HOUGHTON, Mich.–Michigan Tech answered many fans’ wishes tonight: playing at home again, scoring goals again and winning again. After a bit of a skid through late November and December, the Huskies, at least for the night, righted the ship, beating Alaska–Anchorage 6–2.
Six Huskies scored, four of whom were freshmen – one (Justin Fillion) in his first ever game as a Husky, and another (Chad Pietila) in his first home game as a Husky. Tanner Kero and Blake Pietila notched the other two goals by freshmen. Ryan Furne and David Johnstone scored the remaining goals.
“We need to re-establish home ice for the second half of the season,” said coach Mel Pearson, “and this was a good start. I’m just really proud of the kids…. We still need to learn to play better with the lead, but overall really proud of the team tonight. But we’re only halfway there, need to come back out tomorrow and play better, we’ll be better.”
Getting more than one goal has been hard to come by for the team as of late, and in that regard the Huskies finally gave the home fans something to cheer about. Pearson juggled his line combinations this week and cycled all four of them all game. The forwards responded by generating points from each line.
Josh Robinson played well in net, making 25 saves to secure the win for the Huskies.
Tomorrow both teams battle for the last time this regular season. This will be a big test for Michigan Tech, and will show their determination. If they want home ice in the WCHA playoffs, these are the games that cannot slip through the cracks.
