Michi-gamer: Pride of the Mitten (Week of March 24, 2014)

March 25, 2014March 28, 2014 MiHockey Staff

Welcome to another season of MiHockey’s Michi-gamer!

We take great pride in our homegrown talent. Whether they grew up in the Mitten or we welcomed them here for college or juniors, they are our own. They represent the best place in the world for hockey.

Every morning, we pick one Michi-gamer from the previous night’s slate of games across all professional levels of hockey – one Michigan player who stood out above the rest.

MARCH 28 – RYAN MILLER

East Lansing native Ryan Miller appears to be having fun in his new environment. The St. Louis Blues’ netminder – still a little strange to write – stopped 28 of the 29 shots he faced last night to help his team to a 5-1 win over Minnesota. Miller kept the Wild off the scoreboard until the 11:11 mark of the third period, allowing his Blues team to build a comfortable 5-0 lead during the first 40-plus minutes. The former Spartans star and Hobey Baker winner is now 9-2-1 with a 2.03 goals-against and .918 save percentage since he was moved from Buffalo to St. Louis on Feb. 28. We can’t imagine that he’s complaining about going from the worst team in the Eastern Conference to the best team in the Western Conference.

Video highlights:

More MiHockey articles on Miller:

Sochi Watch: How Michigan’s players fared at the Winter Games

Ryan Miller’s Team USA mask revealed

Ryan Miller talks about Sochi, playing against little brother Drew and the Wings

Kip and Ryan Miller return to East Lansing for MSU hall of fame induction ceremony

MARCH 27 – DAVID BOOTH

The Vancouver Canucks posted a 5-2 win yesterday over the Minnesota Wild, and Washington, Mich., native David Booth played a big role in the victory. The Honeybaked, NTDP and MSU product scored the game’s first goal, then added another in the second for a two-goal outing Wednesday night. On his first, Booth streaked up the right wing, and fired a wrister through the legs of a defenseman and inside the far post. Then, for his encore performance, he grabbed the puck off a turnover from the Wild defense and roofed one past Darcy Kuemper. They were the former Spartans’ seventh and eighth goals of the season, and they were big ones for the Canucks Wednesday night.

Here are the highlights:

More MiHockey articles on Booth:

Booth’s big return to the Joe

MARCH 26 – DAVID MOSS

David Moss shook out of his scoring slump last night, and it turned out to be a pretty big goal for his club. The Phoenix Coyotes center and Livonia native scored the game’s first goal in what turned out to be a 3-2 Coyotes win over Pittsburgh. Moss had been held scoreless in his 18 previous outings; hopefully last night’s strike is a sign of things to come. Moss, who played for Detroit Catholic Central and then the University of Michigan for four seasons before beginning his professional career, now has seven goals and 14 assists for 21 points on the season.

The goal:

More MiHockey articles on Moss:

Hockey community rallies around Matt Sorisho; find out how you can help

Catholic Central alum David Moss talks about Matt Sorisho

Six different decades of Wolverines hockey alums gather for annual alumni game

Photo gallery: Former stars gather for Wolverines’ annual alumni game

MARCH 25 – TYLER SEGUIN

Tyler Seguin continues to flourish in Dallas. The former Plymouth Whalers star scored his 32^nd goal of the season yesterday, and it turned out to be the game-winner for his club. Seguin, who was traded from Boston to Dallas during the offseason, dug out a rebound and fired the puck past Kari Lehtonen for the Stars’ second goal of the night, which proved to be the difference-maker in the contest. The 22-year-old budding star ranks sixth in the league in goals, and fourth in points, with 74. Those are both career-high totals for the Whalers alum, and he has more games to go before the season concludes.

Here’s the goal:

More MiHockey articles on Seguin:

Michi-gamer: Pride of the Mitten (Week of Jan. 27, 2014)

Photos: Red Wings vs. Stars

Our list of Michigan names on NHL opening night rosters

MARCH 24 – JON MERRILL

When Jon Merrill scored in the second period of Sunday’s Devils vs. Maple Leafs game, it made the score 3-0 in favor of his New Jersey squad. However, by the end of the contest, it turned out to be quite the important goal. Merrill’s slap shot from the blue line that fooled James Reimer was the second goal of his NHL career, and it turned out to be the game-winner. Toronto rallied to pull within one goal with 1:31 left in regulation, and Merrill’s second-period strike still turned out to be the difference. The Brighton native has now played in 45 games with the Devils this season, and he has two goals and seven assists to his name. While he hasn’t lit the lamp consistently, both of his goals have been game-winners for the Devils. Talk about good timing for the Wolverines and NTDP alum. We can’t wait to see what he can do after he has a full NHL season under his belt, either.

Here is the goal:

More MiHockey articles on Merrill: