Page 6-The Michigan Daily-Sports Monday- February 15,1993
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10
Li
W"uo ca4sa
Icers kill off far too
many BG penalties
by Chad A. Safran
Daily Hockey Writer
BOWLING GREEN - It was a question of kill or be killed.
If a team is going to be successful in hockey, it must knock off the oppo-
nent's power-play opportunities. The Michigan penalty killers operated like
a well-trained military force in its 8-1 conquest of Bowling Green.
The Falcons went 0-for-11 with the man-advantage. This statistic can be
attributed to an aggressive and disciplined Michigan defense as well as an
intept BGSU power-play unit. Michigan center Ron Sacka gave credit for
these characteristics, or at least the former, to the Michigan coaching staff.
"Our assistant, Mel Pearson,,came down here last night and scouted
them," Sacka said. "We had an idea of what they were going to do."
The Wolverines frustrated the Falcons time after time. Michigan clogged
the passing lanes like mucous in a stuffy nose. No matter how many times
BGSU players tried to feed a player in the slot, the puck was almost always
blocked or deflected.
Down two men for 1:12 in the second period, the Michigan trio of Cam
Stewart, Dan Stiver and Pat Neaton prevented every attempt to get the puck
into the slot. Stewart blocked several passes, while Stiver and Neaton
cleared the puck with ease.
Things were going so well for the Wolverine penalty killers that de-
fenseman David Harlock came out of the box and found himself with a
breakaway opportunity, only to be called offsides.
"I was kind of laughing when I came down the ice," Harlock said. "I
knew (the referees) were going to blow the whistle."
Instead of chuckling at his situation, perhaps the Michigan captain
should have chortled over Bowling Green's poor power-play performance.
The Falcons were coughing it up in the Wolverine zone more than a per-
son with a sore throat. Passes were soft and had no snap.
Even when the Falcons put a shot on goal, netminder Steve Shields was
up to the challenge, turning away everything that headed in his direction.
While Michigan did manage to shut down the opposition when down a
man, that the Wolverines had to kill 11 penalties is not a positive sign and
may in fact be a continuation of a disturbing trend.
Although Michigan shut down Miami on the five power-play chances it
had last weekend, Ohio State had eight opportunities to score on the power-
play, managing one goal. The Wolverines cannot allow its opposition so
many man-advantage situations.
"There were too many penalties on both sides," Michigan coach Red
Berenson said. "We got away with most of our penalties at the beginning."
Against weaker foes, like Bowling Green and Ohio State, the Wolverines
are able to kill off penalties with ease. Michigan is more aggressive and
stronger than these clubs. They forecheck better, intimidating them.
However, when the Wolverines take on some of the stronger (both
record-wise and physically) teams in the CCHA, like Lake Superior State,
Michigan State, Miami and Western Michigan, they cannot allow them-
selves to take stupid penalties at inopportune times.
Those squads are sure to take advantage of the chances they get. The
Broncos may be the most aggressive team in the league, as evidenced by
their victory over+Miami Saturday, while the Redskins and Lakers are two
of the strongest. If the Wolverines allow any of these teams 11 power-play
HOCKEY
Continued from page 1
Green's fate. Riding a slim 1-0 lead,.
the Wolverines pummeled Ellis with
19 shots in the period, cashing in on.
four of them.
Michigan's fourth goal, and third
of the period, exemplified the over-
whelming ineffectiveness of
Bowling Green's defense all night.
Defenseman Chris Tamer sent the
puck into the right corner, where
Mike Stone dug it out. While three:
Falcon defenders checked Rick Wills:
and Ron Sacka out front, they appara
ently didn't see Stone, who skated
untouched in front of the crease and
promptly snuck a backhander past
Ellis for his eighth goal of the
season.f
Michigan's defense was another
story altogether. Bowling Green,
failed to convert on its 11 shots, or
on any of its four power-play oppor,
tunities in the second period.
"We were real good on our
penalty-killing," forward Rick Willis
said. "They couldn't get anything
going."
The consistent effort of
Wolverine goalie Steve Shields wal
another factor in the Michigan
blowout. After shutting out Bowling
Green a month ago in Ann Arbor,
Shields came within a Brian
Holzinger breakaway goal away from
repeating his performance.
"I underestimated his speed," said
Shields, who was replaced by Chris
Gordon after the goal. "I backed in
too far. It wasn't a very bad shot to
put in. It should've been a routine
save.
01
SHARON MUSHER/Daity
Ron Sacka skates along the boards in Saturday's 8-1 triumph over Bowling Green Saturday night.
HOCKEY NOTEBOOK
by Tim Rardin
and Chad A. Safran
Daily Hockey Writer
BOWLING GREEN - Michigan's four freshmen
have each made their presence felt so far this season.
Center Kevin Hilton is leading the freshmen in scoring
with 24 points, including two goals and an assist
Saturday. Left wing Ryan Sittler has totaled 21 points
on the season, while defenseman Steven Halko and
right wing John Arnold have contributed eight and six
points, respectively. All three of the forwards boast
game-winning goals.
CENTURY CLUB: With his assist on David
Oliver's power-play goal in the 8-1 victory over
Bowling Green, forward Cam Stewart notched the
100th point of his collegiate career. Stewart tallied 32
points in his first year, 28 in his sophomore campaign
and has, as the math suggests, totaled 40 points thus far
this season.
ONE IS ENOUGH: In seven of their last eight
games, the Wolverines have held opponents to one goal
or less, including a shutout against Bowling Green Jan.
16 at Yost Ice Arena. The only kink in that streak was
last weekend's 4-3 overtime loss at Miami. Going into
the Bowling Green tilt Saturday, Michigan was second
in the nation in goals for, averaging 5.35 goals per
game, and second in the nation in goals against, at 2.46
goals a game. The Wolverines trail Maine in both
categories.
HOME COOKIN': After Saturday's loss to
Hockey Fab Frosh
give strong support
Michigan, Bowling Green's record at home stands at
331-115-17, one of the best in the country with a win-
ning mark of nearly 75 percent. The Falcons have had
only five losing seasons in their storied 24-year history,
and currently boast an 8-5 record at the BGSU Ice
Arena so far this season.
The secret to their success? Try some serious talent.
Current pro stars Paul Ysebaert, Gino Cavallini, Rob
Blake, Nelson Emerson, Dave Ellet, and Garry
Galley all spent their collegiate careers under coach
Jerry York.
ISN'T THAT SPECIAL: The Wolverine special
teams continued their fine effort of late. After killing 11
power plays, Michigan has warded off over 86 percent
of its oppositions man-advantage opportunities.
Meanwhile, the Wolverine power-play has converted on
25.3 percent of its chances for the season.
LEADING THE WAY: Despite not garnering a point
against the Falcons, forward Dave Roberts continues to
lead the Wolverines in scoring with 42 points (13 goals,
29 assists). le had better look over his shoulder,
though, because three Wolverines are in hot pursuit.
Stewart has 40 points (14-26), while Oliver (27-12)
is just three behind Roberts. Mark Ouimet is in fourth
with 38 points (10-28) after scoring a goal against
BGSU.
Among the CCHA leaders in plus/minus rating,
Michigan has eight players in the conference's top
twenty. Going into the weekend defenseman Pat
Neaton was the league leader with a rating of +22.
0
Defenseman Chris Tamer and the rest of the Wolverines
committing costly penalties in order to compete with the
need to avoid
CCHA's elite.
SCORE BY PERIODS
Michigan 1 4 3 - 8
BGSU 001 - 1
First Period: 1, UM, Stewart 14
(Oliver, Neaton) (pp), 1:53. Penal-
ties: BG, Reirden (cross checking),
0:57. UM, Knuble (slashing), 2:10.
BG, Carper (holding), 10:00. UM,
Willis (slashing), 12:24. BG, Carper
(holding), 15:00. UM, Tamer (el-
bowing), 17:23.
Second Period: 2, UM, Hilton 11
(Oliver), 1:23. 3, UM, Ouimet 10,
(Knuble, Stiver) (5 on 3), 3:46. 4,
UM, Stone 8 (Tamer), 6:15.5, UM,
Hilton 12 (Knuble, Stiver) (pp),
14:00. Penalties: BG, Hall (high
sticking), 1:54. BG, Carper (slash-
ing), 3:16. UM, Harlock (slashing),
6:59. UM, Tamer (tripping), 7:47.
BG, Reirden (interference), 12:16.
UM, Sinclair (holding), 13:05. UM,
Harlock (holding), 16:29. UM,
Sittler (checking behind), 20:00.
BG, Lune (10-minute misconduct),
20:00.
Third Period: 6, UM, Oliver 27
(Wiseman, Stewart) (pp), 6:52. 7,
UM, Stiver 16 (Sittler, Hilton) (pp),
8:33.8, BG, Holzinger 25 (Helbing,
Clark), 13:28. 9, UM, Knuble 17
(Sittler), 19:44. Penalties: BG, Mit-
tleholt (tripping), 5:45. BG, Acker-
man (tripping), 8:27. UM, Stone
(slashing), 9:13. UM, Knuble (in-
terference), 14:19. UM, Sacka
(charging, 16:11. UM, Harlock
(roughing), 17:41. BG, Herman
(roughing), 17:41.
CCHA Sta.
Team
Miami
Michigan
Lake Superior
Michigan St.
W. Michigan
Ferris St.
Bowling Green
Kent
III.-Chicago
Notre Dame
Ohio St.
W
18
17
16
15
14
10
9
8
7
5
3
L
3
5
4
8
8
11
15
15
15
19
19
T
3
2
4
1
2
3
0
1
2
2
2
Pts.
39
36
36
21
30
23
18
17
16
12
8
Hilton
Holzinger's goal, at the 6:33
mark, was the only bright spot of
the game for the Falcons. In fact,
not only did that goal save Bowlin'g
Green from the embarrassment of a
second consecutive shutout against
the Wolverines, it also secured its
streak of 243 straight games of not
being blanked at home.
Holzinger's goal was also just
the seventh and final shot from the
Falcon's top three scorers -
Holzinger (44 points), Brett Harkins
(39) and Sean Pronger (38), which
undoubtedly hurt Bowling Green.
Michigan, on the flip side,
displayed its usual balanced attack,
as four players - Kevin Hilton,
Mike Knuble, Oliver and Stiver
notched three points each, while
Stewart chipped in with a goal and
an assist.
opportunities, the chances for a Michigan victory are as probable as surviv-
ing a skydiving effort without a parachute.
Wolverine penalties always seem to occur to the wrong people at the
most inopportune times. Harlock, who is Michigan's best defensive
defenseman, has been called for 12 minutes in penalties in the last two
games. If he leaves the ice, the defensive corps is severely weakened.
Saturday, Michigan had a 2-on-1 opportunity with Mike Stone and Rick
Willis bearing down on BGSU goalie Aaron Ellis when a whistle echoed
through the arena.
The call? Michigan defenseman Chris Tamer for tripping. An unneces-
sary penalty behind the play when the Wolverines had a prime goal scoring
opportunity. The infraction gave the Falcons a 5-on-3 advantage.
It did not matter much Saturday, as Michigan was up, 4-0, and dominat-
ing play at the time, but what happens in the CCHA playoffs or NCAA
tournament when every game must be treated as if it were the last.
Friday Results
Miami 5, W. Michigan 2
MSU 7, OSU 2
U IC 7, Kent 5
BGSU 7, Notre Dame 4
Saturday Results
Michigan 8, BGSU 1
W. Michigan 7, Miami 6
MSU 7, OSU 1
Notre Dame 3, Ferris St. 2 (OT)
Kent 4, UIC 3
Netters open season with team effort, win
by Tim Spolar
Daily Sports Writer
While Wimbledon may not be
the first event on the minds of sports
fans this time of year, the Michigan
women's team did its best yesterday
to get the tennis season underway.
The Wolverines played host to
Miami (Ohio) at the Michigan
Indoor Track and Tennis Building,
knocking off the Redskins by a final
score of 5-4. The combination of the
first meet of the season and an op-
portunity to avenge last year's loss
to Miami provided motivation for
Michigan.
"We were really psyched for (the
rematch)," Michigan junior Allison
Schlonsky said. "We knew just what
to expect and we were well pre-
pared.
"We expected it to be tough. We
prepared all week and we were just
mentally and physically ready for
them."
The difference, in the Wol-
verines' eyes, was a total team ef-
fort. With the lone exception of Liz
Cyganiak, who won both her No. 5
singles and No. 3 doubles contests,
no Michigan player won both of her
matches. The Wolverines did, how-
ever, get at least one victory from
each team member, putting together
just the right combination of wins to
pull out victory.
"(The meet) was really close, but
each person kind of helped in their
own way," Schlonsky said.
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