4B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - February 3, 2003 Chatting into the boards FRIDAY'S GAME SATURDAY'S GAME Key play 3ls Saturday, 3:50 into the 1st "I wasn't sure If that was a good omen Ferris State 4 Michigan 3 or nte. - With Friday night's early 2-0 Ferris State lead still fresh in everyone's mind, t - Ferris State coach Bob Daniels referring to his team's 2-0 Michigan 6 Ferris State 4 the Bulldogs jumped out ahead 2-0 again lead on Saturday night, one day after the Bulldogs couldn't when a Jeff Legue shot found its way hold onto an early two-goal lead. through traffic in front of Al Montoya. 0 FRIDAY'S GAME Michigan 6, Ferris State 4 Kunitz: Montoya 'fell apart for his team' Ferris State Michigan 31 - 4 2 31 - 6 First period -2, MICH, 3,FSU -1, FSU 19 Large (Thomson) 1:31, 2, FSU 14 Kunitz (Legue) 3:20, 3, MICH 4 Burnes (Gajic) 7:54, 4, MICH 15 Tambellini (Mink) 11:28, 5, FSU 14 Kunitz 14:46. Penalties- Team, MICH (too many men) 8:43; Matt Yorki, FSU (holding) 15:27; Troy Milan, FSU (tripping) 17:25; Jason Ryzner, MICH (roughing) 19:31 Second perod-3, MICH, 1 FSU-1, MICH 9 Gajic (Rogers) 5:21, 2, MICH 7 Richmond (Ebbett) 12:57, 3, MICH 9 Gajic (Moss) 14:14, 4, FSU 22 Mangos (Thomson) 14:37 Penalties - Scherlinck, FSU (interference) 06:15; Tambellini, MICH (slash- ing) 11:33; York, FSU (slashing) 11:33; Richmond, MICH (high sticking) 15:35; Kinny, FSU (high stick- ing) 15:35; Kunitz, FSU (goaltender interference) 19:43; Woodford, MICH (hit after whistle) 19:43; Meyer, FSU (hot after whistle) 19:43 Third period -1, MICH, 0, FSU. Tambellini 15 (Ortenmeyer) 7:27. Penalties- Richmond, MICH (interference) 03:57; Scherlinck, FSU (slashing) 12:35; Burnes, MICH (interference) 14:34; Lewandowski, FSU (unsportsmanlike conduct) 14:34; Montoya, MICH (unsportsmanlike conduct) 14:34; Gajic, MICH (roughing after the whistle) 18:17; Rallo, FSU (roughing after the whistle) 18:17, Roemnsky, MICH (high sticking) 18:17; Kinnie, FSU (high sticking) 18:17 Shots on goal: MICH 12-17-8 37; FSU 11-5-6 22. Power plays: MICH 0 of 9; FSU 0 of 4. Saves - MICH, Mon- toya (186-1) -18; FSU, Brown (18-8-1) - 31. Referee: Steve Piotrowski. At: Yost ice Arena. Attendance: 6,917. SATURDAY'S GAME Ferris State 4, Michigan 3 By Kyle O'Neill Daily Sports Editor BIG RAPIDS - Michigan goalie Al Mon- toya had his midterm Saturday night against Ferris State, and according to the Bulldogs' Hobey Baker candidate, Chris Kunitz, the freshman didn't leave Big Rapids with a pass- ing grade. "I think we had him rattled - I mean the first shot on net I had went over his glove, and it wasn't a hard shot or anything," Kunitz said. "And we just kept pressuring and pressuring him, and he kind of fell apart for his team. We had him on the ropes right off the bat. "Maybe he was a little worried from (Fri- day) night." Kunitz was referring to the two times Mon- toya went down Friday after Ferris State play- ers had run into him. For all the critiquing Kunitz gave Montoya, the senior basically rewrote the test that Michi- gan's netminder was taking. Kunitz finished the weekend with four goals and one assist - all five points coming before Michigan scored in either game. And with three of the points in Sat- urday night's first period, he was personally going to make sure the Bulldogs had a lead they would not relinquish. Ferris State grabbed a 2-0 lead four min- utes into Friday's game, but lost the goal advantage by the second period. On Saturday, Ferris State had a 4-0 lead before Michigan scored at the 7:32 mark of the second period. "I think it gives our guys a boost when we score first, and it gets guys rolling to keep going out there," Kunitz said. "Everyone was excited and it's not like, 'Here we go again.' Although Kunitz was a main factor early on, his lack of point production in the third period was definitely noticeable. But Ferris State coach Bob Daniels takes the blame for that. "The only thing I've got to find a way to (rest him) - but I overplayed him," Daniels said. "So by the time he hit the third period, the kid's exhausted and I don't think he can generate the kind of offense that he does in the first period. With the penalty kill, the four-on-four and the powerplay, I just think I wore him out." With the win, Ferris State retained its four- point lead over Michigan that it had going into the two-game home-and-home series. And although his Bulldogs sit atop the CCHA right now, Kunitz is still quite aware of which team the title goes through come March. "We'll be excited to play (the Wolverines) at a neutral site like Joe Louis Arena," Kunitz said. "We're both top teams in the league, it's just exciting to play against them." Kunitz, at 53 points for the season, is one of the main candidates for the Hobey Baker Award. And while he didn't leave that impressed of Michigan's stud goaltender, he did leave with high thoughts of the Wolver- ines' leading goal scorer, - freshman Jeff Tambellini. "He reminds you a lot of (former Wolver- ines) Mike Cammalleri and Mike Comrie," Kunitz said. "He's ... shifty, real good, sees the ice well, shoots the puck well and just gets in the open spots. "He's going to be a great player in the future for sure. He's been carrying Michigan as a freshman, so he's going to have great things to come in the future." 0 Michigan Ferris State 0 21 - 3 3 1 0 - 4 First period -1, FSU, Chris Kunitz 23 (Jeff Legue, Derek Nesbitt) 1:19; 2, FSU, Jeff Legue 18 (Chris Kunitz, Derek Nesbitt) 3:50; 3, FSU, Chris Kunitz 24 (Simon Mangos, Jeff Legue). Penalties - Jeff Legue, FSU (hit after whistle) 16:13; Danny Richmond, MICH (hit after whistle) 16:13; Simon Mangos, FSU (rough- ing) 16:13; Jed Ortmeyer, MICH (roughing) 16:13; Brett Smith, FSU (hit after whistle) 16:38; Nick Martens, MICH (hit after whistle) 16:38. Second period - 4, FSU, Simon Mangos 7 (Brett Smith) 1:36; 5, MICH, Brandon Kaleniecki 11 (Jeff Tambellini, Andrew Ebbett) 7:32; 6, MICH, Jed Ort- meyer 5 (Brandon Rogers, Danny Richmond) 11:59 (pp). Penalties - Matt York, FSU (hit after whistle) 0:17; Mark Mink, MICH (hit after whistle) 0:17; Troy Milam, FSU (hooking) 2:05; Nick Martens, MICH (elbowing) 4:06; Jed Ortmeyer, MICH (elbowing) 8:20; Phil Meyer, FSU (roughing) 10:54; Nick Martens, MICH (cross-checking) 12:34; Mike Kin- nie, FSU (elbowing) 13:29; Phil Lewandowski, FSU (hit after whistle) 20:00. Third period - 7, MICH, Jeff Tambellini 18 (Brandon Rogers) 5:25. Penalties - Troy Milam, FSU (rough- ing) 1:30; Nick Martens, MICH (roughing) 1:30; Brandon Rogers, MICH (hit after whistle) 8:25; Andrew Ebbett, MICH (hooking) 14:59; Jason Ryz- nar, MICH (roughing) 18:43; Brett Smith, FSU (hit after whistle) 19:20; Danny Richmond, MICH (hit after whistle) 19:20; Brett Smith, FSU (10-minute misconduct) 19:20. Shots on goal: MICH 19-11-7 37; FSU 10-5-17 32. Power plays: MICH 1 of 4; FSU 0 of 6. Saves - MICH, Montoya (7-4-16) - 27; FSU, Brown (19-9-6) - 34. Referee: Steve Piotrowski. At: Ewiglben Arena, Big Rapids. Attendance: 2,493. How THEY FARED No. 1 Maine (21-3-4) def. No. 5 New Hampshire 3-2, lost to No. 5 New Hamp- shire 4-2 No. 2 North Dakota (21-4-3) lost to No. 3 Colorado College 4-1, lost to No. 3 Col- orado College 5-3. No. 3 Colorado College (21-2-5) def. No. 2 North Dakota 4-1, def. No. 2 North Dakota 5-3. No. 4 Cornell (174-0) def. Colgate 3-1, lost to Colgate 2-1. No. 5 New Hampshire (18-5-3) lost to No. 1 Maine 3-2, def. No. 1 Maine 4-2. No. 6 Boston College (16-6-3) def. Mass- achusetts 9-0, No. 7 Michigan (18-7-1)lost to No. 9 Ferris State 4-3, def. No. 9 Ferris State 6-4. No. 8 Minnesota (14-7) def.to Nebraska- Omaha 4-0, lost to Nebraska-Omaha 3-1 No.9 Ferris State (19.8-1) def. Alaska- Anchorage 4-1, def. Alaska-Anchorage 4-0. No. 10 Ohio State (18-6-3) def. Notre Dame 2-0, tied Notre Dame 3-3. No. 11 Denver (1774) def. Wisconsin 7- 1, def. Wisconsin 4-1.- No. 12 St. Cloud State (13-10-3) def. Michigan Tech 4-2, lost to Michigan Tech 4-3. No. 13 Harvard (13-61) def. Brown 3-1. No. 14 Boston University (15-10-2) def. Merrimack 5-0. No. 15 Minnesota State-Mankato (12-7- 9) def. Minnesota-Duluth 4-1, def. Min- nesota-Duluth 5-3. CCHA ROUNDUP Fdday's games: Miami 5, MICHIGAN STATE 3 Bowling Green 5, NEBRASKA-OMAHA 0 Micmam 6, Ferris State 4 NOTRE DAME 3, Ohio State 3 Saturday's gaymes: Ohio State 2, NOTRE DAME 0 MICHIGAN STATE 3, Miami 2 FERRIS STATE 4, MIchigan 3 NEBRASKA-OMAHA 6, Bowling Green 3 CCHA STANDINGS Michigan goaltender Al Montoya got the best of Ferris State star Chris Kunitz here in the second period of Friday's game, but Kunitz still scored four goals on the freshman netminder on the weekend 6 q BULLDOGS Continued from Page l.B "We definitely put ourselves behind the eight ball," Michigan senior captain Jed Ort- meyer said. "But we like a challenge. We def- initely got one right now. (But) this race isn't over with yet." Ferris State jumped out in front 1:19 in when Kunitz scored his third of four goals on the weekend, as he beat Michigan goaltender Al Montoya above his left shoulder while skating into the middle of the zone. Then just over two minutes later, Jeff Legue deflected a Kunitz shot between Montoya's legs. That gave the Bulldogs' top line two goals against Michigan's top line of Tambellini, Ortmeyer and John Shouneyia in its first two shifts. "We had some mental breakdowns, and they were able to capitalize," Ortmeyer said. Kunitz lit the lamp again when he received a pass that was cycled to him after Eric Nys- trom lost the puck at the Michigan end. He shot a slow roller that went through Mon- toya's legs. The score then became 4-0 early in the second, as Simon Mangos put the puck between Montoya and the near post on a Bull- dog three-on-one break. "They weren't great scoring chances, but the puck was going to the net," Berenson said. Michigan started to control play for the remainder of the second period, outshooting the Bulldogs 11-5. The Wolverines finally broke through when Ebbett dished the puck off to Tambellini, who found freshman Brandon Kalenecki on the near side right in front to tap it in. Then on the powerplay, Brandon Rogers received a pass from Danny Richmond and beat Brown top shelf. Michigan had its chances early in the third, but Ferris State took back the game, the series and possibly the first league title for any team other than Michigan or Michigan State since 1996. The Wolverines' penalties took them- selves out of a comeback. Ferris State's initial goal rush was too much to overcome. "I don't know if we were quite ready for it, or if we were a little too comfortable," Ort- meyer said. "But it's definitely tough spotting a team four goals and trying to come back." Late whistles spurn comeback bid By Dan Rosen Daily Sports Writer Team Ferris State Ohio State Michigan Michigan State Western Michigan Miami Northern Michigan Nebraska-Omaha Notre Dame Alaska-Fairbanks Bowling Green Lake Superior w 1L 1: 1: 1: 19 9 7 6 4 1 CCHA L 4 5 1 2 4 2 5 1 71 1 70 0 10 0 7 1 12 T 10 11 1 13 1 16 T 1 2 1 1 0 2 1 1 3 5 2 1 Pts 29 26 25 23 22 22 21 19 17 17 10 3 overall W L T 19 8 1 18 6 3 18 7 1 15 10 2 13 12 1 16 12 2 14 10 2 11 14 3 9. 13 6 9 12 5 7 16 2 4 18 4 BIG RAPIDS - Four goals down in a hostile road environment would have been tough enough for the Michigan hockey team to over- come. But struggling to make up that ground while killing HOCKEY penalties proved Notebook to be too steep a hill for the Wolverines to climb in Saturday's loss to Ferris State. Michigan took 12 penalties, dam- aging the comeback bid. Three of those whistles came late, forcing the Wolverines to play four of the final 10 minutes with fewer than five men on the ice. After the game, it wasn't his Wolverines that coach Red Beren- son was upset with. "I don't know if it was as much us taking a penalty as it was some- one deciding that it was a penalty," Berenson said. "It's not like it's black and white. I just thought that this game had too much on the line to be calling penalties that ... (were) judgement calls." One of those whistles was direct- ed at Brandon Rogers for a hit well behind the play. The penalty cane just three minutes after Jeff Tam- bellini had cut the Bulldogs' lead to 4-3 with Michigan's third-straight tally. The two-minute minor promptly shifted the game's momentum and brought the raucous crowd at Ewigleben Arena back into the game. "That's the problem even being a referee, is every time a player falls, if there's contact, is that a penalty?" Berenson said after the game. "A lot of times it's out of the corner of your eye, just like it's out of the corner of my eye." BACK AGAIN?: Milan Gajic hung around the ice after the pre-game skate Friday, just like he always does. But instead of firing pucks at the open net or skating a few extra circles in the Michigan zone, the sophomore forward sat quietly on an empty Wolverines' bench. His eyes locked intensely forward. So far this season, Michigan has been waiting for the Burnaby, British Columbia native to breakout. On Friday, he seemed to have an added focus, and that translated into his best game of the season. Gajic's two goals led the Wolver- ines to the 6-4 win. But Gajic's most important con- tribution may not have been his goal scoring. Just eight minutes into Friday's game, with the Wolverines already trailing 2-0, the sophomore squeezed the puck through a defender's legs to a wide- open Andy Burnes in the slot. Michigan's alternate captain waited a second before firing a wristshot under the crossbar that brought the Wolverines back into the game. "It just seemed like the puck was going my way," Gajic later said. "Every time I turned around, it was right there." The sophomore's second-year TONY DING/Daily While Michigan's Milan Gaic (right) had two goals Friday night, it was Ferris State that had the last word, holding the sophomore scoreless in Saturday's loss. I a struggles have been widely dis- cussed. As a freshman, he tied for sixth on the team in scoring and showed flashes of why he set a record for goals, assists and points for the British Columbia Hockey League's Burnaby Bulldogs two seasons ago. But before this week- end, he had managed just five goals and six assists on the year and sat out games against Bowling Green on Nov. 8 and 9 due to academic suspension. "I've been concerned about him, because he's a better player than he's shown," Berenson said. "And tonight he showed some flashes of Milan Gajic. Obviously he can real- ly help our team out if he plays that well with the puck." CCHA LEADERS Through Jan. 12 - League games only Player G A P 1. Chris Kunitz, FSU 20 19 39 2. Mike Kompon, Miami 11 17 28 3. R.J. Umberger, OSU 10 16 26 4. Jeff Legue, FSU 12 13 25 5. Greg Hogeboom, Miami 14 10 24 6. Brd FstMSU 8 14 99 Thiree stars oft/ie weekendf 03d Milan Gajic: *1 Jeff Tambellini I) Jed Ortmeyer fr ' --M - -----7 4