Michigan
7-10-2, 2-7-1
Ferris State
6-10-2, 4-6-2
U-M Advances to GLI Championship Game With Win Over Ferris State
12/30/2019 8:53:00 PM | Ice Hockey
» Michigan advanced to the GLI championship game for the 31st time.
» Strauss Mann stopped 22 of 23 shots faced to secure his seventh win of the season.
» Jake Slaker scored two goals in one game for the first time since Nov. 16, 2018.
» Will Lockwood added one goal and one assist while finishing +2 for the game.
Site: Detroit, Mich. (Little Caesars Arena)
Event: Great Lakes Invitational (Semifinal)
Score: Michigan 4, Ferris State 1
Records: U-M (7-10-2), FSU (6-10-2)
Next U-M Event: Tuesday, Dec. 31 -- vs. Michigan Tech - GLI Final (Detroit, Mich.), 2:30 p.m.
DETROIT, Mich. -- The University of Michigan ice hockey team returned to action Monday (Dec. 30) with a 4-1 win over Ferris State in the 55th rendition of the Great Lakes Invitational at Little Caesars Arena. Jake Slaker scored two goals for the Wolverines, and goaltender Strauss Mann stopped 22 of 23 shots faced to secure his seventh win of the season.
The Bulldogs, this year's tournament invitee, are a familiar opponent for U-M after spending years in the same conference, but the teams had not faced off since November of 2017, when they split a series at Yost Ice Arena. The early minutes of the game were quiet as each team worked to find its rhythm coming off a long break.
Ferris State took a minor penalty for hooking at 13:24 of the opening period, giving U-M its first power play of the evening. After Mann stood tall on an early shorthanded rush from the Bulldogs, senior Slaker made the man advantage count at the other end. Classmate Will Lockwood carried the puck in deep before taking a hit to get Eric Ciccolini the puck near the front of the net to the goaltender's right. Ciccolini deftly dished the puck backdoor where Slaker was gliding in to bury the game's opening tally with 11:29 remaining in the period.
Ferris State's turn with the advantage came three minutes later when Adam Winborg was sent off for slashing. After successfully killing off the minor penalty, Michigan resumed its pressure in the FSU end. The late effort nearly paid off in the closing seconds, as a Jacob Hayhurst wrist shot rang off the near-side post with just a handful of seconds left on the clock. After one period, Michigan held a 1-0 lead, having outshot its ex-CCHA foe, 13-9.
Michigan's penalty kill was thrust back in the spotlight in the second period when Lockwood took a minor penalty for indirect contact to the head. The Michigan PK was successful, however, for the second time in as many tries.
With under six minutes left in the middle frame and the Wolverines back to even strength, Slaker received a breakout pass in stride at the opposing blue line from freshman defenseman Keaton Pehrson. Sprung on an abbreviated breakaway, Slaker wasted no time before snapping a low wrist shot past the Ferris State goaltender to double the Wolverines' lead. Also picking up an assist on the second Slaker goal was sophomore defenseman Jack Summers.
The second period came to an end after the Maize and Blue succeeded in killing off a third minor penalty of the game. Entering the final period, Michigan was ahead 2-0, leading in shots (20-17) and dominating the faceoff dot (21-15).
The first half of the final frame passed quietly, with Michigan keeping up the pressure and stretching its lead in shots before Lockwood made one count. The captain received a pass in the offensive zone from Nick Pastujov, deked and buried the puck past a sprawling FSU netminder to extend the Michigan lead to three with 7:05 left to play. The elder Pastujov picked up his fifth assist of the season.
Minutes later, with the Bulldogs making a late push in the U-M end, an FSU shot from the goal line squeaked through the side of Mann's pad to give Ferris State its only goal of the evening. Moments later, sophomore forward Dakota Raabe scored an empty-net goal from beyond the blue line to seal the game for the Wolverines at 4-1.
In addition to a solid night for U-M's special teams (PP 1-2, PK 3-3), Michigan outshot the Bulldogs, 33-23, and led in the faceoff dot, 30-22.
The Wolverines advanced to the GLI championship game for the 31st time while improving their all-time record at the annual holiday tournament to 60-36-3. They will play Michigan Tech tomorrow (Tuesday, Dec. 31) in search of their tournament-leading 18th John A. MacInnes Trophy. The game will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Detroit, with puck drop scheduled for 2:30 p.m.
Michigan has gone 17-13 in its 30 previous trips to the title game, with its last win coming in 2015, when Kyle Connor took home the Jack Tompkins Trophy for MVP honors.
