('uckih9 Icer's sad season ... 0. is effort to blame? The Michigan Daily-Tuesday, February 14, 1978-Page 11 Big Ten race- W Michigan State ... 10 Minnesota........9 Purdue ............ 8 MICHIGAN ....... 7- Indiana ........... 6 Ohio State........6 Illinois ............ 5 Iowa .............. 3 Wisconsin.......3 Northwestern .....3 L 2 3 4 5 6 6 7 9 9 9 Pct. GB .833 - .750 1 .666 2 .583 3 .500 4 .500 4 .417 5 .250 7 .250 7 .250 7 down the stretch MICHIGAN STATE -- home 3): Ohio State, Northwestern, Illinois away (3): Purdue, Minnesota, Wisconsin MINNESOTA - home (3): Pur- due, Michigan State, Michigan away (3): Illinois, Ohio State, Indiana PURDUE - home (3): Michigan State, Iowa, Wisconsin away (3): Minnesota, Northwestern, Illinois MICHIGAN - home (2): Illinois, Iowa away (4): Wiscon- sin, Indiana, Minnesota, Northwest- ern Thursday's games MICHIGAN at Wisconsin Michigan State at Purdue Indiana at Ohio State Minnesota at Illinois Northwestern at Iowa Mw~ Michigan goalie Rick Palmer may not be wondering where his defensemen are at this moment, two weeks ago against Notre Dame, but he might well be as defense has not been the Wol- verines strong point this season. ,/ i ALL LADIES Admitted Free TONIGHT At SECOND CHANCE Appearing ThrU Sunday: AIR COA DO } ' r By PAUL CAMPBELL AVING DIED TWO more small deaths, this time in remote and un- friendly Duluth, the Michigan hockey team crawled back into town to struggle with the rest of its season in peace. Visiting hours for relatives and friends will be 7:30-10:00 on Fridays and Saturdays for the next two weeks. But before the coffin lid swings down, let's take one last hard look at the team which has been so underwhelming for the past two months.. When it was young, it was such a lovely thing. It seemed able to score at will, as it clearly destroyed the likes of Denver, Wisconsin and Minnesota. But that was to be expected. After all, this team had very strong bloodlines. It was sired by last year's team, which came within a goal of winning it all. As the offspring of Secretariat are allcexpected to win the triple crown, great things were expected of Michigan hockey 1978. But, if you'll excuse the extended metaphor, a few thoroughbreds were- lost in the transition from last year to this. Gone were Kris Manery, Greg Natale, and Rob Palm'er. It took a while for the significance of those losses to surface. It seemed unimportant as Michigan cruised to a 7-3 WCHA mark by whipping Wisconsin twice. But even back then coach Dan Farrell was quick to point out his team's weaknesses. "I said at the start that a lot of 'ifs' would have to come through to make this team good," recalls Farrell. "If the defense shaped up, if the goaltending continued to be good, if Lerg and Maurer both had years like last year-we had (going into the season) a lot of weaknesses." A case of unfulfilled 'ifs' According to Farrell, the only 'if' that has panned out is Lerg, who is having another fine year but was forced to miss a chunk of tht season because of a leg injury. As for Maurer, he looked fantastic last year (38 goals, 38 assists) mainly because he was centering for a wing of Manery's caliber. If Maurer misses Manery, the whole team badly misses the services of Palmer and Natale. "If I had those two back, we'd put on more pressure than you could believe," said Farrell. Which doesn't seem to make much sense at first glance, since the two were defensemen of only modest scoring threats. But they could get an offensive rush started by getting the puck out of their own zone. This year's defensemen haven't been able to complete that crucial first pass that gets things moving. "If we flew out of the zone like last year, we'd be tough" is how Farrell puts it. The scorers are still there but it matters little if they can't get the puck in some coordinated offense. Also, last year Michigan had a graduate assistant who worked specifically with the goalies. He's gone this year, and with him the magic Rick Palmer possessed in the stretch drive last year. Farrell has used Frank Zimmerman and Rudy Varvari extensively, but they both are subject to mental lapses which lead to cheap goals. Then there are the road trips. After sweeping Wisconsin on December 2- 3 (that was last year, wasn't it?) the icers went on the road for successive weekend series with Michigan Tech, Wisconsin and Minnesota. Not only were they beaten six times, but they were outscored 36-16. "The road trips destroyed us," said Farrell. "Last year confidence bred confidence as we won. This year the opposite happened." Schedule is no excuse But somehow the schedule falls short of being the perfect excuse. Last year's team lost seven in a row, but bounced back to win 12 straight. Why can't this year's team do the same? I don't think that the problem lies with the coaching. Farrell is doing pretty much the same things he did last year. When he made an instictive move last season, it always seemed to result in something good. This year when he meddles, he seems to get burned time and time again. As Farrell himself describes this pitfall of coaching, "When you fiddle around and win, you're a genius. When you do it and lose, you're an idiot." If the coach is at fault for this year's performance, it is because he didn't recruit players good enough to make up for last year's losses. But to his credit, he will be one of the first to admit this. The problem lies with the players. They got a false impression of how good they were before the season. They banked on last year's success to carry them. Even early in the year, when they were winning, it was usually on a third period spurt. They weren't playing their hardest for the whole game. Because they simply aren't as talented a team as last year's, this year's players had to work a little bit harder. Not all of them have. Daily Photo by BRAD BENJAMIN Having a ball? Alan Hardy battles it out with MSU's Ron Charles (15) in last Saturday's 73-62 loss to State at Crisler Arena. The Blue resume Big Ten action Thursday night when they battle the Badgers at Madison. Arkansas numsber 1 after Kentucky loss --mm---------- - r"MUSIC AND MEAL DEAI7'l Dine at the restaurant after 4:00 P.M. and receive FREE admission to Nightclub that eve- ning. SUN.-THURS. '516 E. Liberty 994-5350 -'-//' M.- By Associated Press "I would be the first to admit we would have more than one loss if we were in the Big Ten, the ACC or the SEC," commented Arkansas coach Eddie Sutton yesterday after his team had been ranked number one in this week's AP poll. It is the first time in history that a Southwest Conference team made the top of the poll. Sutton also said that his squad's record (23-1) de- served recognition, noting: "We beat LSU at Baton Rouge 67-62 and. Kentucky lost to LSU at Baton Rouge." KENTUCKY'S loss dropped them to third, with Marquette claiming second. Meanwhile, Notre Dame, which lost to DePaul at home last Sunday, dropped from fourth to eighth. Michigan State was the only Big Ten team in the top twenty, being rated tenth. Detroit remained ranked, despite a loss, taking the number 19 spot. -- Team Record 1. Arkansas (24) ........... 23-1 2. Marquette (14) .......... 19-2 3. Kentucky (12) ........... 17-2 4. UCLA (1) ............... 18-2 5. New Mexico (1) ......... 19-2 6. Kansas ..... ....... 20-3 7. Notre Dame..........16-4, 8. DePaul (1) .............. 19-2 (tie) DAILY LIBELS ..... 4-0 9. Louisville ............... 16-3 10. Michigan State .......... 18-3 11. North Carolina .......... 20-5 12. Texas ................... 19-3 13. Providence .............18-4. 14. Florida State ............ 18-3 15. Illinois State ............ 20-2 16. Syracuse ................ 16-4 17. Virginia ................. 17-4 18. Georgetown, D.C........"17-4 19. Detroit .................. 18-2 20. Duke ................ 17-5 Points 950 921 884 782 527 490 447 438 438 394, 348 309 196 134 131 104 40 39 29 25 24 Oura PREPARE FOR: 4er MCAT - DAT - LSAT -GRE GMAT - OCAT - VAT -"SAT NMB L 11,111 ECFMG* FLEX*VQE NAT'L DENTAL BOARDS NURSING BOARDS Flexible Programs & Hours T~here 1$ a difference:!:I qN EDUCATIONAL CENTER Test Preparation Speciaists Since 1938 For Information Please Call: (313) 662-3149 For Locations In Other Cities, Call: TOLL FREE: 800-223-1782 Centers in Mayor US Cities loronto. Puerto Rico and Luano.'Switzerland Wednesday: STUDENT NIGHT FREE Slice of Pizza Week For Everyone-Starting Todayl * Tuesday ,Feb. 14 *AM*to12Noon and 9 PM to10 PM Wednesday, Feb. 15 6bPM to 7 PM and1 1 PM to 12 Midnight Thursday, Feb. * 12 Noon to l PM and 9 PM to 10 PM * Friday, Feb. 17* 11 AM to 12 Noon and 8 PM to 9 PM* Saturday, Feb. 18* 12 Noon to1 PM and 8 PMto 9 PM* * Sunday, Feb. 19* 12 Noon to 1 PM and 10 PM to 11 PM* 'BELL'S OREEK PIZZA State St. and Packard Call 995-0232 for FREE DELIVERY of PIZZA -t [ V V [ >[ [V Y YY Y YYV YV YY SCORES College Basketball - Indiana St. 87, New Mexico 74 Pro Scores DETROIT 125, New Jersey 115 U-M SKI CLUB General Meeting Wed., Feb. 15th 7:30 p.m. Henderson Room, Mich. League Everyone Welcome I ! Will be discussing spring break trips and weekend trips. F- 4 w -1 V V V V V V V V Y V V V V a TT' TTTT__T__ T T v v v i v T T T T T T T T T T Six games remain in the regular schedule. Because the WCHA believes in reincarnation (eight of 10 teams make the playoffs) Michigan's season will probably extend to a two game road series against one of the league's top teams. Their 3-12 road mark speaks well to their chances there. Bdit, if they are to have any hope, it must be reflected in improved perfor- mances these next three weeks. Should the players summon up all the effort their pride allows, they have a chance to dull the edge of disappointment which hangs over the 1978 season. rr, r DO YOU WAN' T TO FLY? Face it. . .you've always wanted to fly! Many of us have had the feeling. . . and for some it has never gone away. If you have that feeling, then you're in luck. Air Force ROTC Flight Instruction Program (FIP) is available to you. It's de- signed to teach you the basics of flight through flying lessons in small aircraft at a civilian operated flying school. The program is an EXTRA for cadets who can qualify to be- come Air Force pilots through Air Force ROTC. Taken during the senior year in college, FIP is the first step for the cadet who is going on to Air Force jet pilot training after graduation. Thisi inlI renDrd for the cadet who wnnt to net his life off " SPECIAL* at the, Bagel Factoy 1306 S. University T ' 54 I I