The Michigan Daily - Thursday, September 21, 1995 - 9A Halko leads icers as coaches remain in waiting By John Lerol Daily Sports Writer Practice has started and Steven Halko is the coach. The Michigan hockey team began unofficial skate-arounds Monday, but coach Red Berenson and assistants Mel Pearson and Billy Powers can't take the ice until Oct. 2. Until then, Halko, the 1995 team captain, is in charge. And the senior from Bolton, Ontario likes that re- sponsibility. "I enjoy doing it," Halko said of his new on-ice respon- sibilities. "It's not really that diffi- cult. Ijust tell them when to start and end a drill. They all know how to do them."x But Halko knows how impor- tant informal prac- tices are. Just four days after Haiko Berenson takes over where his captain left off, the Wolverines will play the Blue-White game, Michigan's annual intra-squad scrimmage. Eight days later, the Wol- verines open up their season against Guelph. With only 12 days of official prac- tice before the season-opener, Michi- gan has to be prepared to play hockey when Berenson returns. "It's important to keep the prac- tices high-paced," Halko said. "We need to get used to skating fast with the puck." Halko has never been the Wolver- ines' most talented player - but he's always been one of the hardest-work- ers on the team. Last year he was named the CCHA's best defensive defenseman. So it's no surprise that the first two weeks of Michigan's practices require a lot of hard work and dedication. For four years, the Wolverines have been on the threshold of winning their sixth national championship, but they haven't hoisted the trophy. And that is Halko's goal. The 1995 season will be his last. He is the cap- tain and he expects to succeed. "I want to have my best year at Michigan," Halko said. "But I want Michigan to have its best year since I got here, too. "It's easy to say 'national champi- onship', but there is so much more to a season than that. The 40-some game regular season games aren'tjust prepa- ration for the final four." But Halko said that everyone knows the job at hand. And so far, he's seen plenty of progress at practice. He said the freshman class looks impressive and the veterans are all healthy. Michigan's newest captain said he hopes to provide leadership for the team. He wants to set a good example for the underclassmen on and off the ice and show them what it means to be a hard worker. Halko wants to get the most out of practices - even though they've just begun. And even when he isn't run- ning practice, Halko knows he'll have to provide some leadership for a team that has been saturated with talent for years. The Wolverines embark on the 1995-96 season as one of the best teams in the country. They return na- tional scoring leader Brendan Morrison, a first-team All-American, to lead a potent offense. Marty Turco, an All-CCHA selection as a fresh- man, anchors a solid defense and the freshman class is loaded with promis- SPORTS INFORMATION Steven Halko is the captain of the 1995 Michigan hockey team. ing players. But Michigan has always had the ability to win games. Last year the Wolverines posted an impressive 30- 8-1 record and held on to the No. 1 ranking in the country for the bulk of the season. Halko doesn't know what went wrong - if anything - but he thinks a good team gets good with hard work in practice. "Each practice we should get bet- ter," he said. "With each drill we do and each stride we take, we should get better. "You won't make leaps and bounds in a week, but it's the little things that are important." AP PH OtisThorpe came over to Detroit yesterday in a deal with the Portland Blazers. Ba, Pistons puli off long-awaited deal PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - In a deal aged 13.5 points in 34 games with P hat had been expected since June, the land. He averaged 14 points spd 1 ortland Trail Blazers traded forward rebounds in the Rockets' champi tis Thorpe to Detroit Wednesday for ship season of 1993-94. ookie guard Randolph Childress and Childress was the second-lead econd-year forward Bill Curley. scorer in Wake Forest history with 2,2 The Pistons chose Childress, a sharp- points. hooter from Wake Forest, with the The Blazers expect him to play po 9th pick in the June 28 draft. guard but also are counting on his o At the time, Detroit coach Doug side shooting, an area in which the te ollins made little attempt to hide the has been sorely deficient in recent yea act the pick was made for Portland and He averaged 18.4 points per game .deal for Thorpe was imminent. Wake Forest and 20.1 as a senior. "We are excited aboutgettingaplayer "He can score. He's a good ass fOtis' ability and just as important, he man and I think most importantly h rings championship experience to our a money player," Portland coach P eam,"Collins said. "He brings durabil- Carlesimo said. "He's a guy who st ty and toughness to a team which des- up and takes big shots." erately needed these qualities." Curley was the 22nd pick in the 19 The trade couldn't be made until a draft, but was part of a preseason tra ew collective bargaining agreement that sent Sean Elliott from Detroit to ith the league's players was com- Spurs.The 6-foot-9 Curley averaged: leted. points and 2.3 rebounds in limited dt Thorpe, an 11-year veteran, aver- for the Pistons last season. HOTO ort- 0.6 on- ing 208 Dint Dut- am ars. z at sist e's . J. eps 994 ade the 2.7 tuty ' I THU RSDAY NO COVER , .1 . with U of M college ID at .A 0 RESTAURANT SPORTS SAR Also featuring: 200 a wing till mo:o pm $3.25 pitchers Coors Light £220 South University 665-7777 21 and over after 9pm M i c h i g a n U n i o n UNION Building Access Friday& Saturday UM students, faculty, & staff- must show valid University of Michigan I.D. may bring three escorted guests wEd and CitiAssist Lon-