Michigan
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USNTDP (ex)
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Michigan Outlasts USNTDP in Overtime Exhibition
10/25/2024 10:29:00 PM | Ice Hockey
» Michael Hage became the fifth Wolverine in the game to score when he potted the game-winning goal in overtime.
» Four Wolverines finished the night with multiple points, including First Star T.J. Hughes.
» Goalie Andrew Albano played the entirety of the exhibition for Michigan to earn the win.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Sixty minutes of exhibition play were not quite enough for the 10th-ranked University of Michigan ice hockey team on Friday night (Oct. 25) at Yost Ice Arena, as the Wolverines needed 2:46 of OT to knock off the United States National Team Development Program's U-18 team with a 5-4 decision in the annual exhibition showdown.
Michigan stormed out to a strong start and recorded the game's first six shots on goal. The Wolverines nearly scored several times in the first few minutes, but the goaltender and the post to his right denied the early chances to weather the early storm.
With the U.S. threatening on offense, Andrew Albano made a pair of excellent saves to keep the youngsters off the board, including one with his stick as he slid across the crease.
Later in the period with 2:50 remaining, Michigan opened the scoring with a wrist shot from the slot off the stick of Christian Humphreys, one of three NTDP alumni in the lineup. Garrett Schifsky picked up the puck in the defensive zone and made a breakout pass to his linemate, T.J. Hughes. After curling near the half wall, Hughes fed a pass to Humphreys' tape and the freshman picked the top-right corner of the net.
Beginning the middle frame, Hughes won the opening faceoff and moved the puck into the offensive zone before getting it back to light the lamp with a long-range shot. He fired from the left circle, surprising the goaltender to beat him on the far side of the net just 12 seconds into the period. Humphreys collected the lone assist on Hughes' tally to put Michigan up 2-0.
U-M extended its lead at 7:43 when Hunter Hady's shot from the right point made it 3-0. The freshman's blast from the blue line was assisted by Josh Eernisse and Evan Werner to cap off a strong offensive zone possession.
The visitors embarked on their first power play at 8:29 when the Wolverines were whistled for having too many skaters on the ice. Over halfway through the advantage, an NTDP forward picked a corner from a dangerous shooting position in the middle of the ice to make it 3-1 with 10:14 left.
The NTDP made it a one-goal game at 1:36 following an offensive-zone faceoff win. After winning the draw, a defender for the Stars and Stripes unleashed a blast from the blue line that kissed off the lower part of the left post before settling in the net to make it 3-2.
Just over one minute later, a scramble in the NTDP zone led to Philippe Lapointe burying a shot that had caromed off the end wall to make it 4-2 in Michigan's favor at 2:53 of the final frame.
The offensive onslaught continued at 4:06 when the Americans capitalized on U-M's defensive uncertainty to bury through the five-hole on an odd-man rush and make it a 4-3 game.
Michigan was shorthanded at 6:16 after a scrum saw two Wolverines penalized along with just one NTDP skater. On the ensuing advantage, the NTDP scored at 7:07 to tie the game at four.
In the extra session, Michigan started with Michael Hage and Schifsky up front along with Tim Lovell on the back end. After cycling through a few groupings, Hage found his way back onto the ice and unveiled a smooth toe drag to create a chance with 2:20 left in OT before being hauled down and earning a power play for the Wolverines.
On the ensuing advantage, Hage worked his way into a shooting position in the middle of the offensive zone and buried his second opportunity on the 4-on-3 advantage to end the game.
The Wolverines ended the evening on a positive note after wrapping up the contest with a 46-29 lead in shots on goal as well as a 37-26 advantage in the faceoff dot.
Goaltender Andrew Albano earned the win in net for the Wolverines, stopping 25 of 29 shots.
Next week, Michigan will head out east for a pair of non-conference games against Boston University. The teams will face off twice at Agganis Arena, with puck drop for Friday and Saturday (Nov. 1-2) slated for 7 p.m. Both games will be streamed live on ESPN+.
