: s mo Www wmmom w w - - m- m w w ! " w w w ww w w qw w mw w w -w mw 4B - Faceoff - October 11, 2006 - The Michigan Daily Faceoff - October 11, 2006 - The Michigan Daily - 5B no am mm MoRm T on Ht. BLuE L INE so AW ME= mm Aw = S BACK Waltz into Yost Ice Arena any week- day afternoon, and what you see hovering around the blue line might be a bit confus- ing. Future NHL players and dazzling tal- ent swirl around the zone. But this isn't an NHL prospects camp. This is the Michi- gan defense. And while most of the backliners know their futures lie in pro hockey, the one con- cern right now is Michigan's goal - and keeping pucks out of it. Then and now To say the Wolverines struggled with goals against last season is an understate- ment. Sophomore Jack Johnson refers to it as a disaster. The young team allowed 125 goals in 41 games, including the 5-1 thrashing from North Dakota that sealed Michigan's one- and-done NCAA Tournament appearance. The previous season saw 22 fewer pucks pass over the goal line. "Last year with our goals against, they tow were higher than normal," Michigan asso- ciate coach Billy Powers said. "No one was happy about that." Despite a promising fall that included a stint as the No. 1 team in the nation, Michigan's weakness showed as the year went on. Eleven freshmen and a slew of mistakes from all age groups produced a slumping team from one of hockey's most storied programs. They tried tweaking lines. They tried switching goalies. But the Wolverines couldn't solve it and finished third in the CCHA for one of the program's worst sea- sons in more than a decade. Their offense was the best in the conference at 3.64 goals per game. Their defense? A lowly ninth in the CCHA with 2.93 goals allowed per game. In the end, Michigan was left with an offseason of reviewing tape and a handful of questions. "I think our team defense as a whole wasn't the best," now senior captain Matt Hunwick said. "We didn't give our goal- ies much help. We gave up a lot of break- sways, a lot of odd-man rushes. We can't allow those little mistakes to happen if we want to be a championship team." Remembering last year's faults, the Michigan defense has a renewed sense of what it means to protect its goal. Perhaps most importantly, last year's entire blue line is back to prove it's better than before. This year, it's stacked. Five NHL draftees, three of them first-round F 4 picks. Three mature seniors. Two superstar sophomores. Two highly touted freshman. And everyone hopes that equals one stingy defense. It's said that defense wins champion- ships, and whether or not that's true, Powers has witnessed two of them in his 15-year tenure. The man knows an extraor- dinary defense when he sees one. "This is probably our deepest and most talented group on paper- no question with that," Powers said. "We have to make that translate on the ice. We have the potential to be a very, very special defense, as far as the Michigan history goes." Seasoned seniors It's a powerful combination. The poise that comes after three years of college competition, and the urgency of having just one left. With former Wolverines Al Montoya and Jeff Tambellini among the many that left town before graduation day in recent years, it's been a while since Michigan enjoyed a non-depleted, fully developed senior class. "It's nice to see the seniors stay and complete their four years, become domi- nant players and be rewarded for it," Michigan coach Red Berenson said. "I'm a big believer in that." Hunwick, drafted by the Boston Bruins in 2004, is living evidence of the devel- opment that comes from a full college career. The Sterling Heights native started his career with a plus-14 freshman campaign, but lit the red lamp just once all season. His second year brought six goals, fol- lowed by 11 goals his junior year. Each year he maintained his position at the top of Michigan's plus/minus list, with two back-to-back plus-15 seasons. "Matt has become a tremendous two- way defenseman here," Powers said. "He's become a threat offensively, jumping into the play, carrying the puck up the ice. But at the same time he has not lost his bread and butter, being a reliable responsible top defenseman. "When he got here we always knew we were going to have a great defensive defenseman. Now he's become a great defenseman because he can provide great offense as well as great defense." The steady anchor on the blue line was awarded for his consistency and expanded skills with a "C" on his jersey. Winning the Vic Heyliger Trophy as Michigan's top defenseman each of the last two seasons, Hunwick is no stranger to leadership. Teammates point to his work ethic as his best quality. "Hunwick's just a horse," fellow senior defenseman Tim Cook said. "He's a really hard worker." Alternate captain Jason Dest has also established himself as someone for others to look up to. The Fraser native tends to fly under the radar. To someone outside the program, he might seem an odd choice for the "A" on a team full of nationally recognized names. But watch Dest in practice and see how he interacts with his fellow players. He's not just Michigan's top penalty-killing defenseman, he's the quintessential team- mate. "He has a tremendous amount of respect from his peers," Powers said. "He's always taken time to help the young players devel- op. He's always cared about his teammates and the program. He's just a guy that wears the 'M' on his sleeve all the time." Boasting a newfound confidence that's been slowly simmering over his college career, Dest appears poised to play his best hockey yet. Considering he's riding Michigan's longest active streak of con- secutive games played (125), his reliabil- ity is an asset, too. Like Dest, Cook isn't making head- lines for his offensive heroics. Last year against CCHA cupcake Bowling Green, he notched the first and only score of his career. But also like Dest, the mature and dependable blue liner is coming into his own as a hockey player. "They want to have breakout years," Powers said. Cook, a 2003 Ottawa Senators draft pick, is best known for his size and prow- ess on the penalty kill. Together with Dest, shorthanded doesn't seem like such a disadvantage for Michigan. It's all part of the beauty of being a senior. And the Wolverines are glad to soak that in - three times over, with three respected veterans. Second year of stardom Pressure. Pressure to carry Michigan. Pressure to get drafted. Pressure to play pro hockey. Pressure, pressure, pressure. The sophomore defensemen know it well. It's defined their short Michigan careers. But the awkward first practices, the nerve-wracking first games and days of NHL meddling are afterthoughts now. Jack Johnson and Mark Mitera came in with a group of nine other freshmen. Johnson, the third overall pick in the 2005 draft, arrived in the midst of hype so loud it could put a Yost home crowd to shame. Mitera found himself in a depleted defense that needed his physical presence to succeed. He also played up to his first year of draft eligibility. Mitera worked as a freshman to get drafted high, and he succeeded, going 19th overall in 2006 to the Anaheim Ducks. Johnson fought to stay in Ann Arbor after increased pressure from the NHL, and he did. Doing so meant he got traded from the can't-wait Carolina Hurricanes to the patient Los Angeles Kings. "His head is clear now," Powers said. "He's been traded, there's no more 'When's Carolina going to call next and ask me to come?' Jack's issues are a little different than a lot of players. ... It was hard on him, very difficult. Now he's comfortable with fact that L.A. will wait." Both drafted and content in Ann Arbor, Johnson and Mitera can finally focus on the heart of it all: what happens on the ice. The two sophomores had impressive first years despite all the buzz and expec- tations. Mitera notched 10 assists while using his menacing 210-pound, 6-foot-3 frame to be a physical force against oppos- ing forwards. Unfortunately for them, Powers said Mitera has added about 15 pounds to that. "He's not a guy you want to run into right now," Powers said. As for Johnson, he's a player opponents tried to run into - but not because he's easy to take on. It was no secret that getting the hot NHL prospect riled up didn't take much. Johnson racked up 149 penalty minutes for the season, more than double of any other Wolverine. But a year older and wiser, Johnson said he's going to pick his spots a bit more this season. "I'm not going to say I won't have penal- ties this year, because I probably will, but it just probably won't be as many," Johnson said. The situation is a catch-22 for Michigan coaches. Being shorthanded often is never good, but stifling Johnson's fire and inten- sity would be taking one of the best ele- ments from his game. The one thing that doesn't seem to be going anywhere is Johnson's firepower up front. A finalist for last season's CCHA Best Offensive Defenseman, he notched 10 goals and 22 assists. In the team's two exhibition games last week, Johnson man- aged three goals and five assists. See DEFENSE, page 8B BEFORE JOHNSON AND HUNWICK, THERE WAS BLUM AND MANNING College hockey fans looked on with awe last season as Matt Hunwick and Jack Johnson notched 30 and 32 points, respectively. To have one defenseman who can contribute so much to an offense is rare, and to have two is unheard of. Or is it? During the dog days of Michigan hockey, the 1979-80 Wolverines found themselves mired in fourth place at the end of the WCHA season despite being led by one of the most prolific scoring lines in NCAA history. The Farrell Fivesome - named for then-Michigan coach Dan Farrell - combined for a staggering 338 points. The line was anchored by two defensemen who have lived in relative anonymity in Michigan hockey history, John Blum and Tim Manning. Manning became captain of the following year's team, and Blum enjoyed a healthy career in the NHL, but their contributions to the Farrell Fivesome are often forgotten. The two combined for 101 points that season - more than the combined total of all eight Michigan defensemen last season. - James V. Dowd Here's a comparison of Blum and Manning's magical season to Hunwick and Johnson's 2005-06 season: 1979-1980 regular season Player GP G A Pts PIM Blum 37 9 41 50 79 Manning 38 8 43 51 6 Total 75 17184 101 85 2005-2006 regular season Player GP G A Pts PIM Hunwick 38 9 18 27 64 Joho 35 s0 22 32 143. Total 73 1±9140 59 207 MOVING ON UP In the game of hockey, there are defensemen and there are for- wards. And maybe some who do a little of both. The Michigan coaches are cer- tainly not opposed to moving play- ers between the two ends of the ice. Just ask senior David Rohlfs, a natural forward who spent the first 23 games of last season on the blue line. In Rohlfs's case, the Wolverines had an ailing defense. That's not an issue this season, as Michigan boasts a deep and talented back line. But with players like Jack Johnson and Matt Hunwick racking up ridiculous offensive statistics, it's easy to wonder what they would be like if they moved up front. "We definitely have talked about that issue" associate coach Billy Powers said. "They could probably really add an offensive element to a line." Aside from spicing up a stagnant offensive combination, moving a defenseman up might help add some defensive responsibility to a line that is dominated by offensive players. Either way, Powers said the only way a blue liner could get moved up is if he could hold his own offensively on one of the top two lines. One player who seems fit to do so is freshman Chris Summers, a Milan native who spent his hock- ey career as a forward until he switched to defense at14 years old. He enters this season as a defense- man, but could go either way. "Too be honest with you I wouldn't care if I was playing goalie, just as long as I'm playing," Summers said. "The transition to forward isn't too big. It's just kind of like getting on a bike again after, a while. You never forget the posi- tion, you just get back in the groove of things." As for Johnson, who's been seen up front occasionally during prac- tice, he's not opposed to shuffling things up either. "I think it'd be kind of fun," John- son said. "I'm a defenseman, and that's my first priority. But if coach wants to throw me up at forward, I have no problem with that."