hockey overtime

CLICK HERE for Game Recap from Kristy McNeil and other pertinent information.

FINAL CORSI NUMBERS (www.collegehockeynews.com)

Catch Up: Michigan mostly laid back and tried not to get into a firefight with Denver. The Pioneers kill with speed and stretch passes...something that Michigan has been vulnerable to when they get aggressive. Instead, it was a lower event game that came down to a couple of bounces and one bad DZTO. Erik Portillo saved what was trending to be a poor game after the first period and turned it into a solid performance. Sucks for Jimmy Lambert losing that puck in his own zone at the end. He's been a rock defensively in his career.

Forward Notes.

-The Hero Line was not very noticeable until overtime. Usually they are at a huge talent advantage when they are on the ice. That was not the case, on Thursday evening, though. They played well in their own zone, especially Matty Beniers. In overtime, I thought they pressed the issue more and got some good looks at getting a winner. I just wish the plan would have been to be more aggressive earlier.

-Michigan's best line all night was their third line. Mackie Samoskevich was very explosive, creating chances flying into the zone. Johnny Beecher was very good, setting up Samo on a number of his looks. Dylan Duke chipped in nicely, as well. That line will be really fun...next year, unfortunately.

-Thomas Bordeleau might have been Michigan's best player on the ice. He's just a wizard with the puck. Not only did he make great passes to move the puck, but he put guys in positions all night. Then, when the Wolverines were down in the third, he collected a loose puck on a rush and sweetly finished a tight chance to tie the game. IF this is his last game in the Maize and Blue, he's been great fun to watch.

-Again, the Blue Collar line scored! Nolan Moyle stabbed a puck deflecting off of a referee and cut a sharp pass to Jimmy Lambert in front who finished to tie the game at 1, early in the second period. After not filling the net much all year, it was enjoyable to see the fourth line contribute six goals in three NCAA Tournament games.

-Give props to Denver. They are a very good team. They played really well in their own zone, back-checking, blocking shots, and not giving away many Grade A chances. Michigan had to earn everything it got offensively. 

[Heartbreak after THE JUMP]

OFFENSE

Analysis: Michigan’s offense was very good, tonight…for the most part. They started well and created plenty of even strength chances from all over the offensive zone. Their tally dropped off a little in third period, as they were trying to kill the game away. They did, however, get chances in transition (spoiler) that will cause several players some agony in the coming days. The chances were there to slam the door, but they just couldn’t get it done. Garrett Van Whye finished an awesome chance in transition to give Michigan their only even strength goal of the evening.

DEFENSE

Analysis: Michigan’s defense was mostly good…but ended up paying for a couple mistakes. Minnesota has a great offense and the Wolverines kept Mann pretty clean for the first couple of periods, allowing him to see everything and giving him pretty good angles. They did falter in clearing the puck a little too often and it came back to bite them on the second and third goals. I wouldn’t call this a poor performance at all. It was just pretty good…with a number of mistakes that a good team made them pay for, unfortunately.

[AFTER THE JUMP: More ugh]

Sponsor note. You are probably aware that marijuana is legal in Michigan now, but did you know that you can now buy it from some sort of spaceship church? No, I have not partaken. Look at this thing:

This is the cleanest building I have ever seen or contemplated. Naturally it is named INFORMATION ENTROPY. Sometimes I put little jokes in these. This is not one of them. This spaceship church where you can get recreational marijuana is literally named "Information Entropy." I feel the previous item pretty much covers it, but: they grow and process their own product locally.

They're at 1115 Broadway in Ann Arbor, open from 10 AM to 7 PM daily. Parking is ample. 21+, please.

Cam McGrone's personal experience. Scary:

Michigan LB Cam McGrone’s mom said he called her as they were stopped by the police in case he didn’t survive the encounter. Teammate German Green said they were kept out there for 2-3 hours. McGrone filmed it https://t.co/hJOlLUIU96

— Aria Gerson (@aria_gerson) June 6, 2020

I thought Jordan Kovacs's statement on the general situation was a good one:

Standing in solidarity with the black community. We all must do our part to dismantle systemic racism in America #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/SEQhXJG3j8

— Jordan Kovacs (@JKovacs32) June 9, 2020

[After THE JUMP: large person amongst small persons]