>Just a few notes from this weekend’s first ever sweep of the Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor:

– The Miami sweep is Michigan’s first at Yost Ice Arena since October 26 and 27, 2001 when the Northern Michigan Wildcats swept the Maize & Blue 1-0 (OT) and 5-3.

– I’d like to take credit for Pat Cannone’s first goal, thank you. Okay, just kidding. But in my recap of Friday night’s game, I questioned where Cannone had been all season long. He got the Miami scoring started on Saturday night and added an assist on Reilly Smith’s first goal.

– The RedHawks are 8-1-1 through the first ten games and own sole posession of first place in the CCHA with 15 points. With series’ upcoming against Ferris State in Oxford and Western Michigan in Kalamazoo still to come (and not to be overlooked), the matchup with North Dakota in Grand Forks over the American Thanksgiving holiday is building up to…be…huge. The Fighting Sioux host St. Cloud State next weekend and hit the road to battle Denver in Magness Arena the following week. A lot could happen between now and then, but it’s certainly something to keep an eye on.

– Andy Miele and Jarod Palmer are tied for the team lead in points, both with 11. Curtis McKenzie leads all freshman with 8 points; Chris Wideman leads the blueliners with 5.

– Cody Reichard was OUTSTANDING this weekend. The sophomore netminder stopped 47 of 49 shots and now has a 7-0-1 record and a 1.58 GAA. Folks, here’s your number one goaltender. He also leads the CCHA in winning percentage, at .938%.

– Be sure to check out great game recaps from either RedHawkey or Jackets Required. Both sites do a great job of covering the RedHawks, so please, check it out!

>The scenario: Team A has the home ice advantage going into Friday night’s contest and a commanding lead in the series between the two schools. Team B, on the road in a hostile environment mind you, has only won three games in Team A’s building in the entire history of the universe. Team B had a total of 28 penalty minutes and Team A outshot Team B 28-13 at the game’s end and 14-2 in the second period. Who won the game?

I would have picked Team A, too.

But it was “Team B” that walked away with this one on Friday night as the #1 ranked Miami RedHawks defeated the Michigan Wolverines 3-1. The Miami win on Friday was only the fourth at Yost Ice Arena in the 28 year series history of the two schools, a series that MU now trails 69-21-3 all-time and 4-43-1 in Ann Arbor. Jarod Palmer started the scoring early on in the first period, knocking home a loose puck in a scramble near the Michigan goal crease, and giving Miami a huge first goal on the road at the 3:42 mark. Five minutes later, it was Palmer again, this time on the 4 x 3 power play. A beauty of a shot from the high slot eluded UM netminder Bryan Hogan and Miami now found itself with a 2-0 lead, thanks to Palmer.

In the second period, it was all Michigan. Thanks to the outstanding effort by Miami goaltender Cody Reichard, the Maize & Blue only found the net once in the second frame, despite outshooting and outplaying the visitors. Chris Brown tapped in the only Michigan goal of the evening, drawing assists from Carl Hagelin and the slow-starting Louie Caporusso to cut the lead to one goal, at 2-1. It was a power play tally.

In the final period, Miami delivered a lesson on how to close out a game (take note, Columbus Blue Jackets). Senior Brandon Smith, certainly not known for his scoring prowess, sealed the deal with a wrist shot through Hogan’s 5-hole and Miami had a two-goal lead at 3-1. Drawing the assist on the Smith goal…was Dane Hetland and that’s the way it would end, a Miami winner over Michigan, 3-1.

Notes:

– I think Cody Reichard has officially solidified himself as this team’s number one ‘tender. In seven games, Reichard is 6-0-1 with a 1.67 GAA and a .932 save-percentage. He played extremely large in last night’s win stopping 27 of 28 shots and even stopped his second penalty shot of the season. Especially with Connor Knapp missing his regularly scheduled start last week at Northern Michigan because of the flu, I think Cody is “the” guy at this point.

– Senior Gary Steffes and Sophomore Matt Tomassoni did not make the trip to Ann Arbor this weekend. Tomassoni is still presumably feeling under the weather and pure speculation leads me to believe that Steffes is going through the same.

– The RedHawks were outshot 28-13 on Friday night and still managed a two goal win, including being outshout in the second period 14-2.

– What about the play of Jarod Palmer this season? An undrafted free agent, Palmer will certainly earn himself a professional contract of some kind at the season’s end. His hard work and leadership qualities, just to name a few, would certainly be an asset to any team. He now leads the RedHawks scoring this season with ten points (5G, 5A).

– Anyone noticed Pat Cannone this season? The junior center has two goals and two assists in the nine game season so far and seems to be struggling a bit out of the gate. In the first 9 games of last season, he registered 12 points on 4 goals and 8 assists.

– Michigan State defeated Nebraska-Omaha on Friday night in a shootout. With the win, MSU (13 points) has a one-point lead on Miami in the CCHA standings.

– Dane Hetland was playing in his first college hockey game since October of 2007. How appropriate that he and Brandon Smith combined to add to the RedHawks’ total. Smith didn’t play his first game of his college career until his junior season, a drought similar to Hetland’s. After seeing action in 22 games during his freshman year in 2006-2007, Dane played the Canisus series the following season and not at all last year. The senior’s assist on Friday was his first point since Febuary 17, 2007 in a 5-3 win at Robert Morris. Hetland drew an assist on a Joe Cooper goal.

– The two teams are back at it tonight in the Wolverine State, with a 7:35pm drop at Yost. TV coverage will once again provided by ONN.

>As the RedHawks prepare for a tough weekend against the Michigan Wolverines, Miami radio voice Greg Waddell will be checking in throughout the season with a view of “Life on the Road.” Here’s the first edition, hot off the presses from the Great Lakes State:

Greetings from Ann Arbor as two of the premier teams in the CCHA…nay….the nation, hook up for a weekend series at the Yost as Miami plays the you of em. We had an uneventful trip up here that took right around 4 hours. Despite preparing for the games itself, one of the big questions when heading out on the bus, is what movies the guys will want to watch. Being a mid-40’s kind of a guy that I am, the generation gap is never more evident, than with the sense of humor of college-age guys. The first movie of choice was a Paul Rudd/Seann William Scott flick called Role Models. Not the best of choices I have seen over the years, but not bad either. It is one of the kinds of movies I would probably never see, unless riding the roads with the team. The second movie was an old stand-by, Meet The Fockers. The early trend this season of movies on the bus seems to be a newer comedy (and I use the term loosely), followed by a sure-thing. Usually the sure-thing movies are the choice of Coach. It’s like a make-up call after a bad penalty call by the ref’s. Rico is able to erase what is a bad movie memory, with a classic. Other examples this year following a bad movie with a good, Talladega Nights after a completely forgettable flick on the way to Northern Michigan last week, as well as Austin Powers Goldmember.

A couple of player notes, Dane Hetland made the trip and will be dressed and in the lineup for Friday’s game. It will be his first game-action since November 23, 2007 against Canisius. It’s great to see the hard work by the players who haven’t had a lot of recent playing time. And it’s great to see them rewarded too! Cody Reichard will get the start on Friday and freshman Steven Spinell will also be dressed. Gary Steffes and Matt Tomassoni did not make the trip.

The Yost has not been kind to most visiting teams over the years and the RedHawks/Skins are no different; to the tune of just 3 wins since the first-ever game played by Miami in 1981. But the team seems loose and ready for action this weekend. The last win here in AA came in October of 2006. And you might remember last season was a particularly painful weekend. The old-school barn had some structural issues which caused the series to be delayed by a day. That extra day did not help the Red & White as they lost 5-1 and 4-0. But a lot has happened since that series and Miami continues to show that they belong. This weekend will be a great test to see if they are up to the challenge! Go RedHawks!

From the 4 Points Sheraton…Waddell out!

>Well, at least the Halloween reference is out of the way. By now, most of you undoubtedly know that Miami took game one of the weekend series on Friday night at Northern Michigan, with a 4-3 win.

But what you may not know about, is the nightmare that this game could have turned into. The RedHawks had a 4-0 lead going into the third period, largely thanks to Justin Vaive’s first two goals of the season early on in the second period. Joe Hartman and Alden Hirschfeld also found the twine in the middle frame, marking the third time this season that Miami has scored four goals in one period and they outshout the ‘Cats 12-5.

But the third was quite a different story. The visitors seemingly took their collective foot off of the gas and the Wildcats came roaring back with three goals and outshot the RedHawks 12-4.

Game two from the Berry Events Center begins tonight at 7:35 PM. You can also listen to tonight’s action at this link and on 1450 WMOH-AM in the Hamilton/Oxford area.

Here is a link to the official website with a more comprehensive summary. Also, check out RedHawkey, an AWESOME Miami hockey blog for their thoughts on the weekend’s action.

Have a safe and Happy Halloween! Go RedHawks!

>Cleaning out my spam e-mails today, I found a response from Connor Knapp on his reaction to being drafted by the Buffalo Sabres this past summer. Sorry it’s old, but I thought I’d share it!

Connor Knapp:

“I just think it is a great honor to be selected by the Buffalo Sabres. It is a great organization with a great history. Buffalo is also only an hour from my home town so it would be amazing to be able to play there one day. It still seems unreal because this is something that I have dreamed about for a long time. Getting drafted to the NHL has been one of my life long goals. However, getting drafted is only the beginning of a process. It will only mean something if a player works hard and takes advantage of it. Getting drafted to Buffalo is just a step in the right direction to the NHL. The draft was also a testament to Miami University Hockey. I do not believe that I have ever matured and improved as much as I did last season at Miami. The coaches, staff, and players create a perfect atmosphere for self improvement and development, both on and off the ice. I am excited to have the opportunity to excel with a great college hockey program, and now also to have a chance with a great professional team. I am looking forward to my future seasons at Miami and with the Buffalo Sabres organization.”

>On the night that Steve Cady was recognized for his induction into the Miami Athletic Hall of Fame, many of the Miami faithful realized how lucky they were to have such a man, along with his enormous contributions to the hockey program throughout the years. What they weren’t so lucky to have however, was a RedHawks win as No. 1 ranked Miami fell to Michigan State on Saturday night 3-2, in overtime.

The Spartans set the tempo quickly on this night, making solid passes and forechecking hard early on, but Miami eventually settled them down and began playing their own brand of hockey, putting good pressure on State’ goaltender Drew Palmisano on the power play and even strength. There were plenty of loose pucks for the RedHawks to bury and several scoring chances, but Palmisano, thinking Halloween was this weekend instead of next, did his best Jeff Lerg imitation and kept his team in it early. The Miami blueline was solid for most of the first, with only MSU Junior Corey Tropp taking exception to the RedHawks‘ stinginess. He broke in, made a few great dangles, and buried a wrist shot past Miami’s Connor Knapp at the 8:14 mark to put the Spartans on top, 1-0. Miami would have two more power play chances before the end of the first frame, but couldn’t light the lamp. A Trent Vogelhuber penalty late in the first would give MSU the man-advantage for the remainder of the period, putting the penalty killers to work, and Andy Miele cleared the zone to end the first and send the RedHawks to the dressing room trailing by one.

Michigan State wasted no time getting down to business in the second period, as Derek Grant fired yet another wrist shot past Knapp just :38 seconds in. It was a power play marker, MSU’s second of the night and it gave Sparty a 2-0 lead. It would be the only goal of the period. Spartan junior Dustin Gazley had a beautiful look at a break away in the second, but missed high. Like the first period, Miami had several scoring chances that went by the wayside. Several shots missed high, loose pucks were either corralled by Palmisano, or cleared out of harm’s way. The “puck luck” was scarce on Saturday.

But Miami battled back in the third. Halfway through the period, with the Red & White on the power play, Jarod Palmer carried into the zone along the half wall and made a great pass to a waiting Matt Tomassoni who lazered the one-timer from the right point into the Spartans’ goal, to pull Miami within one, at 2-1. It was Tomassoni’s third career goal, third of the season, and third in three games. Palmer’s assist was the 99th point of his career, putting him just one shy from joining the prestigious 100-point club.

The club welcomed member number 43 just 3:13 later…

More hard work by Andy Miele created the scoring chance, when he found Vincent LoVerde circling near the right post. LoVerde then fed the puck across the slot to Palmer who wristed the puck into a wide open left-side of the net, for his 100th career point and Miami had come back to tie the contest at two apiece. It was a beauty of a goal; and Palmer’s second point of the night. A Curtis McKenzie penalty for goaltender interference with 2:10 remaining in regulation made the game interesting, as did a scramble for the loose puck in the Miami crease. But the clear was made and the two teams would need overtime to decide this one.

In the OT period, Palmer and MSU’s Dustin Gazley were given coincidental minors for “extracurricular activities”, resulting in 4-on-4 action for both teams. But it was another great play that sealed the deal for the Spartans, as Andrew Rowe made two great dekes, one of which led to LoVerde’s over-committing, stepped up into the slot and buried the game winner, sending the sellout crowd of 3,642 to the aisles as Michigan State left the Cady Arena ice with an OT victory.

Munchables:

– Not to take anything away from Knapp’s ability, but at what point (if any) does Cody Reichard see game action on both Friday and Saturday nights? While we have a solid 1-1A tandem of ‘tenders, I personally think that Reichard has looked better than Knapp in his starts thus far. Just playing Devil’s Advocate here…

– Didn’t notice much out of Dean Chelios tonight. He played on the fourth line with Anthony Hayes and Kevin Walrod and only registered one shot.

– The penalty kill was 4/6 tonight and 10/13 on the weekend. The power play was 2/14 on the weekend, now 5/34 overall (14.7 %) and 10th in the CCHA.

– Not a fan of the (whatever they’re called) girls that clean up the ice during TV timeouts. They do this in the NHL and it drives me absolutely insane. Nitpicky, I know. But, I guess keeping people entertained is the main goal, anymore.

– One player that stood out to me was MSU’s Dustin Gazley. Almost reminded me of one Nino Musitelli. They’re roughly the same size, too. He skated on the second line, right side, with Daultan Levielle in the middle and Rowe on the left wing. The top two MSU lines were outstanding, as were their top d-pairing of Torey Krug and Jeff Petry, who finished with 7 blocked shots.

– MSU Junior winger Corey Tropp is on a tear. He now has 6 goals and 6 assists in 6 games and leads the CCHA in scoring. Too many “6’s” for my liking, but an outstanding start to the season, nonetheless. Derek Grant is on a roll too, with 4 goals and 5 assists through the first 6 games.

– Drew Palmisano was solid all night. He played very well for his team. Miami didn’t see a whole lot of rebounds from him.

– Camper and Tomassoni had the most shots for either team on the night, with 8 and 5, respectively.

– Jarod Palmer is the current points leader, with 8 (3g, 5a), followed by Camper, Tommy Wingels, and Miele, who all have 7. Curtis McKenzie leads all frieshman in points with 5. Matt Tomassoni leads all defenseman with 3 points, all goals.

– Still believe that the McKenzie/Miele/Palmer line has been the most consistent for Miami all-season long. Love watching those guys play together in all situations.

– Miami travels to Marquette, Michigan next weekend to take on the Northern Michigan Wildcats.

>Vaive- Steffes- Smith
McKenzie- Miele- Palmer
R. Smith- Cannone- Vogelhuber
Hirschfeld- Camper- Wingels

Weber- Hartman
Schilling- Wideman
Tomassoni- LoVerde

Knapp