The Michigan Daily - Sports Tuesday - January 19, 1993 - Page 5 AAAASSS A SSS- HOCKEY NOTEBOOK Suspensions, injuries give Sakala ice time C Alt Lec I" Line ~ j1 - V by Tim Rardin Daily Hockey Writer Sophomore defenseman Mark Sakala who has seen limited though increased ice time on defense, got a chance to play some forward Friday night against Ohio State. With the ab- sence of forwards Brian Wiseman (back spasms), Cam Stewart, who was serving a one-game suspension and Anton Fiodorov, who is indefinitely suspended for violation of team rules, Sakala played left wing on the fourth line with Ron Sacka and John Arnold. "I've played a little (forward) before," Sakala said. "Sometimes it's good for de- fensemen to play offense because it helps out with puck-handling skills." Sakala is not the first Wolverine defense- man to move up to forward this season. Aaron Ward, upon returning from knee surgery, skated at right wing against Michigan State Dec. 4. FINALLY: Speaking of Ward, the 6-foot-2, 200-pound defenseman broke out of a season- long scoring drought with a pair of assists in Saturday's 4-0 blanking of Bowling Green. Ward, who has played in only 13 of Michigan's 23 games this season, totaled 19 points in each of the last two seasons. "It was refreshing to finally hear my name called for something other than a penalty," Ward said. Now, with the exception of Michigan's three goalies, only defenseman Al Sinclair and Fiodorov are without a point for the Wolve- rines this season. WOEFUL WISEMAN: Wiseman, who had not missed a single game in the 110 he's been eligible to play in, sat out the first of his Michigan career against Illinois-Chicago last weekend. Wiseman is suffering from recurring back spasms, a result of a hit he endured earlier in his career. "Four years ago, I took a hit and went head first into the boards," Wiseman said. "Now, I get spasms from that hit." Still, Michigan coach Red Berenson isn't exactly sure what the problem is. "There's no answer in terms of what it is. We can't see anything wrong with the discs, or the spinal alignment," Berenson said. "Struc- turally, there's nothing wrong. He's fine one minute, then makes one quick move, and his back goes." Wiseman will likely miss at least two more weeks in order to rest his back, though he is confident the injury is not a big deal. "It's nothing really serious. It's an inflamed disc," Wiseman said. "Rest and treatment will strengthen the area." SHIELDS SHINES: Michigan goaltender Steve Shields, who thwarted 45 shots this weekend and shut out Bowling Green Saturday, earned CCHA Defensive Player-of- the-Week honors for his efforts. Western Michigan forward Chris Brooks captured the equivalent offensive award for his three-goal, two-assist performance against Bowling Green and Ohio State. ICERS Continued from page 1 Digest' (a television program which airs on PASS)," Stone confided. "It said in the standings we were fifth or sixth in penalty killing in the league. That was something we were ashamed of at the time. We wanted to try and move up. It's something you take pride in, especially when it's your job to kill penalties." Then came the back-breaker for A*.j. . '5, Bowling Green (7-11, 12-14). With under a minute to play in the second stanza, Dan Stiver carried the puck into the right side of the of- fensive zone. After executing a pretty spin move, he tip-toed along the blue line and dodged two Fal- cons. Stiver then took a point-blank shot that was stopped by BGSU goalie Aaron Ellis. Mark Ouimet was in the vicinity to corral the rebound and score his sixth goal of the year off the left post five seconds before the second in- termission. For all intents and pur- poses, the game was over. "When your penalty killing is do- ing well, you're usually winning," Willis said. "(Killing the penalties) built a lot of momentum for us. The guys on the bench were ecstatic. We were really psyched." Michigan then got psyched to finish off Bowling Green in the third period. At 15:25, David Roberts was called for a phantom holding penalty as he was dragged to the ice behind the Falcon net. The Wolverines were running on all cylinders to kill the penalty and the puck was dumped to the top of the right offensive circle. Ellis and Stone raced for the disk from opposite directions. Ellis won the race but misplayed the puck in Stone's direction. Stone picked it out of the air and slammed it into the gaping net for his seventh tally of the season. "It was a bad play by the goalie," Stone said. "If he could have done it over, he probably would have gone the other way with it. It doesn't get much easier than that." It was Michigan's second short- handed goal of the year and the sec- ond of Stone's career. The goal might sound familiar to Wolverine faithful as Stone scored in almost the same manner against Wisconsin in Michigan's 4-2 loss in last year's NCAA semifinal. "I think it's his baseball skills," Ouimet said. "He used to be a good baseball player in high school. He's always batting the puck out of the air." The blanking of the Falcons was the second shutout for Shields this season and the third of his career. "I was confident all game," Shields said. "Tonight really re- flected how the team played. I did my job, but a shutout gives a boost to the whole team. It builds confi- dence in everyone defensively." Michigan opened the weekend as Roberts had a night to remember against Ohio State. The senior winger scored twice and assisted on two others. "The puck just went in tonight. They all count the same," Roberts said. "I have been working more on my speed and power. People know when I have the puck I'm going to put on a head fake and try to go around them. I'm trying to rush to the net more." Roberts helped to seal the victory as he registered Michigan's third goal 38 seconds into the second pe- riod. While quarterbacking the power play, he walked in from the left point and gunned a shot past OSU tender Tom Askey on the far side. "I told (Roberts) he's been too cute with the puck," Berenson said. "He has more speed and power if he's skating hard. When he is taking the man, good things happen to him." Sophomore Ron Sacka collected the winning goal at 16:40 of the opening stanza as he took a crisp, cross-ice pass from Willis. Sacka strode in from.just.outside the blue._ line on the right side and beat Askey with a backhand low to the short side. "Willie gave me a great pass," Sacka said. "Our line has been play- ing really well lately. I told (teammate Mike) Knuble if I scored tonight, I would get a tattoo." Sacka has yet to adorn himself with such an outward form of self- expression. However, this weekend is definitely one Berenson has etched in his mind as an example of the solid game his team needs to play to win a trip to Milwaukee for the NCAA Championships. "We can build on a weekend like this," he said. "It was a good week- end, but we're not close to playing our best hockey." Michigan hockey' lhhadisplayed in victory by Chad A. Safran Daily Hockey Writer On the bulletin board in the Michigan locker room, a list of team goals is tacked up to remind the players of what is necessary to win What they need to do to play "Michigan hockey." The Wolverines' 4-0 victory over Bowling Green Saturday was a pure definition of Michigan hockey. Defense is the strength of the Wolverines. The first goal on the board states that the team's aim is to permit 20 or fewer shots each game. The Falcons were limited to 19 shots. Michigan goalie Steve Shields stopped all that were fired at him, with only five or six quality opportunities. "In order to play well, you can't give them a lot," Michigan senior defenseman Pat Neaton said. "Our goal at the end of the season was to have a low goals against (average), and we knew if we did that we would be a successful team. In that sense it is indicative of Michigan hockey." The defensemen rode the opposition off the puck. They kept the Falcons from clogging the slot and gave Shields a clear view of the puck. CCHA scoring leader Brian Holzinger did not have a single shot on net the entire game. "We've got a lot of great offensive players," Michigan center Mark Ouimet said. "But getting a shutout, that's as good as scoring a lot of goals. Defense supports the offense." First goal achieved. Two other goals listed on the board talk about hard work and enthusiasm. The Wolverines demonstrated these two facets of the game Saturday. Throughout the entire game, the Wolverines * Mzwere working well down low in the offensive zone. Michigan's forwards swarmed the net, pouncing on any loose puck and trying to pound it home. In a tight, defensive 1-0 game, all the grinding finally paid off when Mark Ouimet put the Wolverines up 2-0 with a scant 5 seconds remaining in the second period. Then the enthusiasm that the team looks for poured out, as Stone they practically sprinted off the ice after the second stanza. "(Ouimet's goal) picked us up big time," center Mike Stone said. "When we came into the locker room, everybody was high as a kite. We knew that when we came out in the third period we had them." Stone, the top penalty killer on the team, was doing his normal blue- collar work on special teams when he got some unexpected worker's compensation. The junior scored a shorthanded goal. The team and crowd exploded. Enthusiasm was at an incredible high as a deafening sound rose from Yost's interiors. Rumor has it Red Berenson even flashed a smile. "(The goal) is a reward for all the dirty work," Stone said. Two more goals achieved. However, the concept of Michigan hockey is still not complete until other goals are accomplished. The list of goals reads that to be successful the Wolverines must achieve a rate of 85-90 percent penalty killing. This weekend was a clinic in penalty killing. OSU had four chances with the man advantage. How many goals did the Buckeyes score on the power play? None. And Bowling Green suffered'the same fate, although the Falcons had two more chances Saturday. The kill rate was a nice round number - 100 percent. "We've got a lot of guys on this team who can kill penalties," Ouimet said. "I feel sorry for the opposing power play." Goal number four - a success. The list of goals says, to be successful the Wolverines need to score on 25-30 percent of their power-play chances. Although Michigan was only one of five on Saturday, the club split the pipes for three power- play goals against Ohio State on six chances. Any coach at any level would be pleased with that. For a club that has been struggling on the power play as much as Michigan has, 50 percent success is like receiv- ing a call from Ed McMahon saying you have won the grand prize in the American Family Sweepstakes. Four-for-11 on the weekend. Worthy of a prize any day. Another goal achieved. The sheet says that the Wolverines need to win each series. The Wolverines will not play a weekend series against the same opponent both nights the rest of the season. Taking both games from different teams might even be more difficult because of the different preparation needed for each squad. Ohio State and Bowling Green had quiet bus rides back to their respective schools after making their trips to Yost this weekend. This is the fifth goal accomplished out of five. Not bad. People will talk and say the Wolverines played this way against two of the weaker teams in the league. "How will they play next time against Lake Superior, Miami or Michigan State?" these people shout. Hey, the CCHA is the toughest conference in college hockey. The lower teams compete well with the upper half of the league. Look what happened to Michigan against Illinois-Chicago. So a weekend like this one should be seen as an accomplishment. However, the Wolverines must avoid a letdown next Saturday against Notre Dame. The tight checking and hard work has to keep coming, and most im- portantly, the defense must repeat performances like it had on Saturday. When it comes down to it, Michigan hockey is about playing solid defense. Ouimet said, "Defense is the most important thing." When asked about the definition of Michigan hockey, Stone replied by saying, "A tight defensive game." The clichds "Defense wins championships" and "Great teams win with defense" are as worn out as a set of bald tires. Yet, these sayings continue to ring true. To play "Michigan hockey," the defense must con- tinue to rise to the occasion. David Roberts skates at the Great La four points against Ohio State Friday WISEMAN Continued from page 1 For now though, Wiseman can enjoy some success in the NHL through a friendly game of Sega hockey with his housemates. And then again, maybe not. "I'm terrible at Sega hockey. I'm just terrible," Wiseman admits. "(Steve) Shields, Ollie (David Oliver) and Stew (Cam Stewart) are the top three contenders in our house. I'm better at football." "He sucks at Sega hockey," Oliver is quick to point out. Of course, only within the confines of a video game will you p hear that said about Brian Wiseman's hockey ability. "He just passes the puck so well and anticipates so well," Berenson said. "He's a player that if you play a with, he creates a lot of scoring chances for you." Oliver, Wiseman's linemate along with Stewart, is one of many players who can attest to that. "He draws a lot of attention to himself which opens a lot of room w up for his wingers, said Oliver, who speaks from experience. "The only player I can compare him to is (Wayne) Gretzky because he's so KRISTOFFER GILLETTE/Daily kes Invitational on Dec. 26. Roberts had at Yost Ice Arena. So pay attention, all you skeptics out there. Brian Wiseman still has some things to prove, and nothing and nobody, not even a 6-foot, 220- pound defenseman, has stopped him yet. Wiseman admits that the step to college hockey, and to college in general, has taken some getting used to. "We have to be down (at Yost) three hours a day, and then we have classes all day, and homework all night," Wiseman said. "Back home, we had a couple of practices a week, a couple of games a week. You had. time to do other things. Priority here is getting the schoolwork done, playing hockey and socializing afterwards." It was Michigan's academic tradition, too, that lured Wiseman to Ann Arbor. After visiting Western Michigan, Bowling Green, Clarkson and St. Lawrence, Wiseman decided that Michigan offered the best combination of academic and athletic excellence. "I wanted to go to a school where I was going to be part of the hockey success, but they also had to have a good academic standard," said Wiseman. who is studving to be a professional hockey," Wiseman said. "I've been keeping in contact with them (the Rangers) quite frequently. They're still concerned about me, even though I was a 12th- round pick. That makes me feel good." Still, Wiseman, true to his name, is realistic about his future, choosing not to put all his proverbial career eggs into a single hockey basket. Wiseman has proved to be as durable as he is talented in his career at Michigan. Although he has missed the last two series due to back spasms, before last weekend's Illinois-Chicago series, Wiseman had played in all 110 games for which he was eligible. "This is the first time I've had to sit out," Wiseman said. "It's really frustrating watching from upstairs." No doubt, Michigan will sorely miss Wiseman's skills on the ice. Those skills have been developed through a virtual lifetime of practice, having laced up his skates for the first time at the age of three. "I liked basketball, but you know, obviously I wasn't a great basketball player," Wiseman says jokingly. "I eventually had to give up (other sports) because of the time conflict with hockey. "We played hockey all year, 365 days a year pretty much, whether it was on the road or on the ice," Wiseman said. "I grew up in an environment where hockey was the main sport around. By that time (when he moved to Chatham, Ontario, at age 10), I knew that hockey was what I wanted to do." That decision has been made easier with the undying support of A Standin Wiseman "If I go out and play well, I might have a chance to play somewhere in the organization," Wiseman said. "If that happens, that's gonna be great. Team W Miami 13 Michigan 11 Lake Superior 10 Michigan St. 9 W. Michigan 9 Ferris St. 6 Rnw~~lnn rrpon 7 L 2 4 4 5 5 7 ~11 T 3 2 4 1 1 3 n Pts. 29 26 24 19 19 15 1 d i I M I