8E - New Student Edition
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
In a year when the Wolverines always seemed to
come through, the abrupt end was hard to watch
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DENVER - then CCHA tournament champi-
aybe we were just a lit- ons. A trip to theFrozen Four.
tle too spoiled, watch- None of it was originally
expected, but all of it happened.
ing Michigan And then the Wolverines found
get everything out they were playing Notre Dame
it wanted. in the NCAA semifinals, a team
College they beat twice in the regular
Hockey Show- season. They were playing a team
case cham- that completely folded in the
pions. Great CCHA Tournament and slipped
Lakes Invita- into the NCAA Tournament.
tional cham- COURTNEY Even though Michigan insisted
pions. CCHA RATKOW it wasn't so, a maize-and-blue
regular-season, spot in the national champion-
ship game was almost taken for
granted.
Game time. The Wolverines
allowed two goals in the first six
minutes of the first period. All of
a sudden, the game was looking a
little too similar to that now-infa-
mous 3-2 comeback win against
the Irish at Yost Ice Arena.
There was still hope, right?
Then, the Fighting Irish struck
once more. Sauer was collapsing
for the second straight year in
Denver.
The first period mercifully
ended.
And at the start of the second,
Bryan Hogan was between the
pipes for the Wolverines.
That's when I thought I was
watching the last Michikan hock-
ey game of the season.
Michigan coach Red Berenson
called Sauer rock-solid nearly all
season, yet pulled him after one
period and three goals allowed.
He replaced the junior with a
freshman who has played just five
games all season.
Butj~he magic of this team, the
reason the Wolverines got to the
Frozen Four, is that regardless
of the situation, they've fought
back.
It's worked for them all sea-
son. It's made us all spoiled.
When the Wolverines scored
twice in 15 seconds to narrow
Notre Dame's lead to one, it felt
like it might happen.
When Chad Kolarik poked
the puck in the net to tie the
game, sliding headfirst on the
ice in celebration, it looked like
it would happen,
But after clawing back and.
forcing everyone to believe they
could do it again, the Wolver-
ines saw their season end as
suddenly as it began.
It started almost exactly six
months ago with an improbable
4-3 overtime win against Bos-
ton College and a fluke goal by
Louie Caporusso.
It ended with an overtime
loss, but the slaying shot was so
dead-on that the puck rocketed
right back out of the net. Hogan
was frozen on the ice in the
same half-sprawled position in
which he had tried to save the
puck.
He was there for fifteen
seconds, maybe more, until
Kolarik skated up and said
something in his ear.
"He's a freshman, and he
played, what, four or five games
4
4
ZACHARY MEISNER/Daily
The Michigan hockeyteam suffered a 5-4 loss in the NCAA Tournament semifinals.
all year?" Kolarik said. "I just
thanked him because he gave us
seniors a chance, and that's all
you can ask from a goalie is to give
you a chance."
He did give them a chance. The
seniors, especially Kolarik with
his two goals, gave them a chance.
And all year, this team turned
doubters into believers. Even in
its last game, even in overtime,
Michigan made fans believe it
could get what it wanted one more
time.
That's why, until I saw the lamp
light up behind the Wolverines'
net, I didn't know I was watching
the last Michigan hockey game of
the season.
This column originally
ran on April 11, 2008.
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