Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Friday, November 4, 2016 — 7A
Understated Winborg could be just what ‘M’ needs
Adam Winborg isn’t a “rah-
rah” type of player.
Michigan senior defenseman
and captain Nolan De Jong says
that Winborg has been pretty
quiet during his first year in Ann
Arbor. Perhaps the freshman
forward’s low profile is a result
of his circumstances — he
wasn’t the highly touted recruit
that teammates Will Lockwood
and Luke Martin were, and he
was also suspended for the first
five games of the season (he
played five games past his 21st
birthday for the Janesville Jets
of the NAHL).
But now, Winborg is on the
ice, and his impact is already
being felt. De Jong said that the
team has “done way too much
talking this year and not enough
of showing it on the ice and in
our play,” and that’s a need that
Winborg can help solve.
“He was pretty quiet,” De
Jong said. “(He) just comes in
and does his work. He’s not
going to air out, not the type of
kid to complain, whether it’s in
the weight room or around the
boys. We’ve had guys scratched
that long, so he
knew
he
was
going
to
have
the opportunity,
and he’s taken
advantage of it
so far.”
Against
Vermont
last
weekend,
he
led
the
team
with
three
blocked
shots,
and against Dartmouth the
following night, he recorded
the first goal of his career on
a power play to stake his team
with an early 1-0 lead.
It was the type of goal
Michigan has had too few of
this season — Winborg planted
himself in front of the net, got
a stick on the puck and scored
what he calls a “garbage goal.”
“It was nice to get that first
goal out of the way pretty early,”
Winborg said Thursday. “It
wasn’t the prettiest goal, but it
went in, and hopefully we can
start winning some games this
weekend. But it was definitely
nice to get that first goal.”
“Obviously, when he wasn’t
playing, he was putting a lot of
extra work in with Joe — our
conditioning coach — in the
weight room and doing a lot of
extra skating and things like
that,” De Jong said. “But I think
he’s been really attentive in all
the meetings that we’ve had
even when he wasn’t playing and
he was very focused on what he
had to do to be successful.”
Winborg doesn’t have the
age or experience of a typical
Michigan recruit. On a roster
littered with 18- and 19-year-
old freshmen, Winborg — born
in 1995 — stands out. Originally
from Sweden, he spent three
years
in
Janesville, Wis.,
playing for the
Jets, where he
led the team in
scoring his last
two years. But
despite his level
of
production,
Winborg
didn’t
make a college
commitment
until late April
of this year, when he chose to
attend Michigan.
His experience has helped
him in numerous ways already
this year. He has used his
size to his advantage on the
ice, like with his goal against
Dartmouth. And perhaps more
importantly, for a team that is
clearly still searching for an
identity through the early part
of the season, Winborg already
knows what he is.
“I see myself as a two-way
player,” Winborg said. “(I) play
hard, and both my offense and
defense are strong. (I) try to
be hard in front of both nets,
especially on offense. Score
some garbage goals. Just be
hard to play against down low
and try to make some plays.
“I feel as though I have an
advantage, too — to know what
kind of player you are and what
you are able to do, so that you
can help the team succeed on
the ice.”
Winborg admits there was
some adjusting to do when he
finally hit the ice. After all, it
had been almost half a year
since he had last played in a
game, and college hockey plays
at a different pace than the
junior leagues.
But his captain and coach
were pleased with his effort and
performance, and if Winborg
is indeed the type of worker
De Jong and Berenson have
given him credit for, there is no
reason the late bloomer will stop
blooming anytime soon.
“We’ve been waiting for him to
have a chance to play, and we’ve
had the chance to watch him in
practice a lot,” Berenson said. “I
think the things I’ve gotten from
him are he’s a responsible player,
(and) I think he’ll help us both
offensively and defensively. We
put him in front of the net on the
power play — I think he can help
us there. And I think he’ll help
us on the penalty killing and also
gives us some depth on center
ice. I think he’s going to be a real
solid player for us.”
Now back from suspension dating to NAHL, freshman forward could make a difference for slow-starting Wolverines
SAM MOUSIGIAN/Daily
Michigan hockey coach Red Berenson thinks the Wolverines will benefit from Adam Winborg’s return to the lineup after missing the season’s first five games.
ORION SANG
Daily Sports Writer
“(Winborg) just
comes in
and does his
work.”
Wolverines looking to get back on track at ASU
It was expected that the
Michigan hockey team would
fall on some hard times this
year.
What
wasn’t
expected
was
that
those
times
would
come
so soon. But
after falling to
Vermont
and
Dartmouth
last weekend,
the Wolverines
(3-3-1)
are
now
in
that
situation.
After
its
struggles
on
the East Coast, the team will
now look to right the ship on the
other side of the country against
Arizona State (1-7-0), a team in
just its second year as a program.
Michigan’s
most
glaring
issues this season have come on
the offensive end of the ice — it
has been outshot in every game
this season. The Sun Devils,
though, have given up at least
four goals in every game but
one this season. So if there’s
any team that can ease the
Wolverines’ offensive woes, it’s
Arizona State.
“We know we’ve made way too
many mistakes to be a good team,
and way too many mistakes for
a Michigan team,” said senior
defenseman Nolan De Jong. “But
we’re building on the positives
we had (from last weekend), and
we’re improving the things that
we didn’t do as well.”
The bright spot for Michigan
so far this season has been
its goaltenders — specifically
freshmen Jack LaFontaine and
Hayden Lavigne. Each started a
game last weekend, and though
neither earned a win, they both
faced a minimum of 35 shots
apiece, and Lavigne set a career
high with 39 saves.
But the number of shots that
the goalies have faced this
season is troubling to say the
least. Though the netminders
have been good enough to keep
their team in games so far, that
level of play can’t be expected
to
last
all
season.
Their
defensive troubles have led to
a multitude of line changes and
goaltender rotations already
this year, something Michigan
coach Red Berenson sees as a
necessity for now.
“We wouldn’t change our
lines if we were playing really
well, unless there was an
injury,” Berenson said. “We
just don’t think our lines are
playing well enough to leave
them together game after game
or period after period if they’re
not playing well. We have too
many growing pains right now
to just stay with them … I know
that as a player it’s usually a
wake-up call when we’d change
our lines, so I’d have to refocus
and regroup. Same thing with
our goalies.”
Michigan realizes it won’t
be an easy season, and its road
ahead
looks
even
tougher.
After the Wolverines return
from Arizona, they will have
to prepare for No. 4 Boston
University. But with its seniors
leading the way, Michigan has
a renewed sense of urgency to
improve quickly.
“(We have the) opportunity
to put on the Block ‘M’ only
a finite number of times for
the rest of the year,” De Jong
said. “It’s something we’ve got
to be able to put on the line
every single night, and I think
the seniors realize that. We’re
trying to move that message on
to younger guys.”
Added Berenson: “We haven’t
played the kind of hockey that
I think our players think we
can play, or the coaches think
we can play. We’ve got to build
whatever identity that is. Our
next game is our best chance to
take a step in that direction.”
MIKE PERSAK
Daily Sports Writer
CLAIRE ABDO/Daily
Freshman goaltender Jack LaFontaine and the rest of the Michigan hockey team’s goalies have had to bail out the team’s offense early in the season.
Michigan at
Arizona St.
Matchup:
Michigan
3-3-1; Arizona
St. 1-7-0
When: Friday
9:05 P.M.
Where:
Oceanside
Ice Arena
TV/Radio:
Pac-12 Arizona
FIELD HOCKEY
Michigan moves into
Big Ten semifinals
It may have taken 89 minutes
and 57 seconds, but the No. 10
Michigan women’s field hockey
team finally clinched the win
that will secure it a spot in the
Big Ten semifinal on Friday.
In
double
overtime
of
the
quarterfinal
match
against
Michigan
State
(8-12), sophomore midfielder
Leah Cardarelli scored the
crucial
game-winning
goal
off an assist from freshman
midfielder Meg Dowthwaite.
Dowthwaite gathered the ball
between the Spartans’ offense
and sent it to Cardarelli, who
managed to dribble the ball
into the circle and send her
shot past Spartan goalkeeper
Sierra Patton.
After falling behind early,
the Wolverines (12-6) initially
tied the game with only 2:44
left off a goal from fifth-year
senior midfielder Esther de
Leijer at the 67:16 mark. The
unassisted goal was a rebound
shot from the top of the circle
that
neutralized
Michigan
State’s one-goal lead, courtesy
of Kristin Matula at the 19:30
mark in the first half.
Despite the Spartans scoring
first, Michigan dominated in
shots throughout the game.
The Wolverines doubled the
Spartans’
shot
count,
18-9,
and also outcornered them,
8-1. Thanks to this advantage,
Michigan
junior
goalkeeper
Sam Swenson only needed to
make four saves as opposed to
Patton’s 10.
Even though Patton’s defense
proved strong, it wasn’t enough
to deter the Wolverines in
the final minutes of the game.
Cardarelli’s goal proved fatal
for the Spartans, as their season
came to an end in the 2-1 loss.
Michigan’s season, however,
will continue Friday in the Big
Ten semifinal against Penn
State in College Park.
LANEY BYLER
Daily Sports Writer
RYAN MCLOUGHLIN/Daily
Leah Cardarelli (1) scored the game-winning goal in double-overtime Thursday.