Michigan
23-9-0,17-7-0-0CCHA
Nebraska-Omaha
13-13-7,8-11-7-3CCHA
Michigan Rallies to Weekend Sweep of Nebraska-Omaha
2/14/2009 12:00:00 AM | Ice Hockey
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Yost Ice Arena)
Score: #4 Michigan 4, Nebraska-Omaha 2
Records: U-M (23-9-0, 17-7-0 CCHA), UNO (13-13-7, 8-11-7-3 CCHA)
Attendance: 6,837
Next U-M Event: Friday, Feb. 20 -- at Ohio State (Columbus, Ohio), 7:35 p.m.
Boxscore | Notes & Quotes | Photo Gallery | Video Report
ANN ARBOR ,Mich. -- Two goals in the third period from rookie Luke Glendening( Grand Rapids ,Mich. ) propelled the No. 4-ranked University of Michigan ice hockey team to a 4-2 comeback victory and weekend sweep over Nebraska-Omaha on Saturday night (Feb. 14) at Yost Ice Arena. Louie Caporusso( Woodbridge , Ont.) earned a playmaker in the winning effort, helping Michigan gain its eighth win in the past nine contests.
With the win, the Wolverines improved their point total in the CCHA to 34 (17-7-0-0), which clinches a top-four finish in the standings and a bye into the CCHA Tournament quarterfinal round, taking place March 13-15. U-M is six points behind first-place Notre Dame, two points back of second-place Miami and five points ahead of fifth-place Ohio State. All four teams still have four games remaining. Fourth-place Alaska trails U-M by four points but has just two CCHA games remaining.
UNO scored the first two goals of the contest -- both of which came on the power play -- in the first period, leaving Michigan in the hole early in the contest. The Wolverines responded with four straight markers in the second and third periods to capture the victory.
At 6:02 in the opening period, Tim Miller( Davisburg ,Mich. ) received a five-minute major for kneeing and, less than two minutes later at 7:54, another Michigan forward was whistled for boarding.
UNO's 5-on-3 advantage allowed it to score the first marker of the game at 9:50. Following a U-M line change, Joey Martin netted the power-play goal to go up 1-0, batting the puck out of midair inside the right post past netminder Billy Sauer(Walworth, N.Y.).
At 10:20, with the Maize and Blue still down a man, the Mavericks capitalized to make the score 2-0. Eddie DelGrosso took a slap shot from the high slot that deflected off Rich Purslow's chest into the top of the net.
Michigan drew two simultaneous penalties at 11:42 in the first frame, one for boarding and the other for high sticking, giving UNO the two man-advantage once again. U-M's penalty kill proved successful though, with Miller blocking a strong shot from Dan Charleston, and Sauer making five saves in the span.
At the first intermission, UNO was outshooting the Wolverines by a 16-13 margin. U-M did not receive a single power-play opportunity in the initial period.
Michigan garnered its first man-advantage with 12:18 remaining in the middle stanza when Matt Smith was charged with cross checking. The Wolverines could only muster two shots, however, leaving them with the two-goal deficit.
The Maize and Blue finally broke onto the board at 15:04 in the second period, making the score 2-1. David Wohlberg( South Lyon ,Mich. ) passed the puck to Caporusso in the middle of the right circle, and the center crossed it to Travis Turnbull( Chesterfield ,Mo. ) at the left post, where, as he fell, he pushed the puck past goaltender Jerad Kaufmann's stick for the power-play tally.
With 3:16 remaining in the second frame, Brian Lebler( Penticton , B.C.) registered the equalizer. Following a faceoff in U-M's zone, Robbie Czarnik( Washington ,Mich. ) slid the puck to Turnbull, who carried it down the right side and took a shot that caromed off Kaufmann's right leg pad. The deflection found its way to Lebler in between the circles, and the left winger fired the puck quickly into the net to knot the score at 2-2.
Michigan outshot the Mavericks 18-4 in the second period, and Dan Swanson was whistled for tripping at the end of the stanza to give U-M another man-advantage for the first two minutes of the final frame.
At 15:32 in the third period, Michigan took its first lead at 3-2. Caporusso stole the puck from a UNO player in the neutral zone and carried it towards the slot where he made a short, quick dish to Glendening on his right, and with nothing but daylight ahead of him, he lifted the puck up and over Kaufmann's glove for the game-winning goal.
Glendening solidified the victory on an empty-net goal with 35 seconds remaining in the contest. With assists from Caporusso and Wohlberg, the rookie backhanded the puck from just outside the crease into the left half of the net for the finally tally of the game.
Next weekend (Feb.20-21), the Wolverines will travel to Columbus, Ohio, to face Ohio State at Value City Arena. Friday's contest will start at 7:35 p.m. and be broadcast by the Big Ten Network, and Saturday's game will begin at 8:05 p.m. and be televised by CBS College Sports.
Contact: Matt Trevor (734) 763-4423
