Wolverines 6, Friars 0
I spent eleven hours of my day today working at the Joe for the Great Lakes Invitational, but I was able to sit and watch most of the two college hockey games this evening so here are some quick thoughts about the action.
My Michigan Wolverines opened up the night against the Providence Friars and won 6-0. The game was a bit closer than the score indicates as a couple goals were pretty weak, but a win is a win and the Wolverines will play in the championship game Saturday night at 7:30pm. The team has not won the GLI since 1996 and hopes to change that this year despite missing four players due to the World Junior Championships in the Czech Republic. Head coach Red Berenson commented on this in a press conference following the game:
“It has been talked about a lot. We are not here in this tournament just as a guest, we are here as a team that wants to compete. We want to get in the final game, and then we want to have a good final game. It is a mini-championship, if you will. It has been important when we have been winning it, and it has been important for us when we haven’t been winning it. So, we want to put our best foot forward.”
The second game of the evening consisted of the GLI host, Michigan Tech Huskies, and Michigan State. This was the more interesting of the two games, in my opinion, with flashes of brilliance and sloppiness for both teams. The game ended with a 4-1 victory by the Huskies, but two of Tech’s goals came in the last minute of the game so for the majority of the game, it was closely contested. MSU had numerous chances in the second period to tie the game up at two apiece, but failed to capitalize on every opportunity thrown their way.
I must say that I was impressed by Red Wings prospect and MSU junior forward Justin Abdelkader who took eight shots on net (a team best today) and earned an assist on the sole MSU goal. It was his 100th career game as a Spartan. I thought he played a physical game and many of the solid chances that went State’s way in the second were a result of his play.
Note: I will be unable to watch the Red Wings game against Phoenix tomorrow as I will be working another eleven hour day at the Joe.
Related Posts
Leave a Reply