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

What just happened (TL;DR): Michigan jumps all over Notre Dame in the first period gaining a 2-1 lead. They follow up their dominant period with a goofy period from goalie Jacob Barczewski. He gives up a couple of stinkers and a third one that he probably wants back. Down 4-2, the Wolverines claw back with a late second period tally, followed by a couple third period power play goals. Barczewski and the defense see the rest of the game out, holding the Irish to only four third period shots on goal. Garrett Schifsky has a goal and two assists. Seamus Casey had four assists. Rutger McGroarty scored a couple goals.

FINAL CORSI NUMBERS (www.collegehockeynews.com)

Forward Notes.

-Despite giving up a goal in the opening six minutes, Michigan blistered the Irish all first period, outshooting them 20-4. Peter joked that they wouldn’t even need the zamboni for the north end of the Yost ice. Ryan Bischel was the only reason the game wasn’t over after the opening frame. After a poorer second period offensively, the Wolverines once again dominated the puck and chances in the third period to see out the game.

-Garrett Schifsky and Dylan Duke bounced between a couple of different lines of Friday night. Schifsky had himself a night. He scored a goal late in the second period to get Michigan back within one. His assist on Rutger’s first goal was probably his slickest move of the evening. He took a pass from Gavin Brindley, skated through the slot to the back post before sliding the puck back to the front post where Rutger was waiting to finish. Garrett is up to 30 points in 35 games on the season.

-Rutger McGroarty and Gavin Brindley each recorded two points on Friday night. Michigan keeps ever so slightly tinkering with their top six skaters, swapping wingers game to game and at times within games. These are the two headliners of the forward corps, though. As postseason hockey heats up, you go as far as your stars can carry you. Friday night was a productive one for McGroarty and Brindley.

The Maestro Is Back (Bill Rapai)

Defense Notes.

-With the exception of a few instances in the second period, Michigan’s defense was very good all night…again, a weird thing to say after giving up four goals. However, they limited chances and shots in the first period. Luca Fantilli and Jacob Truscott did give a bit too much ground to Landon Slaggert on the Irish opening goal, but that was about it for remotely dangerous chances until midway in the second period. In the third, the Wolverine defense shut down the Irish, allowing just four shots on net.

-Seamus Casey is alive! After being MIA for the better part of February, Casey built on a three point night last Saturday evening with a four assist night on Friday at Yost. He assisted on Michigan’s final three goals, with the last power play assist being his best of the evening. The pass to Rutger’s tape could not have been placed more perfectly. The Seamus Casey scoring engine is so vital to Michigan’s offensive success.

-As previously stated, Michigan’s defense was particularly solid. The best part was that it was not just one guy or pair. Up and down the pairings, Michigan’s play with the puck in their own end didn’t fluctuate very much. Tyler Duke was very noticeable in the third period, though, making a handful of plays in his own zone to get the puck up and out.

Michigan’s power play repeatedly got around and into the net all evening (Bill Rapai)

SPECIAL TEAMS CHART

Power Play. The Wolverines won this game on the power play. While they were the beneficiaries of a bit of a fortunate major penalty call (we all know they’ve also been on the unfortunate end oh so many times), they stepped up and took complete advantage of it. TJ Hughes fired from inside the left point on a 5x3 chance that seemed to surprise Ryan Bischel and tuck under the crossbar to tie the game at four. Seamus Casey smoothly slid into the zone, maneuvered an Irish penalty killer, and skimmed a sweet backhander to the perfect spot for Rutger McGroarty to one-time a blast into the back of the net for what would be the game-winner. Earlier in the game, Nick Moldenhauer scooped up a loose puck in the slot and tied the game on a hard shot the bounced, tumbled, and trickled it’s way through Ryan Bischel and a couple other Irishmen. Once again, it’s the best power play in the country to the rescue!

Penalty Kill. Once again, I thought Michigan’s penalty kill was pretty good overall. They mostly limited the Irish chances to shots from distance. They also clamped down on zone time. On the third man advantage, Drew Bavaro one-timed a shot from straightaway that tucked inside the far post. While Jake Barczewski could have been screened, it also seemed like he could have gotten over to the post to get something on it. That’s the way it goes sometimes.

Not his best game, but Jake Barczewski made the saves down the stretch to seal the win (Bill Rapai)

GOALTENDING CHART

Notes. Jake Barczewski was back in net after a one game absence. He looked a bit rusty…for the most part. In the first and third periods, he only faced a total of eight shots. That’s due to some very solid defense in front of him. While there is a chance that the first couple goals for Notre Dame could have been screened, I didn’t love either of them for Barczewski. The third and fourth goals were both not good at all, though. Each time, the puck either slipped under his legs or through his pads. If Michigan gets a typical Barczewski performance, they win this game walking away. Friday night, though, was unfortunately not that. If they want a sweep on Saturday night, Jake will need to kick it up a gear.

-not much to do; savable shot from distance, but bad defense;
-bad 2nd period…2 goals through him, one he should have gotten to post;

ODD MAN RUSH CHART

Notes. Michigan gave up one 2v1 early on in the game that Barczewski made a nice save on a tip at the top of the crease. That was it. Again, Michigan did a very nice job in transition to not get beat in the margins…something that is necessary when playing the Irish.

The Wolverines created a couple of 2v1s on Friday night, but neither one connected. They broke into the zone smoothly, but could not take advantage of either rush.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Michigan gained a lead, blew a lead, then rallied from a two goal deficit to tie and win the game. Once the postseason starts, that’s all that matters I suppose. They will need better goaltending going forward, though. That’s three games in a row that play in the crease has been shaky. At this point, only one column matters, and Michigan got the upper hand. It feels like sweeping on Saturday night should get them in the tournament for sure, but that’s probably not 100%. They sit at 10th in PWR as I write this. Saturday’s game is at 7pm on BTN-.