Michigan
Notre Dame
Michigan Set to Renew Rivalry with No. 2 Notre Dame
1/4/2018 7:36:00 PM | Ice Hockey
THIS WEEK
Friday, Jan. 5 -- vs. No. 2 Notre Dame (Red Berenson Rink at Yost Ice Arena), 6:30 p.m.
TV: Big Ten Network | Live Stats | Listen | Watch
Sunday, Jan. 7 -- at No. 2 Notre Dame (South Bend, Ind.), 3:05 p.m.
TV: NBC Sports Network & TSN 2 | Live Stats | Listen | Watch
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• Complete PDF Game Notes (Jan. 5)
• Complete PDF Game Notes (Jan. 7)
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan ice hockey team (8-8-2, 3-5-2 B1G) is set to face off against No. 2-ranked Notre Dame in a home-and-home series this week. The Wolverines will host the FIghting Irish on Friday (Jan. 5) at Red Berenson Rink at Yost Ice Arena before traveling to South Bend, Indiana, on Sunday (Jan. 7).
Red Berenson will be honored for his 33 seasons of coaching when Red Berenson Rink will be officially dedicated in his honor this Friday. Fans are encouraged to arrive early to their seats as Berenson will participate in a special ceremonial puck drop and a tribute video will be shown. The first 2,500 fans in attendance will receive a commemorative Red Berenson Rink rally towel, and fans are encouraged to wear maize, as Michigan is planning to "Maize Out Yost" for the rivalry clash.
The Notre Dame Series
Michigan and Notre Dame will meet for the 135th time since 1923, with U-M holding a 75-54-5 record in the all-time series. The two teams first met on Feb. 4, 1923, as Michigan fell to the Fighting Irish, 3-2. Notre Dame is U-M's third oldest opponent behind Wisconsin and Minnesota. At home, Michigan holds a 42-24-3 all-time record over Notre Dame. On the road, the Wolverines trail in the all-time series, 23-25-2.
The two former CCHA rivals last met in the 2015-16 NCAA Tournament, and Michigan bounced the Fighting Irish from the tournament with a 3-2 overtime victory in the Midwest Regional in Cincinnati, Ohio. Prior to that meeting, the last time the two teams met was in the final CCHA championship game on March 24, 2013 at Joe Louis Arena, with Notre Dame edging U-M, 3-1.
Scouting the Fighting Irish
The Irish are led by head coach Jeff Jackson, who is in his 12th season behind the bench for Notre Dame. Jackson holds an all-time record of 284-170-53 on the bench for the Irish. He previously held the same position at Lake Superior State University for six seasons. Jackson accumulated a 182-52-25 record while leading the Lakers and made it to three consecutive national championship games, winning two of them (1991-92 and 1993-94).
Notre Dame was picked to finish second in the Big Ten this season in the 2017-18 Big Ten preseason poll in its inaugural season as an affiliate member of the conference. Notre Dame comes into this rivalry series with an overall record of 16-3-1 and is a perfect 10-0-0-0 in B1G play. The Irish are coming off a two-game sweep of Wisconsin prior to the holiday break, defeating the Badgers 3-2 and 6-2 in Madison, Wisconsin.
Leading Notre Dame
Notre Dame's offense is led by a pair of seniors. Jake Evans heads into the weekend with 28 points (7g, 21a), which is tied for first nationally. Fellow classmate Jordan Gross has chipped in 17 points (5g, 12a) from the blueline for the Irish.
In net, the Irish are led by sophomore goaltender Cale Morris, who has played in 17 games thus far. Morris has posted an NCAA-best .954 save percentage and is tied for second in the nation with a 1.53 goals against average to go with his 15-1-0 record.
Earlier this Week in Detroit
The Wolverines took third place in the 53rd annual Great Lakes Invitational, which was held at the new Little Caesars Arena for the first time. After falling to eventual tournament champion Bowling Green, 6-4, on Monday night (Jan. 1), U-M secured a third-place finish with a 6-4 win over Michigan State on Tuesday (Jan. 2).
Junior forward Cooper Marody was named to the all-tournament team after recording three goals and one assist over the two games. The Brighton, Michigan, native recorded his second career hat trick in the win on Tuesday over Michigan State. Marody goes into the weekend tied for first in the nation with a total of 28 points and 21 assists.
Red, White and Go Blue
U-M's Quinn Hughes, Will Lockwood and Josh Norris are competing at the 2018 IIHF World Junior Championship in Buffalo, New York, from Dec. 26, 2017 - Jan. 5, 2018. The trio become the 45th, 46th and 47th Wolverines -- 39 for the United States, seven for Canada and one for Sweden -- to have played in the WJC.
U-M players have brought home 23 medals (12 gold, four silver, seven bronze). Junior defenseman Joseph Cecconi was a member of last year's U.S. team that captured a gold medal in Montreal, Canada.
GOALLL!!!
Michigan ranks seventh in the nation in goals per game, averaging 3.5 goals over its first 18 games. Captain Tony Calderone ranks fourth in the nation in goals per game at 0.78.
Block It Out
Michigan ranks fourth nationally with an average of 15.50 blocked shots per game and 15th in total blocked shots with 279 on the season. Sam Piazza ranks 22nd nationally with 2.08 blocks per game.
Run DMC
Michigan's "DMC" line of Dexter Dancs, Cooper Marody and Tony Calderone has combined for 66 points out of a total of 168 team points (39 percent) thus far through 18 games. In comparison, the iconic "CCM" line of JT Compher, Kyle Connor and Tyler Motte had a combined 74 points through 18 games in 2015-16.
Hats Off to Marody
Marody's hat trick on Jan. 2 was the second hat trick by a U-M player against MSU this season. Calderone scored three goals in a 4-0 win on Dec. 7 at Red Berenson Rink at Yost Ice Arena.
Big Ten First Star of the Week
Marody earned B1G First Star of the Week (Jan. 3) after registering four points, including a hat trick, to help Michigan claim third place at the 53rd annual Great Lakes Invitational. He recorded an assist in the Wolverines' 6-4 loss to eventual tournament champion Bowling Green on Monday (Jan. 1) and posted his second career hat trick in a come-from-behind victory over Michigan State on Tuesday (Jan. 2). This is his third career weekly award and second of the season.
Tony Lights the Lamp
Calderone's 14 goals are the most by a U-M player in the first 18 games of a season since Louie Caporusso's 13 goals in 18 games during the 2008-09 campaign.
Climbin' the Ranks
Marody ranks tied for first nationally with 28 points on the season and tied for first with 21 assists. Calderone is tied for fifth nationally with 14 goals.
Marody in Good Company
Marody's 28 points are most through 18 games since Kevin Porter had 31 in 2007-08 when he won the Hobey Baker Award.
Double Vision for Coop
Marody's multi-point streak of eight games against Ohio State. Over the span he tallied 19 points (4G, 15A) and became the first Wolverine to record multiple points in eight consecutive games since Brian Wiseman did so during the 1993-94 season, when he tallied 21 points (6G, 15A) between Dec. 4, 1993-Jan. 7, 1994.
SHOTS, SHOTS, SHOTS
Michigan ranks fourth nationally with an average of 34.78 shots on goal per game while ranking 13th in the nation with a +4.58 shots on goal margin per game.
Free Hockey
Michigan has had five games head to overtime so far this season. This is the most overtime contests for the Wolverines since they played in nine during the 2015-16 season.
Up Ahead
Michigan will head to Minnesota next weekend (Jan. 12-13) to take on the Gophers for a pair of Big Ten contests. Puck drop in Minneapolis is scheduled for 7 p.m. CST both nights. Friday's game will be televised on FS Detroit, while Saturday's contest will be shown on FS Detroit Plus.
