Wolverines set for Big Ten first-round game against Wisconsin
By @SKubus –
The first time Michigan took the ice at Joe Louis Arena this season, the Wolverines knocked off then-No. 5 Michigan Tech and Michigan State, each 2-1 victories en route to the Great Lakes Invitational title in late December.
But the last time they battled in Detroit, the Wolverines fell to the Spartans, 2-1, one month later in the Jan. 30 Duel in the D. And a split with the Spartans last weekend saw the Wolverines fail to grab one of the top two spots in the Big Ten to earn a bye in the first round.
While Michigan has an opportunity to exact revenge against MSU, Berenson knows there’s absolutely no overlooking Thursday night’s Big Ten tournament first-round game against Wisconsin, a team the Wolverines swept 4-0 and outscored 21-6 this season.
“They’re got everything to gain and nothing to lose,” Berenson said of Wisconsin. “They’re not a bad a team as their record.
“It’s our job to get our team focused on playing the way we have to play and playing as hard as we have to play because we know they’re going to play hard.”
Wisconsin netminder Joel Rumpel gave up the most goals in the Big Ten at 99, but he also faced the most shots in the league and still managed a .901 save percentage. Given he finished the last two seasons with a .929 save percentage and a much better record, Rumpel’s senior year might be indicative of the supporting cast. But Berenson knows the potential danger he poses, calling him a “goaltender who can steal a game.”
“We respect the fact that he’s one of the top goalies in college hockey, and he showed that last year,” Berenson said. “This year maybe hasn’t been his best year, but it might have something to do with the supporting cast, but nevertheless, on a given night, he can be as good as anybody.”
Senior forward Zach Hyman took home the Big Ten scoring title, as he posted 19 goals and 30 assists for 49 points in 34 games. Finishing second was Waterford native and Detroit Red Wings prospect Dylan Larkin, Hyman’s freshman linemate who was named freshman of the year. Larkin finished the season with 14 goals and 29 assists for 43 points. Of Larkin’s 29 assists, 19 of them were primary assists to lead the Big Ten, suggesting he’s finding his linemates’ tape with passes and taking high-quality shots leading to rebound goals.
Berenson said he predicted a breakout season for Hyman this year, but he admitted he didn’t expect as much production. That’s something he credited to the Larkin-Hyman connection.
“I think Dylan has been good for Zach, and Zach has been good for Dylan, so it’s really been a two-way street.”
While goal scoring wasn’t much of an issue for the Wolverines–they led the Big Ten in team scoring with 132 goals and 376 points in 34 games–Berenson has been seeking consistency between the pipes all season long, but said he remains confident in both sophomore Zach Nagelvoort and junior Steve Racine.
“We led the league in scoring all year, our goals against have been higher than they should be, and I think we’re getting better in that area, but still, we don’t have a Marty Turco or a one starting goalie situation. It’s different than I’m used to. I’m a one-goalie coach, but we’ve got two goalies.
“We’ve had two goalies that have started and both have proven they can play, whether or not it’s consistently enough or from game-to-game or week-to-week.”
Perhaps if anything is for certain, the final score of Thursday night’s tilt will be 2-1 given Michigan’s track record in Detroit this season.
“At least we’re more familiar with playing at The Joe than playing in St. Paul and vice versa with the western teams, but I think it could be somewhat of a home-ice advantage or familiarity,” Berenson said.