Wayne State splits with Syracuse

Compiled by MiCHO Staff

Wayne State traveled to Syracuse over the weekend and mustered a split with the Orange in their first games in three weeks.

Friday night, WSU scored three unanswered goals on their way to a 3-1 win.

Gina Buquet, Chelsea Burnett and Veronique Laramee-Paquette (pictured) lit the map for the Warriors and Delayne Brian finished with 27 saves for the win.

The next night, WSU fell by a 3-2 score.

Alyssa Baldin and Julie Ingratta were the goal scorers and Laramee-Paquette assisted on both.

Brian made 23 saves in a losing effort.

Wayne State will close out the 2009 calendar year with a CHA series this weekend at Niagara.

Photo courtesy Wayne State Athletics

LSSU dominates, sweeps Bowling Green

Compiled by MiCHO Staff

Lake Superior State swept Bowling Green on the road over the weekend for their second sweep of the season and first in CCHA play.

Friday night, Matt Cowie and Simon Gysbers scored and Brian Mahoney-Wilson stopped 20 shots in the 2-1 win.

Then Saturday night, John Scrymgeour, Dan Barczuk, Rick Schofield (pictured), Nick McParland (first NCAA goal) and Dillin Stonehouse tallied in a 5-2 victory.

Pat Inglis stopped 36 shots for the win.

LSSU (8-7-3, 5-6-1-0 CCHA) hosts Northern Michigan this weekend.

Broncos upset No. 12 Alaska

By Karl Henkel/Western Michigan Beat Writer

Western Michigan got its first victory in nearly a month and nearly earned a sweep over No. 12 Alaska, finishing with a 3-1 win and a shootout defeat over the weekend.

After Alaska scored to open the series, the Broncos scored three straight times in the victory.

Jordan Collins scored twice, including an empty-netter to seal the first WMU victory since Nov. 7, a 2-1 win over Lake Superior State.

Riley Gill made 33 stops for WMU. Scott Greenham made 28 for Alaska.

In the second game, Western Michigan trailed by two goals early, and then couldn’t hold on to a late lead in a 5-4 shootout loss. After Alaska jumped out to a 2-0 first-period advantage, WMU, backed by another goal from Collins, tied it up in the second.

After the Nanooks took a 3-2 lead, Chris Clackson and Trevor Elias scored third-period markers for a 4-3 lead.

That lead lasted until the 19:46 mark, when Alaska, aided by an extra attacker, knotted things up.

The Nanooks won the shootout, 1-0, in three rounds.

Gill had 32 saves; Greenham had 33.

Western Michigan (6-7-3, 2-7-3-1 CCHA) has a home-and-home with Ferris State next weekend. Friday’s game in Kalamazoo starts at 7:35 p.m., while Saturday’s contest in Big Rapids begins at 5:05 p.m.

MTU manhandled by Wisconsin

By Andy Bourdeau/MTU Beat Writer

Michigan Tech was on the road again, looking for something to turn things around, but that did not happen in Madison, Wis., over the weekend as the Badgers scored and scored often, sweeping the Huskies 8-2 and 6-0.

It was the same old story for the Huskies - special teams. Wisconsin made them pay all weekend on special teams, and Tech did not have enough firepower to keep up.

Michigan Tech goals came from John Kivisto and Brett Olson on Friday night. Kevin Genoe and Josh Robinson split time in the net, making a combined 38 saves on Friday and 34 on Saturday (Genoe was in net all game Saturday).

A frustrated MTU head coach Jamie Russell commented, “Five-on-five, we’re not a bad hockey team.”

Russell is not wrong - MTU's penalty kill stands at a horrific 62.5 percent. With the amount of penalties taken by the Huskies, this equates to over two power-play goals a game for the oposing team, a formula for disaster.

Michigan Tech (3-11-0, 2-10-0 WCHA) will try to right the ship at home this weekend against a struggling Minnesota team.

Wildcats and Spartans do the splits

By Susannah Nichols/Northern Michigan Beat Writer

The No. 11 Michigan State Spartans blanked the Northern Michigan Wildcats 1-0 on Friday, but the Wildcats retaliated with a 3-2 overtime win on Saturday to conclude the two-game set up north.

The Wildcats' record now stands at 6-6-4, 5-4-3-0 in CCHA play. Michigan State, at 10-6-2 and 7-3-2-0 in the CCHA, trails only Miami for the conference lead.

State controlled the offensive energy in Friday's game as they outshot Northern, 37-20, including an 11-1 count in the second period.

Brian Stewart, Northern's goalie and the game's first star, turned away 36 shots and kept his team in the running.

Northern killed a five-minute penalty early in the third, and the teams appeared headed for a stalemate until late in the period when Corey Tropp netted the only goal the Spartans would need. Derek Grant picked up an assist on the goal, Tropp's 11th of the season.

MSU goalie Bobby Jarosz had 20 saves.

Northern's Matt Butcher was the first star of Saturday's game, and his fingerprints were on each of the 'Cats' three goals. He set up TJ Miller for Miller's first goal of the season to put Northern on the board late in the first.

Butcher then answered Dustin Gazley's goal with a tally of his own to give Northern a 2-1 lead. Tropp scored at 13:48 to send the game into overtime.

In overtime, Butcher scored at 3:59. Miller and Erik Spady, who assisted on Butcher's earlier goal, earned points on the play.

Stewart had 24 saves for Northern, while Drew Palmisano had 30 saves for State.

Northern faces UP rival Lake Superior State on the road next weekend. The Spartans have a home-and-home series with Bowling Green.

Bulldogs sweep aside UNO Mavericks

By Matt Mackinder/MiCHO Managing Editor

Ferris State's winning ways continued this weekend as the No. 17 Bulldogs swept the visiting Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks.

FSU topped 18th-ranked UNO, 2-0, Friday night and then 3-1 last night to run their unbeaten streak to eight games (6-0-2) and their home record to a perfect 10-0-0. In those 10 wins, the Bulldogs have outscored their opponents by a 44-17 margin.

In the 2-0 shutout, Taylor Nelson made 28 saves and the offense was led by goals from Matt Kirzinger and Blair Riley.

The next night, Ferris State scored all three goals in the second period and Nelson again finished with 28 stops.

Jordie Johnston, Brent Wysopal and captain Cody Chupp scored for FSU (11-3-2, 6-2-2-2 CCHA).

The Bulldogs will play a home-and-home series with Western Michigan next weekend. Ferris State will visit WMU next Friday before returning to Big Rapids on Saturday.

Michigan earns split with Ohio State

By Matt Mackinder/Michigan Beat Writer

Michigan hit the road this weekend for two games at Ohio State and while the games didn't have the intensity of a UM-OSU football game, the Wolverines played well enough to earn a split.

Friday night, Michigan never got better than a 2-2 tie and fell by a 5-3 count.

Luke Glendening and Chris Brown tied the game in the second period, but OSU scored three in the third with a Carl Hagelin goal late being UM's third marker.

Bryan Hogan finished with 15 saves in goal for the Wolverines.

"I thought we had the momentum in the game," Michigan head coach Red Berenson said. "You've got to capitalize on your chances and I don't think we did that tonight. We did have enough chances to win the game, but when you're playing from behind it's harder to score. I thought we had a good game. We have to play better, obviously. We gave up goals we can't give up to a team like that."

Then last night, Michigan captain Chris Summers and Matt Rust (pictured) scored power-play goals as UM held on for a 2-1 win.

Hogan allowed just an extra-attacker goal in the dying seconds of regulation to finish with 26 saves.

"Any time you get the first goal of the game, especially in the first period, the momentum is going your way," Summers said. "That's what we've talked about all year. That's what we always talk about every year - make sure we go out and get that first goal that might change the entire game, whether it be the morale of the forwards and making sure they're burying their chances or giving the defense more confidence to stay up and play a tight gap."

The Wolverines (8-8-0, 4-6-0-0 CCHA) have a staggered home-and-home series with Notre Dame next weekend. U-M hosts the Fighting Irish at Yost Ice Arena on Friday, while the series moves to South Bend on Sunday.

Photo courtesy UM Photo Services

Wohlberg, Brown World Junior-bound?

Michigan Press Release

Sophomore forward David Wohlberg and freshman forward Chris Brown of the University of Michigan hockey team have been chosen for the 2010 U.S. National Junior Team preliminary roster, USA Hockey announced Wednesday morning.

Additionally, recruit Jon Merrill, a defenseman for U-M starting in 2010-11, was picked for the team.

Wohlberg (pictured), Brown and Merrill are three of 29 players (16 forwards, 11 defensemen, two goalies) that will take part in a three-day pre-tournament training camp from Dec. 17-19 in Grand Forks, N.D. Following exhibition games against North Dakota on Dec. 19 and the Czech Republic on Dec. 22, the final U.S. roster will be set for the 2010 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship, which is being played Dec. 26, 2009-Jan. 5, 2010, in Saskatoon and Regina, Saskatchewan. The world's top players born in 1990 or later will represent their respective national teams.

Wohlberg has yet to compete in an IIHF World Junior Championship. He skated in the 2008 U.S. National Junior Evaluation Camp and was invited to the 2009 U.S. NJEC but was unable to participate. Wohlberg spent two years with the U.S. National Team Development Program (2006-08), where he won a bronze medal with Team USA at the 2008 IIHF World Under-18 Championship.

Brown has not skated for Team USA's World Junior Team. He did compete for Team USA at last spring's 2009 IIHF World Under-18 Championship, winning a gold medal alongside Merrill. Brown spent two seasons with the U.S. NTDP from 2007-09.

A total of 28 current or former Wolverines have skated for Team USA in the WJC, including at least one representative from U-M in each of the past 11 years. Matt Rust and Aaron Palushaj were members of the U.S. roster at the 2009 WJC. Chris Summers and Rust were on the 2008 U.S. squad.

Wohlberg and Brown will remain with the Wolverines through the next two weekend series against Ohio State (Dec. 4-5) and Notre Dame (Dec. 11-13). They could potentially miss U-M's two contests during the Great Lakes Invitational (Dec. 29-30).

USA Hockey Release

Photo courtesy UM Photo Services

MiCHO Power Poll 12.02.09

This week's MiCHO Power Poll looks exactly the same as last week with the Ferris State Bulldogs in the top spot for the second week in a row.

FSU was idle last weekend, while the Michigan State Spartans, who were swept on home ice at the College Hockey Showcase, just barely stay at No. 2.

Michigan holds steady at No. 3 after sweeping their two games at the College Hockey Showcase.

1) Ferris State (idle)
2) Michigan State (lost to Wisconsin, Minnesota)
3) Michigan (beat Minnesota, Wisconsin)
4) Northern Michigan (tied Alaska twice)
5) Western Michigan (swept by Nebraska-Omaha)
6) Lake Superior State (tied Union, Bentley)
7) Michigan Tech (swept by Minnesota State)

Each week, MichiganCollegeHockey.com staffers will compile the MiCHO Power Poll. The poll will comprise the seven Division I teams in the state of Michigan.

FSU's Riley wins CCHA monthly award

CCHA Press Release

The Central Collegiate Hockey Association announced today that senior forward Blair Riley of Ferris State has been named the RBC Financial Group CCHA Player of the Month for November. This is the first time Riley has earned the honor in his career.

Riley, a 24-year-old from Kamloops, British Columbia, led the Bulldogs to a 4-0-2 record in November while totaling eight goals and two assists for a total of 10 points. He is tied for first in the nation with 12 goals scored on the season and fourth with a 0.86 goals-per-game average. With the help of Riley, the Bulldogs have climbed to No. 17 in the USCHO.com/CBS College Sports poll after compiling a 9-3-2 record overall and fifth place in the CCHA standings with a 4-2-2-2 mark.

The 6-foot, 220-pound senior was named CCHA and insidecollegehockey.com Player of the Week on Nov. 23 after recording his second career hat trick and an assist in an 8-1 victory over Ohio State Nov. 20. Riley also produced multiple-point games with two goals against Bowling Green (Nov. 6) and Miami (Nov. 13) to go with a goal and an assist versus Ohio State (Nov. 21).

Special mention for RBC Financial Group CCHA Player of the Month honors goes to Bowling Green senior forward Tomas Petruska, Miami sophomore goaltender Cody Reichard, Michigan junior forward Carl Hagelin, Michigan State sophomore goaltender Drew Palmisano, Nebraska-Omaha senior defenseman Eddie DelGrosso, Northern Michigan junior forward Greger Hanson, Notre Dame sophomore forward Billy Maday and Ohio State sophomore forward Zac Dalpe.

Photo courtesy Ferris State Athletics

Bulldogs sign NHL prospect Huff

Ferris State Press Release

Ferris State announced the signing of three forwards with Andy Huff (Howell), Justin DeMartino (Macomb) and Cory Kane (Irvine, Calif.) set to join the Bulldogs starting with the 2010-11 season.

The trio inked with Ferris State during November's early-signing period.

"We're excited about attracting one of Michigan's top players in Andy Huff," said FSU associate head coach and recruiting coordinator Drew Famulak. "Andy will be one of the few true freshmen to have played at Ferris State and has the potential to be an impact player. We put an emphasis on recruiting forwards who have the ability to create offense. We have several seniors this season at the forward position who will be graduating so we needed to address this area.

"Through our successful strength and conditioning program, we anticipate their transition to our program will be a productive one from the beginning. We're committed to not only getting talented players, but quality student-athletes and role models in the community."

* Andy Huff (6-2, 210; 5/30/92) is presently skating for the Traverse City (Mich.) North Stars of the North American Hockey League. He presently leads the North Stars in scoring with 20 points on a team-high 15 goals with five assists in 19 contests this season. The forward has also posted a plus 13 efficiency rating while registering six power-play lamplighters and four game-winning markers this 2009-10 campaign for head coach Anthony Palumbo's squad. Huff, who was recently among 13 NAHL skaters to make the National Hockey League's watchlist for the 2010 entry draft, is currently tied for 12th place among the NAHL's top points producers while tying for 11th-place honors on the league's leading forward scorers list. Prior to Traverse City, Huff racked up 34 goals and 28 assists for 62 points in the 2008-09 season while playing for Honeybaked.

"Andy has very good offensive instincts with the ability to score goals. He's a true freshman who has the ability to play both the left and right wing positions," said Famulak.

* Justin DeMartino (6-5, 220; 6/6/91) is a current member of the North American Hockey League's (NAHL) Springfield (Ill.) Jr. Blues under head coach Andy Maher. In the 2008-09 campaign, DeMartino accumulated a team-best tying 84 points as a result of generating 49 goals with 35 assists in 78 total contests for Little Caesars. He also played an integral role in leading the Little Caesars Midget Minor team to a 2008 USA Hockey Under-16 national championship title.

"Justin is a north-south straightline type of player who has very good hands and possesses the ability to make plays around the net," Famulak said.

* Cory Kane (6-3, 198; 9/15/90) has chalked up 29 points this season for the Vernon (British Columbia) Vipers of the British Columbia Hockey League with 12 goals and 17 assists in 29 outings. Kane has netted three short-handed goals, two game-winning tallies, and one power-play lamplighter this season in his second year with the Vipers, who are coached by Mark Ferner. The forward is currently listed 27th on BCHL's scoring leaders chart for this 2009-10 campaign. In the 2008-09 season, Kane notched 54 overall points on 24 goals and 30 assists in 76 contests. He finished 65th in league scoring with 42 points on 22 goals and 22 helpers in 59 encounters.

"Cory also can create offense through his size playmaking skills. He has a professional release on his wrist shot which is also highly accurate," stated Famulak.