This is in today's News Tribune
Wounded ’Dogs get creative
BY CHRISTA LAWLERnews tribune staff writer, Duluth News Tribune
Published Saturday, January 13, 2007
The Minnesota Duluth women’s hockey team is making do.
With a barrage of injured players, the ninth-ranked Bulldogs have made some creative adjustments — defender Suvi Vacker played forward last weekend in the second game of a nonconference series against Niagara — and found some unexpected help — both freshman defender Jaime Rasmussen and sophomore forward Jessica Hawkins scored their first collegiate goals in the series.
UMD (11-7-2 overall, 10-5-1 Western Collegiate Hockey Association) hosts St. Cloud State (8-9-5, 4-9-3) at 3:05 p.m. today and Sunday in a conference series at the DECC. With first-line dabblers Elin Holmlov (back) and Sara O’Toole (back) out indefinitely, junior forward Karine Demeule is slated to skate on the team’s top line with seniors Jessica Koizumi and Noemie Marin.
“She’s a safe player you can put with anybody,” Koizumi said of the Canadian who scored her sixth goal of the season last weekend. “She doesn’t take risks to the point where you are scared to have her out there. Because she is so smart, you can count on her for defense and offense. She starts things up and she’s in the right place at the right time. She can get those goals. She’s a big, tall, physical player.”
An adjustment has been made to Marin’s travel schedule. The senior was invited to her second Canadian National Team camp and was expected to miss Sunday’s game. UMD coach Shannon Miller explained the extenuating circumstances to camp coaches — the Bulldogs’ gap-filled roster — and now Marin is scheduled to leave later than originally planned.
Additionally, Hawkins, Erin Olson and Kirsti Hakala are seeing more ice time than usual. This worked in Hawkin’s favor on Sunday when she scored the game-winning goal in a 2-1 victory over the Purple Eagles.
The Bulldogs have taken their adversity and turned it into pep talk fodder.
“We had a meeting about this,” Koizumi said. “It’s more of an opportunity to step up, for people who haven’t stepped up before. We can show the country that we’re a team and we aren’t just a few players. Hopefully things go well this weekend.”
Miller has been satisfied with the Bulldogs’ play, given the situation.
“The biggest thing to consider is we haven’t had the goal scoring we need,” Miller said. “We’ve been snake-bitten with goal scoring. We have six scholarship players out of the lineup and we’re still outplaying our opponent. … I don’t worry unless we aren’t working hard and aren’t creative.”
The opportunities are there, Miller said. UMD outshot the Purple Eagles 43-14 in Sunday’s win.
“We’re doing OK,” Miller said. “We know that the next few weeks are going to be hard. But everybody understands and is accepting responsibility. Everyone is stepping up while we’re waiting for people to heal.”
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