Michigan
20-10-6, 17-8-5CCHA
Northern Michigan
19-12-5,14-11-5CCHA
Wolverines Win at NMU, Secure Second Place in CCHA
3/6/1999 12:00:00 AM | Ice Hockey
The Wolverines (20-10-6, 17-8-5 CCHA) took an early lead when Scott Matzka (Port Huron, Mich.) scored his second five-on-four short-handed goal of the season, at the 18:23 mark of the first period after Michigan did an outstanding job of killing a five-on-three situation. Matzka's goal was set up by Geoff Koch (Exeter, N.H.), who drove down the center of the ice and fired a one-handed shot at the goaltender, Dan Ragusett, as he was being pulled down. The rebound came off to the left side, where Matzka, who had been following the play, was able to tap the puck into the net.
Michigan took a 2-0 lead in the hard-hitting game when Sean Peach (Langley, B.C.) drilled a shot from the left point 9:25 into the second. The puck hit Ragusett's stick but flipped over the handle into the net.
Northern Michigan (19-12-5, 14-11-5 CCHA) put a power-play goal on the board with seven seconds remaining in the second period after a small scuffle in front of the net allowed Roger Trudeau to slide the puck under Josh Blackburn's (Choctaw, Okla.) pads.
While on a power play four minutes into the third period, Andrew Merrick (Syosset, N.Y.) passed the puck from the right point to Bill Trainor (Canton, Mich.) in the high slot. Trainor drove to the net before a well-executed drop pass to the left side, where Jeff Jillson (North Smithfield, R.I.) was waiting to drive the puck into the net to give Michigan a 3-1 lead. The assist was Trainor's seventh of the year, setting a new single-season career high.
At the 8:56 mark, Michigan added a fourth goal on a give-and-go between Koch and Josh Langfeld (Coon Rapids, Minn.). Langfeld took a pass from Bubba Berenzweig (Arlington Heights, Ill.), drove down the right side and passed the puck to Koch on the left side. Koch immediately passed the puck back to Langfeld, who fired it over the pad of Ragusett.
Trainor closed out a career night with his first goal in two seasons as a Wolverine, at the 10:33 mark of the period. To start the play, Berenzweig made a solid stop at the blue line to keep the puck in the offensive zone before firing a strong shot on net. The rebound came off to the left to Mark Kosick (Victoria, B.C.), who passed it to Trainor for the goal and a 5-1 Wolverine lead.
A small altercation with 2:01 left in the game sent Bobby Hayes (Westland, Mich.) and Northern's Brad Frattaroli to their locker rooms with 10-minute misconduct penalties and Peach to the penalty box. The power play allowed Northern to score the final goal of the game with 12 seconds remaining to close out the score at 5-2.
Blackburn made 20 saves for the Wolverines in the win. Northern's Dan Ragusett played the first 50:33 minutes, allowing all five goals and making 23 saves before Duane Hoey replaced him for the last 9:27 and made two saves.
Michigan opens the postseason on Friday (Mar. 12) at Yost Ice Arena against Bowling Green State at 7 p.m. in the CCHA Tournament first round. Tickets are available for the best-of-three series by contacting the U-M Ticket Office at 734-764-0247.
GAME SUMMARY
| Goals By Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
| Michigan | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| Northern Michigan | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
1st period
1, MICH, Scott Matzka 6 (Geoff Koch) 18:23 (sh).
2nd period
2, MICH, Sean Peach 3 (Jeff Jillson, Bobby Hayes) 09:25 (pp).
3, NMU, Roger Trudeau 18 (J.P. Vigier, Buddy Smith) 19:53 (pp).
3rd period
4, MICH, Jeff Jillson 5 (Bill Trainor, Andrew Merrick) 04:02.
5, MICH, Josh Langfeld 19 (Bubba Berenzweig, Geoff Koch) 08:56.
6, MICH, Bill Trainor 1 (Mark Kosick, Bubba Berenzweig) 10:33.
7, NMU, Doug Schmidt 7 (F. Matersdorfer, Ryan Riipi) 19:49 (pp).
Shots on goal: MICH 14-9-7-30; NMU 7-5-10-22.
Power plays: MICH 1 of 4; NMU 2 of 6.
Penalties: MICH 10 (28 minutes); NMU 8 (24 minutes).
Goalies: MICH, Josh Blackburn (22 shots-20 saves); NMU, Dan Ragusett (28-23), Duane Hoey (9:27, 3rd, 2-2).
Referee: Matt Shegos
Linesmen: Mark Nebel, Sean Jacques
Attendance: 4,053
Time: 2:40
Contact: Jason Gerdom (734) 763-4423
