Friday, November 2, 2001, Carlson Center, Fairbanks, Alaska

The Wolverines go into the month of November with their worst start in fifteen years. It's been a long time since any Wolverine hockey team has struggled as much as this year's edition has and starting tonight against Alaska-Fairbanks we will see what this team is really made of. Michigan has to simply forget about October and start right now tonight as if the season was just starting. The Wolverines will spend the next three weeks either on the road or with an off week and they will be taking on two of the conference leaders.

Michigan finds itself in eighth place in the CCHA and they have almost fallen out of the top fifteen in the national polls (also something that hasn't happened to Michigan in a very long time). They sit at number fourteen in the USCHO poll and they are at number thirteen in the USA Today/American Hockey Magazine poll. From this point forward Michigan simply has to take things game by game just to keep pace in both the national race and the race in the CCHA.

Michigan has fallen about as far as any hockey team hopes they fall as their defense, offense, goaltending, and special teams are all suffering. The Wolverine penalty kill had improved until last weekend when they gave up several power play goals. Michigan's goaltending has been mediocre all season long, as has their offensive production. Finally, the Michigan power play has been in a word, pathetic. These long road trips have proved beneficial for Michigan in the past and the Wolverines have to be looking at this extended road trip as a chance to come together as a team and improve in all areas of their game. While there is certainly a lot of hockey to be played this year Michigan finds themselves behind the eight ball. The Wolverines could be playing themselves into a hole so deep in the early going of this season that they simply cannot play themselves out of it, no matter how good they are playing come March. Many questions will be answered about this Michigan hockey team in the next few weeks; the actual answer to those questions is still up in the air.

It's a late arriving crowd for this game which as started fast and has stayed fast on the bigger, Olympic sheet of ice (the temperature outside is only ten degrees above zero on this Friday night). While both teams have moved the puck up and down the ice, neither team has had any real scoring chance through the first five minutes of the game. As the clock moved under the fifteen-minute mark both teams saw and missed on good scoring chances. As the clock moved under fourteen minutes Michigan took a penalty to give Alaska their first power play chance of the night. The Wolverines escaped the UAF power play without suffering any damage.

As play continues up and down the ice, UAF keeps getting free with up ice breaks. The action continues to move up and down the ice almost faster than you can keep up with it. With just under eight minutes left in the first period things start to get a little chippy as both teams take penalties; the action will continue with four men to a side. Michigan saw a couple of chances during this two-minute stretch of time, but they were unable to capitalize and the penalties come to an end with neither team scoring a goal.

The transition hockey continues as both teams continue to wheel up and down the ice. UAF takes a penalty late in the first period to give the Wolverines their second power play chance of the period. Just three seconds into the power play Michigan strikes to score their first goal of the night and take the lead in this game, late in the first period. This goal came off a face off in the UAF zone. Gajic in to take the draw, simply beats his man, skates through the face off circle with the puck, and scores the games first goal, unassisted.

There were just under three minutes left in the period following the Michigan score and Michigan would see some scoring chances in this time. UAF has suddenly forgotten how to take care of the puck and they give it up to Swistak in front of the goal. J.J. gets a couple of shots off, but he just misses on these chances. Not long after the flurry by Swistak Michigan once again gets control of the puck and they take it deep into the UAF zone. Michigan gets three or four good shots on the Nanook goal, but they fail to notch a goal. The first period comes to an end with the Wolverines holding a slim one to nothing lead. Michigan held a 10 to 4 edge in shots on goal.

Michigan starts the second period flying while UAF continues to lose track of the puck. UAF gives the puck away in the neutral zone and Michigan charges back into the UAF zone, scoring their second goal of the game just fifty two seconds into the second period. Ortmeyer gets the goal with the lone assist going to Shouneyia.

Immediately following the Michigan goal Shouneyia takes an interference penalty to put UAF on the power play for the second time in this game. Michigan comes up with a good chance at a goal while short handed, but the scoring chance was turned away. With thirty-five seconds left in the UAF power play the Nanooks take a penalty to end the power play, leaving both teams skating four man to a side. Michigan gets through the final thirty-five seconds of their penalty and the Wolverines move to the power play, but they are unable to find a crack in the UAF goaltenders defense. With just one second left in the Michigan power play the Wolverines take an absolutely stupid penalty to put UAF back on the power play. Fortunately for the Wolverines they are able to kill off this penalty and escape without suffering any damage as we close in on the twelve-minute mark in the second period.

As the clock closes in on twelve minutes to play Michigan gets off a flurry of shots, but they are unable to come up with a goal. Barely a minute later it is the Nanooks, who find themselves sending all kinds of shots towards Blackburn, but Blackburn turns them all away and Michigan clears the puck.

The clock approaches the five-minute mark in this period and the action has continued up and down the ice for both of these teams. Michigan seems to be getting looks at the Nanook goal almost every time they come down the ice, while the Nanooks seem to be having trouble getting through the Wolverine defense. We move into the final minute of play in the second period with Michigan hanging onto their two-goal lead. Both teams get chances at goals in the final twenty seconds, but the period comes to an end with Michigan leading by a score of two to nothing. Michigan continues to hold the edge in shots on goal with a nineteen to fifteen count.

The third period starts fast and stays fast as both teams keep moving the puck up and down the ice. With few penalties being called the clock in this game continues to race along. With just under seventeen minutes remaining in the period Michigan picks up a penalty to put UAF on the power play for the first time in this period. The Nanooks put a lot of pressure on the Michigan goal during this power play, but Blackburn turns all scoring chances away. With thirty-nine seconds left in the Michigan penalty the Wolverines pick up their second straight penalty to give UAF a two-man advantage. Michigan is able to kill off the first penalty, but UAF came close a couple of times. With Michigan looking to kill off the second of the two penalties UAF comes up with several great scoring chances as the puck seemed to sit in front of the Michigan goal waiting for a Nanook to punch it into the Michigan net. The Wolverines escape the power play time without giving up a goal, but UAF has been putting great pressure on the Michigan goal.

The clock rolls under ten minutes with the Wolverines still hanging onto their two goal lead, but the Nanooks have really been putting the pressure on Blackburn over the last five or six minutes. Blackburn continues to come up with save after save to keep the Wolverines in the game. As the clock moved under the eight-minute mark Michigan just missed getting their third goal of the game as Cammalleri beat a Nanook defenseman to get the puck to Ryznar, who just missed the scoring chance.

We move under the five-minute mark in the game with Michigan still hanging onto their two-goal lead. This game continues to be relatively clean and certainly fast paced as both teams continue to flow up and down the ice. The desperation for UAF begins to build as the clock moves under two minutes with Michigan just looking to disrupt any possible UAF scoring threat.

The UAF goalie comes out with 1:22 left in the game to get the extra attacker. Seconds later Michigan gets called for icing to move the face off into the Michigan zone and UAF takes their time out to get a breather and decide how to attack the Michigan goal with 1:11 left in the game. UAF gets one of the goals they are looking for as they get a shot past Blackburn for their first goal of the game with just sixty-one seconds left in the game. UAF couldn't get another good look at the goal and the game comes to an end with Michigan winning the game by a score of two to one. UAF ended the game with the edge in shots on goal with a 27 to 22 count.

Michigan plays a solid game of hockey tonight up in Alaska, not outstanding, but solid. They played well defensively and Blackburn was very good in goal as he turned away many UAF attempts, especially in the third period. Michigan certainly had many chances to score several more goals in the course of the game, but the UAF goalie also turned in an outstanding performance. The Wolverines cannot go to sleep after this win as both Nebraska and Northern Michigan lost tonight opening the door for the Wolverines to make up some of the ground they gave up last weekend. This was just one small step forward for the Wolverines, but it's just what Michigan needed to start the month of November. The Wolverines need to come out focused and ready to play tomorrow night as they will look to get their first weekend sweep of the year.

The author can be reached at westons@iserv.net