Michigan Hockey Notebook: Wolverines Swept By Wisconsin
The Michigan hockey team has suffered from inconsistency all year long, and this weekend’s series at No. 20 Wisconsin was no different. The Badgers took advantage of several Wolverine mistakes to sweep Michigan, which is currently on pace for its worst record since the third year of the Red Berenson era — exactly 30 years ago.
In Friday’s game — a 5-2 loss — the Wolverines (9-16-3 overall, 2-10-2 Big Ten) could not find a way to break through in the third period. After senior forward Evan Allen’s goal tied things at two apiece nearly halfway through the period, Michigan created a flurry of chances that it could not capitalize on. Wisconsin, meanwhile, scored three unanswered goals to take the series opener.
“We’re playing desperate, we’ve got to play desperate now,” sophomore forward Cooper Marody told The Michigan Daily after Friday’s game. “... I thought we did a lot of great things, just a couple of breakdowns, and that cost us the game.”
In the second contest of the series, the two teams traded the lead before a goal from sophomore forward Adam Winborg knotted the game at four in the third period. Michigan, though, ran out of steam, failing to score again while giving up a goal less than three minutes after Winborg’s tying goal. The Badgers would add an empty-netter with 37 seconds left to clinch the sweep.
Three Stars Of The Week
1st Star — Sophomore forward Cooper Marody
Marody has been Michigan’s most valuable player of the second half of the season. The sophomore is a deft skater with a refined offensive game, making him that much more important to a team lacking in offensive firepower. He took the most shots for his team this weekend en route to a multi-point series. In Friday’s game, he scored his fifth goal of the season early in the second period and also tallied his sixth assist on the year in Saturday’s game.
2nd Star — Freshman forward Adam Winborg
Winborg got off to a hot start this season, tallying three points in his first four games played. He then cooled off considerably over the following stretch, putting up just three points over the subsequent 12 games. Since late-January, though, his production has gone on an uptick: in the past seven games, he has six points — half of his season total. At 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, Winborg is a physical presence in front of the net for the Wolverines, and he made his presence known in the third period of Saturday’s game, scoring from just outside the crease. He also assisted on Allen’s goal in Friday’s loss.
3rd Star — Junior forward Cutler Martin
It appears Martin has brought the mentality of his old position to his new one. Once a defenseman, the junior has settled into his new position nicely for the Wolverines, bringing a physical style of play — perhaps sometimes even too much so — to the forwards corps. In advance of the Wisconsin series, Michigan coach Red Berenson assembled a fourth line of Martin, sophomore forward Brendan Warren and freshman forward Nick Pastujov in the hopes that he would get more production out of that line. While Warren and Pastujov have yet to get going, Martin did score a goal Saturday off a pass from junior forward Niko Porikos (who took Warren’s spot on the line as Warren was bumped to the first line in freshman forward Will Lockwood’s absence).
Quote Of The Week: “I thought we played a pretty good game. I’m tired of saying it with the result that we’re getting. We can’t outscore our mistakes. We’re doing a lot of good things. We missed some chances — even in the last minute, before they got the empty net goal, Sanchez has a rebound chance. If that goes in, the game’s tied up again. But that’s what we’re doing. We’re chasing our mistakes, and we weren’t good enough.” — Michigan coach Red Berenson to The Michigan Daily after his team’s 6-4 loss to Wisconsin on Feb. 18.
Stat Of The Week: 3
That appears to be the magic number for Michigan, which is now currently on its third three-game losing streak of the year after a 4-1 loss to Michigan State on Feb. 11 and this weekend’s sweep at the hands of Wisconsin.
Notes & Numbers: Sophomore defenseman Joseph Cecconi scored the first goal of his career in the second period of Saturday’s game … Cecconi, a fifth-round selection of the Dallas Stars in the 2015 NHL Draft, now has six total points on the season … After leaving due to injury in the second period of last Saturday’s loss to the Michigan State, freshman goaltender Jack LaFontaine returned to the net on Friday … LaFontaine made 26 saves on 31 shots in his team’s 5-2 loss … Senior forward Alex Kile was still injured and did not travel to Wisconsin … Kile has now missed the past six games.
Up Next: The Wolverines will hit the road once again next weekend, this time traveling to Columbus for a two-game series against No. 14 Ohio State. Michigan split its first two games against the Buckeyes earlier this year at home, winning 5-4 on Feb. 3 before blowing a two-goal lead the following night in a 6-5 loss.
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