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HUNWICK
From Page 3B
ultimately fell one game short of the
Frozen Four in a double-overtime lossN
to Miami in the NCAA Tournament,
no Michigan hockey fan can deny that
Hunwick's play got them there - espe-
cially in the absence of top defenseman
Chris Summers, who went down with
an injury in the CCHA tournament.
No one could've predicted Hogan's G y
injury, but niu one could've predicted
the way the team would respond ins
front of Hunwick, either. There is a
tangible team chemistry when Hun-a
wick is in the net - memories of the
improbable postseason run mix withR
the bitter taste of an unrewarding exit.
Early this season, Berenson is using
a goalie-by-committee method, wheret
Hogan and Hunwick swap starts each
series.
But a point will soon come when
Michigan is going to have to pick its
gy, the guy who will lead the Wolver-
ines back to the NCAATournament -
and to a national title this time.
While Hogan is more seasoned ink
the net, it is Shawn Hunwick who
deserves the chance to be the it guy for
2010. There is no denying the team's
chemistry when Hunwick stands
between the pipes, and he has earned
the chance to prove he still has the
magic to get this team back to the post-
season.
ARIEL BOND/Daily
Pagni can be reached at Senior goaltender Shawn Hunwick (pictured here) led the Wolverines between the pipes during their NCAA Tournament run last season.
crpagni@umich.edu Hunwick gave up the final goal against Miami (Ohio) in double overtime that knocked Michigan out of contention for the Frozen Four.
HOGAN
From Page 3B
pummeled Falcon netminder
Andrew Volkening with 43 shots,
not one puck had crossed the goal
line. The Wolverines, who were
clutch in front of Hunwick last
season, failed to capitalize on their
chances the year prior.
A year and half later, two Michi-
gao goalies are again competing
for the job, which bodes well for
Hogan. Remember, in a much-talk-
ed-about competition with Sauer,
Hogan won out, so maybe all Hogan
needs is just a little healthy battle to
bring out the best in him.
Although many critics would say
he didn't play close to his potential
last year, the front-five on the ice
with him at any given time weren't
usually up to par for most of the
season. ,
Hogan's proven he can win -
there's no question about that. The
Wolverines have shown they can
put it all together in front him, and
now, it's just a matter of combining
Hogan circa 2008 with last season's
down-the-stretch Michigan squad,
and maybe, just maybe, Berenson
will win something he hasn't in
more than a decade.
I can hear the doubters already.
Burns is heading to Durham, New
Hampshire this weekend. Hopefully
he gets there in one piece. He can he
reached at hurnmark@amich.edu
Tuesday October 12,2010 // Faceoff 2010 3
Who's the man- a
between the pipes?
Shawn Hun wick Bryan Hogan
STAYING POWER
From Page 5B
was something like, 'Look how fun
this place is, look how great it could
be. Look at the opportunities you
have and look at the chance you have
to succeed here at the University
of Michigan.' After (you're) given
so much, you want to give so much
back."
After a slow start his junior year,
Caporusso finished the season just
six points shy of his sophomore total.
Rust and Hagelin had a quieter
route to this meeting. Rust "took a
back seat," not talking much with the
Blue Jackets, who earned his rights
in a trade, while Hagelin, a seventh-
round pick with the Rangers, told
them early on he was staying four
years.
That contact with New York didn't
change after he blew up last season,
leading the team in scoring.
They all found their way to this
moment, but why?
Rust, a fourth-round pick, laughs
when he talks about how his team-
mates get on him for taking school
too seriously.
"He takes school way too serious-
ly," Caporusso jokes. "He spends the
most hours in the library, 70 percent
looking for girls, 30 percent study-
ing."
For these players hockey is the
focus, but getting a good education is
the goal.
"For me, that's pretty much the
only reason I came here," Hagelin
says. "Back (in Sweden) we don't
have college sports so I had the deci-
sion of playing hockey or just stop
playing hockey and get a degree.
But then this chance came up, so for
me, coming here was a no-brainer to
stay all four years and get a degree
because school is so important.
"Getting that degree is something
we all want and that's a reason we're
staying here for the fourth year."
In an era without compromises
like Berenson's with the Canadiens,
the motivation for school often
becomes a major part of any player's
decision. often it is the player facili-
tating the early departure time.
"I think it's a two way street with
that," Caporusso said. "A lot of the
time I think it's the player forcing the
team to come up with some contract
a lot of the time because they want to
get out of school."
The trio had planned to stay all
four years.
As much as the plan was for aca-
demics, it was also for hockey devel-
opment.
Hagelin and Rust even admitted
they didn't think they had a chance to
leave early. Even as NHL draft picks,
all three needed the college game to
develop.
"You just don't develop in one year
and then you're gone because of your
statistics," Berenson said.
But one year's development is all
that remains. A year from now all
three will be fighting for an NHL
spot. Whether Hagelin and Rust may
have sold themselves a little short
remains to be seen. The speed, the
intangibles, the leadership - it's
there.
"You want to see players that can
make plays at full speed," Dave Star-
man, CBS College Sports commenta-
tor and amateur scout for the Toronto
Maple leafs said. "To me, Matt.Rust
can make a play at top speed. Louie
Caporusso can make a play at top
speed. Carl Hagelin can make a play
at top speed. These are three guys
that are great college players and
the fact that they are sticking it out
and playing their fourth year is only
going to enhance their pro capabili-
ties."
There's also a more sobering real-
ity. NHL teams only have one or
two new forward spots per season.
Nothing is guaranteed, especially for
middle-to-late round picks like them.
They've seen more highly regarded
classmates leave early.
Max Pacioretty, a first-round pick
in 2007, left after his freshman year.
He's had some success, playing-in 86
NHL games; but he started this sea-
son in the AHL. Palushaj left a year
later and has yet to play in an NHL
game.
It's a reason for finishing their
education: a Plan B when no one
knows what Plan A is quite yet.
"It is scary for us," Rust said.
"That's not a reason why I'm staying,
but at the end of my four years here,
it's going to be intimidating to real-
ize you're fighting for a spot on the
roster. Obviously here we're playing
for a spot on Michigan's team, but
they're stuck with us in essence. It's
not a job yet. When you make it to the
next level, you're definitely expend-
able."
Together they came in. Together
they will lead the Wolverines - both
on the score sheet and in the locker
room.
Due to some early departures
Hagelin, Caporusso and Rust's
recruiting class was able include 12
members. Now the class is down to
nine, but Hagelin, Caporusso, and
Rust as captains (along with junior
Luke Glendening) are in charge
of this team largely because they
returned for their senior season.
They are also expected to reprise
their scoring roles from last year.
Being relied on for both leader-
ship and huge numbers to begin the
season is a new role for the trio. It's
the next step in their development as
hockey players, their final go-round
in the collegiate game. Like Porter
in their freshman year and Berenson
nearly fifty years prior, if the Wol-
verines are to compete for a national
title, they need to do what Berenson
expects every year - that their senior
years are their best year.
"You're wearing a letter on your
jersey so you know you've got the
responsibility of being a leader and
not just trying to be a leader as an
underclassman, so I think that's part
of it," Berenson said. "The other part
is this is their year. This is their last
year and there's no next year to worry
about. It's this year and they've really
got to embrace that."
For the three, having their best
combined year means scoring more
than 35 percent of Michigan's goals.
But it's more than just individual
development.
It's more than winning Hobey
Bakers or setting scoring records. It's
not even about doing what Berenson
and Porter did. It's about doing what
Berenson and Porter couldn't: win a
national title.
"I think the biggest thing me
and Carl can do, and Rust, is bring
a national championship here to the
University of Michigan again and
win one for coach Berenson and the
coaching staff," Caporusso said.
Wherever the third-ranked Wol-
verines finish at the end of the sea-
son, Berenson can look back at his
three senior captains and know they
were here for the right reasons. Why?
Because they stayed.
know that Bryan Hogan
was recruited to be the
starting goalie at Michi-
gan. I understand that Hogan
has played 3,604 minutes more
in Michi-
gan's net
than Shawn
Hunwick
has. Ieven
recognize
that Hogan
won the
starting job CASANDRA
from then- PAGNI
senior Billy
Sauer - as
a sophomore.
But in hockey, you have to go
with the hot goalie.
The tough question for Red
Berenson and the Wolver-
ines: does Hunwick's success
transfer from one season to the
next?
In Hunwick's case, he
deserves the chance to show
that he can be the lights-out
goalie of last season's playoff
run.
If Hogan hadn't suffered a
groin injury in the first period
of last year's final regular sea-
son series against Notre Dame,
then there's a good, maybe
even great chance that there
would be no debate today over
who Berenson's No.1I netmind-
er should be this season.
But then again, if Hogan had
stayed healthy, would Michi-
gan have upset conference
rivals then-No.11 Michigan
State and then-No. 2 Miami
(Ohio) to win the CCHA Tour-
nament and secure a place in
the NCAA Tournament for the
20th straight year, after com-
ing dangerously close to break-
ing that streak?
While it's a mere game of
speculation, I'd prefer to stick
the facts. The fact is that Hun-
wick's incredible postseason
performance was a huge rea-
son Michigan found itself back
into NCAA contention and
one game away from the Fro-
zen Four, despite the fact that
Hunwick has played 60 fewer
games in his collegiate career
than Hogan.
When Hogan went down,
the Wolverines held a medio-
cre 14-12-0 CCHA record. The
team had just dropped four of
its previous six games and was
staring at the all-too-real pos-
sibility of staying home for the
NCAA postseason if the team
didn't make an incredibly deep
run into the CCHA tourna-
ment.
Michigan was picked to
finish first in the CCHA by
the coaches and media poll
prior to the season, but when
the regular season ended, the
Wolverines in front of Hogan
had played themselves to a
seventh-place conference fin-
ish. Michigan hadn't finished
seventh in the conference
since 1986-7, making last year's
finish a tie for the program's
worst.
Ten minutes into the first
period on Feb. 25 with the Wol-
verines locked in a 0-0 tie with
Notre Dame, Shawn Hunwick
- dubbed "the short goalie" by
Berenson, standing four inches
shorter than Hogan -skated
out to the net, unaware of the
extent of Hogan's injury or the
magnitude of his opportunity.
Before his injury, the team
played 34 of 35 games with
Hogan in the net.
But Hunwick didn't just fill
space in Hogan's absence, he
capitalized on his chance -
and that's undeniable.
Hunwick got his first win
and his only career shutout
that night, as the team rallied
in front of the backup to win
4-0.
And the winning didn't
stop there.
While Hunwick didn't
have anywhere near the
game-time experience
of Hogan -the team
managers had spent
more game-time
in front of the net
scraping excess ice
off the rink than
Hunwick had at
that point - he
adapted on the fly.
The "short
goalie" didn't let the ;
opportunity - or many pucks T ou could hear the gasps But Hunwick stood tall
- pass him by. for Bryan Hogan. And between the pipes, winning
Heading into the do-or-die, you could certainly six straightgames en route to
best-of-three series, a rejuve- hear the doubters for Shawn a CCHA Tournament title and
nated Hunwick led Michigan Hunwick inside Yost Ice an automatic bid to the NCAA
to a sweep of Lake Superior Arena on Tournament. Not to men-
State in the first round of the that Thurs- tion, he received CCHA MVP
CCHA Tournament, making day night honors.
49 saves over both games. this past When the dust cleared,
A victory over Northern February. Hunwick and the Wolverines
Michigan made Wolverines the Skat- came up just one goal short of
CCHA Tournament champions ing off the 7 making it to the Frozen Four
for the ninth time in program Michigan at Ford Field.
history, as Hunwick made his- hockey MARK To the casual observer,
tory of his own. team's BURNS it may seem as if coach Red
Hunwick took home tour- bench was Berenson should just continue
nament MVP honors from then-junior to ride "Rudy". After all, he led
the CCHA Tournament - the Hunwick, the 5-foot-7, backup the Wolverines on an improb-
first time a Michigan goalie netminder. Then-junior Hogan able run against improbable
received that distinction in had just suffered a groin injury odds. For a former walk-on,
program history. against Notre Dame in the last Hunwick proved he could be
Berenson called Hunwick weekend of the regular season, a No. 1 goalie on a Division I
a "warrior" after the tourna- and with Hunwick having hockey team.
ment. He wasn't just filling seen just 20 minutes of play- Just not this team.
Hogan's shoes during the post- ing time his entire career, the And so I'm here to crash the
season run last year - he was Wolverines' hopes of advanc- Shawn Hunwick party, and I'd
making a name for himself. ing to the NCAA Tournament like to be the first to say wel-
And he was leading a team that for the 20th-straight year come back, Bryan Hogan.
caught fire behind him. appeared unrealistic. As Hunwick stepped
While the Wolverines into the spotlight on Feb.25
See HUNWICK, Page 6B against the Fighting Irish,
the Michigan hockey team
had a transformation of sorts,
reverting back to the Beren-
son-coached teams of the mid
90s and early 2000s.
Combining a tenacious
defensive effort with a prolific
offensive attack, the desper-
ate Wolverines dominated
the competition in those eight
wins before succumbing to
Miami (Ohio) in a contro-
versial loss in Fort Wayne,
Indiana. Scoring at least
five goals five times,
6 Michigan did a complete
180 from the previous
30 or so games, and the
Wolverines seemed
to exhibit a different
style of play in front of
Hunwick.
The total-team
r effort -the Dr. Jekyll
to Mr. Hyde meta-
morphosis in front of
Hunwick - ultimately
contributed to Michi-
gan's success in the
latter stages. But
it wasn't so much
Hunwick standing on his head
as it was the Wolverines final-
ly reaching their potential and
proving they belonged in the
same sentence as the Miamis,
Boston Colleges and the Wis-
consins.
Don'tget me wrong, Hun-
wick played solid in net over
that 10-game stretch. He made
some key stops along the way,
but he never stole a game for
the Wolverines.
Call me pessimistic, a
buzzkill, whatever you want.
It's just a fact that this team,
which has underperformed as
of late, is ready for Hogan to
right the ship, grab the start-
ing job and lead Michigan to
contend for its first title in
more than a decade.
Anyone claiming that Hun-
wick should man the pipes
based on the team's transfor-
mative performance in front
of him is clearly misguided.
The Wolverines have played
extremely well in front of
Hogan already, and anyone
saying the team plays harder
for Hunwick is just, simply,
wrong.
Throughout his sophomore
campaign, thoughts of Hogan
possibly mirroring legendary
goaltender Marty Turco (yes,
I said it) quietly surfaced.
But leave it to a first-round
upset at the hands of Air Force
that same season to immedi-
ately stifle those beliefs. And
that's where everyone seems
to lose sight of Hogan ever
leading Michigan back to the
Frozen Four or even just hold-
ing down the No.1 spot.
A 2-0 loss. Eleven saves.
Against the 16th-ranked and
last place Falcons.
For the ignorant onlooker,
the common response is some-
thing along the lines of, "How
could a goaltender allow two
goals on such few shots to
such a lowly-seeded team like
Air Force? Surely, the loss is
Hogan's, right?"
Well, if my memory serves
me right, you can't win if you
don't score, and after Michigan
See HOGAN, Page 66