Michigan
11-3-1,6-2-1CCHA
Northern Michigan
8-5-1, 7-4-0CCHA
Wolverines Suffer First Road Defeat at Northern Michigan
12/6/2002 12:00:00 AM | Ice Hockey
MARQUETTE, Mich. -- The No. 8 University of Michigan ice hockey team suffered its first road defeat of the season on Friday night (Dec. 6), spotting the Northern Michigan Wildcats a 2-0 lead and never recovering in a 5-2 loss that marked U-M's second straight CCHA defeat. Two freshmen scored for U-M in the win, as forwards Jeff Tambellini (Port Moody, B.C.) and Brandon Kaleniecki (Livonia, Mich.) netted markers.
| | Mink assisted on both U-M goals, giving him four in the last three contests. |
The Wildcats took a 1-0 lead just 1:13 into the game when Terry Harrison tapped a rebound shot past freshman netminder Al Montoya (Glenview, Ill.). Harrison received the puck in front of the net after NMU defenseman Jimmy Jackson fired from the blue line a shot that caromed off Montoya and onto Harrison's stick. Northern increased its lead to 2-0 at 7:03 when Justin Kinnunen capitalized off a Michigan turnover in the Wolverines' zone. Jackson provided the main feed for the score, intercepting the puck at the left point, then turning the play into a 2-on-1 situation for NMU, with Kinnunen all alone on the right side for the easy score.
Michigan opened the second period by cutting its deficit in half when Tambellini scored 1:21 into the stanza to pull U-M within one. Tambellini tipped the puck into an empty net on the right side after sophomore forward Dwight Helminen (Brighton, Mich.) fed him from the other side of the net on a 2-on-1 advantage.
The Wildcats answered with 6:23 left in the period on the power play when Mike Stutzel roofed a shot from in front of the net over Montoya to regain the two-goal lead. The marker snapped a penalty-killing streak of 44 straight power plays and marked the first power-play goal allowed by the Wolverines since Nov. 8 at Bowling Green, a span of eight games. The Wolverines, down 3-1 after 40 minutes, found themselves trailing entering the third period for the first time this season.
In the third period, the Wolverines tried to solve the NMU defense but could not get a goal by netminder Craig Kowalski until Kaleniecki sniped a shot from the left faceoff circle past Kowalski's glove with 6:23 remaining in the game. Northern Michigan answered less than two minutes later when Harrison scored his second goal of the night, netting a rebound in the slot to take a 4-2 lead. Stutzel put U-M away for good at 19:13 when he tapped in an empty-net goal as the Wildcats were on the power play.
Michigan will conclude the series -- and its first half of the 2002-03 season -- against Northern Michigan on Saturday (Dec. 7). Opening faceoff is slated for 7:05 p.m. at the Berry Events Center.
Q U O T E S
Head Coach Red Berenson
On falling behind 2-0 to open the game ... "It was good for them (Northern Michigan). I think our team handled it well, and we came back and had a pretty good first period after the first five minutes. We got back in the game in the second period, then our power play couldn't capitalize when we really needed them to. Their fourth goal was huge after (Brandon) Kaleniecki scored to bring us back in the game."
On Northern Michigan ... "This is the best team that we've faced so far this season. They didn't get the respect that maybe they should have, but they are a real good team. They're going to finish in the top three or four in the league. This was not a big upset, if anyone considers it an upset. This is a very real, legitimate team, and we have to play much better if we expect to win a game in this building."
Contact: Paul Thomas (734) 763-4423
