Michigan
10-11-3, 5-7-2-1B1G
Penn State
16-7-1, 8-5-1-0B1G
U-M Ties No. 6 PSU, Secures Extra B1G Point to Run Unbeaten Streak to Four
1/18/2020 10:26:00 PM | Ice Hockey
» Garrett Van Wyhe scored in the second overtime to earn a second Big Ten point.
» Nick Granowicz scored twice, and captain Will Lockwood assisted on both.
» Strauss Mann set a career high with 45 saves.
Site: State College, Pa. (Pegula Ice Arena)
Score: Michigan 4, #6 Penn State 4 (2OT, W)
Records: U-M (10-11-3, 5-7-2-1 B1G), PSU (16-7-1, 8-5-1-0 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Jan. 25 -- vs. U.S. NTDP U-18 Team (Yost Ice Arena), 7:30 p.m. (exhibition)
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Garrett Van Wyhe's goal with 12 seconds remaining in the second overtime period helped the University of Michigan ice hockey team earn the extra Big Ten point after the Wolverines skated to a 4-4 tie with No. 6-ranked Penn State on Saturday (Jan. 18) at Pegula Ice Arena.
In the 3-on-3 second-overtime session, each squad pressed for the extra point as excellent scoring chances were turned aside at both ends. With just 12 seconds remaining in double overtime and a shootout looming, Van Wyhe received the puck from defenseman Nick Blankenburg and glided into the Penn State end with room to operate. The sophomore took several strides inside the blue line and fired a hard wrister past Oskar Autio into the top corner of the net. After nearly 70 minutes of hard-fought, fast-paced hockey, the Wolverines ended their weekend at Pegula with five of a possible six points.
Freshman forward Nick Granowicz scored twice and Strauss Mann posted a career-high 45 saves to fuel Michigan's third-period comeback. With Saturday's result, the Wolverines left State College having earned five of the six available conference points and are unbeaten in their last four games.
Penalties were the story early on, with Michigan being called for three two-minute minors in the game's first six minutes. The Maize and Blue penalty-kill unit had been steady for the past month, not allowing a power-play goal for 15 consecutive opportunities entering Saturday's game, but Penn State found a hole and opened up the scoring with a 5-on-3 goal at 6:55 to make it 1-0 early. Halfway through the period, PSU outshot the Wolverines, 15-7, and the physicality was picking up from both sides.
After the 10-minute mark passed, the Wolverines took control of the play as they continuously tested Penn State's goaltender but failed to find the back of the net before the buzzer sounded for the first intermission. Despite the early pressure from the home side, U-M finished the period on a 12-3 run in shots on goal to take a 19-18 shot advantage into the dressing room.
The Wolverines threatened less than five minutes into the middle frame when Will Lockwood sped into the Nittany Lion zone on an offensive rush with linemate Johnny Beecher skating to his right. As Beecher reached the top of the circle, Lockwood flipped the puck over to him for a one-time opportunity that was stopped by the PSU keeper.
Moments later with play rushing back toward the Michigan end and Mann battling through traffic in front, the Nittany Lions celebrated an apparent goal, but their celebration was cut short as the officials quickly waived it off. After a video review, the Nittany Lions were awarded the goal and took a 2-0 lead with 14:52 left in the second period.
Eighty-six seconds after PSU extended its lead to two goals, U-M scored its first goal thanks to sophomore forward Nolan Moyle. After Jacob Hayhurst won a race into the PSU zone during a Michigan line change, he protected the puck and patiently waited for reinforcements to skate into the zone. Moyle was first off the bench and rushed into the slot where he received the pass from Hayhurst and muscled a low wrist shot into the back of the net to get the Wolverines on the board 6:34 into the second stanza. Freshman defenseman Keaton Pehrson picked up the secondary assist while Hayhurst was credited with the primary.
While pressuring the PSU zone minutes later, Lockwood sent a bouncing puck toward the goalmouth. At the same time, Granowicz was crashing toward the front of the net and deflected the puck with his body past an unsuspecting goaltender to tie the game at 2.
Michigan's second goal may have quieted the Pegula Ice Arena crowd for several minutes, but the home team's potent offense was not done. With 3:01 left, PSU reclaimed the lead with a goal off a rebound opportunity.
Tweet of the Game
Check out the highlights as Michigan rallies from 2-0 deficit to take extra B10 point in 2OT at Penn State#GoBlue?? pic.twitter.com/bdaKk2tnPL
— Michigan Hockey (@umichhockey) January 19, 2020
Blankenburg responded in the period's closing minutes with a grade-A scoring chance of his own on a breakaway, but a slick move was saved and Penn State took their 3-2 lead into the second intermission. With 20 minutes to play, PSU led in shots, 36-32, and faceoff wins, 32-20, while clinging to a one-goal lead.
The teams traded chances in the early minutes of the third period, but it was the Wolverines who earned a critical equalizer 6:45 into the frame. Van Wyhe carried the puck into the zone with speed before dishing the puck below the goal line to Moyle. Not a second later, the puck was off Moyle's stick and out to the front of the net where Hayhurst was waiting to bury a one-time chance and tie the game at 3.
Three and a half minutes later, the Wolverines claimed their first lead of the night when Granowicz buried his second goal of the game through the goalie's five hole at 9:53. Lockwood found him open in front of the net with a slick feed; the captain and defenseman Cam York picked up the assists on Granowicz's second tally.
With Penn State's goaltender at the bench for an extra skater, six Nittany Lions attacked Mann's cage in the Michigan end. While sending bodies to the front of the net, the home team was able to take advantage of the chaos and find the back of the net through traffic to tie the game at 4 with 1:22 left to play.
With shots at 46-42 in Penn State's favor after 60 minutes, the teams headed to overtime in search of a clear winner and three points in the Big Ten hockey standings.
In a wild end-to-end sequence, Penn State saw a deflected shot nearly beat Mann before clanking off the post to his right. The puck was then swatted out of the zone where Hayhurst was able to secure it as he burst out of the U-M end on a breakaway. The graduate transfer made a nice move to his forehand but was denied by steady goalkeeping from Penn State's Autio.
With seven seconds left, senior Nick Pastujov won a high-pressure draw deep in the U-M zone to protect the puck and secure a tie in the eyes of the NCAA. After 65 minutes, shots ended up at 49-44 in Penn State's favor, and each team was guaranteed one point in the conference standings.
Michigan will return to play next Saturday (Jan. 25) when it hosts the the United States National Team Development Program's Under-18 team in an exhibition contest at Yost Ice Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m., and the game will be streamed live on BTN Plus.
