Michigan
14-5-3, 8-3-1CCHA
Lake Superior State
10-13-0, 6-10-0CCHA
Wolverines Defeat Lakers Behind Blackburn Shutout
1/5/2001 12:00:00 AM | Ice Hockey
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The eighth-ranked Michigan ice hockey team defeated Lake Superior State 2-0 Friday night (Jan. 5) in front of 6,428 fans at Yost Ice Arena. The Wolverines used power-play goals from Jed Ortmeyer (Omaha, Neb.) and Craig Murray (Penticton, B.C.) to top the Lakers. Josh Blackburn (Choctaw, Okla.) made 29 saves in goal for the Wolverines and picked up his sixth career shutout and second of the season.
The Wolverines (14-5-3, 8-3-1 CCHA) jumped out to an early 1-0 lead on Ortmeyer's ninth goal of the season just 1:45 into the contest. After an elbowing penalty to Lake Superior's Ryan Knox gave Michigan a four-on-three advantage, Geoff Koch (Exeter, N.H.) passed the puck to Ortmeyer between the circles and he fired a shot along the ice that beat Laker goalie Jayme Platt.
Michigan extended its lead to 2-0 midway through the first period on a power-play goal from Murray. Scott Matzka (Port Huron, Mich.) took a shot from the left circle that was stopped by Platt, but the rebound bounced into the slot before Murray gathered the loose puck and fired it into the open net for his fourth goal of the season. Josh Langfeld (Coon Rapids, Minn.) also picked up an assist on the goal and now needs just six points to enter U-M's top 50 in career scoring.
The Wolverines turned in a strong defensive performance, holding LSSU to 0-9 on power-play opportunities during the game. The Lakers (10-13-0, 6-10-0 CCHA) pulled Platt with 1:49 left in the third period in favor of an extra attacker while on the power play, but still were unable to solve Blackburn. Platt finished the contest with 27 saves and suffered the loss, dropping his record to 9-12-0 on the season. Blackburn improved to 13-5-3 on the year.
Michigan and Lake Superior State finish the weekend series Sunday (Jan. 7) at Yost Ice Arena staring at 3:05 p.m. The game will be broadcast by FOX Sports Net.
GAME SUMMARY
| Goals By Period | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
| Lake Superior State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Michigan | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
1st period
1, MICH, Jed Ortmeyer 9 (Geoff Koch, John Shouneyia) 01:45 (pp).
2, MICH, Craig Murray 4 (Scott Matzka, Josh Langfeld) 08:25 (pp).
PENALTIES - Jeff Jillson, MICH (ROUGHING) 00:17; Chris McNamara, LSSU (UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT) 00:17; Ryan Knox, LSSU (ELBOWING) 01:33; Brad Fraser, MICH (TRIPPING) 04:36; Ryan Vince, LSSU (UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT) 05:36; Jeff Jillson, MICH (HOLDING THE STICK) 05:36; Ryan Vince, LSSU (ROUGHING) 05:36; Aaron Phillips, LSSU (SLASHING) 06:35; Aaron Davis, LSSU (TRIPPING) 08:25; Mark Kosick, MICH (INTERFERENCE) 10:20; John Shouneyia, MICH (SLASHING) 16:15; Jayme Platt, LSSU (INTERFERENCE) 17:27.
2nd period
PENALTIES - Josh Langfeld, MICH (OBSTRUCTION-HOLDING) 03:18; Bob Gassoff, MICH (CHECKING FROM BEHIND) 05:24; TEAM, LSSU (TOO MANY ON ICE) 07:18; Kevin Wilson, LSSU (HOLDING) 08:55; Justin Micek, LSSU (HOLDING) 14:23; Jed Ortmeyer, MICH (ROUGHING) 14:49; Scott Matzka, MICH (HOLDING) 19:02.
3rd period
PENALTIES - TEAM, MICH (TOO MANY ON ICE) 08:53; Chris McNamara, LSSU (ROUGHING AFT WHISTLE) 15:52; Bob Gassoff, MICH (CROSS-CHECKING) 18:11.
Shots on goal: LSSU 6-12-11-29; MICH 17-5-7-29. Power plays: LSSU 0 of 9; MICH 2 of 9. Penalties: LSSU 11 (22 min); MICH 12 (22 min). Goalies: LSSU, Jayme Platt 9-12-0 (29 shots-27 saves); MICH, Josh Blackburn 13-5-3 (29-29). Referee: John Gosger. Assistant Referees: John LaDuke, Kevin Langseth. Attendance: 6428. Time: 2:37.
Individual Player Statistics
## Lake Superior St. G A PIM Sh +/- ## Michigan G A PIM Sh +/- --------------------------------------- --------------------------------------- 2 Tyson Turgeon...... 0 0 0 1 0 3 Bob Gassoff........ 0 0 4 0 0 3*Chris Thompson..... 0 0 0 1 0 4*Andy Burnes........ 0 0 0 1 0 4 Ryan Knox.......... 0 0 2 1 0 5*Jeff Jillson....... 0 0 4 2 0 6*Matt Frick......... 0 0 0 2 0 7 Brad Fraser........ 0 0 2 2 0 7 Will Magnuson...... 0 0 0 0 0 9 Mark Kosick........ 0 0 2 3 0 8 Chris Peterson..... 0 0 0 1 0 10 Scott Matzka....... 0 1 2 1 0 10 Kyle Anderson...... 0 0 0 3 0 11 Joe Kautz.......... 0 0 0 1 0 11*Chris McNamara..... 0 0 4 5 0 12 J.J. Swistak....... 0 0 0 1 0 12 Justin Micek....... 0 0 2 1 0 14*Craig Murray....... 1 0 0 2 0 14 Mike Vigiante...... 0 0 0 1 0 18*Geoff Koch......... 0 1 0 3 0 16 Bart Redden........ 0 0 0 0 0 21*Josh Langfeld...... 0 1 2 3 0 18 Aaron Phillips..... 0 0 2 2 0 22 Bill Trainor....... 0 0 0 1 0 20 Adam Nightingale... 0 0 0 0 0 23 Mike Roemensky..... 0 0 0 0 0 21 Yevgeniy Dubravin.. 0 0 0 2 0 24 Dave Wyzgowski..... 0 0 0 0 0 23 Jason Nightingale.. 0 0 0 4 0 25 Mark Mink.......... 0 0 0 2 0 24 Kevin Wilson....... 0 0 2 0 0 26 Jed Ortmeyer....... 1 0 2 4 0 25*Ryan Vince......... 0 0 4 3 0 28 John Shouneyia..... 0 1 2 3 0 26*Aaron Davis........ 0 0 2 2 0 TM TEAM............... 0 0 2 0 0 31*Jayme Platt........ 0 0 2 0 0 Totals............. 2 4 22 29 0 TM TEAM............... 0 0 2 0 0 Totals............. 0 0 22 29 0
N O T E S
-- Three Stars: 1. Josh Blackburn (U-M), 2. Jed Ortmeyer (U-M), 3. Craig Murray (U-M)
-- Josh Blackburn recorded his sixth career shutout, while Jed Ortmeyer extended his current scoring streak to five games.
-- Michigan scored two power-play goals for the first time in eight games (Nov. 23, 2000 at Wisconsin).
Q U O T E S
Michigan Head Coach Red Berenson
On the game ... "We knew the first goal would be important, particularly coming off of last weekend. That was a huge goal, and to get the second goal was a bonus. After that, it was anyone's game. There were too many penalties in the game; it was broken up by several penalties that maybe wouldn't be called on another night. We had to get through that. We felt a lot of pressure in this game tonight, and I thought our team responded well."
On rebounding from last weekend's losses ... "It was a much better team effort. There was a lot more intensity, we played more physical, and we played a better game all around. We had a nightmare of a weekend last week, and we learned from it. We've got to rebound from it and move on with the season."
On the penalty kill ... "The penalty killing was better, and that was the difference in the game. Whether you like the penalties or not, you've got to kill them, and I thought our penalty killers did a great job."
Sophomore Forward Jed Ortmeyer
On the team's defensive play ... "We made a conscious effort this week in practice to make sure everyone was focused on defense and helping our defenders out. We're a little short on defense right now with guys being injured, so we need to make the game as easy as we can for them."
On the penalty kill ... "On the penalty kill, you've got to play with character. You have to play with passion to go out and get the job done. The guys were diving in front of pucks and blocking shots. We really need that down the stretch to make sure everyone's on the same page and play defense."
Junior Goaltender Josh Blackburn
On the shutout ... "It was a little better than getting scored on eight goals. It feels good, but we've got another game to play, so it doesn't really matter much. We need to sweep the series; we need both wins. I got some breaks tonight; I didn't get too many of those last week. The guys did a great job keeping the shots outside, and any rebounds, they'd get right out. There wasn't really any odd-man rushes tonight. We did a good job defensively."
Contact: Jason Binge (734) 763-4423
