University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

[UMICH]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

It was Michigan that went for Trump. Not Massachusetts.

I didn't vote for Trump. The sparty fans and other uneducated filth in the state did though.

[UMICH]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

Are you calling a city that has had a Democrat as Mayor since 1930 racist? You are not a very well informed liberal.

You're really not that bright.

https://journalisms.theroot.com/bost...ism-1821258916

[UMICH]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

wow... someone put your cake out in the rain?

when it comes to you.. it is NE vs. scUM indeed.

You're not a NE (reference to alfa) fan, you're a sparty trying to fake it. No other Lil'brother "skool" uses "scUM"....

[northeastern]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

You're not a NE (reference to alfa) fan, you're a sparty trying to fake it. No other Lil'brother "skool" uses "scUM"....

ha.. didn't they tell you not to look at the solar eclipse without those boxes with a pinhole in it..

now look what happened...

[Hockeybuckeye]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

Such hissing and spitting like tomcats and between fans of teams who aren't even rivals! I feel like I'm being cheated on!

[Hockeybuckeye]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

I didn't vote for Trump. The sparty fans and other uneducated filth in the state did though.

If someone knocks at your door after that comment and it's Ted Nugent - RUN!

[wolverineTrumpet]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

Beyond Northeastern referring to themselves as NU, does anyone know anything about them? What are their strengths? How will we match up?
The only common opponent we've had is Vermont, with Vermont losing to both teams (though they did push one to OT vs. NeU).

Having watched Michigan's penalty kill continue to struggle, I think that could be the deciding factor in this match up. The third best powerplay conversion percentage vs. Michigan's PK that is low enough it wasn't on the rankings I looked up. With that in mind, what refs will we get? An ECAC school, a B1G school, and two HE, I think we'll see NCHC refs for the regional. Do they tend to let stuff go or call more penalties?

[chickod]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

NeU

LOL! Diplomatic!

[chickod]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

Beyond Northeastern referring to themselves as NU, does anyone know anything about them? What are their strengths? How will we match up?
The only common opponent we've had is Vermont, with Vermont losing to both teams (though they did push one to OT vs. NeU).

Having watched Michigan's penalty kill continue to struggle, I think that could be the deciding factor in this match up. The third best powerplay conversion percentage vs. Michigan's PK that is low enough it wasn't on the rankings I looked up. With that in mind, what refs will we get? An ECAC school, a B1G school, and two HE, I think we'll see NCHC refs for the regional. Do they tend to let stuff go or call more penalties?

As Roseanne Roseannadanna used to say, "Mr. WolverineTrumpet, you ask a LOT of questions!"

Answer: We don't know...watch the game and find out.

[wolverineTrumpet]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

As Roseanne Roseannadanna used to say, "Mr. WolverineTrumpet, you ask a LOT of questions!"

Answer: We don't know...watch the game and find out.

That's MRS. wolverineTrumpet to you!

Or sTrumpet if you prefer.

Also, I don't want to wait until tomorrow, I want to speculate now.

[CommAvHusky]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

Beyond Northeastern referring to themselves as NU, does anyone know anything about them? What are their strengths? How will we match up?
The only common opponent we've had is Vermont, with Vermont losing to both teams (though they did push one to OT vs. NeU).

Having watched Michigan's penalty kill continue to struggle, I think that could be the deciding factor in this match up. The third best powerplay conversion percentage vs. Michigan's PK that is low enough it wasn't on the rankings I looked up. With that in mind, what refs will we get? An ECAC school, a B1G school, and two HE, I think we'll see NCHC refs for the regional. Do they tend to let stuff go or call more penalties?

IIRC, since December 1, NU is 16-2-3 if the opponent is not Providence. So if you see what Providence does tonight, that's what the U of Mi should be doing.

FWIW, living in Central New York, folks here refer to BU as SUNY Binghamton, if I have to talk about the ratdogs then its Boston U.

[JoeZ]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

Beyond Northeastern referring to themselves as NU, does anyone know anything about them? What are their strengths? How will we match up?

from the Ann Arbor News:

Scouting Northeastern
The Huskies, who finished second in the Hockey East this season, have one of the most dynamic lines in the NCAA. Adam Guadette, Dylan Sikura and Nolan Stevens, all NHL draft picks, have combined for 154 points this season.

Guadette leads the nation with 30 goals and 60 points, while Sikura is third with 53 points (21 goals, 32 assists). Both are Hobey Baker Award finalists.

Sophomore Jeremy Davies is tied for sixth among NCAA defenseman with 34 points.

The Huskies average 3.62 goals per game, which is fifth in the country. A big reason has been their power play, which operates at a 27.2 percent clip, which is third in the NCAA.

"I think special teams is going to be huge," Senior captain Tony Calderone said. "Our penalty kill has struggled a little bit and our power play has been on and off, so we have to get everything clicking. It is that time of year where everything has to go right."

Defensively, Northeastern allows just 2.11 per game, good for sixth in the country.

Freshman Cayden Primeau, a seventh-round pick of the Montreal Canadiens, has been stellar in net with a 1.88 goals-against average, .932 save percentage and four shutouts in 33 games.

"That top line and their power play," Michigan coach Mel Pearson said of what makes Northeastern dangerous. "They have two Hobey Baker finalists, and they are great players. Davies on defense puts up a lot of numbers and they have young goalie who has played extremely well. We have to make sure we pay attention to their top players."

Saturday will be the seventh meeting between the two teams and the first in the NCAA Tournament. The series is tied 3-3.

[JoeZ]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

https://www.michigandaily.com/sectio...tte-and-sikura

from Michigan Daily

Wolverines ready themselves for Gaudette and Sikura
Wednesday, March 21, 2018 - 8:31pm



Luke Martin didn’t hold back.

“I’m kind of sick of hearing about them,” the sophomore defenseman said after the Michigan hockey team’s practice Tuesday.

“Them” refers to Northeastern’s two superstar forwards, Adam Gaudette and Dylan Sikura, who Martin and the Wolverines will be tasked with somehow containing in Saturday’s NCAA Tournament opener in Worcester, Mass. And if Martin is that tired of hearing about them, the probable reason why is simple — they’re really, really good.

Michigan hasn’t faced a Hobey Baker Award finalist skater this season. In Gaudette and Sikura, it will meet two. Gaudette, perhaps the favorite to win college hockey’s most prestigious award, leads the country with 30 goals and 60 points. Sikura isn’t far behind with 32 assists and 53 points, giving the Huskies two of the nation’s three highest scorers.

“Their hockey IQ and skill levels are extremely high,” said Michigan coach Mel Pearson. “And they have some chemistry. You can’t go down to the corner store and buy what they have. It’s a thing that they’ve been able to put together. They play well off each other, and they enjoy playing with each other and their entire line.”

If Pearson’s statement sounds familiar, that’s because it should. The chemistry he describes between Gaudette, Sikura and Nolan Stevens — the other member of Northeastern’s top line, who’s no slouch himself with 41 points — is the same type of chemistry that Pearson sees in the Wolverines’ own “DMC” front line of seniors Dexter Dancs and Tony Calderone and junior Cooper Marody.

All season long, Michigan has seen opponents throw different looks at its dangerous front three. Some teams have opted to primarily use checking lines to pressure Dancs, Calderone and Marody, taking their space and scoring chances away. Others have chosen to counter the Wolverines’ top playmakers with their own.

So by now, Michigan has, from its own experience, learned just about every strategy it could use to keep Gaudette and Sikura from dominating.

And therein lies the Wolverines’ ace in the hole. Michigan finished No. 8 in the PairWise Rankings, ahead of the ninth-ranked Huskies by a razor-thin margin of .0004 RPI points. The reward for this? A No. 2 seed and (though the game is a mere hour from Northeastern’s campus) home-ice privileges, including last change, meaning that when Gaudette and Sikura take the ice during a stoppage, the Wolverines can sub in whoever they want to match up against them in response.

“That’s important, that’s a crucial piece,” Pearson said. “... Now, you have last change, but you’ve got to be able to stop them. I think we’ve got anybody who can play against them, but we’ll see how that all shakes out.”

Putting the right players on the ice, however, is basically all Michigan can do. Hockey isn’t like football or basketball, where teams can work on set plays, opponent-specific gameplans or make use of a scout team to simulate the teams they’ll face. Due to the breathless, free-flowing nature of the game, there’s essentially no way to replicate what Gaudette and Sikura bring to the table.

So instead of explicit instructions on how to stop the dynamic duo, Pearson has stressed the same things he stresses against any other team. He’ll just have to hope that his players can carry them out against two of the best forwards in the country.

“You can make your team aware of those players,” Pearson said. “Make sure you’re playing on the right side of the puck against them and make sure you’re getting it behind them so they have to play 200 feet. There’s more specific things you can do, but that’s easier said than done.”

There has been one specific area of emphasis this week for the Wolverines. It comes in the weakest facet of their game — special teams.

Gaudette and Sikura excel particularly on the power play, as 52 of their 113 points have come with the man advantage, fueling a Northeastern unit that scores 27 percent of the time. Meanwhile, Michigan’s struggles when down a man — its penalty kill ranks just 57th out of 60 teams in the country — have been documented to exhaustion.

Unlike trying to defend against Gaudette or Sikura’s shot or skating ability in the heat of a game, special teams can be put in a vacuum and worked on. And leading up to this weekend especially, the Wolverines need all the work they can get.

“We’ve done more with our penalty killing this week than we normally would,” Pearson said. “That’s a reflection on how they’ve done and who they are. … We still have to play our game but for special teams, for example, that’s something that you can slow down and practice.”

But by the time the puck drops at the DCU Center on Saturday, Michigan will have practiced all it can. From that point forward, the spontaneity of the game, as Pearson described, will take over.

So when Martin said that he was sick of hearing about Northeastern’s fearsome forward tandem, maybe that’s because he knows there’s only so much his team can work on in order to slow them down.

The Wolverines are already quite aware they’re in for a challenge greater than any they’ve faced thus far. Maybe that’s all the preparation they need.

“It’s not all X’s and O’s,” Pearson said. “... Things happen spontaneously and quick, and you just have to play.”

[Caustic Undertow]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

This season has been a delightful success no matter what happens tomorrow. I expect little from the tournament this year. But then, it's the NCAA hockey tournament, and much stranger things have happened than Michigan making a deep run in a rebuilding year.

Go Blue.

[UMICH]

Re: University of Michigan, 2017-2018, a new era starts

...have one of the most dynamic lines in the NCAA. Adam Guadette, Dylan Sikura and Nolan Stevens, all NHL draft picks, have combined for 154 points this season.

Without seeing them they kind of remind me of the CCM line of years ago.