0 a -W -W 0 9 9 10B - The Michigan Daily - Faceoff 2002 - Thursday, October 10, 2002 The Michigan Daily - Faceoff 2 The Michigan Daily Hockey Writers' Preseason Predictions Michigan CCHA finish CCHA champion CCHA runner-up CCHA third place CCHA last place Mason Cup winner CCHA Coach of the Year Michigan MVP Surprise CCHA team CCHA MVP Michigan leading scorer Top Michigan freshman GLI Champion NCAA Frozen Four (Champion in bold) Courtney Lewis Bob Hunt 1st Michigan Michigan State Ohio State Bowling Green Michigan John Markell (OSU) Eric Nystrom Notre Dame Dan Ellis (UNO) Eric Nystrom Al Montoya Michigan State Boston College Boston University Denver Minnesota 1st Michigan Northern Michigan Michigan State Bowling Green Northern Michigan Markell Jed Ortmeyer Western Michigan Ellis Nystrom Jeff Tambellini Boston University Boston University Denver Michigan Minnesota Kyle O'Neill 2nd Ohio State Michigan Northern Michigan Lake Superior State Michigan Walt Kyle (NMU) Ortmeyer Ohio State Scott Titus (0OSU) Milan Gajic Danny Richmond Michigan Boston University Denver Michigan Ohio State 2002-2003 Michigan hockey schedule Date Opponent Location XEROX COLLEGE HOCKEY SHOWCASE Niagara Buffalo, N.Y.! North Dakota or Canisius Buffalo, N.Y.! Time 1st Michigan Northern Michigan Michigan State Bowling Green Michigan Kyle Nystrom Nebraska-Omaha Ellis Nystrom Tambellini Michigan Cornell Michigan Minnesota New Hampshire Fri., Oct. 11 Sat., Oct. 12 Fri., Oct. 18 Sat., Oct. 19 Fri., Oct. 25 Sat., O^t. 26 Fri., Nov. 1 Fri., Nov. 8 Sat., Nov. 9 Fri.., Nov. 15 Sat.,Nov. 16 Fri. Nov. 22 Sat., Nov. 23 Fri., Nov. 29 Sun., Dec. 1 Sat., Jan. 4 Sun., Jan. 5 Sat., Dec. 28 Sun., Dec. 29 Sat., Jan. 4 Sun., Jan. 5 Fri., Jan. 10 Sat., Jan. 11 Thu., Jan. 23 Sat., Jan. 25 Fri., Jan. 31 Sat., Feb. 1 Fri., Feb. 7 Sat., Feb. 8 Fri., Feb. 14 Sat., Feb.15 Fri., Feb. 21 Sat., Feb. 22 Fri., Feb. 28 Sat., Mar. 1 Fri., Mar. 7 Sat., Mar. 8 March 14-16 Thu., Mar. 20 Fri., Mar. 21 Sat., Mar. 22 Mar. 28/29 Mar. 28/29 Mar. 29/30 Mar. 29/30 Apr. 10-12 Merrimack Merrimack Alaska-Fairbanks* Alaska-Fairbanks* US-NTDP U-18 (ex) Bowling Green* Bowling Green* Lake Superior State* Lake Superior State* Notre Dame* Notre Dame* Ann Arbor 7:35 p.m. Ann Arbor 7:35 p.m. Ann Arbor 7:35 p.m. Ann Arbor 7:35 p.m. Ann Arbor 7:35 p.m. Bowling Green 7:05 p.m. Bowling Green 7:05 p.m. Ann Arbor 7:35 p.m. Ann Arbor 7:35 p.m. Ann Arbor 7:35 p.m. Ann Arbor 7:35 p.m. Sons Steve 7:30 p.m. 4 or 7 p.m. COLLEGE HOCKEY SHOWCASE Wisconsin Madison Minnesota Minneapolis 7:05 p.m. 2:05 p.m. 7:05 p.m. 7:05 p.m. Northern M ichigan* Northern M ichigan.* Marquette Marquette 38th ANNUAL GREAT LAKES INVITATIONAL Michigan Tech (Fox) Detroit # 7:35 p.m. Boston U. or Michigan State (Fox) Detroit # 1:35 or 5:05 p.m. ,..: P I:: L/ : b5_, { . 3 ~ i A 2002-03 USCHO.com National Division I Poll Team (First Place) 1. Minnesota (23) 2. Denver (12) 3. Michigan (3) 4. New Hampshire 5. Boston University 6. Maine 7. Michigan State 8. Cornell 9. Boston College Points 570 544 504 (1) 440 (1) 425 363 359 299 256 LastYear 3 2 7 1 5 6 4 9 10 8 11 15 14 Miami* Miami* Western Michigan* Western Michigan* Lake Superior State* Lake Superior State* Ferris State* (Fox) Ferris State* Northern Michigan* Northern Michigan* Michigan State* (Fox) Michigan State* Nebraska-Omaha* Nebraska-Omaha* Michigan State* Michigan State* (Fox) Ohio State* Ohio State* (Fox) Ann Arbor 7:351 Ann Arbor 5:051 Ann Arbor 7:351 Kalamazoo 7:051 Sault Ste. Marie7:05I Detroit# 7:351 Ann Arbor 7:351 Big Rapids 7:051 Ann Arbor 7:351 Ann Arbor 7:351 Ann Arbor 7:351 East Lansing 7:051 Omaha 7:051 Omaha 7:351 Ann Arbor 7:35 Detroit# 7:351 Columbus 7:05 Columbus 8:051 p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. p.m. ' i ines' fourth-leading scorer last sea- son as a freshman. While Jeff remembers watching his dad play as a young kid, he thinks the most influential part of his childhood in Canada came when he was a bit older. "When (my Dad) was working with the Canucks in his early years, I got to be around the guys, just got to be in the atmosphere with all the pro- fessional players," Jeff said. "You get to learn, to see first-hand all of the preparation that goes into it, how good the guys actually are." Jeff is, in fact, a third-generation hockey player. His grandfather, Addie, won the World Amateur Championships with Canada in 1961. "I think he was probablydthe best in the family," Jeff said of his grandfather. "He was a big influ- ence on me. He's always been a big supporter of me, and hopefully he gets to come down and watch a cou- ple of games (this year)." Both Tambellini and Richmond had no question that they would take up the family craft. "My parents never pushed me to play," Richmond said. "I asked them to play when I was like two years old. I was around the game my whole life and it was just something that naturally I wanted to do." As hockey players, they are both extremely skilled and already quite accomplished. Jeff was named the Canadian Junior A Hockey League Player of the Year for the 2001-2002 season. He led the Chilliwack Chiefs in scoring with 73 goals and 98 assists in 83 games - averaging an impressive 2.06 points per game. "He's very talented," said Michi- gan alternate captain John Shouneyia of Tambellini. "He can fly up and down the wings. He's still learning the system but he's a lot of fun to play with." Tambellini's creativity on the ice was already evident in the Wolver- ines' first two exhibition games last weekend. On Saturday against Toronto, he set up three goals for his teammates and was robbed of his own tally by the post multiple times. "I wanted to kid him and say, 'I thought you were a goal scorer,"' Michigan coach Red Berenson said after last Saturday's game. "He couldn't buy one tonight. But you can see he has speed, he has good hands. He's going to be a good player." Despite being a defenseman, Rich- mond has shown a similar knack for creating offense. He led all bluelin- ers in points last year with the Chica- go Steel of the United States Hockey League with nine goals and 45 assists in 56 games. He also earned his share of hardware by bei named the USHL Rookie of the Ye Alternate captain and fell defenseman Andy Burnes s Richmond having an immedi impact for the Wolverines. "I think he might take up some the slack that (former Michig defenseman) Mike Komisarek left I year," Burnes said. "He's gifted off sively. He's crafty, good with the pi and he's a good skater. He's definit going to be an important part of t defensive corps." Richmond's coach in Chica also had nothing but good things say about his star defenseman. T should be no surprise consideri that it was his father, Steve, loo ing behind the bench all season. "I think he's a lot more skill than I was," Steve Richmond sa "In that sense, he was always pre offensive. I relied more on otl guys creating offense for n whereas he can create a lot offense for himself." If Steve Richmond's evaluati holds true, his single-season scori record could be in jeopardy befc Danny is done playing at Michiga The Richmonds both agreed ti they enjoyed working together 1, season. Steve said that he tried treat Danny not as a son, but as player. He also recognized the ne to leave the game at the rink. "We'd talk hockey in general home but not about Danny as player," Steve said. "Otherwise, would have been hearing it 24 hoi a day from his dad and his coach.' Danny insists that his dad did push him to go to Michigan. "It was just that I was brought to love Michigan," Danny sai DAVID KATZ/Daily Newcomers Danny Richmond and Jeff Tambellini are finding that they have a lot of similarities, both on and off the ice. By Dan Rosen Daily Sports Writer 10. Colorado College 231 11. St. Cloud State 203 12. Northern Michigan 184 13. North Dakota 123 14. Harvard 101 15. Ohio State 75 CCHA CCHA CCHA CCHA CCHA TOURNAMENT First-Round Series Campus Sites Second Round Detroit # Semifinals (Fox) Detroit # Championship (Fox) Detroit # Others receiving votes: Clarkson 24, Providence 24, Wisconsin 20, Alaska-Fairbanks 24, Nebraska- Omaha 11, Massachusetts-Lowell 6, Minnesota-Duluth 5, Mercy- hurst 4, Northeastern 5, Yale 4, Notre Dame 4, Wayne State 3, Miami-Ohio 1 Poll voted on by 28 coaches and 12 media members from around the nation. It is announced every Mon day throughout the season. NCAA TOURNAMENT Northeast Regional Worcester, Mass. West Regional Minneapolis East Regional Providence, R.I. Midwest Regional Ann Arbor Frozen Four Buffalo, N.Y.! * Central Collegiate Hockey Association games (ex) indicates exhibition games # indicates games played at Joe Louis Arena, Detroit indicates games played at HSBC Arena, Buffalo, N.Y. US-NTDP U-18 - U.S. National Team Development Program Under-18 Team All times are local to game site (Ann Arbor is Eastern time) (Fox) indicates games televised by FOX Sports Net Detroit ust a few weeks into the school year, Michigan freshman Danny Richmond and his roommate, fellow freshman Jeff Tambellini, have already developed a pre-game routine. Richmond said that the two like to listen to a wide variety of music in their dorm room before a compe- tition, and that includes a little Enrique Iglesias. "I think he's a little bit of a bigger (Enrique) fan than I am," Tambellini said with a smile. "He's the one that goes around wearing the hats and stuff. He takes it to a different level for sure." Richmond has also managed to cement his reputation as the funni- est of the incoming freshmen. "Sometimes before games people are all tense," Richmond said. "You're playing a game, you don't have classes tomorrow. Why be mad about things?" In their first few weeks in Ann Arbor, Richmond and Tambellini have built a strong friendship off the ice. "He's a great kid," Tambellini said of his roommate. "He's an outgoing guy. He's always positive and upbeat and he's a great player on the ice. Just to be associated with someone like that, you know, it's fun to have around." Richmond said that their common tastes in music, such as Dave Matthews, and TV has helped spark the relationship. But the similarities don't end there. Richmond remembers playing around with a hockey stick as a young kid and dreaming about being an NHL hockey player. It wasn't hard for him to imagine that sce- nario at the time because he was in the locker room of his dad's NHL team, watching the players prepare for the game. Steve Richmond, Danny's father, played a total of nine NHL seasons with the New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, New Jersey Devils and Los Angeles Kings. In addition, he set the Michigan record for most points in a season by a defenseman (54) in the 1980- 81 season. Tambellini also grew up around NHL players. His dad, named Steve as well, is a 10-year NHL veteran and is currently the Vice President of Player Personnel for the Vancou- ver Canucks. Steve even won a Stanley Cup in 1980 with the New York Islanders and Bobby Nystrom - whose son Eric was the Wolver- I CIWECK YoUR p '1 Os) NUO1NN 2003 NCAA MCKEY WEST IERONAL K g I PUBLIC SKATING I i MON4 Weekdays Thursday Saturday* ,18 & Over Welwme C;4, 4>_________ 1 . 'K ^ . ^f ff9U 12-12:50 pm 8-9:50 pm .2-3:50 pm 7-8:50 pm1 2-3:50 pm NCAA Continued from Page 4B the vindication of winning a region- al before leaving for the Frozen Four. "The regional concept is much improved because now we play win- ners," Comley said. "Even though the regionals were pretty good, they were pretty good because of the quality of the hockey, not with what you left there feeling." Ann Arbor will be welcome again to a regional, as Yost Ice Arena will host the new Midwest Regional on the weekend of March 29-30. The West regional will be in Minneapolis, the Northeast will be in Worcester, Mass. and the East will be in Provi- dence, R.I. Potent threat Last season with the Chilliwack Chiefs of the British Columbia Hockey League, Jeff Tambellini scored 171 points in just 83 games. Here's how his whopping 2.06 points per game would stack up to some other statistics in sports. I Washingtun at Pearl YPSILANTI 487-H110O YOST ICE ARENA www.umich.edu/yost 764-4600 Sunday Name Jeff Tambellini Wayne Gretzky (career) Gordie Howe Mark Messier (active) New England Revolution (2001) Dennis Rodman (1998-99) Detroit Tigers (2002) League BCHL NHL NHL NHL M LS NBA MLB 171 2857 1850 1804 49 (goals) 49 575 (runs) . r . . _- r L i / t 4 i t , ~ c . "'" \ a y .t 1 , , 551 5.OiVc }DtJ Points Games PPG 83 1487 1760 1602 28 23 161 2.06 1.92 1.05 1.12 1.75 2.1 3.57 *Some Saturday sessions cancelled during home Michigan football & hockey games. 'November 30- February 22 1000 S. State St., Ann Arbor, MI 48109 I L' C ti ........... ..... __j