohio State goalie on a nice feed from Cowie. Defenseman Simon Gysbers would also earn an assist.

Lake Superior was 5-for-8 on the power play. Mahoney-Wilson was in net again for the Lakers, making 31 saves including 14 in the third period.

LSSU (4-16-4, 2-13-3 CCHA) is back at home this upcoming weekend when they take on the Ferris State Bulldogs in CCHA action.

Warriors rebound, sweep UAH at home

By Karl Henkel/Wayne State Men's Beat Writer

As tough as losing a pair last weekend to Niagara was, Wayne State got back on track with a sweep of Alabama-Huntsville at the Taylor SportsPlex this weekend.

In the opener, Mike Forgie and Tylor Michel each scored and Jared Katz had two assists as the Warriors defeated the Chargers, 2-0.

Brett Bothwell made 15 saves for his first collegiate shutout, and also picked up an assist on Michel's second-period marker. Bothwell becomes just the second WSU goalie to record a helper, with David Guerrera doing it twice in 2002.

Bothwell was also helped by the play of his defense, which blocked nearly as many shots as Bothwell faced himself.

“They didn't have a lot (of opportunities),” head coach Bill Wilkinson said afterwards. “They hit the pipe once on the power play, but other than that, I thought the whole team defense was solid.”

The finale, however, wasn't as pretty as the opener.

Matt Krug slapped home a first-period power-play goal and Derek Punches scored two goals of his own with the man-advantage, giving Wayne State a 3-0 lead early in the third.

On a routine dump-in attempt by UAH's Matt Baxter, the puck caromed off the end boards in front of the net. Josh Murray tapped home a goal from just outside the crease.

Andrew Coburn and Kevin Morrison scored later in the period to send the game into overtime, 3-3.

With just 50 seconds left in the extra frame, a rebound off UAH goalie Cameron Talbot on a shot from Tyler Ruel found its way onto the stick of Chris Kushneriuk, who roofed it for his first collegiate goal.

Although satisfied with the sweep, nobody was thrilled with the third period. It was the third time in four games WSU had blown a lead in the final period.

“It's just a mental lapse,” Krug said of the collapse. “We are definitely in shape, that's not an issue for us, it's just for some reason, late in the game, we have a mental lapse.”

Wayne State (7-17-2, 3-7-0 CHA) hits the road for a pair of games against the Beavers of Bemidji State this weekend. The two split an earlier series at the Michigan State Fairgrounds Coliseum, with BSU taking game one, 3-1, and WSU getting even with a 5-2 win in game two. The Beavers currently sit atop the CHA standings, six points ahead of second-place Niagara.

Warriors set records in weekend sweep

By Susannah Nichols/ WSU Women's Beat Writer

Melissa Boal leads the country in points.

Lindsay DiPietro has earned more assists this season than any player in program history.

And with a pair of wins over Robert Morris last weekend, the Wayne State Warriors' seven-game unbeaten streak set a school record.

DiPietro (pictured) was a critical force in Friday’s 6-1 victory. She opened scoring for the Warriors at 1:15 of the first period, getting assists from Boal and Sam Poyton. RMU’s Kristen Miles evened the score, but Boal, with some help from Poyton and DiPietro, put the Warriors ahead for good. Amanda Hungle set up Sammi Bowers to put the Warriors up, 3-1, and Poyton and DiPietro again combined to help Boal light the lamp. Then it was Poyton’s turn to score, assisted unsurprisingly by Boal and DiPietro.

DiPietro added one more assist—her game total of four was also a school record—to help Chelsea Burnett notch her first goal of the season.

Senior netminder Valery Turcotte recorded 24 saves for the win.

Turcotte was also a key player in Saturday’s game. RMU outshot WSU, 34-30, but Turcotte recorded 30 saves in the 6-4 win, including 12 in the first period.

The Warriors struck first. Boal turned the tables on the Colonials, wresting control of the puck and scoring shorthanded. RMU responded with two straight goals, but Katrina Protopapas tied things up with a goal in the last minute of the period. DiPietro and Tegan Schroeder were credited with assists on the play.

DiPietro scored once and Boal twice (capping off her hat trick) to put the Warriors ahead in the second period. DiPietro capitalized on a penalty shot for her 12th goal of the season and RMU's late-period goal wasn't enough of a comeback as the 6-4 score stood until the final whistle.

The Warriors (14-6-2 overall, 2-0-0 CHA) are on the road again next weekend as they’ll attempt to extend their unbeaten streak when they face CHA rival Niagara on Saturday and Sunday.

Tech takes three from No. 3 CC

By Andy Bourdeau/Michigan Tech Beat Writer

Michigan Tech (10-11-3, 6-8-1 WCHA) rode the shoulders of the senior class as they put together one of their best weekend series of the year, taking three points from the then-third-ranked Colorado College Tigers. The teams skated to a 2-2 tie on Friday night, followed by a 5-2 MTU win on Saturday night.

“The seniors have really led us well,” said Huskies’ coach Jamie Russell, which was evident on the score sheet as well, with the seniors notching 11 points on the weekend.

Friday, the Tigers got out early, but MTU was able to tie it going into the first intermission. It was Ryan Angelow who got the goal for the Huskies. Neither of the teams could get a goal in the second, but both had good chances.

In the third, it was captain Jimmy Kerr getting the go-ahead goal in the first four minutes of the period. CC tied the game with eight minutes remaining, but no team could get the game-winner.

MTU welcomed back Michael Lee Teslak and he showed no signs of weakness, continuing as if he was never gone. Teslak made 28 of 30 saves, with many very good stops.

On Saturday, the Huskies came out fast as Jordan Foote scored the opening goal 1:18 into the period. Peter Rouleau notched the Huskies second goal, giving the home team a 2-0 lead going into the locker room.

The Tigers made it a one-goal game early in the period when they squeezed one past Robbie Nolan. Tyler Shelast gave the home team a second two-goal lead when he found the back of the net finishing off a nice feed from Rouleau. Again CC made it a one-goal game, this time with a power-play goal in the last minute of the period.

The Tigers came out flying in the third, but were unable to beat Nolan. Instead, MTU was able to get two more goals, one by Malcolm Gwilliam and the other by Ryan Bunger. The Gwilliam goal was set up once again by Rouleau, who ended the night with three points.

Nolan ended the night with 33 saves.

MTU continues their WCHA play this weekend, travelling to Anchorage for a two-game series with the Alaska-Anchorage Seawolves.