4B - The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - Monday, March 18, 1996 HOCKEY 'M -Laker nvalry heats up By Danielle Rumore Daily Sports Writer Saturday night at the Lake Superior State and Michigan CCHA tournament championship game, a Lakers' fan held up a poster featuring a Michigan hockey player hanging from Lake State's an- chor with a rope around its neck. The fan was undoubtedly hoping that the Lakers would sink the Wol- verines en route to the tournament crown, and she wasn't exactly pray- ing. Lake State has dumped Michigan the last four out of five times at some point in the conference tournament. A fifth crown was not to be this year as the Wolverines skated around Joe Louis Arena with the champion- ship trophy after prevailing, 4-3, in a game that went down to the wire. I thought it could have potentially been another Lake State-Michigan overtime game," Lakers' coach Jeff Jackson said. "There is so much ri- valry between two great opponents." Rivalry seems to be the operative word. There is little doubt that the rivalry between Lake State and the Wolverines is as strong, if not stron- ger, than the instate rivalry between Michigan and Michigan State. And Lake State has been truly spec- tacular in postseason play, compiling a 24-2 record in its last 26 CCHA playoff games. Theonly two losses were to Michi- ga. The Lakers and the Wolverines are relatively close in regular season head- to-head competition, but somehow things always take an interesting turn in the CCHA tournament. The Lakers have virtually dominated Michigan in the tournament ever since the start of the 1990's. The Lakers have been an alba- tross, or more accurately, a heavy an- chor, around the Michigan hockey program's neck. The Lakers usually determine whether the Wolverines swim or sink in the tourney. And excluding Saturday's game, the Wolverines have sunk more often than they have swam. "Ifyou look at games in league play since Jeff Jackson and I have been coaching, I think it's about a one- game differential between the two teams," Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "They've had an edge in this tournament and I think we have an edge in league play." In regular season play, Berenson is 15-25-3 against the Lakers since be- coming head coach in 1985-1986 while Jackson is 7-12-1 since taking over the helm of Lake State in 1990- 1991. Berenson gets the edge in the category, with a .384 winning per- centage compared to Jackson's .375. The Lakers have dominated the Wolverines and the CCHA tourna- ment for the majority of the decade. Before Saturday, their only lost oc- curred during the 1993-1994 season in the championship game against Michigan. That victory handed Michi- gan its first CCHA tournament crown. But Lake State turned around and eliminated the Wolverines from the first round of the NCAA tournament a week later. The Lakers knocked Michigan out of the CCHA tournament in the cham- pionship game in 1991 and 1992 and in the semifinal round in 1993 and 1995. Lake State went on to win the crown each of those four years. "We seem to end up playing Lake Superior for the CCHA title or the championship," Michigan left wing John Madden said following the win. "We meet them in big games so the rivalry is definitely there." What has been the key to the Lakers success against Michigan in the postseason tournament? Berenson be- lieves it has something to do with Lake State's style of play. "They're a good checking team and a good team defensively," Berenson said. "We are traditionally as strong team offensively but now we are de- veloping our own defensive style." Maybe Michigan's new defensive style is beginning to shine through, loosening the grip of the albatross. Michigan's victory this weekend gave it the last two-out-of-three champion- ships with wins over the Lakers. The two championships make it difficult for the current Michigan quad to re- late to the Lakers' mystique. In fact, may of the players feel it is virtually nonexistent and overhyped. "Since I have been here, we have won the last two-of-three," Michigan junior defenseman Blake Sloan said. "But some people feel that they are our nemesis." This time around, the Wolverines felt they had more to prove against the Lakers. Michigan's league action this season did not prove as success- ful in years past. The Wolverines went 1-2 against Lake State, including two losses in Sault Ste. Marie, Feb. 23-24. Michigan lost 5-4 in overtime in game one and 7-3 in game two. "There was a definite revenge fac- tor here," Sloan said. Michigan forward John Madden skated his way to the CCHA tournament MVP. SEEDING Continued from Page LB round and will play the winner of the contest between third-seeded Minnesota (29-9-2) and sixth-seeded Providence (21- 14-3) at Munn Ice Arena in East Lansing March 24 at 2 p.m. 'At this point, it's pretty automatic what you have to do," Michigan goaltender Marty Turco said. "Our team has confidence especially after the week- end. We're having fun but we're taking this seriously." Lake State (29-7-2), which finishedthe regular season first in the CCHA, is the No. 3 seed in the East bracket, which will be played in Albany, NY. Michigan State (28-12-1), the No. 5 seed in the West, captured one ofthe four at-large berths. The Spartans sat atop of the CCHA standings for most of league play before finishing the regular season tied for third with Western Michigan (25- 12-3) behind Lake State and Michigan which were tied for first. The Spartans will play Massachusetts-Lowell (25-9- 4), the No. 4 seed March 23 on its home ice. Western Michigan of the CCHA, Clarkson (23-9-3) ofthe ECAC and Mas- sachusetts-Lowell of Hockey East round out the other three at-large berths. If Michigan wins its second round game, it will advance to the Final Four to be played at Riverfront Coliseum in Cin- cinnati March 28 and 30. The Wolverines will not face Michigan State at Munn, or any of the other two possible conference opponents, before the Final Four. None of the other eight teams from the three other conferences will have to face each other before the Final Four either unless Cornell (21-8-4) upsets Lake State in the first round of the East bracket. In that case, Cornell will face fellow ECAC opponent Vermont in the second round. "1 think it's good that (the selection committee) separates teams in our league and in the others as well," Berenson said. "If it's truly a tournament of all leagues, then it's good to cross teams right away." In total, all four conferences sent at least two teams to the tournament field with the CCHA leading the way with four teams. The ECAC and Hockey East were next with three apiece, followed by the WCHA with two. "Ithas been agreat year forus and there ar'e a lot of great teams out there," Colo- rado College coach Don Lucia said." It's just a great 12-team field." Tickets for the two-day long West bracket at Munn will goon sale beginning today at 9 a.m. at the Michigan Athletic Ticket Office on State Street. The ticket package costs $42 and includes all four games in the first and second round. This includes Michigan State in the first round, Michigan in the second and Colorado College, the No. 1 team in the country, in the second. Tickets can be ordered in person or over the phone at 764-0247. Visa and Mastercard will be accepted. In the end Hayes not sac/i an unlikely hero. ETROIT - He was the most unlikely of heroes. A freshman. A fourth-line center. A defensive forward who had hit the back of the net just seven times all season. In fact, Bobby Hayes didn't even have a scholarship when he came to Ann Arbor as a 17-year-old kid in August. He still doesn't. His biggest asset is his defense. He has seen most of his ice time this year killing penalties. He is, on a team with players named Morrison, Botterill, Hilton and Madden, by no means a superstar.« Hayes isn't even your typical s: freshman, standout. He didn't receive a JOHN single vote for the CCHA all- LEROI WA KER VANDYKE/Daily David Lambeth and the Laker defense surrendered one too many goals against Michigan Saturday night. Title gm+irosreetmacu By Alan Goldenbach Daily Sports Writer Lightning didn't strike the Michigan hockey team twice. But in Saturday's 4-3 win over Lake Superior, the Wolverines undoubtedly heard the thunder. It was the thunder ofthe Lakers' relentless attack on Michigan's net in the closing minute of a one-goal game. In fact, the scene had an eerie resemblance to the situation the Wolverines faced no less than three weeks ago at Sault Ste. Marie, when the Lakers tied the game in the closing seconds and then shocked Michigan 5-4 in overtime. The similarities between the two games are scary. The Wolverines relinquished two-goal leads in the first period of both games. Michigan had a 4-3 lead going into the final minute ofboth games. With just overaminute remaining in both games, the Lakers pulled goaltender John Grahame for an extra skater. And this led to the Lakers having complete control of the puck deep in the Wolverines' zone, usually behind the Michigan net. Laker center Brian Felsner, who scored the game-tying goal three weeks ago, was on the ice this time and missed a good chance to give the Wolverines another heartache. Add to all of that the fact that Lake State has lost only once in the CCHA Tournament in Jeff Jackson's six years at the helm of the Laker ship, and it seem ed that fate would somehow find the Lakers a victory. But this time the luck fell into Michigan's hands. No weird bounces off Michigan goaltender Marty Turco's pads. No Superman impersonations from Laker defenseman Keith Aldridge. "We did not get the puck out (of our zone)," Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "Our players were tired. They youldn't get off the ice. It was just pure luck and good goalkeeping." But believe it or not, flashbacks ofthe Soo Disaster didn't hit the Wolverines during the game - not even Turco, 'vho was at the center of action in both games.1 "I wasn't thinking about that at all," Turco said. "I put that in the past. I wouldn't say I suppressed it because before the game I thought about it. "What happened a couple of weeks ago was really irrelevant for the way I played today." It may have been so for Turco, but not for the Lakers. "I thought it potentially could have been another Overtime Lake State - Michigan game," Jackson said. But what kept it from being so this time was that Iichigan seemed to recognize the magnitude of the game. It was Fvident in the little things the Wolverines did in the final minutetto hold off the Lakers. Players not known for their defense suddenly rose to the occasion. Jason Botterill, who has seen little, if any, penalty killing time, was diving to block shots. But Botterill's 209-pound frame hitting the ice shoukni't be confused with the thunder generated by the Lakers. Miqhigan was just lucky enough to get one and not the other. rookie team. Out of He didn't Bounds exactly light up the scoreboard before his Wolverine career began either. Twenty-four points for the Waterloo (Iowa) Black Hawks and 27 more for Detroit Compuware aren't shabby, but those aren't exactly prolific numbers for a college recruit. Other Michigan freshmen were more heralded. Hayes even admits that, if yott watch a Michigan hockey game, he probably won't stand out. "I'm a scrapper," he says. "I'll be in the corners every game if that's what I'm supposed to do." So in the finals of the nation's best conference tournament, he ought to be the last person you'd expect to net the game-winning goal. But he wasn't. It didn't come as a surprise to anyone that Bobby Hayes broke a 3-3, third- period deadlock against the CCHA regular season champions, Lake Superior. Forget about everything else; Hayes wanted it. Really, why would it be a shock that Hayes lifted the Wolverines to their second CCHA playoff championship in three years? He's a coach's dream. He plays hard, and he does whatever he's asked. He is one of only five Wolverines, and the only underclassman, to play in all 40 of Michigan's games. "When we recruited him, we asked him, 'Bobby, where do you want to go to school?"' Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "He said 'I don't care about anything else, I want to go to Michigan'... he's a selfless player, he's done everything we asked of him." You can bet it was no fluke that Bobby Hayes was in the right place at the right time Saturday. He made sure he was there. So when Harold Schock sent a high slapshot from the right point that Laker. goaltender John Grahame turned aside, Hayes was there, right in the middle of two Lake Superior defenders, to flip inO the winning goal. He tallied just one point in the tournament before his shot spun over Grahame with.six and a half minutes left in the game, but Hayes was an easy choice for the all-tournament team. But Hayes was on my ballot before he even scored his first post-season goal. His hustle and defense merited a spot. Since the first game of the confer- ence playoffs against Miami, and even¢ weeks before, Hayes played as well as any Wolverine - Morrison, Botterilla Hilton and Madden included. He made the play of the weekend in Friday's 6-2 semifinal win over Michigan State, hopping over a. Spartan defender and leaving the puck for Madden to net a shorthanded goal that put the Wolverines up 3-1. He won more games stifling opponents' power plays with his tenacity than he ever did scoring goals. Berenson calls him "our best penalty killer." Bobby Hayes never gives up. Even after Lake State tied the game at three with a shorthanded goal during a five-minute major penalty to Laker center Bryan Fuss, Hayes was deter- mined not to let the game slip away. "What are we going to do, roll over and let them win?" he said in disgust. Few have Bobby Hayes' gusto. And for a defensive forward on a team with' five 50-point scorers, few have his numbers. Hayes tops his class in scoring with 21 points - not bad for a walk-on center. Hayes has so much energy and so much hustle that Berenson was forced to promote him off of the fourth line this weekend to get him more ice time., And when CCHA scoring leader Kevin Hilton went down with a deep. thigh bruise in the first period. who els could Berenson choose to take his spot, centering the Wolverines' top line? Hayes has, been Michigan's most consistent and most impressive rookie all year. He adjusts to almost anything and he improves every game. It doesn't really take much thought to realize that Bobby Hayes is not such an unlikely hero after all. -John Leroi can be reached over4 mail atjrlero@umich.edu. I . i CHAMPIONS Continued from Page IB i_ Grahame, who was named to the " Michigan's a strong team with a lot of firepower ,.. It was a lot like a IL. Wim -a f wmDw#bm ma dn# dnn "There were too many turnovdrs in the neutral zone, and that resulted in too many odd-man rushes," Jackson said. "You can't do that in these games, and you can't do that against Friday's game Michigan St. 1 1 0-2 Michigan 4 1 1--6 First period - 1, UM. Hilton 10 (Luhning, Herr), 5:10; 2, MSU, Keyes 14 (Ferranti), 9:27; 3, UM, Botterill 31 (Morrison, Sakala), 11:31;:4, UM, Madden 25 (Hayes). Satur ' ga m Michigan 3 0 1-4 Lake Superior 1 1 1-3 First period-1, UM, Luhning 19 (Madden, Morrison). 10:43 (pp): 2. LSSU Alvey 13 (unassisted), 11:40; 3, UM Madden 27 (unassisted). 17:14 (sh); 4, UM