'M' icers go on the offensive

Following last weekend's playoff series with Bowling Green, Michigan hockey coach Red Berenson said the Wolverines were a better team than they were even two weeks ago.

As Michigan prepares for a CCHA semifinal matchup with Ohio State tomorrow, perhaps the most noticeable aspect is the team's surging offense.

After a string of midseason games where goal scoring was at a premium, the Wolverines have been finding the net with impressive confidence recently.

In fact, since Feb. 26, Michigan has the best goals per game rating of any team in the top 10.

MARGARET MYERS/Daily Scott Matzka and the eighth-ranked Wolverines will take on Ohio State this Friday with a newfound offensive presence. Michigan leads the USCHO Top 10 in goals per game since Feb. 26.

To what can this offensive rolling thunder be attributed? Berenson contends Michigan has had the ability all season.

"I think we were right there," Berenson said. "As I said during the slump, 'We're not playing that badly,' but we had trouble buying a goal at the right time."

Whether or not the talent was there all along, it has certainly become apparent in the last six games.

"The more you play in the other team's zone, the more you force them into making mistakes," Berenson said. "Once they start going in, there's a confidence that goes with it."

The timing of the goals may also play a factor in that confidence. When the Wolverines have been able to notch the first goal in a game lately, they have won big.

Michigan scored first Saturday against Bowling Green, going on to win 9-3, first against Northern Michigan (won 5-2) and first in both games against Miami (won 6-1, 9-4).

By contrast, when the opponent manages to net the team's first score, the games are closer. In last Friday's Bowling Green game, the Flacons scored first - and Michigan fought its way to a 3-2 victory. Up north against Lake Superior the Lakers lit the first red light, and Michigan fell, 2-3.

But that doesn't detract from the impressive 5.67 gpg Michigan has compiled over it's last six. The scoring has not only been prolific, it's also been balanced. Goals have been spread across all four Michigan lines, and a defensemen have scored in each of the last six games as well.

"A number of different players have helped sparked our team with a key goal to give everyone more confidence," Berenson said. "Bobby Hayes hasn't scored in a long time - and he's on fire now."

Maize blaze: Michigan top line center Bobby Hayes was named offensive player of the week by the CCHA after recording three goals and an assist against Bowling Green.

In the opening series of the playoffs, the assitant captain matched his regular season goal total while helping the Wolverines advance in postseason play.

"You don't play hockey just to play hockey," Hayes said after the weekend series. "You play for the rings."

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03-18-99