Michigan
22-8-1, 16-6-1
Nebraska-Omaha
13-16-4, 9-14-2
Wolverines Rout Mavericks, Take Over Second in CCHA
2/21/2003 12:00:00 AM | Ice Hockey
Site: Omaha, Neb. (Omaha Civic Auditorium)
Score: #10 Michigan 6, Nebraska-Omaha 1
Records: U-M (22-8-1, 16-6-1 CCHA), UNO (13-16-4, 9-14-2 CCHA)
Attendance: 8,314
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Feb. 22 -- at Nebraska-Omaha (Omaha, Neb.), 7:35 p.m. CST
OMAHA, Neb. -- Behind a four-goal first period, the 10th-ranked University of Michigan ice hockey team vaulted past the Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks 6-1 on Friday (Feb. 21) night in front of a sold-out Omaha Civic Auditorium. The win, fueled by two goals from sophomore forward Dwight Helminen (Brighton, Mich.), snapped U-M's two-game losing streak on the road and moved the Wolverines into second place in the CCHA ahead of Ohio State, which lost tonight against Alaska Fairbanks.
Michigan, which is on the road for all but one of its remaining regular-season games, blitzed the Mavericks all night, outshooting UNO by a 33-19 margin, and converted twice on the power play, going 2-for-4.
The Wolverines got on the board quickly in the first period when Helminen found the back of the net with one second remaining on a power play. Helminen split the UNO defense then poked the puck past Mavericks' netminder Dan Ellis to give Michigan the early lead.
Following Helminen's goal, the barn doors opened as Michigan scored twice in 12 seconds to take a 3-0 lead just under 12 minutes into the game. Freshman forward Jeff Tambellini (Port Moody, B.C.) scored on the power play at 11:43 to extend his goal-scoring streak to three games before Helminen added his second marker of the night at 11:55, scoring after the ensuing faceoff.
The Wolverines closed out the period with a goal by sophomore forward Eric Nystrom (Syosset, N.Y.) at 17:35 to make the score 4-0, marking the fourth time this season U-M has lit the lamp three or more times in the game's opening frame. After Ellis had allowed four goals on 12 shots, Nebraska-Omaha replaced him with Dan Haaland, who played the final two periods and allowed only two goals on 21 shots.
In the second period, sophomore forward Jason Ryznar (Anchorage, Alaska) extended Michigan's lead to 5-0 with a goal at 15:20, while sophomore defenseman Nick Martens (Ann Arbor, Mich.) completed U-M's tallies with a marker 3:35 into the final stanza. UNO's David Brisson broke freshman goaltender Al Montoya's (Glenview, Ill.) bid for a shutout, scoring just 58 seconds later for the Mavericks' only tally of the evening.
Montoya finished the game with 18 saves and backstopped the Wolverines to a perfect 6-for-6 on the penalty kill.
The Wolverines and Mavericks will conclude the series on Saturday (Feb. 22), with the opening faceoff slated for 7:35 p.m. CST at Omaha Civic Auditorium.
Contact: Paul Thomas (734) 763-4423
