Connor Knapp made 22 saves and Austin Czarnik recorded the first two-goal game of his career as Miami completed the weekend sweep of duhOSU winning 5-1.
Jimmy Mullin (9th goal), Blake Coleman (11th) and, who else, Reilly Smith (26th) also notched goals for Miami who outshot the Buckeyes 33-23 on the night.
It was yet another stellar defensive performance by Miami, and by all accounts, similar to last weekend against Notre Dame when at no point did you really think duhOSU could challenge Miami. In fact, the RedHawks probably allowed no more than 5-8 minutes of offensive zone time against during the final two periods of play. I’ll be curious to hear the duhOSU head coach’s excuses after this weekend that saw Miami outscore the Buckeyes 8-1.
duhOSU did their best to maintain the chippy play they started on Friday in Oxford, and Miami definitely took the bait ending up down two men twice during the game. And, the Buckeyes capitalized on their early 5×3 chance when someone named Al McLean scored in the first period to knot the game at one after Jimmy Mullin opened the scoring just 43 seconds into the game.
Miami’s top line of freshmen Austin Czarnik and Mullin plus junior Reilly Smith was far too much for duhOSU.
After freshman Blake Coleman broke a 1-1 tie with his 11th goal of the season, Smith would add a third first period goal at 16:09, roughly 30 seconds after Coleman’s eventual game-winner on the powerplay.
And, in the second period, it was all Miami as Austin Czarnik (2-1-3) tallied twice, assisted both times by Smith who had a line of 1-3-4 on the evening while Mullin went 1-2-3 as the top line was a combined 4-6-10 on the night.
For senior netminder Connor Knapp, it was business as usual.
Knapp stopped 22 of 23 duhOSU shots, the only goal coming on a 5×3 powerplay as he is now 13-6 on the season with a 1.53 goals against average with .939 save percentage. Knapp and Reilly Smith (26-12-38) have each played themselves into CCHA player of the year contention, and perhaps, into the Hobey Baker discussion as Smith is now second nationally in goals and Knapp is in the top 5 in almost every major goaltending category, except maybe victories.
With the weekend sweep and Michigan State’s split with Notre Dame, Miami will finish in fourth place in the CCHA and host the Spartans in Oxford for the second round of the CCHA playoffs which will be a best-of-three series. The winner will advance to the CCHA semifinals in Detroit with an opportunity to play for the Mason Cup. The Michigan State series will be March 9-11 at Steve Cady Arena. Miami swept the Spartans in East Lansing January 6-7 so this should be an outstanding series to watch.
Currently, Miami is tied for 8th in the PairWise rankings. We’ll see if that changes as other games go final.
duhOSU coach Mark Osiecki continued his pattern of whining after losses with yet another classic.
“In the second period we had a puck hit the post and it bounced out. It could’ve been a 3-2 game but we haven’t been able to get those bounces to go our way all season when they matter.”
Sure, Mark. Those bounces were probably all you needed against a superior opponent.
Check back tomorrow for the Redskin Warrior #SixPack as we breakdown the key facts and figures for the RedHawks.
It has been a wild week for the Miami Hockey “family” this week. From the end of the Swoop’s Stoop jersey auctions, to Carter Camper getting the call up to the NHL’s Boston Bruins, everywhere you turned this week, the RedHawks were making headlines. Connor Knapp took home the CCHA Goaltender of the Week award, as well as the INCH National Player of the Week award, solidifying his spot as Miami’s go-to goalie right now. And finally, add into the mix Tommy Wingels badgering the bigger and taller R.J. Umberger in on Wednesday (while playing on the Shark’s top line) in Columbus.
I’m guessing that Tommy didn’t have Miami’s upcoming series against Ohio State on his mind as he dropped gloves against the former Ohio State Captain and current Columbus Blue Jacket, but it was definitely a preview of what is sure to be a heated series this weekend in Oxford and Columbus. Of late, the series has been of the intense variety, with the Red and White holding the advantage in the overall series. Bolstered by the addition of the no-defunct Ohio Hockey Classic as well as a few CCHA playoff series, the RedHawks have faced Ohio State more than any other team in school history. Earlier this season, each team won on the road in the first home and home series, and the all-time mark is now 64-60-12. Surprisingly, Ohio State holds the edge in Columbus with a 21-33-7 mark, despite the raucous crowds empty cavern of an arena they now play in.
photo courtesy of muredhawks.com
Friday night’s contest will be at 6:05pm in the Goggin, with the puck drop moved up to accomodate the CBS Sports Network telecast. It wil be senior night for the ‘Hawks, and the 10 Miami Seniors will be honored AFTER the game due to the early start. The RedHawks look to finish of the regular season on Saturday night in Value City Arena in Columbus on Ohio State’s Senior night. Puck drop is set for 7:05pm and the game will be only be streamed online at BTN.com. The first 5,000 fans will receive rally towels on Saturday night, as well as thundersticks from Big Money U Ohio State, so get there early (yawn…). You can take a quick glance at the weekend’s tale of the tape from College Hockey News by clicking here.
To say that 2012 has been dismal for Ohio State would be an understatement. After shooting out of the gate with a 14-4-1 record to start the year, including a 11 game unbeaten streak (ended by Miami), Ohio State has since gone 1-7-4. To make matters worse, all 4 of those ties were shootout losses, with 2 of them coming at the hands of last place BGSU. That’s a measly 7 points in CCHA conference play since we rang in 2012. The only thing that could make this half of the season worse for Ohio State is another ugly sweater contest. Here are a few of the glorious entries of recent memory:
Along with Ohio State’s free fall over the course of 2012, they’ve also slid down the PairWise rankings and CCHA standings. After hitting the top spot on the PairWise, where they stayed for a long period largely due to their strength of schedule, Ohio State now sits in 13th, just 1 spot behind Miami and Michigan State. In the CCHA standings, Ohio State has fallen from the top spot all the way to 7th, and even with only 3 points this weekend would still likely not get a first round bye in the CCHA playoffs. Ohio State can finish as high as 3rd or as low as 9th in the CCHA standings.
Miami, on the other hand, bottomed out at 9th early in the year, and will finish somewhere between 2nd and 7th. Many RedHawks fans will likely be watching the scoreboards this weekend, and rightfully so. Currently, Miami’s Magic Number to clinch a first round bye in the CCHA Playoffs stands at just 3 points. Just one win will put Miami far enough ahead of Lake Superior State and Ohio State who sit in 6th and 7th respectively, that those two teams will not be able to catch up on this final weekend of the CCHA regular season. Miami currently sits in 5th place, and keep in mind that 1st through 5th get byes in the current CCHA playoff format.
In addition to cheering for Northern Michigan as they host Lake Superior State in the lower half of the standings, Miami will also be looking up the standings, as they are currently tied with Michigan State in the PairWise at 11th. MSU will be playing in South Bend against a Notre Dame team that hasn’t won since February 3rd against Bowling Green, and have lost 5 straight. Western Michigan, currently 3rd in the CCHA is within striking distance, especially considering the Broncos have a home/home series with Ferris State this weekend (FSN Detroit, 7:05pm Friday).
For those keeping score at home, outside of beating Ohio State, cheer for Ferris State to win the CCHA and sweep Western Michigan, and follow that up with a 5 points from Notre Dame over MSU (CBS Sports, 8:35pm Friday; Comcast Sports, 7:35 Saturday). And finally, root on Northern Michigan over Lake State.
Hopefully you’re one of the 400+ that purchased tickets through miamibeef and the Columbus Chapter of the Alumni Association, nearly 100 who will be joining RedAlert or the Miami Blue Line Club’s bus trips, and will be joining Beef for the game in Columbus.
At this rate, Knapp is stocking up on more hardware than most Home Depot stores begging the questions — will Knapp enter the CCHA Player/Goaltender of the Year discussions, and possibly, merit Hobey Baker consideration?
One thing is certain, with the way he is currently playing, Miami would do well to ride the big man as far as he can carry them.
Miami senior netminder Connor Knapp was, once again, named the CCHA Goaltender of the Week for his performance in the RedHawks’ sweep of then #13 Notre Dame last weekend.
Knapp stopped 59 of 60 Irish shots on the weekend (I’m sure there’s a joke there somewhere) including a 3-0 whitewash on Friday night and was named the #1 star in both games. The only goal he allowed came on an Irish two-man advantage off a rebound in Miami’s 4-1 win on Saturday.
The senior from York, N.Y. has now claimed the league’s weekly goaltender recognition three times this year as he improved to 11-6 on the season. Knapp has an unbelievable 1.65 goals-against average (second nationally) and a save percentage of .934 which is third in the nation. Both marks lead the CCHA as the big man has seized control of the Miami net. He has now won 10 of his last 13 starts and hasn’t allowed more than one goal in nine of his last 11 games. In league play only, he is also tops in the CCHA with a 1.55 GAA and a .939 save percentage (source: MURedHawks.com).
Connor Knapp made 31 saves and Miami received goals from freshmen Blake Coleman and Tyler Biggs and junior Reilly Smith as the RedHawks defeated Notre Dame 3-0.
Blake Coleman opened the scoring at 2:08 of the first period and that was all senior netminder Connor Knapp would need as he cruised to his third shutout of the season and the 11th of his outstanding Miami career. He is just one behind classmate Cody Reichard and underloved David Burleigh for the school’s career record of 12 shutouts. If it were up to me, Knapp would be in net again tomorrow as Miami goes for the series sweep.
In giving Miami a 1-0 lead, Coleman ensured the RedHawks would improve upon their superb record when scoring first. Miami is now 15-5-1 when scoring first this year.
Coleman took the puck off the half boards on the left wing and skated toward the UND net wristing a quick shot on Notre Dame junior netminder Mike Johnson who was far too deep in his net hugging the near post. Coleman picked his spot and hit it with deadly accuracy as Johnson never had a chance given how he was playing the shot. It was another example of poor goaltending that, along with an inability to find the opposing net, has hindered this talented, but underachieving, Irish squad.
In actuality, the Irish outshot Miami 31-16 on the evening, but it certainly didn’t feel that way as, quite frankly, I was never concerned that Notre Dame could dent the net. If they had 31 shots, then they were the quietest 31 shots I’ve seen in a long time.
As we noted in the preview, Miami had to control Notre Dame’s top line including sophomores T.J. Tynan and Anders Lee. And, the Miami defense, led by Chris Wideman and Will Weber did just that as head coach, and newly minted man, Enrico Blasi utilized the last change to match his top defensive pairing against the Irish top line all night.
And, as we said in the preview, goaltending was a major factor in tonight’s game as Miami got it from Knapp while the Irish suffered through yet another substandard performance from Mike Johnson who made just 13 saves on 15 shots (Biggs’ goal was an empty-netter as Miami put the Irish away) for another ugly loss where his save percentage was just .867. That’s simply not good enough in college hockey of today.
For Miami and Connor Knapp, it was another dominating defensive performance as the RedHawks appear to be finding their defensive legs just in time as the season winds down. Knapp lowered his goals against average to 1.69 and improved his save percentage to .931 in earning his 10th win of the season. Knapp’s GAA and save percentage are career highs while his win total is just short of the 13 games he won in his freshman season when Miami reached the NCAA title game.
Junior forward Reilly Smith would add his league leading 22nd goal of the season in the second period when he gobbled up a rebound of a Ben Paulides shot off a rush. Smith made a nifty play taking the puck from his skate to his backhand to beat Johnson who was still recovering from Paulides’ wrister. Biggs picked up the other assist on the play giving him two points on the evening as he would add an empty netter late in the third period as the Irish pulled Johnson during the waning moments of a powerplay that went for naught.
Notes
– Both teams finished just 0-for-2 on the power play
– Miami head coach Enrico Blasi earned his 200th career CCHA victory, becoming the ninth coach in history to win 200 CCHA games
– Miami found itself shorthanded just twice tonight as they did what they had to to stay out of the box and play a disciplined game against a very questionable opponent in terms of tactics. I actually thought CCHA officials Keith Sergott and Barry Pochmara called a great game as they let the players decide the outcome in this important weekend matchup.
– The RedHawks are now 9-1-2 against Notre Dame in the last 12 contests head-to-head and go for the series sweep tomorrow night at 7:05PM EST at Steve Cady Arena
– With a few games yet to final tonight, the victory has propelled Miami into a tie for 11th in the PairWise rankings strangely enough with Michigan State due to Alaska falling out of TUC status with a loss to the Spartans. Miami could use some help from the Space Bears as they take on the Spartans again tomorrow night. Speaking of the Space Bears…enjoy.
The Notre Dame Racist Nicknames Fighting Irish travel to Steve Cady Arena this weekend for the teams’ only two regular season clashes this season.
Last season Miami and Notre Dame split a series in Oxford and tied twice later in the season in South Bend, Ind. However, in the one that really counted, Miami (17-13-2, 11-11-2-1 t7th CCHA) dominated the Irish (16-13-3, 11-10-3 t7th CCHA) in the CCHA semifinal in Detroit, Mich. winning 6-2 behind four points from eventual Hobey Baker winner Andy Miele and another three from junior forward Reilly Smith en route to the Mason Cup. Notre Dame is led by head coach Jeff Jackson who brings his brand of whiny hockey back to Oxford where Miami is 18-8-2 all-time against the Irish. The RedHawks lead the all-time series by a substantial 36-16-10 mark and are 8-1-2 against the Irish in the last 11 games.
Despite what appears to be a wealth of offensive talent, the Irish have struggled to score goals this year averaging just 2.8 goals per game while featuring a veteran team coming off a Frozen Four appearance. Up front, the Irish are led by sophomores T.J. Tynan (12-26-38) and Anders Lee (14-16-30), neither of whom have shown signs of a “sophomore slump.” The Irish are also led by junior hack forward Riley Sheahan (9-15-24) who has a knack for running opposing goaltenders and was suspended for one game earlier this season for knocking Western Michigan’s best player, senior Dane Walters, out of their series with a blow to the head. Walters would also miss the subsequent series against Miami when the RedHawks swept the Broncos in Oxford. In what was considered a first in the CCHA, that suspension was appealed by the Irish who have no problem resorting to questionable tactics but absolutely cannot stand it when their opponents are physical with them. I expect Miami to come at the Irish and try to get them off their game this weekend.
Clearly, the RedHawks must slow Tynan and Lee who have combined for 16 points in five career games against Miami. However, the Irish are deep and talented, if not underachieving, as they come into Oxford having won just three of their last ten contests. But, this squad is perhaps as deep as they have been under Jackson with 10 players with 10 or more points including senior forward Billy Maday who has faced the RedHawks more than any other Notre Dame player. Maday has played in nine contests against the Red and White and has notched five points.
Defensively, the Irish have struggled this year allowing a rather lofty 2.8 goals per contest. Goaltending has been problematic as sieve junior Mike Johnson and sophomore Steven Summerhays have been fairly awful this year. This despite playing behind a talented blueline featuring senior captain Sean Lorenz, sophomore Stephen Johns and junior Sam Calabrese – all three of whom were members of the USNTDP. Last season, Lorenz was named the CCHA’s Defensive Defenseman of the Year and he is the lone senior defenseman for the Irish.
Regardless of pedigree, the Irish have been unable to overcome the mediocre play of their goaltenders. Johnson, who Miami has often lit up like a Christmas tree enters the weekend carrying a 9-7-3 record with a 2.59 goals against average and .889 save percentage. Summerhays has actually been worse this season despite, in my opinion, having more talent than Johnson. The sophomore is just 7-6 with a 2.93 goals against average and .887 save percentage. Johnson’s goals against numbers are good enough for 13th in the CCHA while Summerhays’ are dead last at 16th. And, the two Irish goaltenders are 15th and 16th, respectively, in save percentage – second-to-last and dead last if you’re scoring at home.
In contrast, Miami senior netminder Connor Knapp leads the CCHA with a sparkling 1.81 goals against average and is fifth in the league in save percentage at .925. However, Cody Reichard is 11th and 14th, respectively in what most would consider a disappointing season for the Miami senior.
Scoring first could be big this weekend as the teams’ have shown dramatic differences in getting a jump on their opponents.
Notre Dame has allowed the first goal of the game in 18 of the team’s 32 games to date. When they allow the game’s opening goal, the Irish are just 7-10-1. But, when they score first, Notre Dame is 9-3-2 on the season. In contrast, Miami has scored first in 20 of its 32 games this year, going 14-5-1 in those contests. Miami’s only three wins when it didn’t score first were Nov. 26 at Denver, Jan. 13 at Lake Superior and last weekend (Feb. 11) vs. Alabama-Huntsville. Miami has scored within the first 10 minutes of the game 13 times this year and six times within the first five minutes (source: MURedHawks.com and UND.com).
Clearly, if Miami can get off to a good start both nights, they’ll have an opportunity to sweep the series as MU is a terrific team when they have a lead and the Irish do not play well from behind.
This series could very well determine which of these two bubble teams makes the NCAA tournament without likely having to plow through the CCHA tournament and capture the Mason Cup in order to get in. Miami enters the weekend 13th in the PairWise rankings while Notre Dame is currently on the outside looking in at 18th. The six points will be huge in the CCHA standings as the teams enter locked in a tie for seventh place with four games remaining.
Miami has played reasonably well against TUCs this year going 14-13-1 against top competition while Notre Dame has gone 12-12-3 in similar contests. Each team averages 2.8 goals per game but Miami is significantly stouter defensively allowing just 2.2 goals per game which I think could tilt this series toward the RedHawks. And, with the Irish coming in slumping, Miami could be catching them at the right time as the RedHawks attempt to get hot entering the post-season.
If Miami can slow down Notre Dame’s top line and get secondary scoring from the likes of senior captain Alden Hirschfeld, who has his only career hat trick against the Irish and notched seven points against them in five games last season, they’ll have a great opportunity to take at least four points this weekend heading into the regular season’s final weekend.
Notes
– Notre Dame sophomores Stephen Johns and T.J. Tynan played alongside Miami freshman forward Austin Czarnik for Team USA in the World Junior Championship early this year in Alberta.
– Friday’s game will air nationally (7:35pm EST) on the CBS Sports Network as Ben Holden will handle play-by-play duties while Jim Paradise will provide color commentary and Shireen Saski will serve as the rink-side reporter.
– Last season, senior forward Alden Hirschfeld and junior forward Reilly Smith combined for nine goals, seven assists and 16 points in five games against Notre Dame. Smith had four goals and five assists while Hirschfeld tallied five goals and two assists. Hirschfeld recorded his only career hat trick last year against Notre Dame on Dec. 4, 2010 in Oxford. In last year’s CCHA Tournament semifinal, which Miami won, 6-2, Smith handed out three assists and Hirschfeld notched a goal and an assist. (source: MURedHawks.com)
– Miami head coach Enrico Blasi has a career record of 199-122-39 in CCHA games and needs just one more win to become the ninth coach to win 200 CCHA games in a career (source: MURedHawks.com). Since today was his 40th birthday, a sweep this weekend would provide a nice present from the boys. He is 19-9-7 all-time against the Irish.
As a reminder, here’s what Miami did to the Irish the last time the two schools met on the ice. Enjoy the games, folks.
Well, it’s official. Miami head ice hockey coach, Enrico Blasi is a man. Congratulations on this tremendous honor, Coach! You’ve done the class of 1994 proud. Of course, that only means that I’ll be a man next year…
As the RedHawks head to Ann Arbor this weekend, they’ll have memories of recent series against Michigan in their minds. 5 of 6 points in November. A 4-2, 3-0 sweep to honor Brendan Burke this same weekend 1 year ago in Oxford. A double overtime victory in Fort Wayne, Indiana to head to the 2010 Frozen Four. Another epic sweep with 3-1 and 5-1 wins in Michigan in November 2009 – Miami’s first ever in Yost Ice Arena.
That’s right folks. Miami hasn’t lost to Michigan since the CCHA Semifinal game against Michigan on March 19, 2009 in Detroit. 6-0-1 in the last 2+ seasons with the one tie being a shootout win earlier this season after a longstanding series of losses for the Red and White. With the all-time series tilted heavily in Michigan’s favor 69-26-4, the recent swing for Miami is a welcome change. Don’t miss HappyGirl2525’s thoughts about the hated Wolverines and the ongoing rivalry.This week should be another fantastic measuring stick for the recently hot RedHawks, as they head to Ann Arbor to face the equally hot #7/8 Michigan squad that has only lost twice since the start of December. Michigan split an intense series last weekend losing 3-1 at Notre Dame before coming back for a 2-1 win last Saturday.
In addition to a stellar 8-1-2 record since December 3rd, Michigan goalie Shawn Hunwick was named Gongshow CCHA Goalie of the month for January and Freshman Alex Guptil won the Gongshow Rookie of the Month as well.
Perhaps someone can explain to us why Hunwick won the monthly honor instead of Connor Knapp? Hunwick posted a 4-1-0 record, with one shutout, a 1.08 goals-against average (9 total goals allowed) and a .971 save percentage as he played in 5 of 6 games for the Wolverines in January. On the other hand, Knapper went 5-1 in January, allowed just 5 goals in 6 games, was named the INCH National Player of the Week for the first weekend of the year, won 2 of the 4 CCHA Weekly awards for goaltenders, had a minuscule 0.83 goals-against average and equally impressive .964 save percentage in his 6 contests.
Guptill recorded five goals and five assists in six games for a team-best 10 points in January. According to CCHA.com “the Newmarket, Ont., native leads Michigan in scoring and his 14 goals place him in a tie for second in the CCHA and his 26 points are good for a tie for fifth in the league. Nationally, Guptill ranks first in goals and third in points among freshmen.”
Stopping the Wolverines will require Miami to slow down Guptill, as well as Senior captain David Wohlberg who is second on the team in points with a line of 11-14-25 but is currently nursing an injury and his playing status is unknown. Even if Wohlberg does play, how effective will he be? Michigan’s style has them constantly looking for an odd man rush with long passes through the zone. Miami will need to limit these chances and will rely on great goaltending all weekend long.
In addition, don’t be surprised if the ‘Hawks try to get in Hunwick’s head early. Perhaps an accidental run into the crease? Ring a shot off the facemask? Anything to get Hunwick off of his game, and perhaps get him to pull a Hacksaw Jim Duggan clothesline like he did here:
If you’re like us and like to keep a close eye on the nightly scoreboards and CCHA standings, you’d be interested to know that currently 7 teams stand within a weekend sweep of the CCHA lead. Any of the 7 teams other than Lake State could find themselves in first after this weekend if the dust settles correctly.
Ferris State (20 games played) – 37 points – at Northern Michigan
Miami (22), Western Michigan (20), OSU (20) – 36 – MU at Michigan, WMU vs. Alaska, OSU vs. MSU
Lake Superior State (22) – 35 – vs USNTDP (no CCHA games)
Notre Dame (20) – 33 – vs. BGSU
Michigan (20) – 32 – vs. Miami
In addition, the CCHA has 7 teams in the USCHO Top 20 rankings (the above 7, minus LSSU, plus NMU). Michigan State and Lake State are in the “others receiving votes” section at #21 and 22 respectively. Ferris State even picked up a #1 vote in this weeks poll. While we’re at it, take a gander at this week’s CCHA Now show.
Both games this weekend are at 7:30 and both will be televised. If you get the “sports pack,” look for Fox Sports Detroit Plus on Friday, and CBS College Sports on Saturday.
You won’t want to miss action like this from Miami’s latest victory over Michigan, so if you’re anywhere near Ann Arbor, join miamibeef04 at Yost – tickets are still available for both games.
As some of you know, my day job of 17 years has been in the advertising business at a few different ad agencies around the Midwest and now in Colorado. So, it is in this capacity that I stumbled upon a to-be-released Budweiser spot that will air only in Canada feting the exploits of two Ontario rec league hockey teams. This particular execution was developed by a well known ad agency named Anomaly and the squads were told only that they’d be the feature stars in a documentary about house league hockey.
Well, as the opening supers will tell you…they lied.
While I’m not absolutely certain this wasn’t staged, it’s still great fun.
photo courtesy of muredhawks.com
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