Michigan
0-1-0
Providence
1-0-0
Michigan Drops Season Opener to No. 18 Providence
10/7/2023 10:47:00 PM | Ice Hockey
» Newcomer Josh Eernisse opened the scoring for Michigan with a first-period tally.
» Gavin Brindley scored the final goal of the game on his team-high fifth shot on goal.
» The loss marks Michigan's first in a season-opening game since 2018.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The 102nd season of play officially began for the University of Michigan men's ice hockey team on Saturday (Oct. 7) inside Yost Ice Arena, but No. 18-ranked Providence came away with a 4-2 victory over No. 5 Michigan. With the loss to the Friars, Michigan's four-year unbeaten streak in season openers was snapped.
Goaltender Noah West earned the start for the season opener after playing the second half of last weekend's exhibition against Simon Fraser. The senior netminder stopped 22 of the 26 shots he faced from a methodical Friars offense while shouldering the loss.
The teams looked quick right out of the gate as each side worked through the early-season excitement. Evenly matched play marked the first seven minutes before Providence was whistled for a minor penalty at 7:43. After the puck took an odd bounce off the Zamboni door, it popped into the slot for Dylan Duke. Rather than let him have a clean chance at the net, Duke was tripped up to give Michigan 1:07 of a 5-on-3 advantage. Despite a pair of near-misses, U-M could not convert on the early special-teams chance and the game returned to even strength.
Newcomer Josh Eernisse made his impact felt immediately after stepping onto the ice for a line change when he disrupted a Providence rush in the neutral zone and kicked the puck out into Providence's slot. A retreating Rutger McGroarty settled the puck down at the blue line to give the charging Eernisse a clean chance at the net, which he powered through the netminder to give Michigan a 1-0 lead at 10:51. McGroarty earned the only assist on the play.
Providence tied the game at 1 with 8:10 left in the first period by deflecting a point shot from between the hashes to redirect the puck past West.
In the offensive zone, the Wolverines were called for tripping with 1:45 left in the opening frame to put Providence on the power play for the first time. On the penalty kill, West and his defensemen tightened up to keep the puck out of the net before Gavin Brindley was able to break out for a shorthanded breakaway chance that he buried into the goaltender's crest before time expired.
The Friars carried 15 seconds of power-play time into the dressing room after the first period with the game tied 1-1. Michigan held a narrow 11-10 lead in shots on goal in addition to a 12-10 edge in the faceoff dot. Last year's best faceoff man, T.J. Hughes, started the night by winning 5-of-6 draws in the opening frame.
Providence took the lead at 8:13 of the second period when a 2-on-1 opportunity for the Friars led to the puck being wedged in West's equipment. Despite making the initial save, a backchecking Wolverine collided with the netminder to push the puck over the goal line and give the visitors a 2-1 lead.
The Friars' lead was doubled with 7:06 remaining in the middle frame when an odd-man rush was finished off by a clever five-hole shot that made it 3-1.
After two periods of play, Providence led 3-1 despite Michigan's edge in shots on goal (19-16).
Early in the third period, a cross-checking minor was whistled at 2:18 to give Providence another power-play chance. Thirty seconds later, the Friars padded their lead further with a strike of a one-timer from the left dot to make it 4-1.
Michigan embarked on its second man-advantage of the game at 6:42 of the third period when Providence was called for a faceoff violation, but the team's power-play unit failed to ignite.
Brindley got the Wolverines back within two with 7:32 left in regulation when he redirected a shot into the back of the net from the right circle to make it 4-2. The primary assist went to Casey, who put the long shot on net from the right point for Brindley to get his blade on. The secondary assist went to Garrett Schifsky for his first collegiate point.
Another Wolverine penalty was called with 4:04 left to play, giving Providence its fifth opportunity of the evening with the extra skater. Michigan's penalty killers turned in a strong performance to deny the Friars and return to even-strength. Providence finished the night 2-for-5 on the power play, as opposed to U-M going 0-for-3.
Michigan threatened with the goaltender pulled, spending the final minute working in the offensive zone, but failed to find a third goal to cut into the deficit. The final buzzer sounded and Providence stormed off the bench to celebrate a 4-2 victory over the Wolverines. Michigan ended the night with a 32-26 advantage in shots on goal as well as a 36-31 edge in faceoffs, but failed to produce enough offense to knock off the Friars.
On Sunday afternoon (Oct. 8), the non-conference foes will reconvene at Yost Ice Arena to finish off the two-game set. Puck drop is scheduled for 4 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network.
