4B - The Michigan Daily - SportsMonday - January 9, 2006 HITTING AFTER THE WHISTLE 01 ICE HOCKEY PLAYER OF THE WEEK Friday's Game MICHIGAN 4 - ALASKA-FAIRBANKS 0 Saturday's Game ALASKA-FAIRBANKS 4 - MICHIGAN 2 Chad Kolarik Michigan Kolarik tallied one goal and an assist in Friday night's game against Alaska-Fairbanks. During the Saturday's loss, the sophomore notched his seventh goal of the season. NOTABLE QUOTABLE "It wasn't too awkward, because I'm always on the ice when he's get- ting it from every other arena." - Michigan freshman forward Andrew Cogliano on what it was like to hear the entire crowd boo fellow freshman Jack Johnson at the World Junior Championships. BY THE NUMBERS Cosecutive power-play chances that Michigan has not converted. 01 9 Since the Nebraska-Omaha series, the Wolverines are 2-for- 30 with the advantage. SATURDAY'S SCORING SUMMARY Alaska-Fairbanks 4, Michigan 2 Alaska-Fairbanks .................................... 3 1 0 - 4 Michigan.....................0 1 1-2 FIRST PERIOD 1. UAF Jordan Emmerson 2 (Kelly Czuy, Tyler Eckford) 1:21. 2. UAF Kyle Jones 8 (Jordain Emmerson, Nathan Fornataro) 2:12. 3. UAF Curtis Fraser 8 (Kelly Czuy, Nathan Fornataro) 8:01. Penalties - Chad Kolarik, MICH (roughing) 0:27; Curtis Fraser, UAF (roughing) 0:27; Brandon Kaleniecki, MICH (roughing) 0:27; Jordan Hendry, UAF (roughing) 0:27; David Rohlfs, MICH (tripping) 1:01; Curtis Fraser, UAF (holding) 3:31: Team, MICH (too many on ice) 6:05; David Rohlfs, MICH (high sticking) 7:22. SECOND PERIOD 4. UAF Adam Powell 2 (Kyle Greentree, Nathan Fornataro) 11:24. 5. MICH Chad Kolarik 7 (Brandon Kaleniecki, Mark Mitera) 11:48. Pen- alties - Braden Walls, UAF (boarding) 2:19; Adam Naglich, UAF (trip- ping) 6:50; Jordan Hendry, UAF (high sticking) 8:18; Jason Bailey, MICH (charging) 12:08; Lucas Burnett, UAF (hooking) 14:52; Jordan Hendry, UAF (interference) 17:51; Andrew Cogliano, MICH (roughing) 19:56; Ryan Muspratt, UAF (roughing) 19:56; Ryan Muspratt, UAF (slashing) 19:56. THIRD PERIOD 6. MICH Tim Miller 3 (Mark Mitera, Travis Turnbull) 9:48. Penalties- Andrew Cogliano, MICH (CTH elbowing) 3:41; Curtis Fraser, UAF (contact with goalie) 4:43; Kevin Porter. MICH (tripping) 5:08; Jordan Hendry, UAF (CTH high-stick) 6:11; Matt Hunwick, MICH (tripping) 12:15; Darcy Campbell, UAF (tripping) 14:48; Jordan Hendry, UAF (holding the stick) 16:50: TJ Campbell, UAF (hooking) 18:06; Jack Johnson, MICH (board- ing) 19:31. Shots on goal: UAF 16-5-3-24; MICH 9-11-15-35. Power plays: UAF 2-of-7; MICH 0-of-11. Saves - UAF Chad Johnson (9-10-14) - 33; MICH Billy Sauer (13-4-3) - 20. Referee: Barry Pochmara. Attendance: 6,750. 'M' STATS Fairly Beaten Fight night at Yost breaks out By H. Jose Bosch Daily Sports Writer The end of Friday night's game against the Nanooks looked like a scene out of a Mike Tyson bout. After the play was whistled dead with less than a minute left in the game, players from both sides began to punch and shove each other. It wasn't exactly clear who or what started the incident. Despite four different fights occurring at once, referee Barry Pochmara assessed each player involved with only a roughing penalty. In all, eight players were sent to the box for a total of 18 penalty minutes. Includ- ing two other players sent to the box for penalties unrelated to the fight, the game T ended with 10 players - five from each ,V team - standing in the penalty box. In the box, the Michigan players had fun, laughing and pointing at the oppos- ing team or just beating their sticks on the glass. Freshman Jack Johnson pointed and tugged at the block 'M' on his jersey, as if to make the point that he is a true Wolverine who should never be messed with. "We're not here to win a fight," said Berenson of the entire ordeal. "Otherwise, we'd start a boxing team." Lost in the commotion was goalie Billy Sauer. Just before everything blew up, Sauer was seen skating away, an arguably commendable move on his part. Considering he was less than a minute away from his first shutout, staying calm and col- lected was the best route to go. But what would've happened if he had been pressed into action? "I didn't want to jump in, but I guess if one of the other guys got in trouble, I wouldn't have a choice," Sauer said with a smile. "I guess I would (have fought)." PUT ME IN COACH, I'M BANGED UP BUT READY TO PLAY: Alternate captain Brandon Kaleniecki may not be one of the team's top statistical players, but what he brings to the ice - especially on a young team such as this one - can be more valuable than a 30-point scorer. In Berenson's words at the beginning of the season: "Kaleniecki is a bulldog - he's a working, blue-collar hockey player." During Saturday's game, Kaleniecki played with the same grit and determination that has been seen from him all season. On a Michigan penalty kill, Kaleniecki put himself in front of shots multiple times and, in one instance, dove in an attempt to break up a pass. The Livonia native never backed down from a hit, looking anything but tentative when chasing pucks or trying to move bodies near the net. There was no indication the sports hernia that he has been forced to play through part of this season - and has played through before JUSTIN BASS/Daily Junior defenseman David Rohlfs got a mouthful during Friday night's fight. The Wolverines got the final laugh, winning 4-2. - was hurting him. He was even able to notch an assist on Michigan's first goal. "I thought he played well," Berenson said. "I mean he gave us a solid game up until the point where he just couldn't go anymore." According to Kaleniecki, near the end of the second period an awkward hit "tweaked" his injury a bit and by the third period, Pe was forced to stay on the bench. "It's disappointing," Kaleniecki said. "I was just starting to feel a little better out there. I tried to come out in the third and skate a couple hard laps to see if I could go, but I just couldn't do it. It was too awkward and painful." THE PRODIGAL SONs: The Wolverines' spirits were lifted Friday when four of their teammates walked into the locker room. Johnson, freshmen Andrew Cogliano and Mark Mitera and sophomore Kevin Porter had spent time away from the team during break to participate in the IHHF World Junior Hockey tournament in British Columbia. Porter, Johnson and Mitera represented the United States, and Cogliano skated for - and won a gold medal - with team Canada. The team welcomed them back from the two-week long furlong. "Everyone was really excited," said forward Chad Kolarik. "Giving each other hugs - saying congratulations to Cogliano and saying nice job to Porter, Mitera and Johnson. It was happy-go-lucky before the game." According to Berenson, the team is better with its departed players back. He added that one could feel the difference, saying that the defense "looked like a Divi- sion I defense again." The arrival and warm welcome did more than brighten the demeanor of the team. It was a source of energy for the players who made the long journey back to Ann Arbor. "It was awesome," Porter said. "It gave me some adrena- line for the game and gave me some energy to help me get through that game and most of (Saturday's) game too." In his first game back, Porter marked two assists to his cred- it. Although Johnson, Cogliano and Mitera didn't record any points, Johnson returned to form with six penalty minutes. \W l Player Hensick Johnson Hunwick Ebbett Cogliano Porter Kolarik Turnbul Kaleniecki GP 21 19 21 21 19 19 21 21 19 21 G A 10 5 7 6 8 10 7 4 5 3 20 16 14 13 11 8 9 7 5 7 Pts 30 21 21 19 19 18 16 11 10 10 +/- PIM +3 +10 +8 +2 -2 0 -1 +3 +4 +8 16 91 30 19 20 26 26 39 31 20 Sht 67 48 47 52 66 44 42 32 53 27 Miller Naurato Bailey Mitera Rohlfs Dest Swystun Fardig cook Dunlap i { I { E i I ----t- 18 20 19 20 21 18 18 20 3 -r 6 5 0 0 1 2 0 0 3 2 6 4 3 1 0 0 9 7 6 4 4 2 2 0 0 i i i -3 -1 +2 +4 -2 -9 0 -4 0 4 45 33 31 31 8 13 23 2 36 23 23 19 16 22 27 16 2 The road The players who participated in the IHHF World Junior Championships had a tough travel itiner- ary. Their journeys spanned three time zones, two hockey games, and a sleep- less night arriving hours before Friday's 7:30 p.m. start. Sophomore Kevin Porter, freshmen Jack Johnson and Mark Mitera: Noon (WST): Played in Bronze Medal game 6:00 p.m. (WST): Took bus from Van- couver to Seattle 1:00 a.m. (WST): Took flight from Seattle to Minne- apolis 6:30 a.m. (CST): Took flight from Minneapolis to Detroit 10:00 a.m. (EST): SPicked up from Detroit airport to Yost 4:00p.m. (EST): Arrived at Yost Ice Arena for game. Freshman Andrew Cogliano: 4:00 p.m. (WST): Collected two assists in gold medal game for Canada 7:00 p.m. (WST): Celebrated winning the gold medal in the locker room. 9:00 p.m. (WST): Went out with friends, family and teammates 5:00 a.m. (WST): Took shuttle to Vancouver 6:00 a.m. (WST): Took flight from Vancouver to Seattle. 9:45 a.m. (WST): Took flight from Seattle to Detroit 4:30 p.m. (EST): Picked up from Detroit airport and taken straight to Yost Ice Arena. Mirror images in season series THE 'RED' LINE In a system named for legendary coach Red Beren- son, the Daily hockey writers grade the Wolverines on their performance in each of four areas. (Graded out of 4 pucks) The feeling of familiarity was almost eerie when Michigan freshman Tim Miller slotted a shot past Alaska-Fairbanks goaltender Chad Johnson in the waning moments of Saturday night's loss to the Nanooks. Miller's goal brought the score to 4-2, completing a mirror image of the season series that began in Fairbanks last October. With four key players returning to action less than 24 hours after arriving home from an emotional trip to the World Junior Championships, the Wolverines were cer- tainly not at full strength this weekend. Heading into Friday night's game, I recalled the season- series opener Oct. 29 in Fairbanks, where a travel-weary Michigan team was out-hustled to every puck and sent back to the hotel with a 4-2 loss. Needless to say, I was wary of JA a repeat. But it wasn't to be. The Wolverines notched a 4-0 Z shutout victory in Friday's game. Si At that point, Michigan had taken two in a row from the Nanooks, beginning with a 4-0 win Oct. 30 and the visions of the conference-opening October loss faded fast. The Wolverines are a much quicker team, and, after losing that first game in Fairbanks, Michigan coach Red Berenson pushed his team to take advantage of its speed. The speed paid dividends in the second October matchup, when Michigan blanked Alaska-Fairbanks on the 30th, dominating much like the Wolverines did this past Friday. But it took just eight minutes for the Nanooks to revive October's frustration on Saturday. Before anyone knew what happened, Michi- gan had surrendered three quick goals, and just one thought came to mind: deja vu. I thought back to that night in Fairbanks, when Michigan defenseman Tim Cook was sitting in the press box after receiving a game disquali- fication in the previous game. Watching the Nanooks win the 50-50 battles and force Michigan's special teams into making mistakes on a wider ice surface, Cook looked exasperated, ready to prove that his team should not be losing to Alaska-Fairbanks. His frustration was universal among his teammates, and they came back with a vengeance the next night. NANOOKS Continued from page 1B M Dc ml Mark Giannotto OFFENSE The offense looked solid on Friday night, getting pro- duction from almost every line and scoring four goals. But on Saturday night the team fell into a 4-0 hole, and couldn't counter the Nanooks' big defenders. DEFENSE On Friday the defense helped Sauer earn his first shutout. But in the first 10 minutes of Saturday's loss, the defense shut Sauer out of a chance for vic- tory before it shored up its holes later in the game. Because the Wolverines have experienced the disappointment o traveling 3,000 miles for a Friday night loss, they must have knot that the Nanooks would come out spitting fire on Satur- day night. But Michigan had no answer, and the game got out of hand quickly. Just as Cook and the discontented Wolverines saw and fixed their mistakes in Alaska, coach Tavis Mac- Millan and the Nanooks did the same this weekend. On the Olympic-size rink in Fairbanks, Michigan had used superior speed to its advantage. But on the smaller ice in Ann Arbor, the Nanooks came back, using their size to plug holes that the speedy Wolverines [ES V. had exploited one night earlier. . After that early outburst, Michigan managed to out- OWD score Alaska-Fairbanks 2-1, but somehow I knew that esOn_ the Nanooks would hold on. It felt like a game I had seen before, some sort of hybrid of the two games I wit- nessed in Fairbanks. It was half Friday, where the Nanooks studied film and were adequately prepared for a superior opponent, and half Saturday, when the Wolverines were sparked by the frustration of los- ing a game they could have won. The Yost Ice Arena crowd jumped back into the game once Miller rocketed that shot past Johnson but, in the end, it didn't matter. Alas- ka-Fairbanks had come to play, and the Wolverines weren't ready to play with them. In a scene eerily similar to when Nanooks' fans left the Carlson Center on the second night of that October series, all the Michigan players and fans could do was walk out onto State Street, shake their heads and wait for next week. The mirror images in this series didn't tell me much about the rest Michigan's season, but it tells me that the Nanooks might be traveling to the state of Michigan one more time - for the CCHA Final Four. In just his second year at the helm, MacMillan was matched up against a proven and distinguished coach in Berenson, and it came out in a wash. Who knows how far he can take the Alaska-Fairbanks by the time March rolls around. "I woke up (Friday) morning, and I thought it was going to be a good day' Sauer said. "It definitely turned out to be." Four minutes into the first period, Michigan freshman Danny Fardig was credited with a goal when an Alaska-Fairbanks player inadvertently tipped the puck into his own net. Michigan padded its lead in the second period with some nice passing. Junior Kevin Porter sent the puck down the ice. Alternate- captain T.J.. Hensick beat the Alaska-Fairbanks defenseman to the puck and quickly passed it across the ice to Michigan forward Jason Bailey, who one-timed the puck over goalie Wylie Rogers's shoulder for a 2-0 Michigan lead. That was more than enough for the Wolverines. With Sauer play- ing well in net and the team turning in a solid defensive performance, the Nanooks didn't have much of a chance to come back. "Our team played a lot of defense," Sauer said. "I really didn't have to make too many big saves." But Michigan kent attackin. Midwav throueh the second neri- AROUND THE CCHA Friday's results: MICHIGAN 4, Alaska-Fairbanks 0 LAKE SUPERIOR 6, Western Michigan 1 Bowling Green 3, OHIO STATE 2 Notre Dame 4, NEBRASKA-OMAHA 1 Northern Michigan 2, MIAMI 1 MICHIGAN STATE 3, Wayne State 1 Saturday's results: Alaska-Fairbanks 4, MICHIGAN 2 LAKE SUPERIOR 4. Western Michigan 0 BOWLING GREEN 2, Ohio State 0 Notre Dame 2, NEBRASKA-OMAHA 2 (OT) MIAMI 6, Northern Michigan 3 MICHIGAN STATE 5. Wayne State 1 *Home teams in caps CCHA STANDINGS James V. Dowd GOALTENDING I On his 18th birthday, Sauer did an excellent job with a shutout, but he gave up four goals the following night. In his defense, he was left out to dry on a couple of goals, but he still lnnaria ahi+ -cholk The deflection set up Wolverine forward Chad Kolarik for a break away. Kolarik streaked down the ice and flipped a shot by Nanooks goaltender Chad Johnson to cut the lead back down to three. Michigan tried to step up the pressure in the third period. Skating 6-on-5 due to a delayed Alaska-Fairbanks penalty, Michigan forward Travis Turnbull fired a shot on net. The deflection came to Wolverines defenseman Mark Mitera, who skated around the net while looking for someone to pass to. Eventually he found freshman Tim Miller open in the right slot. Miller launched a perfect shot through traffic into the top right corner of the net to bring the Wolverines within two. P's Michigan continued to control the play in the third period, but the 23 Wolverines couldn't find a way to trim the Nanooks' lead. 1 R "We had a Pod third neriod " PhhE t sid "But with a team Team CCHA Overall 7 i i H. Jose Bosch 1. Miami 7 i1 ..Ci11-lY-it+S+te 11-2-1 o c o | 14-3-3 -. 1 A - i