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Thursday, April 5, 2018 — 5A
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SUMMER EMPLOYMENT
ACROSS
1 Farm unit
5 “Uh, don’t forget
about me ... ”
9 Selling point
14 Soon, quaintly
15 Diamond corner
16 Busch Gardens
city
17 USAF plane for
small runways
18 Word of proof?
19 Video game
based on a film,
e.g.
20 Meal owed to
President
Clinton?
23 Help
24 __ bran
25 PC-to-PC system
28 Employing echo
in audio?
32 River to the North
Sea
36 “Blue Bloods”
rank: Abbr.
37 Devotee
38 Northeast
gubernatorial
family name
40 Paris café brew
42 African antelope
43 Get in
45 “__ Believer”:
Monkees hit
47 __-bitty
48 Rules for righting
wrongs?
51 WWII general
52 Map abbr.
53 Bun, for one
58 Mail about
system
improvements?
62 Like gymnasts
64 Camping stuff
65 Every which way
66 Wash cycle
67 One-named
supermodel
68 Nutrition bar with
a crescent moon
in its logo
69 Like pet
hamsters
70 Conciliatory
gestures
71 North Sea feeder
DOWN
1 Southeastern
Iraqi port
2 Dealer’s requests
3 Circuitous routes
4 Zhou of China
5 Helped in a job,
perhaps
6 Difficult
7 Biblical brother
8 Comet fragment,
perhaps
9 State of mind
10 Proceed easily
(through)
11 Sense
something’s
amiss
12 Prefix with center
13 “The Joy Luck
Club” novelist
21 Georgia, once:
Abbr.
22 Syrup-soaked
cake
26 Ticket __
27 Dweebish
29 Pro with a
tabletop scale
30 System of moral
values
31 Most piano
sonatas
32 Bluemountain.com
product
33 Drew
34 Adjacent to
35 Mideast
potentate
39 Stuff at mealtime
41 My Chemical
Romance genre
44 __ perpetua:
Idaho motto
46 Sticks
49 Worsted fabrics
50 Consume
54 Amalfi Coast
country
55 Romulus’ twin
56 Source of some
overhead footage
57 Heroic Schindler
59 “What __ could it
be?”
60 Brief reminder
61 “__ Unto My
Feet”: longtime
CBS religious
program
62 Circle part
63 Italian actress
Scala
By Winston Emmons
©2018 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
04/05/18
04/05/18
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The Daily makes its predictions for Michigan and the Frozen Four
Frozen Four?
Frozen Four.
A very long time ago, the Big
Ten
Preseason
Coaches’
Poll
predicted a sixth-place finish for
the Michigan hockey team. The
Wolverines needed a while to
shrug off those projections, but
thanks to a second-half push, they
did just that and more, storming
into the national semifinal for the
first time since 2011.
That year was also the last time
the Frozen Four was played in St.
Paul, and coincidentally, three of
the four teams in this year’s field
— Michigan, Minnesota-Duluth
and Notre Dame — were there
in 2011. Ohio State, making its
first appearance since 1998, is an
outlier in this regard only. The
Buckeyes are one of three Big Ten
teams, along with the Wolverines
and Fighting Irish, in this year’s
Frozen Four.
On Thursday, the Wolverines
will face Notre Dame for the fifth
time this year, and should they win,
a familiar face will await them for
the national championship. Either
it will be their fiercest rival, Ohio
State, which dealt them five losses
during the regular season, or
they’ll take on Minnesota-Duluth,
which beat them in overtime for
the 2011 national title. Michigan
coach Mel Pearson, then an
assistant under Red Berenson, has
said that the loss still sticks with
him.
Seven
years
later,
the
Wolverines are back in the Land
of 10,000 Lakes, looking to make
up for the heartbreak of 2011.
The Daily’s hockey beat writers
predict if they will do so:
Jacob Shames
Prediction: Michigan
Mel Pearson said last week
that Michigan is “happy to be (in
the Frozen Four),” and is playing
“bonus hockey.” It’s the sentiment
of a coach whose team wasn’t
expected to even approach St. Paul
this season, let alone the NCAA
Tournament.
But now that the Wolverines
are here? They might just mess
around and win the whole damn
thing.
Despite
scares
against
Michigan Tech and Providence
in the regional round, Notre
Dame — with its Hobey Baker
finalist
goaltender,
disciplined
defense and balanced offense
— is every bit as good as its No. 1
seed indicates. But Michigan has
defeated the Fighting Irish twice,
and played them dead-even in two
losses in January, outshooting
them 70-63. Out of Notre Dame’s
six goals against the Wolverines
this year, only one of them came
from five-on-five play. Michigan
is fully capable of creating scoring
chances against the Fighting
Irish’s defense, and as long as it
plays most of the game at even
strength, this game is effectively a
toss-up. In a low-scoring tussle, I
think the Wolverines can sneak a
couple past Cale Morris — at least
enough to win.
Ohio State — which should
handle Minnesota-Duluth in the
other semifinal — averages more
and allows fewer goals per game
than Notre Dame. The Buckeyes
laid waste to Denver — the
defending national champion —
in the regional final, and in five
meetings with them this season,
Michigan has yet to win. But in the
teams’ most recent matchup, the
Wolverines fell to Ohio State in an
overtime contest that was even in
just about every way. Michigan’s
lost only once since Feb. 9, and it
came that night in Columbus.
For my money, the Buckeyes
are the best team in the country.
But with the Wolverines’ rapid
improvement over the last two
months — as well as Ohio State
being without third-leading scorer
Matthew Weis due to injury —
there’s no reason that they can’t
beat the Buckeyes once, short of
being cursed to never defeat them
again. In an unpredictable NCAA
Tournament that saw two No.
1 seeds fall in their first game, I
predict the title game will follow
suit, and Michigan will raise a
championship banner at Yost Ice
Arena next season.
Benjamin Katz
Prediction: Michigan
Almost two weeks ago, I wrote
about
the
20th
anniversary
of the 1998 Michigan hockey
national
championship
team
and its eerie similarity to today’s
Wolverines headed into the NCAA
Tournament.
“Maybe this team won’t have
the same success,” it read. “But the
parallels can’t be ignored.”
Akin to 1998, this Wolverine
team is the decided underdog,
staring straight in the face of Notre
Dame with slim expectations
directed their way. Win and
advance to battle thunderous Ohio
State or Minnesota-Duluth. Like
two decades ago, Michigan needs
to embrace dogged, nothing-to-
lose motivation to win its 10th
National Championship in 25
Frozen Four attempts.
It’ll do just that.
Don’t get me wrong — navigating
the Fighting Irish, arguably the
best team on paper, is an arduous
task. But the Wolverines’ last
series against them shows its
immense improvement as the
season progressed and ability to
rattle Morris early and often. On
Feb. 16 in South Bend, Michigan
outshot Notre Dame, 17-6, in
the first period on the way to a
4-2 win. It was the Wolverines’
best-played period all season.
Fast starts and holding leads
continued, as they never trailed
against Northeastern and Boston
University in the Regional rounds.
I don’t see this trend stopping
against Notre Dame.
Then there’s a date against Ohio
State or Minnesota-Duluth. With
the former more likely to advance
to the national championship,
college sports’ foremost rivalry
would again be on display.
The Buckeyes may be America’s
most well-rounded team. They
allow just 2.08 goals per game,
succeeds on 89.29 percent of
penalty kills and, with boasts
a lethal first line of Tanner
Laczynski,
Mason
Jobst
and
Freddy Gerard. While goaltender
Sean Romeo may not be Morris,
he’s been highly reliable down the
stretch with dramatic saves late in
games.
After being outscored, 17-6, in
their first four contents against
Ohio State and losing their
fifth, 3-2, in overtime of the Big
Ten
Tournament
semifinals,
Michigan won’t be embarrassed
again.
Secondary
scoring
from
freshman
defenseman
Quinn
Hughes and sophomore forwards
Jake Slaker and Nick Pastujov
— and solid netminding from
sophomore Hayden Lavigne —
will propel the Wolverines to
college hockey’s apex, where
not even the most optimistic
prognosticator expected them to
reside this season.
Anna Marcus
Prediction: Ohio State
Michigan
has
positioned
itself right where it wanted to
be this season. The Wolverines
will be well-acquainted with
their Thursday night opponent
in St. Paul. Seeing Notre Dame
— the Big Ten conference and
tournament champion — for the
fifth time this season actually
looks like it could be a good thing
for Michigan.
Rankings-wise, the Fighting
Irish look like the clear favorite.
They’ve also been either at the
top of the nation or just under
it all season. But judging by all
four of the previous meetings
this season, the Wolverines have
played right there with them — or
better. Michigan has a significant
offensive edge, averaging 3.41
goals per game compared to Notre
Dame’s 2.95. In fact, in all of their
contests this season, the Fighting
Irish haven’t shot more than
two pucks past Hayden Lavigne.
Of course, it is impossible not
to recognize Cale Morris and
his .945 save percentage, but
the Wolverines proved twice in
February that they can evade him
enough times to pull off a win.
In
the
press
conference
following
the
regional,
Mel
Pearson noted that he “liked the
matchup” with Notre Dame. His
team should, too. And I believe
Pearson’s squad will see a spot in
the championship game.
Michigan then will find itself
in familiar conference company
— squaring off against Ohio State
for a sixth time. The Buckeyes
made a takedown of Denver look
easy in the Midwest Regional,
and shouldn’t have too much
trouble doing the same with
Minnesota-Duluth.
But once the Wolverines get
there, they will fall short of a
national title. It’s safe to say that
Michigan wants to avenge its five
losses thus far this season to Ohio
State. And while that sentiment
should not be underestimated,
the Buckeyes are just too good,
plain and simple. None of the
Wolverines’ five losses to Ohio
State, other than the Big Ten
Tournament
semifinal,
were
even particularly close. Thinking
about capitalizing on a power
play? The Buckeyes probably
won’t let it happen. They run the
best penalty kill in the nation,
preventing goals over 89 percent
of the time. And Michigan scored
just once with a man-advantage
when playing them.
In a season where no one but
Michigan itself predicted that it
would land a spot in St. Paul, the
Wolverines will prove everyone
wrong by making it to the final
game of the year. But Ohio State
will take it all.
Robert Hefter
Prediction: Who knows?
In the beginning of the year,
if you’d asked anyone if the
Wolverines would be in the
Frozen Four, they would have
told you off with good reason.
In the second week in January,
Michigan was swept by Notre
Dame — a series no one expected
the Wolverines to take.
The Fighting Irish boasted
one of the better defenses in
the country with the nation’s
best goaltender. After 2-1 losses
both nights, many commended
Michigan for its fortitude in
a
powerhouse
matchup.
But
that
commemoration
was
representative of an underlying
storyline at play. The truth
was that, after the Notre Dame
defeats, no one expected the
Wolverines to get over the hump
of securing victories against the
nation’s best.
That all changed the next
weekend.
Michigan went on a four-game
win-streak against top-15 teams
in Minnesota and Penn State. It
didn’t look back.
A newly diversified attacking
arm
consisting
of
veteran
offensive performers such as
junior Cooper Marody and senior
Tony Calderone supplemented
by the likes of sophomore Jake
Slaker, freshman Jack Becker
and others now defined the squad
poised for a postseason run. But
they’ll certainly face a challenge
with the battle-tested Fighting
Irish defense headed by Jordan
Gross and Cale Morris.
One thing is for sure, though,
Notre Dame seems to be playing
the same hockey now that it was
at the beginning of the season
— steady defense with slow,
calculated
offensive
pressure.
On the other hand, Michigan
is clearly playing with more
confidence and it has shown
in its impressive, unpredicted
postseason performance. With
Calderone and Marody at the
reins
with
supplementary
bombardment
from
the
Wolverines’ depth, Morris won’t
be able to stop the Michigan
offensive train unless he conjures
up Brodeur-esque style.
In
the
other
matchup
—
Ohio State against Minnesota-
Duluth — both teams happen
to be quite similar. Both have
outstanding power plays. Both
are defined by a stalwart back
line. And much like the media
has hinted at for the past week
and a half, the Wolverines will
meet the Buckeyes in the national
championship to duke it out for
the sixth time this season.
Just like the first six matchups,
though, Ohio State’s penalty kill
paired with its deadly offense
headlined by Tanner Laczynski
and Mason Jobst could be too
much. But Michigan has since
built a reputation as a fast,
scrappy team since the two’s last
faceoff in the Big Ten semifinal.
My guess, it’s up for grabs.
ZOEY HOLMSTROM/Daily
The Michigan men’s hockey team faces a familiar foe on Thursday in Notre Dame, and if it wins, it could face another one Saturday in Ohio State.
ZOEY HOLMSTROM/Daily
Michigan coach Mel Pearson says he likes his team’s matchup with Notre Dame heading into the Frozen Four.
THE
MICHIGAN
DAILY
HOCKEY BEAT