The No. 15 Michigan Wolverines traveled to Houghton for the first time since 1983. The No. 17 Michigan Tech Huskies played the part of bad hosts both nights, as they beat the Wolverines, 4-1, on Friday and 6-2 on Saturday. Both nights, the Huskies won in front of sellout crowds and are now 6-0-0 for the first time since 1972-73.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpCrcRPQU88[/youtube]
Friday
The Huskies jumped all over the Wolverines from the drop of the puck. The Huskies missed multiple open net looks before sophomore Reid Sturos finally got them on the board at 12:32 of the first period. The game remained as such until co-captain Tanner Kero extended the lead on a delayed penalty situation in the second at 7:23.
During a four-on-four in the third, junior Walker Hyland fired a shot that hit the back boards, kicked off a defender and in the net at 7:36 of the third. The Wolverines cut into the lead, but junior Malcolm Gould iced the game with an open-net goal at 19:16.
“I thought we were fortunate,” said head coach Mel Pearson. “We did not score on our best scoring opportunities.”
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4seUeep0B-I[/youtube]
Saturday
The Wolverines started stronger, but Kero quickly changed things by intercepting a pass at his own blueline, skating the puck the length of the rink and scoring at 4:15. Sophomore Tyler Heinonen scored on the power play at 7:19 to extend the lead. After the Wolverines cut the lead in half, senior David Johnstone scored what would stand as the game-winner with a one-timer on the power play at 14:28.
In the second period, the Huskies got two more power play goals from co-captain Blake Pietila and assistant captain Alex Petan at 7:50 and 14:54.The Wolverines scored their second of the game 41 seconds into the third. Sophomore Brent Baltus capped the scoring for the Huskies at 9:59.
“Any time you get a team like the University of Michigan and find a way to win two games its’ huge,” said head coach Mel Pearson. “I feel great for our players and so happy for our fans.”
Stick Salute
This week’s Stick Salute goes to senior winger David Johnstone. On Friday night, Johnstone assisted on each of the Huskies’ first two goals. The first was a perfect pass to Sturos, the second to set up Kero. On Saturday, he scored the game-winner on the power play before adding an assist on Pietila’s goal. He now leads the Huskies in scoring with eight points in six games.
