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Weekend Preview: Colgate v. #8 Miami
The Colgate Raiders and their cool logo invade Steve Cady Arena as #8 Miami kicks off 2012-13 Season
Finally!
Yes, tonight the #8 Miami RedHawks kick off their 2012-13 season hosting the Colgate Raiders of the ECAC in non-conference action. And, boy will we see some unfamiliar faces suiting up for the red and white as 11 freshmen don the opening night roster for Miami along with senior transfer Marc Hagel (Princeton). Most notably, will be the difference in net where for the first time since the 2007-08, someone other than Cody Reichard or Connor Knapp will man the Miami goal as freshmen Ryan McKay and Jay Williams inherit the crease from the highly decorated outgoing pair.
Up front, Miami moves on after the graduation of grinding leaders like Trent Vogelhuber and Alden Hirschfeld and the early departures of Reilly Smith and Tyler Biggs. However, the RedHawks welcome highly skilled forwards Riley Barber and Sean Kuraly to a lineup featuring returning stars Jimmy Mullin, Blake Coleman and Austin Czarnik.
If there was another team in the nation that can relate to the changes that Miami is enduring to its roster, it is Colgate.
The Raiders watched as Hobey Baker Finalist Austin Smith left campus after four outstanding years in Hamilton, N.Y. where he led the nation last season in goals (36) and finished with 57 points. In addition, linemate and sophomore Chris Wagner (17-34-51) also left early for the pros meaning that overall, Colgate loses 78 of 121 goals scored (65%) from just a year ago. However, the Raiders are particularly strong defensively and return junior netminder Eric Mihalik (Avon Lake, Ohio) who was 14-12-2 with a 2.88 GAA and .898 save percentage. Twenty-year veteran head coach, Don Vaughan, said of Mihalik, “Our strength is going to be on the back end. We have a lot of experience and a goalie [junior Eric Mihalik] who has proven he can win the big games. I’m excited, looking forward to get going.” source: USCHO.com
So, the real question for Colgate is, who will score?
Well, they began to craft an answer as the Raiders thoroughly thrashed Niagara 10-2 on Tuesday night. In doing so, the Raiders scored the most goals in a game in 14 years as seniors Kurtis Bartliff, Billy Rivellini and Robbie Bourdon scored two goals apiece and Mihalik made 18 saves en route to the blowout victory in front of 735 strong at Starr Hockey Rink in Hamilton.
This season Colgate is expected to be led by sophomore forward Joe Wilson (10-13-23) who played alongside Smith and Wagner and senior defenseman Jeremy Price. But, if others like Bartliff, Rivellini and Bourdon can contribute and Mihalik is solid in net, the Raiders could have a surprising year as they have been picked to finish in the bottom half of the surprisingly competitive ECAC standings.
In terms of this weekend, I’m calling a split here with Colgate winning tonight 2-1 and Miami returning the favor 4-2 tomorrow night in Oxford. Last season the teams split a pair of games in Hamilton after Miami blew a lead and lost the game in overtime on Saturday night or they would have swept the Raiders on their home ice.
For Miami, it will be interesting to see how quickly all the new names and faces mesh. There is a ton of talent on this team, but they are young and inexperienced. This will be a good non-conference test against another young, fast team. Overall, this should be a fun and exciting season of Miami hockey.
Miami’s Freshmen Rank #5
The gang over at The Hockey Guys has released their top 10 recruiting classes for the 2012-13 season and Miami and head coach Enrico Blasi have landed the fifth ranked class in the nation. Their analysis confirms our belief that Ryan McKay will enter the season as the “starter” in net and that Sean Kuraly continues to rocket up the list of American-born players to watch over the coming years.
The CCHA is also represented in the top 10 by Notre Dame (#1), Michigan (#3) and duhOSU (#10) while future NCHC conference mates Nebraska-Omaha (#2) and North Dakota (#8) also made the list.
Here’s the complete article.
Miami to face Notre Dame in Hockey City Classic
Well, what we’ve known for some time became reality today as Miami, Notre Dame, Wisconsin and Minnesota held a joint press conference at Chicago’s venerable new Soldier Field to announce the inaugural Hockey City Classic. Aside from the egregious ripoff of Detroit’s “Hockeytown” mantra, the name and logo are both serviceable.
The RedHawks will face CCHA rival Notre Dame in the two schools final regular season meeting as conference mates on Sunday, February 17, 2013. As of now, I believe this is technically a home game for Miami as the teams will meet on Friday, February 15 in Oxford, then make the five hour bus trip to the Windy City to complete the two-game CCHA weekend series. This is the first outdoor game in program history for both Miami and Notre Dame.
Last year, Miami went 2-0 against Notre Dame as they swept an important home series by 3-0 and 4-1 scores as the RedHawks were streaking toward the playoffs.
Interestingly, Miami has yet to play a game inside Notre Dame’s new Compton Family Ice Arena which opened last season. Miami’s first trip there will either be a CCHA playoff series at the conclusion of this season, or in the years to come, as a non-conference tilt.
Here’s the full release at the newly redesigned MURedHawks.com (as an aside, the new design is hideous). Miami senior defenseman Steven Spinell was Miami’s player rep at today’s presser.
In the second part of the doubleheader, Wisconsin will meet longtime WCHA rival Minnesota in one of their final regular season clashes before bolting the league for the Big Ten Hockey Conference.
Union, UMass-Lowell and Michigan State
So, at the start of the season, if you knew Miami would be the second seed in the East Regional with these three schools, how many of you would have said “sign me up?”
Well, that’s precisely what the RedHawks have in front of them this weekend as they look to secure their third trip to the Frozen Four in four seasons. When you break it down, there is absolutely no logical reason I can think of why Miami shouldn’t win this regional going away. Sadly though, it doesn’t always turn out that way as we well know.
This region is so ripe for the taking, it’s highly possible the #1 seed in the east, Union, won’t even make it past a well-rested, but certainly not powerful Michigan State program with a new lease on life. After the shellacking Miami put on them in Oxford a few weeks ago, the Spartans had to sweat out the CCHA’s championship weekend awaiting word on whether they’d have an opportunity to continue their year. Unfortunately for the Dutchmen, the Spartans have much to prove and will be well-motivated to send the ECAC champions back to Schenectady empty-handed just like last year and I think they will.
When you look at the River Hawks of Lowell, on paper it’s hard to believe they have 23 wins in what was a down year for Hockey East. Traditionally strong programs Vermont and New Hampshire were down and mediocre squads like UML, Maine and BU were able to compete for a championship with only BC emerging as a true national title threat. Heck, Providence whom Miami destroyed 6-2 at the Denver Cup was a threat in that league this year and dispatched the River Hawks (WTF?) in the Hockey East playoffs in three games. In some of the worst uniforms I’ve ever seen, the tiny Lowell squad is made up of guys I’ve never heard of before. Again, none of this means anything. Miami has traditionally struggled with small, quick (though I have no idea if the River Hawks can skate) Hockey East teams in the past but this year’s edition of the RedHawks has speed and our traditional size to burn. A small, quick team such as Michigan State has had absolutely zero success against Miami this year as evidenced by our 4-0 record against the Spartans. You’d like to think this game is Miami’s to lose, but in a one game format, absolutely anything can, and usually does, happen. And, apparently their best player, someone named Riley Wetmore (12-25-37), a nearly 23 year old junior (good lord), has a broken hand to deal with and his effectiveness will undoubtedly be limited against a Miami squad that can bring physicality on every line. And, their leading scorer, Scott Wilson (16-21-37), is just a freshman who lacks experience in big time games, though he is also advanced in age (20).
Size, speed, experience, goaltending, coaching. They all belong to Miami in this game. The one thing Lowell has in its court is the home ice advantage as I’m sure the River Hawks will feel right at home playing hockey in a dump like Bridgeport.
In looking at this regional, Miami has a Frozen Four run set up nicely. In addition to their advantages over UML, they are 4-0 against Michigan State and would either face the Spartans or Union in the second round who has no scholarship players and plays in the relatively weak ECAC.
Hopefully, the hockey gods look favorably upon RedHawk Nation this weekend and we are fortunate enough to advance. Regardless, it should be an exciting weekend. But, you have to feel like its our time. We’ve endured disappointing regional performances before so that’s always a cautionary point. Yet, this Miami team is peaking at the right time and should come into the weekend with the confidence knowing they’ve been here before, and more importantly, they’ve done this before – which no one else in the region can say. Hell, Lowell hasn’t been to the tournament in 16 years. Miami is led by its 10 seniors and it feels like things are coming together at just the right time.
Go RedHawks!
NCAA Tournament Predictions
The field of 16 is set. Now that we know where the ‘Hawks are heading, the Redskin Warriors are going on the record with our predictions as to who will take the Division I crown.
**DISCLAIMER: We suggest that you not play the gut feelings informed predictions of three idiots fans who love Miami hockey way too much anywhere in Las Vegas. You’ve been warned.**
RedHawk95
Frozen Four: Boston College, Minnesota, Miami, Michigan
Finals: Boston College v. Miami
National Champions: Boston College
Miamibeef04
Frozen Four: Boston College, Minnesota, Miami, Michigan
Finals: Minnesota vs. Miami
National Champions: Miami
Mac
Frozen Four: Boston College, North Dakota, Miami, Michigan
Finals: Boston College vs. Miami
National Champions: Boston College
Miami falls to WMU, faces BG in CCHA consolation
In a performance that was a reminder of their first half struggles, the Miami RedHawks squandered a chance to make school history and dropped their CCHA seminfinal game 6-2 to Western Michigan at Joe Louis Arena.
The RedHawks were outplayed in virtually every facet of the game and the defensive breakdowns that led to several Bronco goals were eerily reminiscent of their struggles in the first half of the season as senior netminder Connor Knapp was routinely left hung out to dry. The most egregious defensive breakdown occurred perhaps on Western’s first goal when Garrett Haar led a 3-on-1 rush up the left wing that was so badly misplayed by freshman defensemen Ben Paulides, it left me wondering if he did more to hurt the cause than help Knapp in that situation. Greg Squires capitalized on an easy pass to beat Knapp top shelf with a redirection after Paulides left his feet, abandoned the slot shooter and simply slid past Haar who centered a perfect pass to Squires for a goal that set the tone.
Frankly, there isn’t much else to talk about.
Miami allowed a shorthanded goal, three powerplay goals and played nothing like the team we’d seen down the stretch. The team looked disinterested and Western took Miami’s physical, on the edge game, and threw it in the RedHawks’ faces. They were clearly more motivated and more aggressive than Miami who simply seemed flat and unmotivated. It was the best I’ve ever seen a Western Michigan team play. Junior forward Reilly Smith was the lone bright spot as his Hobey campaign is hitting its stride. Smith netted both of Miami’s goals and now has a career best 29 (he had 28 last year playing with Hobey Baker Award winner Andy Miele).
The RedHawks will try to salvage something out of this CCHA championship weekend when they take on Chris Bergeron and Bowling Green in today’s consolation game at 3:30pm EDT. Honestly, I can easily see Miami losing this game as they have little to play for, weren’t interested when they did, and I suspect the Falcons will try to send a message that their late season run wasn’t a fluke. BG, despite their double OT loss to Michigan last night, wants to prove they’ll be back and better than ever in the CCHA’s final season.
The good news is that Miami is safely in the NCAA tournament. Get right after yesterday’s disaster and move on. There’s still a national championship out there for the RedHawks to claim…if they want it.
Miami to face Western Michigan in CCHA semifinals
With Bowling Green’s come-from-behind victory over Ferris State earlier this evening, it means the RedHawks will face Western Michigan in a rematch of last year’s Mason Cup Championship game in (likely) the first semifinal game Friday afternoon at 4pm. The Falcon victory means former Miami players and coaches Chris Bergeron and Barry Schutte will take the orange and brown to Joe Louis Arena for the first time since 2001.
Earlier this year, Miami swept the Broncos 3-1 and 4-0 in Oxford. However, Western played the series without two top players — Dane Walters and Shane Berschbach — and presumably the Broncos will be at full strength on Friday afternoon.
Frankly, I don’t think anyone really cared whether Miami drew Ferris State or Western Michigan — at least I didn’t. With the way Miami is playing, they only need worry about themselves and continue to do the things that have propelled the club steadily upward throughout the second half of the season. Miami is playing its best hockey of the year at precisely the right time. Let’s hope they have another good weekend left in them as they prepare for the NCAA tournament.
Off to the Joe!
Connor Knapp made 21 saves and Miami peppered Michigan State with 42 shots on goal as the RedHawks completed the weekend sweep with a 4-1 victory over the Spartans to earn the right to play in next weekend’s CCHA championship weekend at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Mich.
The RedHawks received goals from junior forward Reilly Smith, who also added two assists, and seniors Chris Wideman, Matt Tomassoni and Alden Hirschfeld as they left no doubt who was the better team this year as they won all four games against MSU by a combined score of 16-2.
Similar to last night, a big second period broke open a 1-1 tie as Miami netted seven goals in the second period over the weekend including three in tonight’s game. Senior defenseman Chris Wideman scored his third goal of the season, and second in two nights, as he notched the eventual game-winner at 9:49 of the second period. It was the first of three Miami goals in 3:22 to remove any chance Michigan State had of forcing a third and decisive game tomorrow night.
Senior Connor Knapp continued his stellar play, and along with Reilly Smith, has carried Miami down the stretch. Knapp has allowed just three goals in his last six games, all coming on the power play as he improved his overall record to 15-6 and lowered his goals against average to 1.43 while his save percentage sits at .943 for the year. Tonight, Knapp made 21 saves on 22 shots. The only goal he surrendered was on an MSU power play, which snapped a streak of 174 minutes of shutout hockey against the Spartans, dating back to Jan. 6, 2012 (Miami’s first game vs. MSU). Knapp has not allowed an even-strength goal since Feb. 4, 2012 against Michigan, a span of seven games. Over those seven games, he has allowed just four goals overall and three in his last six games.
The big senior from York, N.Y. has allowed one or fewer goals in 14 of his 22 games this season and 12 of his last 14. He has a 0.89 goals against average and .964 save percentage in his last 15 games (14 starts) since the start of 2012. Knapp leads the NCAA with a 1.43 GAA and is second in save percentage with .943, both of which would be Miami single-season records. He now has a career-high 15 wins on the year, which ties for ninth in a single season at Miami. (source: MURedHawks.com)
With the win, Miami heads back to Detroit for the CCHA semifinals on Friday afternoon at Joe Louis Arena. The defending Mason Cup champions’ opponent will be determined after the outcome of tomorrow’s series finale between #1 Ferris State and #8 Bowling Green. If Ferris State wins, Miami will face the top seeded Bulldogs in one semifinal. If the Falcons pull off the upset, Miami will face third seeded Western Michigan. Regardless, since Miami cannot face #2 Michigan in the semifinals, it’s a good bet the RedHawks will play the early game Friday so the league can place Michigan in the prime spot for both attendance at the Joe and for TV viewers across the nation. One would speculate that Miami’s game will start around 3pm EST on Friday.
Miami won its eighth-straight game, dating back to Feb. 10 vs. Alabama-Huntsville. It is the team’s longest winning streak since an eight-game win streak from Jan. 23-Feb. 19, 2010. During Miami’s win streak the RedHawks have outscored opponents, 32-5. (source: MURedHawks.com) The victory also moved Miami back into a tie for 5th in the PairWise rankings which largely determine the NCAA tournament field. With another good weekend in Detroit, Miami could come away with a #1 seed in the tournament, but their first order of business is reclaiming the Mason Cup for a second consecutive year.
Additional Coverage
Around the CCHA
Ferris State broke a 3-3 tie en route to a 7-4 victory over Bowling Green to force a decisive third game tomorrow night in Big Rapids, Mich.
Michigan completed the weekend sweep of Notre Dame by a score of 3-1, likely ending the Irish’s season. The Wolverines will face either Bowling Green or Western Michigan in one CCHA semifinal at the Joe.
Western Michigan completed the weekend sweep of Lake Superior defeating the Lakers 5-2. The Broncos will face either Michigan or Miami on Friday.
Saturday CCHA Playoff recap and #SixPack
What a night for College Hockey. It was like Christmas all over again and we haven’t even scratched the surface outside the CCHA!
Bowling Green takes 1-0 lead at Ferris State
Last night’s victory by BGSU marks the first time the last place CCHA team has won a game in the second round of the tournament. Last year, the Falcons also took down Northern Michigan in 3 games in round 1 (winning in 2OT in game 3), but they failed to take a win in round 2, going down 5-1 and 4-1 at Michigan. This year, things get VERY interesting as former Miami assistant Chris Bergeron has his Falcons playing inspired hockey. They’ve won 4 of their last 6, including once against Michigan, and now 3 in a row against NMU (2) and Ferris State.
Cam Wojtala had 2 goals in regulation, and freshman Ryan Carpenter scored the game winner in overtime. But perhaps the player of the game was Goalie Andrew Hammond, who stopped an incredible 54 shots on the night. Check out the complete BGSUFalcons.com recap including interviews after the game. Here’s the highlights as well!
For free streaming audio of the game tonight, here is the link for the BGSU Feed. Pregame coverage starts at 6:35 and puck drop for game 2 is set for 7:05pm.
Western Michigan beats Lake State 4-2
Ian Slater scored twice for Western Michigan, and Mike Leone scored the 2nd period game winner. Leone only has 8 goals for his in his 3 seasons, but 4 of those have come in the CCHA Playoffs. Frank Slubowski was only called on to make 20 saves on the night as the Broncos took a 1-0 series lead in come back fashion. After going down just 3:13 in to the game, the Broncos scored 3 times before Lake State would answer again in a relatively calm CCHA game that only had 3 power play opportunities.
You can catch the full recap from WMU.com here, and stay tuned to the CCHA Productions YouTube channel to catch the highlights later today.
Michigan survives in 2OT against Notre Dame
Michigan’s Chris Brown scored the game winner 3:11 into the second overtime period to give Michigan a 1-0 lead in their first round playoff series against Notre Dame. Shawn Hunwick stopped 37 saves, and Michigan is now just 1 win away from their 24th consecutive trip to Detroit for the CCHA Final Four tournament.
It’s no Jimmy Mullin, but Michigan scored just 1:08 into the game to take a 1-0 lead, and the game stayed that way until the 11:23 mark of the third when Notre Dame’s Anders Lee scored to tie it up. ND’s goalie Steven Summerhays stopped 40 shots on the night (14 in the first OT), many of them of highlight-reel worthy, but couldn’t stop the last one. Catch the full recap here, and then jump over to the highlights!
Tonight’s game 2 is set for a 7:35pm puck drop, and you can listen for free at the ND All-Access site by clicking here. You can also view the game on Comcast Sports on the teevee machines.
SixPack
Here is the Saturday SixPack of tweets. Be sure to follow us on twitter by hitting http://www.twitter.com/redskinwarriors or follow @redskinwarriors to make sure you don’t miss out on these juicy tidbits!
- Jimmy Mullin’s goal 12 seconds into the game is tied for the fastest goal in #MiamiU history, tying Tim Huettl, who scored 12 seconds into a game 1/3/1986 vs Mich-Dearborn.
- Jimmy Mullin had 2 G and 2 A for a career high 4 points and was a +3. Had 3 points against OSU 2/25. He’s proving he’s good at hockey too. 10 pts during 4gm pt streak. #stud
- Curtis McKenzie scores his first goal since December 10th. Reilly Smith now has 7-gm scoring streak. #MiamiU has scored first in 5 straight, 25 of 37 overall. #firingrange
- Connor Knapp is on fire. 5 shutouts in calendar 2012. 3 in last 5 gms. 13 for career is the new Miami record. #MiamiU’s CCHA-leading 7th shutout of season. #bulletproo
- When trailing after 40 minutes of regulation, Lake State is now 0-14-3. #WesternMichigan takes a 1-0 lead in their #CCHAPlayoffs series.
- Notre Dame is 16-3-0 when scoring three or more goals. Last night, they scored 1 and are now 1-14-1 when scoring less than three. #putthepuckinthegoal #CCHAPlayoffs
The highlights from last night’s game can be found on the CCHA Productions YouTube page, or by clicking here.
Puck Drop is set for 7:05 in Oxford. Don’t forget to tune in to the All-Access feed tonight, as the game will not be televised otherwise.
BEAT STATE!
Miami routs Michigan State 6-0
Connor Knapp made 27 saves and Jimmy Mullin notched four points as Miami defeated Michigan State 6-0 in the first game of their best-of-three series at Steve Cady Arena.
For Knapp, it was his fifth shutout of the season to set a new single-season career high, his second shutout of the Spartans this year and his 13th shutout overall which is a new Miami school record. Meanwhile, freshman forward Jimmy Mullin netted two goals and added two assists to set a career high in points in a single game. Mullin now has an impressive 25 points on the season (11-14-25) trailing only junior forward Reilly Smith (26-13-39) and freshman forward Austin Czarnik (9-22-31) for team leadership.
Mullin opened the scoring just :12 into the game as he banged home a loose puck behind MSU goaltender Will Yanakeff who allowed five goals on 26 shots including four in the second period when Miami broke the game open with two quick goals just :34 apart. Senior defenseman Chris Wideman joined the rush and scored just his second goal of the season and freshman forward Tyler Biggs netted his 9th on the year making the game 3-0 and enabling the RedHawks to relax and cruise to the 6-0 victory.
Miami entered tonight’s game 0-9 all-time against the Spartans in the CCHA playoffs but the two teams had never met in Oxford. Overall this season, Miami is 3-0 against MSU and has allowed just one goal against including Knapp’s two shutouts.
MSU head coach Tom Anastos had this to say after this evening’s game.
“This is a very good team, and I believe I said it earlier in the week – [Miami] is under-rated, offensively. Not that they scored six goals, but the really nice plays they made and the offensive pressure they are able to generate. I thought the first period was pretty good for us, but obviously the second period was a challenge. We just need to regroup and be ready to go on Saturday.” (source: MSUSpartans.com)
In addition to Mullin’s two tallies and Biggs’ and Wideman’s goals, Miami received offensive support from junior Curtis McKenzie (5th) and freshman Blake Coleman who scored his 12th on the season and has now scored a goal in three of his past four games. And, Miami has now won a season-high seven consecutive games and has vaulted up to a tie for fifth in the PairWise (as of 9:33pm MDT) as several games went Miami’s way in addition to the victory. For reference, they are also fourth in KRACH.
Game two is scheduled for 7:05pm EST at Steve Cady Arena and with the students still away on Spring Break, tickets should be available. If you can’t make the game, it will be available via Miami All-Access at MURedHawks.com with Greg Waddell and Drew Davis carrying the call.
Additional Coverage
Around the CCHA
Bowling Green defeated Ferris State 3-2 in overtime (BG leads series 1-0) – Huge win for the Falcons and head coach Chris Bergeron
Michigan defeated Notre Dame 2-1 in overtime (Michigan leads series 1-0) – Chris Brown notched the game-winner
Western Michigan defeated Lake Superior 4-2 (WMU leads series 1-0) – Broncos cruised to a victory behind freshman goaltender Frank Slubowski
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