'M' hockey looks to pay back Wildcats tonight

Wolverines will miss holiday to prepare for GLI

Finding the last time the Michigan hockey team lost a game would require a little digging.

Dig past a weekend in Ohio, past a Thanksgiving Showcase, past a homestand with Notre Dame and Michigan State. Dig even further past a Saturday in South Bend and past a drubbing of Alaska-Fairbanks.

Dig, if still interested, all the way back to a Halloween night at Yost Ice Arena. A night when the top team in the CCHA rode a bus into Ann Arbor, and then drove away after manhandling the Wolverines in a 6-1 shooting circus.

That team? Northern Michigan. And it's safe to say Michigan is still interested. The Wolverines will have their shot at redemption tonight at Yost.

"I have something to prove," said Michigan goaltender Josh Blackburn, who gave up four goals on 10 shots before being relieved Halloween night.

"My big motivation factor is that I played bad against these guys - and I've got to play better."

Kevin O'Malley, who came in relief of Blackburn, had little more luck with the Wildcats, taking on 14 shots and letting two in the net - including a puck that seemed to defy the laws of physics by taking a strange bounce off the boards and into the net. That goal seemed to sum up a night in which nothing went the Wolverines' way.

On Halloween night - which constituted the only meeting between the two teams so far this season - Northern out-shot Michigan 24-14. The Wildcats converted two of seven power plays while Michigan was mute on 11 chances.

Despite the unusual embarrassment at home, Michigan coach Red Berenson said that the team did not circle tonight's rematch on the calendar, but now that time has arrived the team is eager to face Northern again.

"It's not just who you want to get even with or who you're mad at," Berenson said. "It's a matter of where you're going, and what your obstacles and challenges are."

Nevertheless, Berenson recognizes the Wildcats as an important hurdle along that road to success.

"Northern, obviously, is going to present an obstacle and a challenge for us. They are a team that beat us - at home - so they'll come in here with a little more confidence than maybe we'd like them to."

In addition to having its hands full with Northern, The Wolverines are also juggling illnesses and final exams as the semester draws to a close.

Senior forward Dale Rominski has been recovering from strep throat, and forward Justin Clark is also recovering from symptoms that kept him off the ice on Wednesday. Both practiced yesterday, and are probable for tonight's CCHA matchup.

As for finals, the players share the same frustration as the rest of the student body, but hockey seems to offer some release.

"I'm sick of studying," Blackburn said. "But it's nice to get out here on the ice and just forget about it for a couple of hours."

H.O.M.E.S.: Everyone remembers the mnemonic device for the Great Lakes, but it is the Great Lakes Invitational that will keep the Wolverines from their homes over the holidays.

Because of the timing of this year's tournament, which begins on December 26th, Michigan players will have to spend Christmas day with each other, preparing for a first-round matchup with Michigan Tech at Joe Louis Arena.

Some of the Wolverines with later exam schedules will not even have the opportunity to go home before they are due back at Yost, two days before Christmas.

Berenson said it is sometimes a challenge for the team to be in sync on the ice after being away from each other for so many days, making the GLI a unique competition

"The timing of the tournament comes at the end of a break - we really won't have any team activities or practice," he said. "After (tonight's game), they're on their own until the night of the 23rd."

12-11-98