The Michigan Daily - SPORTSMonday - October 20, 1997 - 7B Power play improves as games progress By Chris Farah Daily Sports Writer Chemistry on the power play isn't something that watching a couple of episodes of Mr. Wizard will take care of. No matter how many times it's prac- ticed, sometimes the only thing that can get a power play unit to click is real- game experience. Michigan found that out the hard way in Friday night's loss to Colgate, when the Wolverines failed to capitalize on each of their seven power play opportunities. Being successful on the power play was also a key to Saturday night's game against the Red Raiders - this time to Michigan's advantage. The Wolverines had plenty of chances to get their chemistry right Saturday, and this time they made good, scoring on four of II attempts - including their first two goals of the game. Freshman defenseman Mike Van Ryn set up Michigan's first goal with a pass to freshman forward Josh Langfeld. "With power plays, the goals come with chemistry," Van Ryn said. "The chemistry was there tonight" Lucky bounces are important in any game, but the Michigan's problems with the power play in the first game - and the turnaround it had in the second - weren't entirely random. In Friday's third period, Michigan was definitely getting some bad bounces. The Wolverines had some good chances, but the puck just wouldn't go in. The first two periods, however, were another story entirely. The Wolverines had problems keeping the puck in the Raiders' zone, and when they did gain possession in Colgate's zone, the Raiders' defense forced them to keep the puck on the perimeter. Saturday night, the Wolverines were much sharper than in Friday's outing. "The power plays got better as the game went on," Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "We started moving the puck and shooting it with a little more confidence." Berenson also emphasized the diffi- culties new players have in developing good chemistry in power play situations. "When you look at our power play, we've got three freshmen on our first unit with (Mark) Kosick and Langfeld and Van Ryn," Berenson said. "And they're replacing some pretty experi- enced players. ... so it's natural that they're not going to click right away, but we saw some good things." Kosick, Van Ryn and Langfeld stepped up their games during Michigan's power play opportunities, recording eight points on the power play. But some problems persisted. The Wolverines were prone to penal- ties of their own while Colgate was play- ing shorthanded - nullifying Michigan's power play. Berenson said that although some of Michigan's penalties during the power play were due to a lack of discipline, many were called by anxious referees. "On a power play, that's when a refer- ee will often even it up," Berenson said. "Like it's funny. every time we ran into their team, they were very tough on their skates, except when we were on the power play. That gives the referee an opportunity to even it up, and he did. But we took too many penalties when we were on the power play this weekend." Michigan forward Bill Muckalt said Michigan's power play is beginning to click, and with improved play from the freshmen, it will only get better. "They're all making good contribu- tions," Muckalt said. "We've just got to realize that we can't stay content with where we're at right now." JOHN KRAFT/Daily Michigan forward Justin Clark had a lot more to celebrate Saturday, when the Wolverines beat Colgate, 64. Michigan lost to the Red Raiders on Friday, 2-1. If solace can be taken from a loss, Colgate purged icers' past By Sharat Raju Daily Sports Writer Enough talk about the "Magnificent Nine"=-the nine Michigan seniors who graduated last year. Enough about all their accomplishments and domination. They're gone. The final vestige of that team has now been swept away. So enough, already. After being shocked by Colgate on riday, 2-1, an admittedly under-pre- ared Michigan team experienced an unusual feeling - losing at home. "We're not used to something like this" Michigan goaltender Marty Turco said. For the previous 36 games at Yost Ice Arena, the Wolverines did not lose. Period. They rarely even came close to being defeated. The last time Michigan scored only *one goal in a home loss was during the final days of the Reagan Administration - Ja: 7, 1989, in a 7-1 loss to Lake Superior. So finally the Wolverines purged themselves of one of the last remaining legacies of the previous team. And for the Wolverines, it should be good rid- dance. Not that the Wolverines were try- ing to lose. But Friday's loss may have positive side effects. Now the Wolverines can start fresh and not worry about the looming shad- ow of nine Michigan greats. Sure, the players say the streak wasn't on their minds. And it probably wasn't. Why dwell on the past? #1_- Doubtless, they're tired of hearing about the accomplish- ments of the pre- vious squad. Perhaps the pressure to sus- tai that aura of invincibility is somewhat gone now, and the Wolverines can larities to his class, but he was quick to point out that this team probably doesn't want to be compared to the previous one. The scenario is familiar to Botterill, since it was the same when he and his eight compadres arrived in town back in 1993. There were inevitable compar- isons between Botterill's class and this year's freshmen. Unquestionably, the comparisons will remain for this team. The current Wolverines will never make anyone for- get the old team that captured the national title in 1996. But this team can make the compar- isons stop by accomplishing something positive on their own. Something other than breaking the winning streak. It's still early - the Wolverines haven't even played a CCHA team yet. After Friday's loss, Sean Ritchlin proclaimed that Saturday will be the beginning of a new streak. That atti- tude is what the Wolverines will need to have. And with the old streak gone, the Wolverines won't have to stand on the shoulders of giants. They have to begin their own legacy, from scratch. What are you looking for? This is the most important time of your life. Right now you're not only thinking about graduating, but also finding that perfect job, one which offers: * challenging & diverse experiences *career growth * responsibility *a dynamic corporate culture *competitive salary & benefits What are we looking for? Our ideal candidate is ambitious, perceptive and intellectually curious. We seek individuals who want to contribute to the success of a business and, in the process, learn how a business is managed. Who are we? get on with building a new image. If you've witnessed a Michigan hock- ey game this season, you know that vic- tory is no longer assured. So don't make dinner reservations too early. Maybe that's the new image. But the "old" image was still hanging around. Jason Botterill - one of the biggest cogs in the well-oiled Michigan machine the past four seasons - was in attendance at Yost, returning to see a game for the first time since graduation. He noticed that there are some simi- We are McMaster-Carr, a leading distributor of over 250,000 industrial supply products to customers worldwide for over 95 We provide an extensive line of products, prompt delivery and strong commitment to customer service. years- a - We currently have positions available in our Information Systems department. We encourage students of all majors to attend our presentation. NEED EXPERIENCE? JOIN FORUM FOR INTERNSHIPS Access internship information on the Web, 24 hours a day! 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