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Thursday, May 6, 2021
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com SPORTS
When college hockey resumes in
the fall, Michigan will have a new
starting goaltender.
Strauss Mann — who spent his
sophomore and junior years as the
starter in goal for the Wolverines —
will not return for his senior season,
instead opting to pursue a professional
career, according to an announcement
on Twitter.
“I’m looking forward to my next
chapter as I pursue a professional
hockey career,” Mann’s statement
read. “As I solidify my plans, I feel both
excited for the future and immensely
appreciative
for
everything
the
University of Michigan has given me.”
In
his
three
seasons
with
Michigan, Mann was a solid and
consistent presence in net, posting
a career save percentage of .926 and
tallying 11 shutouts in 77 games. His
sophomore year, Mann earned Big
Ten Goaltender of the Year honors,
while also finishing as a finalist for
the Mike Richter Award in both his
seasons as the Wolverines’ starter.
Last season, he was also Michigan’s
first goalie to be named captain in 78
years.
At 22 years old, Mann is ineligible
for the 2021 NHL Draft. Still, he
should have plenty of suitors as an
undrafted free agent. In March, The
Athletic’s
Corey
Pronman
ranked
Mann as the No. 3 free agent from the
NCAA or Europe and the top goalie on
the list.
Having an NHL career after going
undrafted isn’t uncommon — Luke
Glendening,
for
example,
played
briefly in the minors after graduating
from Michigan, and has since played
eight NHL seasons with the Detroit
Red Wings.
The biggest obstacle for Mann
moving forward will be his height.
Standing at just six feet, Mann would
be undersized as a modern NHL
goaltender. In 2020, for example,
only one NHL goalie, Pittsburgh’s
Casey DeSmith, stood at the same
height as Mann. Of course, size isn’t
a dealbreaker — Henrik Ludqvist and
Jonathan Quick are both only an inch
taller than Mann — but if it sows doubt
in the minds of NHL scouts, it will
make Mann’s transition to the pros
that much more difficult.
Still, Mann’s height clearly was
never a problem for the Wolverines,
and that’s part of the reason why
they’ll miss him so much. Erik
Portillo, who started five games for
Michigan as a freshman and recorded
a solid .935 save percentage, will
likely take on the permanent starting
role, but it’s unclear who will fill
in as the Wolverines’ backup next
season. Michigan coach Mel Pearson
will need to pick up either a late
commitment or a transfer in the next
few months.
At the end of the day, though, it will
be hard for anyone to replicate what
Mann did as Michigan’s goalie.
Michigan pulls off historic win over archrival Ohio State
For the first time in Michigan
men’s lacrosse program history,
the Wolverines advanced to the
Big Ten tournament semifinals
with a win against Ohio State.
It was also their first win over
their rivals in three tries this
season.
Michigan (3-8 Big Ten) pulled
off a historic victory for the
program against their biggest
rival, Ohio State (4-7), with a
15-11 win in Columbus.
Heading
into
Saturday’s
matchup, the team had nothing
to lose against the Buckeyes.
The
Wolverines
have
struggled mightily this season
with maintaining leads. Both of
Michigan’s previous two losses,
to Penn State and No. 8 Rutgers,
were a result of the team failing
to hold onto a lead. Both games
culminated in one-goal losses
for the Wolverines.
In order to beat Ohio State,
Michigan needed all hands on
deck and had to make minimal
mistakes.
The first quarter saw the
Wolverines start off fast with a
3-0 lead. Strong defensive clears
and successful rides allowed the
defense to be involved in the
offensive attack — the first three
goals all came from defensemen.
“They
ran
their
routes,”
Michigan
coach
Kevin
Conry
said. “I think over the last
couple of games we left a couple
of things on the table by not
completing
our
routes
and
finishing our runs, so it is good
to see our guys be aggressive in
transition, finish their routes
and then get rewarded with
those opportunities.”
Ohio State would respond
with three goals of their own
in the span of a little under
three minutes to tie the game.
It seemed as though Michigan
would continue its trend of
dropping
leads
and
turning
games into close losses, but that
image quickly disappeared.
A combination of strong zone
defensive plays and offensive
opportunities
in
the
second
quarter allowed the Wolverines
to take a 7-4 lead at halftime —
led by a three goal effort in the
second quarter from freshman
attackman Michael Boehm.
Michigan was able to keep the
ball out of the hands of the Ohio
State offense, with aggressive
defense forcing seven turnovers
in
the
second
quarter.
The
Wolverines had nine shots on
goal compared to the Buckeyes’
three. Michigan’s ride allowed
their offense to capitalize on
turnovers, which in turn led to
easy goals.
“I thought our ride was our
biggest
boost.”
Conry
said.
“(Junior attackman) Bryce Clay
made some big plays in the ride,
which allowed us to get extra
possessions and score a couple
cheapies.”
The second half of the game
was
much
more
contested,
as
Ohio
State
managed
to
capitalize on faceoffs in the
third
quarter.
The
Buckeyes
mustered four goals in the third
quarter, cutting the lead to 10-8
heading into the fourth.
Momentum appeared to be
swinging towards Ohio State,
until a timeout by Michigan
late
in
the
third
quarter.
Reinvigorated, the Wolverines
started
the
fourth
quarter
with a 3-0 scoring run led by
sophomore
attackman
Josh
Zawada. The Buckeyes would
manage to score three of their
own, but it wasn’t enough —
a strong performance in net
by
junior
goaltender
John
Kiracoffe in the fourth sealed
the deal.
MARK PATRICK
Daily Sports Writer
Strauss Mann to leave Michigan to pursue professional career
BRENDAN ROOSE
Senior Sports Editor
RYAN LITTLE/Daily
Michigan goaltender Strauss Mann will be leaving Michigan and pursuing a professional career.
KATE HUA/Daily
Michael Boehm’s big day fueled Michigan’s historic win.
Read more at michigandaily.com