Michigan
1-0-0
Boston College
0-1-0
Michigan Starts Campaign with OT Upset of No. 2 BC
10/12/2007 12:00:00 AM | Ice Hockey
ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The No. 9-ranked University of Michigan ice hockey team knocked off No. 2 Boston College, 4-3, in overtime in the opening round of the 2007 Ice Breaker Invitational in Xcel Energy Center.Freshman Louie Caporusso (Woodbridge, Ontario) was credited with the game-winning tally at 2:31 of overtime. He dug the puck loose from beside the Eagle goal into the crease where a B.C. player swatted it off of a fellow teammate into the net. Caporusso also added an assist, as his line of Carl Hagelin (Sodertalje, Sweden) (one goal) and Travis Turnbull (Chesterfield, Mo.) (one goal, one assist) produced five points.
Michigan held a 3-1 lead through eight minutes of play in the third period, but then allowed goals to the Eagles at 8:59 and 13:43 to send the game to overtime.
Michigan got on the scoreboard first at the 10:20 mark thanks to a pair of freshmen. Hagelin stripped a B.C. player of the puck just inside the Eagle blue line and it went to Caporusso along the right side. Hagelin quickly pivoted and cut down the empty lane between the circles to receive a return pass. To finish the play, Hagelin pulled the puck to his backhand and lifted it between the goalie's trapper and left pad for his first career tally.
U-M received the first power-play chance of the game at 13:36 when the Eagles were called for hooking. Twenty-six seconds later B.C. was called for another infraction, giving U-M a two-man advantage. The Wolverines threatened but were unable to capitalize on the opportunity.
B.C. earned a power play in the final three minutes of the period, but the Wolverines threw themselves in front of multiple power-play shots, allowing none to reach Billy Sauer (Walworth, N.Y.). U-M outshot the Eagles 11-5 in the first 20 minutes.
Ben Winnett (New Westminster, B.C.) had a breakaway three and a half minutes into the second period, but he made one move too many and the puck rolled off his stick before he could test Eagle goalie John Muse.
U-M and B.C. traded power plays in the first six minutes of the second period. Sauer made his biggest save of the game with 15:00 on the clock when he slid from left to right to deny a Brock Bradford one-timer with the edge of his right pad.
Turnbull joined his linemates Hagelin and Caporusso on the scoresheet with an unassisted marker at 9:39. Forechecking in the left corner, Turnbull gained the puck and skated back towards the blue line. Turnbull then reversed his path to circle into the left slot, where he released a shot that beat the goalie along the ice on the far post.
The Eagles cut their deficit to 2-1 on Ben Smith's tally on a two-on-one at 15:57. Smith got Sauer to slide out of position in the crease and flipped a backhand shot behind the goalie from the left side.
Despite a Boston College power play in the final two minutes, the Wolverines maintained a 2-1 lead after two periods.
The Wolverines reestablished their two-goal lead on a broken play at 7:13 of the third period. Danny Fardig (Ann Arbor, Mich.) sent an outlet pass to Turnbull on the right wing. Turnbull fired a pass into the slot that was partially blocked but still bounced to its target. With the B.C. defense and goalie scrambling to recover, Fardig spun himself around and whacked the loose puck inside the left post, giving U-M a 3-1 lead.
The Eagles bounced back with their own odd goal at 8:59 to make it 3-2. Sauer made a save on a point shot, but got turned around tracking the rebound behind the net. The puck found its way out to Joe Whitney, who deposited it in the net as Sauer was recovering.
Benn Ferriero tied the game at 3-3 with a great individual effort at 13:43. In an all-out sprint, Ferriero beat Caporusso to a rolling puck to the right of Sauer. Ferriero corralled the puck, cut across the front of the net and swept the disc into the U-M goal.
Michigan created a few goalmouth scrambles in the Eagles' zone in the final minutes but the game moved on to overtime.
Though not credited with a point on the play, Turnbull and Steve Kampfer (Jackson, Mich.) factored into the game-winning goal. Turnbull drove the net from the left wing to get the puck in deep. B.C. frantically knocked the puck out to the right circle, but Kampfer immediately fired a shot back into the crease. Caporusso picked the puck out from under Muse's pad at the left post and tipped it out into the crease. Eagle Dan Bertram attempted to clear the puck out of danger, but his pass hit Benn Ferriero in the leg and the puck bounded back over the goal line.
The Wolverines play in the Ice Breaker championship game Saturday (Oct. 13). U-M will face No. 6 Minnesota in the Xcel Energy Center at 7:30 p.m. CST.
Contact: Matt Trevor (734) 763-4423
