The Michigan Daily-Friday, October 30, 1981-Page 13
aOmn
Blue Lines
Michigan hockey 1981-82...
... not explosive, but exciting
By MARTHA CRALL
IF YOU'VE already made up your mind that the
1981-82 Michigan hockey season is a lost cause
because All-American goalie Paul Fricker left,
along with the heart of the defense-in the persons
of Tim Manning and John Blum-wait a couple
games to make your final decision. ,
Granted, the top returning goal-scorers netted
only 22 apiece last year. The Wolverines don't
have the offensive fire power of a Minnesota or a
North Dakota. You probably won't see many hat
tricks or blowouts. But that doesn't mean they
wnt win games, and it certainly doesn't mean
they don't play exciting hockey.
The leers made their debut last weekend in
Houghton against Michigan Tech, and an im-
pressive one it was. On the other hand, the highly-
regarded Huskies, whQ were picked to win the
Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA )
title going away, looked like they were asleep.
Fortunately for the Wolverines, head coach
John MacInnes' tongue-lashing after Tech's 3-2
loss on Friday failed to awaken the talented
Huskies. It was an early indication of what can
happen when pure offensive power runs up against
discipline and defense.
If Michigan continues to play as it did against
Tech, there will be a lot of surprised people in
college hockey circles, and especially in CCHA
arenas.
Even veteran Wolverine hockey observers said
that they had never seen a more intense defensive
effort in the zone than the one Michigan displayed
last weekend. The icers never slowed down, from
opening faceoff to final buzzer, and thus
thoroughly embarrassed a very explosive offen-
sive outfit. Michigan held a team that had scored
14 goals in its first two games to two for the entire
weekend series.
The Wolverines' success was due mostly to their
play in the defensive zone, which is the thrust of
Giordano's strategy. He figured that if he could
get all fiveplayers (excluding the goalie) to play
defense inside the blue line, Michigan would have
a chance against the Huskies. And thanks to the
team's disciplines and intensity, Giordano's
plan worked to perfection.
The coach also believed that if freshman goalie
Jon Elliott could effectively stop the opposition's
first shot, the Wolverines defenders would clear
the rebounds. And to and behold, they did. They
not only cleared rebounds, but everybody on the
ice blocked shots, including the forwards. Thus,
Elliott's job was a very easy one on Friday night.
On Saturday, the goaltender had to do a little
more work, but he played flawlessly and notched
the first Michigan shutout since 1975.
If Elliott continues to improve, he may even-
tually become a better goalie than Fricker. With
his unconventional "flop" style, Fricker was great
on the first shot, but often found himself out of
position for the rebound. Elliott, on the other hand,
is a stand-up goalie, which means that he is in
equally good position for the second shot as he is
for the first, so long as he isn't initially fooled
badly.
The key words for this Michigan squad are
"discipline" and "desire." The icers showed that
they have enough talent to beat the best if they
stick to their game plan. What it means for
Michigan fans is an exciting, fast-paced, hard-
hitting brand of hockey.
And that is something everyone here should
treat themselves to at least once.
Where alumni keep up
with the University.
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Speers CCHA
.Player of Week*
BAND-O-RAMA
SATURDAY, Oct. 31
8 p.m. Hill Auditorium
Featuring:
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By MARTHA CRALL
It is ironic that Ted Speers was
named Central Collegiate Hockey
Association. (CCHA) Player-of -the-
Week after h d hockey coach John
Giordano had complained about
*chigan's lack of offensive firepower.
highly sought-after upon graduating in
1979. But his hard work has made him a
very pleasant surprise while playing
consistently on a line from the start of
his career at Michigan.
Speers played for the gold medal-
winning Great Lakes team in the
National Sports Festival last summer,
along with teammates Richmond,
Mark Chiamp and Jeff Grade.
Last summer he was passed up in the
National Hockey League draft, making
him a free agent. Although Speers may
eventually play professional hockey,
his major goal when he graduates from
Michigan in 1983 is to become a mem-
ber of the United States Olympic team.
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Friends sometimes question
your taste in movies.
But they U1see them with you anyway.
Speers
... hot starter on ice
In his (and Michigan's) first-ever
CCHA contests last weekend against
Michigan Tech, Speers scored the
Wolverines' first four goals (including
two game-winners). He notched a hat
ick on Friday night in Michigan's 3-2
n and the first goal in Saturday's 3-0
victory.
THE JUNIOR center from Ann Arbor
scored 22 goals during all of last season,
while sharing the team lead with defen-
seman Steve Richmond.
The 5-11, 180-pounder, who played his
high school hockey at Pioneer, was not
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