Occasionally I'll share great deals with people who happen to read this blog :)
The latest great deal is a Save 10% *AND* get Free Shipping from GNC.com!
Click that banner and take a look, the sale expires October 31st so check it out, especially if you can't get to, or don't have a GNC store near you!
OK, Back to the HOCKEY news, it's 31 days from the drop of the first puck!
This is a huge move for UMD, landing Johanna Ellison as a Junior transfer! Johanna gives UMD the SIZE in net that they've been used to in the past, even if she is 4 inches shorter than Riitta, with the same good side to side range. I hope she brings confidence with her after sorta getting the short end of the stick at BC (bringing in Schaus was might have worked out for BC but had obvious ramifications for Johanna.)
She brings a 7-3-2 career record for her 2 years at BC. This brings up an interesting Thanksgiving weekend series with Mankato if Paige Thunder cracks the starting lineup for the 'Mad Cows.'
Emmanuelle Blais is taking part in the Canadian U22 (Under-22 yrs old) 3 game series against Team USA's U22 at Lake Placid Thursday Friday and Sunday. I can't find a Team USA roster yet, but probably will be able to find one online Thursday if not before the first game after it.
Continuing my countdown to the UMD season opener in St. Cloud, it's 50 days until the drop of the puck on the 07-08 hockey season!
ESPN.COM Reports:
Minnesota women's hockey coach resigns with three titles
MINNEAPOLIS -- Minnesota women's hockey coach Laura Halldorson is leaving after guiding the Golden Gophers to three national titles in 11 years.
Assistant Brad Frost will be the interim coach next season, with a search for a permanent coach coming after the season, athletic director Joel Maturi said Friday.
"Laura put Minnesota women's hockey on the map,'' Maturi said. "She started with a blank slate and built a national championship program.''
Halldorson was hired in 1996 and was the only coach of the Gophers' women's hockey team. The school said she had been considering this move for some time because of the demands.
"This job has been extremely time consuming, and now it will be nice to have more time to spend with family and friends,'' Halldorson said.
Minnesota won titles in 2000, 2004 and 2005. She was two years into a three-year contract extension awarded after the 2005 championship.
The Gophers lost to Wisconsin 3-0 in the NCAA women's championship in 2006. They finished last season 23-12-1.
Halldorson previously coached seven years at Colby College. Her overall record is 337-142-31. After 10 seasons at Minnesota -- the Gophers didn't play in 1996 -- she was 278-67-22.
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Gophersports.com article WITH a Halldorson statement.
The 07-08 roster has been released, I'm posting it without the hometowns because of space requirements in the blog... Click the blog title to go view it with their hometowns
1 Lana Steck G 5-6 Fr
3 Jocelyne Larocque D 5-6 Fr
7 Jessica Hawkins F 5-5 Jr
9 Tawni Mattila F 5-6 Jr
10 Chantal Larocque F 5-4 Fr
12 Haley Irwin F Fr
13 Tara Gray D Fr
14 Libby Guzzo F 5-7 Fr
15 Erin Olson F 5-9 Jr
17 Samantha Hough F 5-7 Jr
19 Laura Fridfinnson F 5-8 Fr
21 Sara O'Toole F 5-5 Jr
22 Sarah Murray D 5-3 So
23 Saara Tuominen F 5-6 So
24 Amie Meyer G 5-8 Jr
26 Heidi Pelttari D 5-5 So
30 Kim Martin G 5-5 So
47 Emmanuelle Blais F 5-4 So
48 Karine Demeule F 5-9 Sr
72 Elin Holmlov F 5-9 So
81 Myriam Trepanier D 5-8 Jr
88 Jaime Rasmussen D 5-8 So
Now that we're within 2 months of the first game of the season, I figured it's not too early to start a countdown to October 5/6 opening series in St. Cloud. Go Dogs!
Click the link for the UMDBulldogs.com website.
Oct 5 St. Cloud State* St. Cloud, MN 7:07 p.m.
Oct 6 St. Cloud State* St. Cloud, MN 7:07 p.m.
Oct 13 Bemidji State * Duluth, MN 3:37 p.m.
Oct 14 Bemidji State * Duluth, MN 3:07 p.m.
Oct 20 Mercyhurst Duluth, MN 3:37 p.m.
Oct 21 Mercyhurst Duluth, MN 3:07 p.m.
Oct 26 Minnesota* Minneapolis, MN 6:07 p.m.
Oct 27 Minnesota* Minneapolis, MN 3:07 p.m.
Nov 3 North Dakota* Grand Forks, ND 2:07 p.m.
Nov 4 North Dakota* Grand Forks, ND 2:07 p.m.
Nov 17 Minnesota* Duluth, MN 3:37 p.m.
Nov 18 Minnesota* Duluth, MN 3:07 p.m.
Nov 23 MSU-Mankato* Duluth, MN 7:07 p.m.
Nov 24 MSU-Mankato* Duluth, MN 7:07 p.m.
Nov 30 Wisconsin* Madison, WI 2:07 p.m.
Dec 1 Wisconsin* Madison, WI 2:07 p.m.
Dec 8 Ohio State* Duluth, MN 3:37 p.m.
Dec 9 Ohio State* Duluth, MN 3:07 p.m.
Dec 14 St. Lawrence Canton, NY 6:00 p.m.
Dec 15 St. Lawrence Canton, NY 6:00 p.m.
Jan 11 MSU-Mankato* Mankato, MN 7:07 p.m.
Jan 12 MSU-Mankato* Mankato, MN 7:07 p.m.
Jan 18 Bemidji State* Bemidji, MN 7:07 p.m.
Jan 19 Bemidji State* Bemidji, MN 2:07 p.m.
Jan 25 North Dakota* Duluth, MN 7:07 p.m.
Jan 26 North Dakota* Duluth, MN 7:07 p.m.
Feb 1 Ohio State* Columbus, OH 6:07 p.m.
Feb 2 Ohio State* Columbus, OH 3:07 p.m.
Feb 8 Wisconsin * Duluth, MN 7:07 p.m.
Feb 9 Wisconsin* Duluth, MN 7:07 p.m.
Feb 23 St. Cloud State* Duluth, MN 3:07 p.m.
Feb 24 St. Cloud State* (Senior Day) Duluth, MN 3:07 p.m.
Feb 29 WCHA Playoffs (First Round) TBA 3:07 p.m.
Mar 1 WCHA Playoffs (First Round) TBA 3:07 p.m.
Mar 2 WCHA Playoffs (First Round) TBA 3:07 p.m.
Mar 8 WCHA Playoff Championships Duluth, MN TBA
Mar 9 WCHA Playoff Championships Duluth, MN TBA
Mar 15 NCAA Regional TBA 3:07 p.m.
Mar 20 NCAA Frozen Four Duluth, MN TBA
Mar 22 NCAA Frozen Four Duluth, MN TBA
Kevin Pates Duluth News Tribune
Published Thursday, June 28, 2007
Julie Chu’s playing credentials are impeccable.
Now she’s going to add coaching to her resume.
The former Harvard hockey star and two-time Olympic medalist became an assistant coach with the Minnesota Duluth women’s program this week. She begins work Aug. 27.
Chu, 25, played four years at Harvard through 2006-07 and was named the 2007 Patty Kazmaier Award winner as the top player in Division I. She replaces Joakim Flygh, who, coincidentally, accepted an assistant coach position with Harvard.
“After graduating [June 7] I was looking at options and trying to decide what to do and where to go. Luckily the job at UMD opened up,’’ Chu said by phone Wednesday. “Coaching is something I’d like to get into and UMD fit the mold of what I’m looking for right now. It has a great hockey tradition.
“I will be able to get some great coaching experience and, at the same time, I’m going to continue to train to play at the national level. My goal is to play in the 2010 Winter Olympics.’’
Caroline Ouellette moves up to the No. 1 UMD assistant under head coach Shannon Miller, while Chu is No. 2.
Chu, a center from Fairfield, Conn., had 66 points in 30 games in 2006-07 as Harvard went 23-8-2 and lost to eventual Division I champion Wisconsin 1-0 in four overtimes in the NCAA quarterfinals in Madison. She finished third in school career scoring with 88 goals and 196 assists for 284 points in 129 games, and played on U.S. Olympic teams in 2002 (silver medal) and 2006 (bronze).
“Julie will be a fantastic role model for our players,’’ said Miller, working at a hockey camp this week in Steamboat Springs, Colo. “Like Caroline [Ouellette], she’s a high-performance athlete who knows how to be successful.’’
Miller said there were approximately 12 candidates for UMD’s assistant coaching job and Chu accepted the position Monday after a three-week search process.
Chu’s off-ice duties will include mentoring and team-building with UMD’s players, and assisting strength and conditioning coach Justin May, Miller said. On ice, she’ll provide individual player feedback. She earned a degree in psychology and was named Harvard’s 2007 woman athlete of the year.
In addition to coaching, Chu says she hopes to play part-time with the Minnesota Whitecaps of the Western Women’s Hockey League, and for the U.S. in the 2007 Four Nations Cup (Nov. 7-11 in Leksand, Sweden) and the 2008 World Championships (April 4-13 in Harbin, China.) She also plans to train with Ouellette, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and a candidate for the 2010 Canadian Olympic team.
Notes
* Flygh, 29, assisted with the Bulldogs for three seasons and was hired at Harvard as an assistant under coach Katey Stone. Melanie Ruzzi, formerly an assistant at Amherst (Mass.) College, also was hired as a Harvard assistant this week.
The Bulldogs were 72-26-9 during Flygh’s tenure, including a 2007 Division I second-place finish. The native of Tyringe, Sweden, played four seasons as a defenseman at New England College.
Former Harvard assistant Claudia Asano was named head women’s coach at Union College of Schenectady, N.Y., in April. Former UMD player Michelle McAteer, a Harvard assistant in 2006-07, might join Asano at Union, Miller said.
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If you want to find new posts made on this blog.. click on SUBSCRIBE under any post and it will create what is called a LIVE BOOKMARK. You put your mouse over the bookmark and it shows you recent blog entry titles. That way you don't have to actually LOAD the blog, or you can go backwards a bit and check something you might have missed also!
There's people checking out this blog every day so it definitely is something I'll keep up with, the past season was a start.
from Northland Newscenter website (click title to go there):
May 22, 2007 - Posted 8:52 a.m., DULUTH - For the second straight year, there is no funding for the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center expansion.
While lawmakers did finish all their must pass–bills, the House did not pass the bonding bill because time ran out thanks to long debates on other bills.
Lawmakers rushed through bills providing billions of dollars for public schools, nursing homes and state colleges, with the goal of passing an on–time budget.
But, House members did not override the governor's veto of an increase in the gas tax.
The Republican governor reserves the right to use his veto power to slim down the budget, since he did not have final approval.
If he decides to scuttle an entire bill, it would force a special session.
In the Senate, Democrats and Republicans offered each other compliments and stood in unison to applaud the end of session.
This is getting stupid.. people should already have figured out that Pawlenty doesn't know anything about the area north of Hinckley.
While fishing season only starts this Saturday
The 07-08 Women's Hockey SCHEDULE is out!
The schedule features Mercyhurst the 3rd week of the season IN DULUTH! and St. Lawrence AT St. Lawrence in the middle of December. I hate to see Harvard off the schedule but having Mercyhurst AND St. Lawrence on it is great for UMD hockey.
They'll get to see early how they look, then in December they'll know where they're at going into Winter Break.
The Gopher series are close together which is weird. The Ridder Arena series is October 26/27 while the DECC series is only 3 weeks later November 17th/18th.
The upcoming season will be a little different in that.. there are a *LOT* more Saturday doubleheaders than I can remember in the past. Just glimpsing at a copy of the men's schedule I have... I believe there are 5 Saturday doubleheaders this season.
Once again, by the way, the women's WCHA tourney starts the Feb 29th and if UMD has a home seed will probably end up at Mars again, the Men have North Dakota at home those nights. It should be the only series that will end up outside of the DECC this year.
You can go view the complete schedule by clicking on the blog title. I'm sure I'll post it on this blog in September when everyone's hockey blood is beginning to stir!
UMDBulldogs.com:
University Minnesota Duluth head women’s hockey coach Shannon Miller announced today that four more student-athletes have signed letters of intent to play at UMD. Forwards Lara Fridfinnson (Arborg, Manitoba), Chantal Larocque (St. Anne, Manitoba), defenseman Jocelyne Larocque (St. Anne, Manitoba), and goalie Lana Steck (Winnipeg, Manitoba) will join the Bulldogs for the 2007-08 season. These four players join an incoming class of seven players total, three of which were inked last November.
Coach Miller is “extremely excited to add these four outstanding student-athletes" to the three previous signees: forwards Haley Irwin (Thunder Bay, Ontario), Marie-Andreé Leclerc-Auger (Sherbrooke, Quebec), and defenseman Tara Gray (Toronto, Ontario).
"This class will add to our existing strong nucleus and they will have an immediate impact at UMD," Miller said. "We believe they will go down as one of our best recruiting classes ever.”
Forward Laura Fridfinnson comes from the powerhouse program Calgary Oval Extreme and Canada’s U-22 National Team. She will have an immediate impact due to her speed, vision and experience.
“Laura moved from Winnipeg to Calgary to train with the Olympic Oval Extreme high performance program," said Miller of Fridfinnson. "There, she gained playing and practice experience by competing with and against some of the best players in the world. Laura is a very smooth, skilled forward and will immediately bring offensive results.”
Forward Chantal Larocque also comes to UMD via the Calgary Oval Extreme with her younger sister, Jocelyne.
“Chantal is a tough, fast, no nonsense forward joining us from the Olympic Oval program in Calgary, Alberta,” Miller said. “Chantal’s competitive nature and fiery playing style stirs things up on the ice and makes good things happen. She is a player who knows how to compete and get things done.”
Jocelyne Larocque joins her sister, Chantal, from the Calgary Oval Extreme program and is member of the Canadian U-22 National Team.
“Jocelyn’s high level of experience, ability to skate, and ability to handle the puck will immediately make her one of our team’s top defensemen," Miller said of Larocque.
The Larocque siblings are the first-ever sister tandem to suit up for the Bulldogs.
Goalie Lana Steck rounds out the 2007 recruiting class. She, along with present Bulldog players Kim Martin and Amie Meyer, will make up the UMD goaltending unit.
“Lana Steck is believed to be a great ‘up and coming’ net minder. She recently backstopped Team Manitoba to a second place finish at the highly competitive Canada Winter Games,” Miller said.
*All signings are contingent upon admission to the University and compliance with NCAA rules, including certification by the NCAA Clearinghouse
Not a UMD Women's hockey note, but a lot of hockey fans are Twins fans also.
Twins broadcast legend Carneal dies
Club dedicates upcoming season to Hall of Fame radio voice
By Kelly Thesier / MLB.com
MINNEAPOLIS -- One of the signature voices in Twins baseball history is now gone.
Longtime Twins radio broadcaster Herb Carneal passed away on Sunday morning at his home in Minnetonka due to congestive heart failure. Carneal was 83.
"This is a sad day for the Minnesota Twins organization and millions of baseball fans across the Upper Midwest," Twins President Dave St. Peter said. "Herb Carneal's voice was the signature element of Twins baseball for multiple generations of fans. Clearly, he was one of the most beloved figures in Minnesota sports history."
Carneal joined the Twins' broadcast booth in 1962 after spending the first five years of his career as part of the play-by-play team for the Baltimore Orioles. He was behind the microphone for all but the first of the Twins' 46 seasons in Minnesota.
Carneal had spent six weeks in the hospital this past winter battling a variety of ailments. He had been scheduled to broadcast some home games this season, although it was announced last week that he would miss Opening Day.
Upon receiving word of Carneal's death, the Twins announced that they will dedicate the 2007 season in memory of the Hall of Fame broadcaster. Carneal received the Ford C. Frick Award in 1996, the highest honor for a baseball broadcaster. He was also inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame in 2001.
Carneal is survived by his daughter Terri and grandson Matthew. Funeral arrangements are pending and will be announced when they become available.
Click the title to go to the story page
Below is the News Tribune article from Wisconsin's 4-1 victory over UMD:
'Dogs derailed
Christa Lawler Duluth News Tribune
Published Monday, March 19, 2007
LAKE PLACID, N.Y. — The Minnesota Duluth women’s hockey team took an unusual route to the NCAA Frozen Four championship.
The Bulldogs had 10 losses, overcame nine injuries and finished with a U.S. College Hockey Online poll ranking of No. 8. But once in the playoffs, UMD rode its underdog role to the finals and received the matchup it would have received if the NCAA had asked the Bulldogs to name their opponent — Wisconsin.
In the end, the top-seeded, defending national champions proved that “dominant” was more than just a superfluous billing. The Badgers used a three-goal second period to beat the Bulldogs 4-1 in Sunday’s final at Herb Brooks Arena.
UMD coach Shannon Miller said she could feel — on the bench and in the locker room — that the team was missing a spark that had carried the Bulldogs to this point.
“It was obvious we had half a tank,” Miller said. “We didn’t go out with a full tank of gas. They did what we’ve asked for the last couple months, dig deeper and deeper and get it done. … They didn’t have that spark. … There was just something a little off, something not there.”
UMD (24-11-4) came into the game with a mental advantage that no other team in the country could claim — the Bulldogs earned a 2-0 win over the Badgers (36-1-4) earlier this season, the only hiccup in the Badgers’ near-perfect finish. UMD pushed both games of its most-recent series with Wisconsin to overtime — tying 1-1 and losing 2-1.
“I remember being frustrated playing against them,” Wisconsin senior Sara Bauer said. “They play us tough all the time.”
UMD can take one significant stat from the matchup. The Bulldogs found a way to score on Wisconsin sophomore goaltender Jessie Vetter, who hadn’t allowed a goal in NCAA play since last year’s quarterfinal win overMercyhurst. She closed the season with 10 shutouts and didn’t give up a goal since mid-February before UMD broke through in the second period with its only goal — ending a postseason shutout streak of 448 minutes, 32 seconds.
The Badgers outscored opponents 9-1 in their three NCAA tournament games.
Ultimately, a 1-0 quadruple-overtime win over Harvard in the quarterfinals proved to be the closest the Badgers came to being upended.
The Bulldogs opted for freshman goalie Kim Martin in the final, after playing senior Riitta Schaublin in their 3-2 overtime win over Mercyhurst last week in Erie, Pa., and Friday’s 4-3 double-overtime victory over Boston College in the semifinals.
Martin had 20 saves in Sunday’s loss.
Miller said the freshman has played sparingly this season because of a knee injury that has flared recently. Saturday the Swedish Olympian seemed ready to go, so they gave her the start.
“She made some great saves for us [Sunday],” Miller said.
Wisconsin’s power play had struggled coming into the playoffs, going 3-for-26 through the WCHA tournament and NCAA quarterfinals and semifinals. The Badgers improved on the stat to take a 1-0 lead in the first period.
Junior winger Jinelle Zaugg scored at 9:00 when she picked up the puck off a faceoff in the Bulldogs’ zone, skated in alone on Martin and laid the puck low to the goalies’ left side.
Erika Lawler worked through UMD’s defense and put the puck between Martin’s skates from the left faceoff circle for a 2-0 lead at 7:24 of the second.
Meaghan Mikkelson carried the puck into the Bulldogs’ zone, dished off to Sara Bauer, who put the puck high over Martin’s left shoulder and Wisconsin took a 3-0 lead at 11:56.
The Bulldogs finally broke Vetter’s playoff shutout streak with a power-play goal at 14:23. Noemie Marin wound up from the point, and freshman forward Emmanuelle Blais tipped it past Vetter. It was the first power-play goal the Badgers had given up in eight games.
Wisconsin responded off the following faceoff, going ahead 4-1 just 10 seconds later. Lawler got the shot off and Martin left the rebound near the crease. Jasmine Giles skated in and put it past her at 14:33.
The response was crucial, Wisconsin coach Mark Johnson said.
“That’s a sign of a team that responds to a little bit of adversity,” he said. “You tend to be a little comfortable. The fourth goal was one of the key components of the game because of the way they responded so quickly. Then instead of 3-1, it was 4-1.”
Both teams were held scoreless and to four shots on goal in a defensively-heavy third period.
“In the championship game, always try to find energy,” Marin said. “We have a lot of character and heart. There is so much you can do. We tried the best we can but we fell short.”
This was UMD’s first loss in the NCAA women’s hockey championship.
NOTES
A WCHA team has won the title since the NCAA sanctioned the event in 2000-01. UMD won the first three championships from 2001-03. Minnesota followed with back-to-back wins before Wisconsin took its first title in 2006.
* This is the third consecutive year that the Bulldogs’ season has ended with a loss on March 18.
* This is the second consecutive year that the Frozen Four has been an All-WCHA final. The Badgers topped Minnesota 3-0 at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis in 2006.
* UMD senior forward Jessica Koizumi was named to the all-tournament team along with Wisconsin’s forwards Bauer, who was named most outstanding player of the tournament, and Zaugg, defensemen Mikkelson and Bobbi-Jo Slussar and goaltender Vetter.
For anyone who might be reading this from another country, or those who just didn't get to see the game (I didn't get to see it, had to listen to the radio), OR if you just want to relive Jessica Koizumi's game winner, the CSTV.com video highlights package is at http://www.cstv.com/cgi-bin/csvideo.cgi?schools=&sport=ICE+HOCKEY+-+WOMEN%27S
This is much better than anything UMDBulldogs.com really can do:
Koizumi Ends Boston College's Night
Minnesota-Duluth senior nets game-winning goal at 14:19 in double OT
March 17, 2007
By David De Remer
Special to CSTV.com from USCHO.com
LAKE PLACID, N.Y. - Back in 2003, Boston College was off the women's college hockey radar. The Eagles were at the bottom of Hockey East. Their coach, Tom Babson, was better known for his acting career than his hockey career.
Meanwhile, Minnesota-Duluth was reloading with its first recruiting class since graduating the program's inaugural class that won three NCAA titles.
Both programs have done a lot of growing up since then, and the result was what was witnessed in Lake Placid Friday night--one of the most thrilling Frozen Four games ever played.
Senior Jessica Koizumi ended the 4-3 UMD win at 14:19 of double overtime, when she and her linemates cleanly executed a well-practiced play that gave her a clear lane to the net.
It was Koizumi's second straight overtime game-winner for UMD. She buried the puck as a BC defender backed into goalie Molly Schaus, who finished with 47 saves on 51 shots--her third multiple overtime game of the season.
The game was a microcosm of the career had by UMD's senior class. Three times on Friday night BC went ahead with a one-goal lead, and three times UMD came back to tie the game, the last coming with 4:20 left after BC had held the 3-2 lead for more than a period.
The UMD seniors had to overcome failure in their first seasons, just missing the Frozen Four each time. The fourth time has finally been the charm.
The word "comeback" has been deeply engrained in UMD's players this season. The Bulldogs were 1-7-1 in a nine-game stretch prior to winter break.
Shortly thereafter, Koizumi tore her MCL and her college career seemed to be over. But her teammates helped her believe she could come back, and she did.
"I was crying when I found out the news, and I didn't expect to come back, so this overwhelming," Koizumi said. "I'm the lucky one scoring the goal, but our whole team is playing amazing.'
The UMD senior class is full of redemption stories. Goalie Riitta Schaublin had been an All-American for two straight seasons, but she had been on the short end of UMD's postseason attempts, and this season she was losing marquee playing time to freshman Kim Martin, the star Swedish goalie who upset the U.S. in the 2006 Olympics.
But Schaublin worked through that challenge, and UMD coach Shannon Miller went with her in the NCAA Tournament one more time. So far this tournament, Schaublin has been perfect on 21 shots faced in overtime.
Another tale is Noemie Marin. Shannon Miller calls her the heart and soul of her team. In the final minute of overtime, UMD fans nearly had heart attacks when Marin slammed into the wall after faltering on an odd-man rush, and she could not stand on her right leg. The initial read from the doctor was that she was unfit to play, but Marin protested, and she was cleared after another look.
"She's the toughest kid on our team," Miller said. "Obviously, she could play and she finished the game strong."
For BC, the game was the culmination of a long period of growth in four seasons under Tom Mutch, the former assistant of the 1998 U.S. Olympic Team (Miller, on the opposite bench, was head coach of Team Canada at the time). The fruits of his recruits paid off one-by-one throughout the evening.
Juniors Deb Spillane, the star forward of his first class, scored first. Meghan Fardelmann and Becky Zavisza, his top-scoring sophomores, struck with the second and third goals, respectively. Then freshman goalie Molly Schaus kept the Eagles in the game from then on.
Schaus may be a freshman, but she has more experience in some sense than any goalie in the history of the game. No women's hockey goalie has ever played multi-overtime games three times in one season, but Schaus did it against Harvard in the Beanpot semifinals (triple overtime), Dartmouth in last week's NCAA quarterfinal (double overtime), and then this game against UMD. Losing these games was an unfamiliar feeling for her.
"I asked my coach, `What does it feel like to end a game in regulation,'" Schaus said. "It had been a while."
Schaus was just one of many players on BC who has grown up a lot this season. With only a handful of seniors on the roster, and Mutch still yet to bring in his fourth recruiting class, there's still plenty of room for his program to grow.
"Some of the kids will remember this game for a lifetime," Mutch said. "They're taking memories out of here that they will tell their kids. When they've graduated, and they're having tough days, they'll remember these moments handling pressure. That's what college athletics is all about. They're growing up right before our eyes."
The sport of women's hockey is growing up right before our eyes, too.
Five years ago, the NCAA women's tournament was still four teams. It would have been a pipe dream to say that in 2007, there would be an eight-team tournament with enough parity for four of the first six games to go into overtime and three of them into multiple overtimes--a grand total of 137 minutes of extra time. The fans of women's hockey could not be more excited to see this story of growth unfold.
Click the blog title to go to CSTV.com
Jessica Koizumi JUST won the game in double overtime.. UMD will play Sunday in the National Championship game.... story from umdbulldogs.com will be posted here when they post it there
Christa Lawler Duluth News Tribune
Published Friday, March 16, 2007
LAKE PLACID, N.Y. — It couldn’t have been scripted better.
The Minnesota Duluth women’s hockey team goes into today’s NCAA Frozen Four semifinal against Boston College on the brink of a milestone. Eighth-year coach Shannon Miller, who started the program, is sitting at 199 career wins.
It’s not necessarily a tally that Miller etches into her office wall. The people around her are more cognizant of the celebratory numbers.
“I don’t follow that,” Miller said recently. “Someone told me I had 199. That’s fun. It would certainly be fun to get 200. Not because its 200, but because it would put us in the championship game.”
Miller has had a quick ascent up the wins list, stemming from a program that was immediately successful and immediately controversial. As soon as she was hired, Miller began recruiting European players, bringing in big names in Swedish and Finnish women’s hockey. This was unprecedented, as most other Division I teams limited their recruiting to North America.
“When they hired me they said, ‘Build a successful program,’ ” the former Canadian women’s national team coach said. “The first thing I did is figure out who my contacts are. Europe was part of the picture, like the U.S. and Canada. … When I moved to the U.S., no one said, ‘Okay, only recruit Americans.’ They said, ‘Hey, you’re from Canada. Look around and see what’s worked and build a successful program.’ ”
UMD (23-10-4) faces Boston College (24-9-2) at 7 p.m. today. The winner advances to the finals at noon Sunday. Bulldogs senior goalie Riitta Schaublin is expected to start. St. Lawrence (29-7-3) faces defending champion Wisconsin (34-1-4) in the other semifinal.
And aside from Jenny Potter, an Eagan, Minn., native, and Caroline Ouellette, of Canada, it is the European recruits who have led the team.
First came players like Maria Rooth and Erika Holst — Swedish national team players who, after graduation, helped their team upset the U.S. national team in the semifinals of the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. Other early European Olympians included Hanne Sikio, Nora Tallus and goaltender Tuula Puputti of Finland.
In eight seasons, UMD has had 15 European players from Sweden, Finland, Germany, Russia and Switzerland. There are seven on the current roster, including freshman goalie Kim Martin, who also was key in helping Sweden win the silver medal.
For Saara Tuominen, a freshman from Finland, the idea of playing college hockey in the United States was synonymous with playing at UMD.
The Olympian said this became an option when she was about 12 years old. Later she discussed her options with Sikio, a 2003 graduate, and by the time she viewed a video tape of the Bulldogs’ Frozen Four win in 2003, she was sold.
“I was interested right away,” Tuominen said. “UMD was the first college I knew of because of the Finnish girls who came here.”
Elin Holmlov, a freshman from Sweden, said she followed Sikio’s and Rooth’s examples and hopes to have similar success.
“I would like to be as good as them some day,” she said.
It was one of Miller’s top-five favorite wins that got the Bulldogs to today’s game. The underdog Bulldogs beat second-seeded Mercyhurst 3-2 in overtime last Friday in the regional quarterfinal. Senior forward Jessica Koizumi had two goals — including the game-tying and game-winning goals.
“[The seniors] have been chipping away and missed it [the Frozen Four] by inches,” Miller said of the recruiting class that began playing after three consecutive national titles. “I had tears after the game. It was for them.”
Already the owners of three NCAA Division I national championship trophies, the University of Minnesota Duluth women's hockey team is sitting on the doorstep of its fourth national title as the Bulldogs will face Boston College this Friday (March 16) in an NCAA Frozen Four semifinal matchup in Lake Placid, N.Y. The puck is set to drop at 7 p.m. (CST) with the winner advancing to the Sunday's title game (12 p.m.) against either defending champion University of Wisconsin or St. Lawrence University.
The Bulldogs (23-10-4) enter the Frozen Four as one of the most storied Division I women’s hockey programs in the country. UMD skated off with inaugural NCAA I title in 2001 and preceded to capture the next two national championships, becoming, in the process, the first -- and only -- team to win three consecutive NCAA women's hockey titles.
During the 1999-2000 season, the first year of the intercollegiate program at UMD, the Bulldogs advanced to the American Women’s College Hockey Alliance Finals, finishing fourth. The championship that season was run by USA Hockey, which brought in only the four top teams in the country.
The following year, the NCAA took control of the championship tournament for Division I women’s hockey, naming the new event the Frozen Four.
The Bulldogs then rattled off three straight national titles before enduring what can only be described as a "down" year in 2003-04. UMD ended that campaign with a 20-12-2 record and ranked No. 5 nationally, while missing out on the Frozen Four for the first time.
Then, during the 2004-05 season, the NCAA expanded the playoff field to eight teams that would compete now first compete in regional play. UMD advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals and hosted St. Lawrence University, which ended up defeating the Bulldogs in overtime.
UMD's season came to a similar end one year ago ago as St. Lawrence once again defeated the Bulldogs in NCAA regional play to advance to the Frozen Four.
The Bulldogs immediately made a name for themselves after their three-year NCAA title run, but have fallen short of their ultimate goal -- namely a return to the Frozen Four -- in recent years. Eighth-year head coach Shannon Miller and her Bulldogs are understandably anxious and eager to once again be back in national championship spotlight this weekend.
“This team has so much heart, spirit and such a great worth ethic,” said Miller. “We have a tremendous amount of fun together and they [team] deserve all the good that is coming to them.”
UMD punched its ticket to the Frozen Four after knocking off No. 2-ranked Mercyhurst College 3-2 in overtime in its NCAA Regional game in Erie, Pa. last Friday night, snapping the Lakers' 24-game unbeaten streak.
BULLDOGS SNEAK PAST MERCYHURST 3-2 IN OVERTIME TO ADVANCE TO THE NCAA FROZEN FOUR
Last Updated: Friday, March 9, 2007 9:25 PM
Thanks to an overtime goal by senior forward Jessica Koizumi, the University of Minnesota Duluth will be making its fourth trip to the NCAA Frozen Four as the Bulldogs dispatched No. 2 Mercyhurst College 3-2 in overtime in Erie, PA, on Friday night in an NCAA Quarterfinal tilt.
Minnesota Duluth (23-10-4) put an end to its NCAA Quarterfinal woes with the win over Mercyhurst as UMD has failed to advance from NCAA Quarterfinal action the previous two seasons.
With the victory, UMD snapped Mercyhurst’s 24-game unbeaten streak and sent the Lakers to their third-straight NCAA Quarterfinal overtime loss.
Late in the first period, Stephanie Jones put the Lakers on top with her 16th goal of the season on a power-play at the 18:32 mark with Melissa Dianoski and Angelica Lorsell assisting on the play.
Mercyhurst would strike again early in the second when freshman Meghan Agosta scored her team leading 38th goal of the season unassisted at the 2:21 mark.
Down by 2-0 goals and sensing an urgency to score if they had any hope of making a comeback, sophomore forward Michaela Lanzl rocketed the puck past the Lakers’ netminder at 15:53 in the second to bring UMD within one.
Senior forward Jessica Koizumi has always dreamed of an NCAA Frozen Four appearance and she was not about to let her career come to an end just yet as she notched her 19th goal of the season at 18:16 in the second to even things up at 2-2.
As the overtime session began, the Bulldogs faced their own demons of previous NCAA Quarterfinal let downs but this time the outcome was going to be much different as Koizumi fired a power-play shot into Mercyhurst’s net to cap of an amazing comeback for the No. 7-seeded Bulldogs to send her squad to the NCAA Frozen Four.
Despite giving up two goals, senior goaltender Riitta Schaublin had what was without a doubt one of the best performances of her career, as she came up with 44 saves to backstop the Bulldogs to victory. Schaublin even turned away the relentless pressure the Lakers’ put upon her in the overtime session, making nine saves. She is now 12-4-2 on the season.
Laura Hoiser, who entered the game with a 27-1-2 record, made 29 saves in the contest for the Lakers. Mercyhurst ends the season with a 32-2-3 record, with its only other loss coming back in November against St. Lawrence.
After all the celebrating is over, Minnesota Duluth will regroup and focus its attention on the 2007 NCAA Frozen Four which will take place from March 16-18 at the Olympic Center in Lake Placid, NY. The Bulldogs won three-straight NCAA Championships from 2001-2003.
Jessica Koizumi tied the game in the 3rd period, and scores to WIN the quarterfinal game in Overtime, on the powerplay. I'll post the Umdbulldogs.com game story soon as they get it online (probably Saturday morning.)
For those who don't know where to find it, the VIDEO feed link is:
http://www.broadcastmonsters.com/USC...scho030907.asx
The audio link:
http://www.broadcastmonsters.com/USCHO/uscho030907.asx
These are also posted on the uscho women's front page:
http://www.uscho.com/women/
USCHO.COM has announced video coverage of the UMD women's playoff game at Mercyhurst! Click the BLOG TITLE to keep up to date on this news and find the link when they give it.
The Dogs made the NCAA tournament, and will face Mercyhurst in the first round, 1 game takes all quarterfinal. This game will be Friday at 6 pm Central time, USCHO's David De Remer posted.
Following is the UMDBulldogs.com recap:
Facing the possibility of its season coming to an end, the University of Minnesota Duluth rallied to even the score at 2-2 in the third period of its Western Collegiate Hockey Association semifinal against the University of Minnesota, but it just wasn’t to be for the Bulldogs as the Gophers struck first in the extra session, skating away with a 3-2 win.
Late in the first period, Andrea Nichols put Minnesota on top when she scored a power-play goal at 19:20 in the period. Anya Miller and Dagney Willey assisted on the play.
At 4:12 in the second, freshman forward Saara Tuominen would make it a 1-1 contest with the help of freshman forward Emmanuelle Blais and senior defenseman Jill Sales.
Melanie Gagnon would put the Gophers back on top at 12:39 in the second period with an unassisted goal.
Down 2-1 early in the third period, senior forward Jessica Koizumi wasn’t about to let her collegiate career come to an end just yet, as she fired her 18th goal of the season into the net at the 4:50 mark. Tuominen and Sales earned an assist on the goal.
Just over a minute into the overtime session, Minnesota’s Gigi Marvin scored a power-play goal to end the game and send her team to Sunday’s WCHA Championship to face the University of Wisconsin.
Freshman goalie Kim Martin made 16 saves in the contest for the Bulldogs while her counterpart, Kim Hanlon, backstopped Minnesota to the win with 21 saves.
With the loss, the Bulldogs are now 22-10-4 on the season and would have assured themselves an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament by winning tomorrow’s WCHA championship but now must wait until Sunday night to find out if they will make it in as an at-large selection.
The Western Collegiate Hockey Association announced it’s women’s all-conference team today (March 1) and the University of Minnesota Duluth had five players earn WCHA accolades. The Bulldogs also had nine players named to the All-WCHA Academic Team for the 2006-07 season.
Senior captain Noemie Marin, a forward from Acton-Vale, Que., was named to the All-WCHA First Team for the first time in her career. She finished the regular season tied for 11th in the NCAA with 42 points in 32 games. She tied for 16th in the country with 21 goals, tied for 23rd with 21 assists and tied for 16th overall with 1.31 points per game. Marin was second in the WCHA with 41 points in 28 league games. She led the league with 21 goals and tied for fifth with 20 assists.
Kim Martin, a freshman goalie from Stockholm, Sweden, earned All-WCHA Second Team honors in her rookie season. Martin finished the regular season second in league play with a 1.10 goals against average and first in save percentage with a .960. She went 10-2-2 during regular season conference action.
Senior forward Jessica Koizumi earned her first All-WCHA Third Team selection, having previously been named to the All-WCHA Rookie Team her freshman campaign in 2003-04. Koizumi finished sixth in the WCHA in point scoring with 32 points in 25 games. Despite missing a few games due to injury she still managed to score 15 goals and 17 assists in league play this season.
Senior goaltender Riitta Schaublin has been named the WCHA Student-Athlete of the Year for the second straight year. Schaublin, from Basel, Switzerland, ranked among the league goaltending leaders. She finished the regular season ranked third with a .938 save percentage and was fourth with a 1.59 goals against average. Schaublin was a Patty Kazmaier finalist last season and completed her undergraduate degree in mathematics with a 3.94 grade point average. This season marks her third straight-selection to the All-WCHA Academic Team.
She is pursuing her degree in the Minnesota Duluth Math Department's master's program during her final year of athletic eligibility and had a 4.0 GPA last semester while serving as a teacher’s assistant for calculus II class. She plans to finish graduate school in December, 2007 and eventually obtain a PhD in economics. Off the ice, she participates in numerous community outreach programs and also shares her talents as a coach to youth goalies in the Duluth area.
UMD landed two players on the All-WCHA Rookie Team this season, as forward Saara Tuominen and goaltender Kim Martin earned rookie honors. Tuominen, a Ylojarvi, Finland, native, scored 31 points in regular season league play to finish tied for seventh. She had eight goals and 23 assists in conference games. Her offensive talent placed her second in freshman scoring in league action.
The conference head coaches, assistant coaches and sports information directors vote for the WCHA award winners. The WCHA Defensive Player of the Year Award was chosen solely by the head coaches, while the WCHA Student-Athlete of the Year was selected by the institutional faculty representatives.
The Bulldogs also landed nine players on the 2006-07 All-WCHA Academic Team. The names of those players are listed after the first team, second team, and third team award recipients.
2007 Women’s Awards
All-WCHA First Team
Forwards: Sara Bauer, Wisconsin
Noemie Marin, Minnesota Duluth
Gigi Marvin, Minnesota
Defense: Meaghan Mikkelson, Wisconsin
Tessa Bonhomme, Ohio State
Goaltender: Jessie Vetter, Wisconsin
All-WCHA Second Team
Forwards: Meghan Duggan, Wisconsin
Erin Keys, Ohio State
Jinelle Zaugg, Wisconsin
Defense: Amber Bowman, Ohio State
Bobbi-Jo Slusar, Wisconsin
Goaltender: Kim Martin, Minnesota Duluth
All-WCHA Third Team
Forwards: Jessica Koizumi, Minnesota Duluth
Erika Lawler, Wisconsin
Bobbi Ross, Minnesota
Defense: Melanie Gagnon, Minnesota
Lisa Chesson, Ohio State
Goaltender: Christine Dufour, Wisconsin
All-WCHA Rookie Team
Forwards: Meghan Duggan, Wisconsin
Holly Roberts, St. Cloud State
Saara Tuominen, Minnesota Duluth
Defense: Holly Snyder, Minnesota State
Michelle Maunu, Minnesota and Ashley Lynch, North Dakota (tie)
Goaltender: Kim Martin, Minnesota Duluth
Player of the Year
Sara Bauer, Wisconsin
Rookie of the Year
Meghan Duggan, Wisconsin
Coach of the Year
Mark Johnson, Wisconsin
Defensive Player of the Year
Meghan Mikkelson, Wisconsin
Outstanding Student Athlete of the Year
Riitta Schaublin, Minnesota Duluth
Goaltending Champion
Christine Dufour, Wisconsin
Scoring Champion
Sara Bauer, Wisconsin
2006-07 All-WCHA Academic Team
UMD: Karine Demeule, Jr.; Kirsti Hakala, So.; Jessica Koizumi, Sr.; Michaela Lanzl, So.; Noemie Marin, Sr.; Tawni Mattila, So.; Riitta Schaublin, Sr.; Myriam Trepanier, So.; Suvi Vacker, Sr.
Bemidji State: Haley Balcom, Jr.; Emily Brookshaw, Jr.; Brooke Collins, So.; Tara Hiscock, Jr.; Lisa Kissick, So.; Jaime LeDuc, Jr.; Jessica Pullar, Jr.; Monica Rawlings, So.; Kate Robinson, Sr.; Helena Tageson, Sr.; Nina Zieganhals, Sr.
Minnesota: Lindsay Block, So.; Gigi Marvin, So.; Erica McKenzie, Jr.; Anya Miller, Jr.; Andrea Nichols, Sr.; Bobbi Ross, Jr.; Maggie Souba, Sr.; Dagney Willey, So.
Minnesota State: Kristina Bunker, Jr.; Jodi Helminen, Jr.; Jenna Hewitt, So.; Megan Jedinak, Sr.; Britni Kehler, Jr.; Lindsay Macy, Jr.; Samantha Miller, Sr.; Richelle St. Croix, Sr.; Amanda Stohr, Jr.; Andreanne Thibault, Jr.; Shera Vis, Sr.; Ashley Young, So.
North Dakota: Aynsley Allen, Sr.; Christey Allen, Jr.; Christine Carlson, So.; Alexia Gagnon-LaPlante, Sr.; Casie Hanson, So.; Alyssa Johnson, So.; Randi Motsko, So.
Ohio State: Olivia Antognoli, So.; Liana Bonanno, So.; Amber Bowman, Sr.; Jody Heywood, Jr.; Megan Hostasek, So.; Erin Keys, Jr.; Whitney Miller, So.; Mallory Peckels, Jr.; Lacey Schultz, Sr.; Krysta Skarda, Sr.; Erika Vanderveer, Sr.
St. Cloud State: Bobbie Anderson, Jr.; Hailey Clarkson, Sr.; Jacqueline Jensen, Sr.; Abby Krause, Jr.; Laura Fast, Jr.; Tricia Fast, Sr.; Marie-Michel Lemieux, Jr.; Denelle Maguet, Sr.; Michelle Moen, So.; Sammy Nixon, So.; Brita Schroeder, So.; Lauri St. Jacques, Sr.
Wisconsin: Sara Bauer, Sr.; Rachel Bible, So.; Angie Keseley, So.; Heidi Kletzien, Sr.; Meaghan Mikkelson, Sr.; Phoebe Monteleone, Sr.; Jessie Vetter, So.
The University of Minnesota Duluth will travel to Minneapolis, Minn., this weekend to take part in the WCHA Championship tournament. The Bulldogs will face the University of Minnesota at Ridder Arena on Saturday (March 3) at 4:07 p.m. with the winner advancing to Sunday's championship game. UMD is the home team while the Gophers will be the visiting squad.
THE RECORDS: Minnesota Duluth takes a 22-9-4 record into its WCHA semifinal game against Minnesota on Saturday. The Bulldogs won two games of the best-of-three first round playoff series against St. Cloud State University to get to this point. UMD defeated SCSU 4-3 last Friday before falling to the Huskies 3-1 on Saturday and bouncing back for a commanding 5-1 win on Sunday to advance to the next round. The Gophers advanced to the semifinals with a 5-1 and 4-1 win over Bemidji State University in its first round match up last weekend.
BULLDOG NOTES: Senior captain Noemie Marin is tied for No. 1 in the WCHA in point scoring for this season's league playoffs. She has two goals and four assists for six points in three games. Marin has a team leading 48 points (23 goals and 25 assists) in 35 contests this season. Freshman forward Saara Tuominen is second on the team with 35 points, having scored 11 goals and 24 assists, the team lead for assists. Freshman forward Emmanuelle Blais has four points in the WCHA playoffs. The Bulldogs have six players with 22 or more points this season, and six players with 13 or more goals. Freshman goaltender Kim Martin has a 1.38 goals against average and .950 saves percentage heading into this Saturday's game. She is 11-5-2 on the season and earned her first playoff win in a Bulldog uniform in the all important game three of last weekend's series against St. Cloud State. Senior goalie Riitta Schaublin is 11-4-2 on the season with a 1.75 gaa. In four games against the Gophers this season, Marin has a total of three goals and five assists for eight points while freshman Elin Holmlov has two goals and four assists for six points in four games. Emmanuelle Blais has a team-leading four goals against Minnesota this season.
GOPHER NOTES: Sophomore forward Gigi Marvin enters Saturday's playoff game against UMD as the Gophers' leading point scorer with 37 points. She has 17 goals and 20 assists in 33 contests. Junior forward Bobbi Ross has 33 points on the season having scored 18 goals (team-leading) and 15 assists in 32 games. Sophomore defenseman Melanie Gagnon has a team-leading 22 assists while the Gophers have eight players in double-digits for assists. Minnesota also has nine players with 21 or more points on the season. In this season's WCHA playoffs, Ross is tied for No. 1 in the league in points scored with six in two games. She has three goals and three assists. Brittany Francis is No. 3 in the conference with five playoff points.
SERIES: Minnesota Duluth is 15-18-4 in the all-time series against the Gophers, representing the only series in which the Bulldogs trail in. Both teams have met four times this year with the Gophers sweeping the first series and UMD sweeping the second series.
PATTY KAZMAIER AWARD TOP 10 FINALIST: Senior captain Noemie Marin added to her already impressive career highlights when she was named a top 10 finalist for the 2007 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award by the USA Hockey Foundation. The Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award recognizes the accomplishments of the most outstanding player in Division I women’s hockey each season. The winner of the 2007 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award being named at a brunch ceremony on March 17, in conjunction with the NCAA Women’s Frozen Four, in Lake Placid, N.Y.
ON THE AIR: For the eighth year, you can hear all the action for the Bulldogs home and away games live. This weekend the games will be covered on AM 610 (KDAL). Tom Hansen will be handling the play-by-play duties for his seventh season, the longest of any women’s hockey play-by-play announcer in the country. The broadcast can be heard via the internet at: www.umdbulldogs.com. Click on the “Bulldogs on the Air” link. Follow the link to WARP radio and enter in the call letter “WDSM,” then hit “Go.” Finally, click the “Click Here to Listen” link.
Facing the possibility of it’s season coming to an end, the University of Minnesota Duluth needed a win in game three of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association best-of-three first-round playoff series and the Bulldogs not only secured the win but made a statement along the way, crushing St. Cloud State University 5-1 on Sunday night at Mars Lakeview Arena in Duluth, Minn.
“Once again our backs were against the wall and we were in a must win situation and our team stepped up and got it done. Every player on our team played fantastic and I’m extremely proud of their courage and performance,” said UMD head coach Shannon Miller.
Senior captain Noemie Marin put the Bulldogs on top at 1:13 in the first period for her 22nd goal of the season with freshman defenseman Heidi Pelttari assisting on the goal.
Freshman forward Emmanuelle Blais would put UMD up 2-0 with a power play goal at 10:25 in the first with the help of Marin.
With time winding down in the second period Minnesota Duluth would take further control of the game with a power play goal at 19:24 by freshman forward Saara Tuominen. Blais and Marin contributed on the play.
At 12:21 in the third period St. Cloud State would score what would become its only goal of the game when Meaghan Pezon scored her 12th goal of the season with Meghan McCarthy and Brittni Kuyper assisting on the goal.
Already in complete control of the contest, sophomore forward Tawni Mattilla enhanced UMD’s lead to 4-1 at 13:58 in the period. Sophomore forward Sara O’Toole and senior defenseman Suvi Vacker assisted on the goal.
But the Bulldogs weren’t done showcasing their mighty offense as Marin would notch her 23rd goal of the season at 16:53 with senior defenseman Jill Sales feeding her the puck.
Freshman goaltender Kim Martin secured her first playoff win in a Bulldog uniform as she stopped 21 shots in the contest to move to 11-5-2 on the season. Goalie Kendall Newell made 21 saves in the loss for the Huskies.
With the win, UMD (22-9-4) advances to the WCHA tournament at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis next Saturday (March 3). The Bulldogs will be facing the University of Minnesota in the semifinal game with a chance to appear in the WCHA championship set for Sunday (March. 4) at stake.
Dogs win 5-1, finish off St. Cloud Huskies.
Not seeing Friday or Saturday's games.... fans from [B]BOTH[/B] sides (before the game) were telling me about their disapproval with the way Dan Lick called the series. St. Cloud came out physical, trying to slow down UMD, but ended up in the box I think 4 straight times to start the game (including a Hirsch 5 minute checking from behind.)
UMD seemed to have a little trouble at first with St. Cloud playing a trap, clogging the ice so they couldn't get the puck established in the zone. If they could have been that physical without taking penalties (the first period penalties on both teams were legit it seemed) they might have kept the first period down to 1-0.
Once again I have to miss this series(yes, sunday also).. here's the UMDBulldogs.com story from Saturday:
The University of Minnesota Duluth’s often feared offense came to a screeching halt on Saturday night in the Bulldogs' Western Collegiate Hockey Association quarter-final game against St. Cloud State University as UMD dropped a close 2-1 contest to the Huskies to force a game three on Sunday in the best-of-three playoff series at Mars Lakeview Arena in Duluth, Minn.
The Huskies (12-17-7) struck early in the contest with a power-play goal at the 5:38 mark in the first period by Laura Fast, her 16th of the season. Holly Roberts assisted Fast on the goal.
The power-play would again prove to be kind to St. Cloud State as Roberts scored her 17th goal of the season at 18:40 in the first with Caitlin Hogan earning the assist.
Just over half-way through the second period, sophomore forward Michaela Lanzl would make it a one goal margin as she notched her 11th goal of the season at 11:51. Senior captain Noemie Marin and sophomore defenseman Myriam Trepanier contributed on the play.
The Bulldogs’ (21-9-4) stood strong until late in the final period when Roberts scored an empty-netted goal unassisted at 18:35 to wrap up the win for the Huskies and force a deciding third game on Sunday afternoon.
UMD out-shot SCSU 36-22 but it just wasn’t to be for Minnesota Duluth this time around after holding on for a 4-3 win over the Huskies the previous night.
Freshman goalie Kim Martin made 19 saves in the contest for the Bulldogs and her counterpart, Kendall Newell, came up with 35 to earn the win for the Huskies.
The two teams are set to clash at 5:37 p.m. on Sunday (Feb. 25) in the final game of the best-of-three playoff series with each team looking to advance to the next round of the WCHA playoffs the following weekend in Minneapolis, Minn., at Ridder Arena.
a little late but:
It wasn’t the typical one-sided game one usually sees from the University of Minnesota Duluth when the Bulldogs face St. Cloud State University but it still counted as a win as UMD managed to hold on for a 4-3 victory in the first game of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association quarterfinal playoff series at Mars Lakeview Arena in Duluth, Minn.
Freshman forward Emmanuelle Blais put the Bulldogs on the scoreboard first with her 12th goal of the season at 4:36 in the first period on a power play. Senior defenseman Jill Sales fed Blais the puck to earn the assist.
St. Cloud State responded with it’s own goal midway through the period when Holly Roberts rocketed the puck past Bulldog senior netminder Riitta Schaublin for a power play goal. Laura Fast and Hailey Clarkson contributed on the play.
With the two teams tied 1-1 heading into the second and the Bulldogs down a skater due to penalty, things clearly didn’t seem in the Bulldogs favor but junior forward Karine Demeule managed to score a short-handed goal at 5:04 with the assistance of Blais and freshman forward Saara Tuominen.
The Bulldogs would make it a 3-1 contest at 8:41 in the second when Tuominen capitalized on the power play for her 10th goal of the season. Blais and senior captain Noemie Marin assisted her on the play.
Senior forward Jessica Koizumi would make it a 4-1 lead for Minnesota Duluth at 8:25 in the third period with the assist coming from the sophomore forward Michaela Lanzl.
Up by three goals, it was clear Bulldog fans were already mentally celebrating a UMD win but St. Cloud State wasn’t about to let the home fans celebrate just yet.
The Huskies pulled goaltender Lauri St. Jacques to gain an extra attacker and the move paid off for SCSU as Fast struck at the 15:10 mark of the period to chip away at the Bulldogs’ lead. Denelle Maguet and Caitlin Hogan assisted Fast on the goal.
With the final half minute of play ticking away, Hogan would make it a one goal gap as she flicked the puck past Schaublin to bring the score to 4-3.
With the clock winding down, the Huskies desperately tried to get the puck on goal once more but the Bulldogs managed to keep St. Cloud State at bay and hold on for a 4-3 playoff win.
Minnesota Duluth out-shot the Huskies 37-29 and both teams were saddled with 12 penalties apiece in the contest.
Schaublin made 26 saves to earn the win for the Bulldogs, moving her season record to 11-4-2. St. Jacques came up with 33 saves in the Husky loss, falling to 6-9-1 on the season.
UMD (21-8-4) will attempt to wrap-up the best-of-three WCHA first-round playoff series against SCSU (11-1-7) at 7:07 p.m. on Saturday (Feb. 24) at Mars Lakeview Arena.
The UMDBulldogs.com game recap and collegehockeystats.net stuff aren't online yet but, from what I know, UMD won 4-3 up at Mars/Lakeview arena to take a 1-0 lead in the best of 3 series. If I dont' get the game recap up tonight when I see it online, I'll try to do it early in the morning before the noon high school games but it's slow driving and a snowstorm forecast still.. I'll probably get it up after the UMD men's game tomorrow (by then the SWEEP should be complete) and get tomorrow's game up then also. Hope there was a decent crowd since the casual UMD fan was probably at the DECC for the men's game.
The University of Minnesota Duluth will host St. Cloud State University this Friday and Saturday (Feb. 23-24) in the first-round of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association playoffs. The puck is set to drop at 7:07 p.m. at Mars Lakeview Arena for Friday and Saturday's contests. If needed, a third game will be played on Sunday at 5:37 p.m. The playoff series between the two squad's will mark the first time UMD and SCSU have faced one another in the playoffs.
THE RECORDS: The Bulldogs clinched the No. 2 seed in the WCHA by defeating instate rival the University of Minnesota 7-1 last Saturday (Feb. 17) and sweeping the Gophers with 5-1 win on Sunday (Feb. 18). The series sweep avenges a sweep to the Gophers earlier in the season. No. 7 seed St. Cloud State enters enters this weekend's WCHA playoff series fresh off a 6-1 and 3-1 sweep over the University of North Dakota.
BULLDOG NOTES: Senior captain Noemie Marin enters the series against St. Cloud State as the second leading point scorer in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. Marin has 21 goals and 20 assists for 41 points in 28 league games. Her team-leading 21 goals land her first in the league in goal scoring. Marin is tied for 14th in the nation in power play goals with eight in 32 contests. Senior forward Jessica Koizumi is second on the team in points scored with 16 goals and 16 assists for 32 points in 29 games played. Freshman forward Saara Tuominen has 31 points, having scored nine goals and 22 assists. Freshman goalie Kim Martin sports the WCHA’s top save percentage with a .960 in league play. Martin is the No. 2 goalie in the nation in saves percentage with a .951. She is second in the WCHA in goals against average with a 1.10.
HUSKY NOTES: Freshman forward Holly Roberts leads St. Cloud State in points this season with 30. She has scored 15 goals and 15 assists in 34 games for the Huskies. Junior forward Laura Fast is second on the team in points with 27, having scored 14 goals and 13 assists in 34 games. Fast finished the regular-season tied for 17th with UMD’s Emmanuelle Blais for point scoring in the WCHA with 24. She scored 13 goals and 11 assists in WCHA contests this season.Freshman forward Caitlin Hogan and senior forward Hailey Clarkson have five power play goals in league play. Roberts finished the regular-season tied for second place in the WCHA in short-handed goals with two. Freshman forwards Meaghan Pezon and Roberts finished tied for sixth in the WCHA for freshman scoring with 19 points.
THE SERIES: Minnesota Duluth holds a 26-6-1 record in the all-time series with St. Cloud State. The Bulldogs won all four regular-season games against the Huskies this season.
WCHA ROOKIE OF THE WEEK: For the second week in a row, UMD freshman forward Elin Holmlov has been named the Western Collegiate Hockey Association’s Rookie of the Week. Holmlov had two goals and two assists in the Bulldogs’ two wins (7-1, 5-1) over the University of Minnesota last weekend (Feb. 17-18) that clinched a second place league finish for UMD. The Knivista, Sweden, native is averaging a point per game in 22 WCHA games this season for Minnesota Duluth and her 20 assists are second on the team.
ON THE AIR: For the eighth year, you can hear all the action for the Bulldogs home and away games live. This weekend the games will be covered on 970 AM (WGEE). Ray Schow will be handling the play-by -play duties this weekend. The broadcast can be heard via the internet at: www.umdbulldogs.com. Click on the “Bulldogs on the Air” link. Follow the link to WARP radio and enter in the call letter “WDSM,” then hit “Go.” Finally, click the “Click Here to Listen” link.
For me, this stinks.. They've changed the women's playoffs to 7:07 at Mars Lakeview Arena now rather than the double headers at the DECC. This means.. I'll be at the men's games because of shared tickets this weeked. The closest I'll get to putting up a game 'report' will be copy/paste of the umdbulldogs.com story I guess.
I know the atmosphere of the games at Mars Lakeview were great, but.. the pepband probably has to be at the DECC also rather than Mars so some of the atmosphere goes away. Then there's the few of us who DO go to BOTH teams' games......that cannot go to both obviously this weekend.
From UMDBulldogs.com:
f today’s game between the University of Minnesota Duluth and the University of Minnesota is any indication of how the playoffs might pan out for the Bulldogs, the team and all their fans are in for a wild ride as Minnesota Duluth dispatched the Gophers 5-1 in the final regular season game for both squads on Sunday at Mars Lakeview Arena in Duluth, Minn.
With the win, UMD managed to sweep Minnesota this weekend (7-1, 5-1), avenging a sweep by the Gophers over the Bulldogs earlier this season. UMD is now 20-8-4 overall and enter next weekend’s Western Collegiate Hockey Association playoffs with 19-6-3 league record. Minnesota falls to 20-11-1 on the season.
"I’m extremely proud of our team and how we pulled together and played together this entire weekend," said UMD head coach Shannon Miller. "Sweeping the Gophers is a big deal for us for league standings and national rankings and for pride itself. Our team played a great weekend and Kim Martin was great as well. We feel good and we feel strong going into the playoffs."
Freshman forward Saara Tuominen would start the offensive charge for the Bulldogs as she came up with an unassisted goal at 6:37 in the first period of play.
Sophomore forward Michaela Lanzl would make it a two goal contest when she managed to jump over the stick of a Minnesota defenseman, sneaking the puck past her, and launching the puck past the Gopher’s netminder at 17:25 in the first period. Senior captain Noemie Marin and freshman forward Elin Holmlov assisted on the goal.
The Bulldogs would make it a 3-0 lead at 1:34 in the second when freshman forward Emmanuelle Blais found the back of the net for her 11th goal of the season with the help of Tuominen and senior defenseman Jill Sales.
Lanzl would show off her speed and offensive power once more when she poked the puck free from the Gophers’ Erica McKenzie, passing the puck onto Marin who scorched the puck into Minnesota’s net at 10:33 for her 21st goal of the season.
With a commanding lead already, and the clock winding down in the second period, sophomore forward Sara O’Toole picked up the puck at the blue line and skated it in to Minnesota’s zone where she rocketed it past the Gophers’ goaltender at 19:11. Senior defenseman Ashly Waggoner earned an assist on the play.
Early in the final period, Minnesota’s Dagney Willey scored on a delayed-penalty at 3:58 in the period but it would be the only puck the Gophers’ could get into the back of the net during the contest.
Despite being out-shot 33-23 by the Gophers, UMD was able to hold down Minnesota’s offense and skate away with a 5-1 win, and the sweep. Each team was saddled with seven penalties for a total of 14-minutes in the box and neither team managed to score with the extra skater.
Freshman goaltender Martin earned the win for the Bulldogs, stopping 32 shots on goal. She is now 10-4-2 on the season. Goalie Kim Hanlon stopped 18 shots for the Gophers. With the loss, she is now 8-6-0.
Minnesota Duluth will be back in action next Friday (Feb. 23) when the Bulldogs host St. Cloud State University in the first-round of the WCHA playoffs at the Duluth Entertainment and Convention Center. The puck is set to drop at 3:37 p.m.
I don't think ANY of us imagined this game becoming a rout, but holy crap UMD came out skating. Emmanuelle Blais set the tone with 2 goals in the first 2:38 and UMD didn't look back after that.
Blais and Lanzl seemed to take advantage of a speed deficiency of the Gophers early and often, getting around the defense almost at will. Elin Holmlov also got 2 goals for UMD. Koizumi, knee injury and all, was flying all over the ice, playing the 2nd line, IF you can call a line with Blais and Tuominen a "2nd" line. Sara O'Toooooooooooooooooooooooooole saw some ice time as well, coming off a bad back injury.
The whole team came to play and noone seemed to take a shift off for UMD today. The crowd was great also, though I don't think I've ever seen fans bring old frying pans to a game for noise makers!
UMD has clinched the 2nd seed for the WCHA playoffs, regardless of tomorrow's outcome. Tom Hansen(post game radio) said the tentative start of the playoff games next weekend are 4:07, but with the MEN playing at home I'm positive that will change to 3:07 or even 2:37
What: Western Collegiate Hockey Association women’s regular-season finale
When: 3:07 p.m. today, Sunday
Where: Mars Lakeview Arena (1,500)
Rankings: UMD is seventh in the PairWise Rankings; the Gophers are eighth in PairWise. The Bulldogs have a two-point advantage over the Gophers for second in the conference. If UMD ties both or wins at least one game, it seals the No. 2 spot for next week’s WCHA playoffs.
Radio: WDSM 710 AM today; KDAL 610 AM Sunday.
Series: UMD is 13-18-4 against the Gophers and were swept 5-3, 1-0 earlier this season.
coaches
* UMD’s Shannon Miller is 184-54-24 in her eighth season.
* Minnesota’s Laura Halldorson is 275-64-22
gophers update
Minnesota split last weekend’s series against Bemidji State when it was upset in the opener 2-0, which it followed with a 5-3 win. The Gophers are 6-4 in the past 10 games. Offensive leaders include So. F Gigi Marvin (17 goals, 18 assists), Jr. F Bobbi Ross (15-12—27) and Jr. F Whitney Graft (7-18—25). Marvin was recently named to the U.S. National team’s preliminary roster for April’s World Championships. So. G Brittony Chartier (.899 GAA, 2.24 save percentage) and So. G Kim Hanlon (.914; 2.04) split time in goal. The Gophers’ power play is at 23.2 percent and penalty kill is at 86.1 percent.
bulldogs update
UMD swept North Dakota last weekend 4-0, 5-1 and is 7-1-2 in the past 10 games. The Bulldogs are led by Sr. F Noemie Marin (19-17—36), Sr. F Jessica Koizumi (16-15—31); Fr. F Saara Tuominen (7-20—27). Fr. G Kim Martin (.949; 1.41) and Sr. G Riitta Schaublin (.932; 1.66) have recently split time in goal. Martin is expected to start today, Sunday’s starter is TBA. The Bulldogs’ power play is at a lackluster 17.9 percent. Fr. F Elin Holmlov (4-18—22) is the WCHA Rookie of the Week after registering two assists against the Fighting Sioux.
BULLDOG NOTES: Senior captain Noemie Marin enters the series against the University of Minnesota as the second leading point scorer in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. Marin has 19 goals and 16 assists for 35 points in 26 league games this season. Her team-leading 19 goals land her first in the league in goal scoring. Marin is tied for 14th in the nation in power play goals with eight in 30 contests. Senior forward Jessica Koizumi is second on the team in points scored with 16 goals and 15 assists for 31 points in 27 games played. 15 of her 16 goals have come in league play. Freshman forward Saara Tuominen has 27 points this season, having scored seven goals and 20 assists. In WCHA play alone for freshman scoring, Tuominen has six goals and 20 assists for 26 points, for second place. Freshman forward Emmanuelle Blais is tied for fourth in the conference in freshman scoring with teammate Elin Holmlov. Blais has eight goals and 13 assists. Holmlov has three goals and 18 assists. Freshman goalie Kim Martin sports the WCHA’s top save percentage with a .959 in league play. She is third in the nation in goals against average with a 1.41 gaa. Martin is the No. 1 goalie in the nation in saves percentage with a .949. Junior forward Karine Demeule is 10th in league play for goal scoring with 11 goals. The Bulldogs have three players listed in the top 10 in the WCHA in assist scoring.
GOPHER NOTES: With the University of Minnesota's win against Bemidji State, the Gophers have now won 20 games in each of head coach Laura Halldorson's 10 seasons. Sophomore forward Gigi Marvin has a team-leading 35 points this season. She has 17 goals and 18 assists in 29 games so far. Marvin is tied for fifth in the WCHA in point scoring with 30 points in 26 league games. Her 16 goals in conference play place her fourth in the league in goal scoring. Junior forward Bobbi Ross is second on the team in points scored with 15 goals and 12 assists for 27 points. In all, the Gophers have 11 players in double digits for points this season.
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WCHA Rookie of the Week
Elin Holmlov, Fr., F, University of Minnesota Duluth
Feb. 13, 2007 - Elin Holmlov, a University of Minnesota Duluth freshman forward from Krivista, Sweden, had two assists in the Bulldogs' two Western Collegiate Hockey Association road victories (4-0, 5-1) over North Dakota last weekend, which moved Duluth into second place in the league race.
Holmlov is averaging a point per game in 22 games for the Bulldogs so far this season and her 18 assists are second on the team. She has four goals and 18 assists overall.
View all the weekly awards by clicking the blog title!
From UMDBulldogs.com:
The University of Minnesota Duluth’s mighty offense exploded for five goals from five different players in a 5-1 win over the University of North Dakota on Sunday in Grand Forks, N.D.
Senior defenseman Jill Sales put the Bulldogs on top at 16:47 in the first period for her third goal on the season. Sophomore forward Michaela Lanzl assisted on the goal.
The Bulldogs struck again less than half a minute later with a goal by senior forward Jessica Koizumi. Senior captain Noemie Marin and sophomore defenseman Myriam Trepanier assisted on Koizumi’s 16th goal of the season.
After a scoreless second period and up by two goals, Minnesota Duluth found the back of the net early in the third period when senior defenseman Suvi Vacker scored her first goal of the season at 2:56. Junior forward Karine Demeule and sophomore forward Tawni Mattila contributed on the play.
At 8:48 in the third, freshman forward Emmanuelle Blais made it a 4-0 lead for UMD when she scored her eighth goal of the season. Trepanier and freshman forward Saara Tuominen assisted on the goal.
North Dakota scored its first goal of the series on an unassisted goal from Ashley Lynch at the 10:29 mark of the period.
Late in the third, Marin would put to rest any thought of a North Dakota comeback when she scored her team-leading 19th goal of the season at 17:04 on the clock. Koizumi earned an assist on the play.
Freshman goaltender Kim Martin gave up one goal and stopped 13 shots in the contest for the win, moving her record to 8-4-2 on the season. Sophomore Amie Meyer, the Bulldogs’ backup goalie, played for roughly two minutes in the game, facing one shot. She also played roughly five minutes in yesterday’s game.
Brittany Kirkham made 31 saves for North Dakota and drops to 3-25-2 on the season with the loss.
UMD rocketed 36 shots on goal in the contest as opposed to only 15 by North Dakota. With the win, Minnesota Duluth is 18-8-4 overall and 17-6-3 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. North Dakota drops to 3-27-2 and is still winless in league play.
The Bulldogs will wrap-up regular season play next weekend (Feb. 17-18) against the University of Minnesota at Mars Lakeview Arena in Duluth, Minn. The puck is set to drop at 3:07 p.m. in both contests.
Noemie Marin scored twice and Elin Holmlov and Michaela Lanzl had two assists as the Minnesota Duluth women’s hockey team shut out North Dakota 4-0 Saturday in a Western Collegiate Hockey Association women’s game in front of 247 at Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks, N.D.
The Bulldogs have not given up a goal to the Fighting Sioux since UMD’s 6-1 win Nov. 5, 2005.
The teams finish the series at 2:07 p.m. today. Freshman goalie Kim Martin is expected to start.
The seventh-ranked Bulldogs improve to 17-8-4 overall, 16-6-3 in the WCHA. North Dakota (3-26-2, 0-24-1 WCHA) is winless in conference play and has sealed the No. 8 seed for the WCHA playoffs. North Dakota faces Wisconsin, who secured the WCHA title last weekend when they took three points from the Bulldogs.
UMD senior goalie Riitta Schaublin had 19 saves before she was replaced by Amie Meyer in the third period. Meyer faced just one shot.
North Dakota freshman Brittany Kirkham had 34 saves in the loss.
The Bulldogs had a list of things to accomplish in Saturday’s game, and managed all but one.
“Our [penalty kill] set a goal to be at 100 percent. We set a goal for our power play to start scoring goals [Saturday] — which we didn’t,” UMD coach Shannon Miller said via telephone. “We set a goal to win 60-70 percent of our faceoffs, which we did. We set a goal to score two goals in the second period. We set some goals, We achieved them.”
UMD sophomore Tawni Mattila scored the game-winning goal, unassisted at 12:40 of the first.
Marin added a goal at 5:49 of the second and Demeule’s unassisted goal came at 12:09.
Marin scored the final goal — her 18th of the season — at 16:04 of the third period.
UMD was unable to score during seven power plays. The teams combined for 10 penalties in the final period.
The Fighting Sioux have been challenged offensively this season, and have been outscored 121-36 through 31 games.
UMD senior Jessica Koizumi, who sat the last series with an injury, played the entire game. She went from the third line to skating a regular shift on the second line and special teams.
The Bulldogs finish the regular season next weekend against Minnesota at Mars Lakeview Arena.
I was at the Cloquet section semi-final(Cloquet wins 2-1) and didnt' hear the game, but UMD beats North Dakota 4-0 up at 'The Ralph.'
Riitta stopped 19 shots and let Amie Meyer play the last 5 minutes for a little more game experience. I really think she'll be a good backup to Kim Martin next year, and probably has earned a few spot starts next season. Even saying that, we still need a third goaltender for the just in case scenarios and if Martin has any international events she needs to be at during the season, you have to have that second goaltender on the bench.
Koizumi played today, so hopefully she's feeling good tomorrow and getting the strength back in her knee.
UMD outshot NoDak 38-20 for the game.
The UMDbulldogs.com preview for the North Dakota series is online...
BULLDOG NOTES: Senior captain Noemie Marin enters the series against North Dakota as the second leading point scorer in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. Marin has 16 goals and 15 assists for 31 points in 24 league games this season. Her 16 goals land her second in the league in goal scoring. Marin is tied for 12th in the nation in power play goals with eight in 28 contests. Freshman forward Saara Tuominen is currently 11th in the nation in points per game for rookies. Tuominen has 26 points this season, having scored seven goals and 19 assists. In WCHA play alone for freshman scoring, Tuominen has six goals and 19 assists for 25 points, for second place. Freshman forward Emmanuelle Blais is fourth in the conference in freshman scoring with seven goals and 13 assists. Freshman forward Elin Holmlov is fifth in the WCHA in freshman scoring with three goals and 16 assists for 19 points in 18 games. Freshman goalie Kim Martin sports the WCHA’s top save percentage with a .960 in league play. She is fifth nationally in goals against average with a 1.44 gaa. Martin is second in the nation in save percentage with a .950. Bulldog senior goaltender Riitta Schaublin is No. 11 nationally in goals against average with a 1.77. She has a .934 save percentage in WCHA play. Senior forward Jessica Koizumi is currently sixth in the WCHA in point scoring with 14 goals and 14 assists for 28 points in 21 games played. Junior forward Karine Demeule is 10th in league play for goal scoring with 10 goals. The Bulldogs have four players listed in the top 10 in the WCHA in assist scoring.
NORTH DAKOTA NOTES: Sophomore forward Samantha Bowers has five goals and three assists for eight points this season. She is tied for the team lead in goals and currently leads the team in assists. Senior forward Alexia Gagnon-Laplante has five goals and two assists on the season. Sophomore forward Randi Motsko has four goals and three assists thus far this season. Seven North Dakota players have five points. Freshman goalie Brittany Kirkham has a 3.56 goals against average this season
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It was a fun series, and another great game tonight... Tonight UMD came out firing but Wisconsin really did take the second period to them once again. I think all the hard work, then to give up the first goal with just a minute left in the period deflated UMD for part of the second period.
Riitta Schaublin played great again, stopping numerous shots right in front of her. The game winning goal in overtime was a defensive lapse killing the penalty causing a breakaway.
This weekend was the best I've seen UMD play for a complete weekend in 2 full seasons, so even only taking 1 pt I think it was a great growing weekend with the playoffs coming.
The senior ceremony was nice but interesting... Julianne Jubinville wasn't announced as a senior, so I really hope she decides to come back to school and try to play next season. That is, if she's medically cleared, I want to see her play her senior season.
I'm not sure Michaela Lanzl's decision by the NCAA has been made yet, as she also wasn't announced during the senior ceremony after the game.
Badgers, ’Dogs tie
Jon Nowacki Duluth News Tribune
Published Saturday, February 03, 2007
At first glance, Minnesota Duluth had no business being in its women’s hockey game against Wisconsin on Friday night.
The Bulldogs were playing without four of their top nine forwards and often looked winded. The Badgers, meanwhile, were putting shot after shot on net.
But anyone who thought the Bulldogs were out of it doesn’t know this year’s Bulldogs. The walking wounded can still skate, and they proved it again Friday, rallying for a 1-1 Western Collegiate Hockey Association tie against second-ranked Wisconsin before a season-high 975 fans at the DECC as Bulldogs senior Noemie Marin tied the game with 47 seconds left in regulation.
Wisconsin outshot UMD 33-14, but Bulldogs freshman goalie Kim Martin stopped 32 shots. With the tie, Wisconsin increased its unbeaten streak to 14 games while UMD increased its streak to 10.
“For the last month, we’ve been talking about surviving because of all our injuries. It’s amazing,’’ said UMD coach Shannon Miller. “So until we get all our injured players back, we’ll just keep trying to find ways to win games. We got outplayed, but Kim played fantastic tonight, and the team pulled together and got so excited when we scored. I love it. We’re elated.’’
Seventh-ranked UMD (16-7-4) got off to a good start and had some good scoring opportunities in the first period. Instead, it was Wisconsin (24-1-4) jumping to the early lead at 17:57 in the first period when freshman Emily Kranz took a pass from behind the net by Kyla Sanders and lifted a shot just over Martin’s left shoulder and into the net. Martin was flawless the rest of the way, playing technically sound and steady.
“The goalie is the X-factor,’’ said Wisconsin coach Mark Johnson. “You can look at teams on paper and look at this or look at that, but when the goaltender is playing well and she’s seeing things like that, it can be difficult to score.’’
It would stay 1-0 despite Wisconsin dominating the second period and much of the third period, with the Bulldogs getting only one shot on net in roughly a 30-minute stretch.
The Badgers outshot UMD 9-1 in the second period and 13-5 in the third, and it could have been even worse if UMD didn’t have a 6-to-4 advantage in power plays. Power plays were about the only time the Bulldogs could get shots on net, but they never took advantage of them, including a squandered 5-on-2 advantage for 40 seconds midway through the third period.
“I was so happy when we finally scored because our team worked so hard,’’ said Martin, whose .959 save percentage is the best in the league despite missing a good part of the season with knee injuries. “I didn’t mind that we weren’t getting a lot of shots. You don’t need a lot of shots to score. It’s hard for goalies when you’re not getting many shots. I like to see a lot of them.’’
Instead, UMD would rely on Marin’s late-game heroics. Ironically, perhaps Martin’s biggest save came when she wasn’t even on the ice. UMD pulled her with 57.1 seconds remaining after an icing, and Bulldogs forward Saara Tuominen controlled the faceoff. She quickly passed the puck over to Elin Holmlov at the point, and the freshman launched a shot on net.
Badgers goalie Jessie Vetter couldn’t handle the shot and the puck dropped in front of the net with Vetter out of position. Marin reached across her body and grabbed control of it and flipped in a backhander for the game-tying goal.
“I thought at times we were trying to be too fancy and should have shot more, but we didn’t do too bad at controlling the puck,’’ Marin said. “We’re getting things done because of our character and heart, and Kim played awesome. She was the difference. She was a wall tonight.’’
Wisconsin, which suffered its only loss this season to UMD, outshot the Bulldogs 3-1 in overtime but neither team truly was a three in the extra session.
At the very least for Wisconsin, which came into the game needing three points to clinch its second straight WCHA title, the Badgers can feel OK about getting a point.
“We created a few chances, but if we get to two [goals], you don’t have happen at the end what happened,’’ Johnson said. “We iced the puck when we didn’t need to and created a faceoff at the other end, and they pulled their goalie. That’s the nature of our game: Teams look for bounces and teams look for breaks. They got one tonight.’’
* UMD first-line winger Jessica Koizumi missed Friday’s game with an MCL tear. The senior from Simi Valley, Calif., has shown rapid improvement but is still considered day-to-day.
Great hockey game from the aspect of a hockey fan. Maybe not the type of game UMD would want to play, getting outshot drastically. Kim Martin kept UMD in the game and allowed them to get the tying goal with herself pulled & the powerplay, Marin scoring off Holmlov's rebound.
The shots were 33-14 for the game. I don't think Jay Mendel refereed a bad game at all, though he COULD have put UMD in the penalty box about a shift before they scored, evening up the players on the ice. It was a fun atmosphere, and the attendance count says 975 but it felt like a larger crowd, even though it was obvious by looking around that it was indeed around 1,000 at best.
Let's do it again tomorrow night, but let's win and make Wisconsin earn the title on Ohio State's ice instead of at the DECC.
The news tribune preview for the Wisconsin series is available at
http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/articles/index.cfm?id=34844§ion=Sports
As always, click the title to go to the FULL page...
BULLDOG NOTES: Senior captain Noemie Marin enters the series against the Badgers as the second leading point scorer in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association. Marin has 15 goals and 15 assists for 30 points in 22 league games this season. Her 15 goals land her second in the league in goal scoring. Marin is tied for seventh in the nation in power play goals with eight in 26 contests. Freshman Saara Tuominen is currently 10th in the nation in points per game for rookies. Tuominen has 25 points this season, having scored seven goals and 18 assists. In WCHA play alone for freshman scoring, Tuominen has six goals and 18 assists for 24 poins. Freshman forward Emmanuelle Blais is third in the conference in freshman scoring with seven goals and 12 assists. Freshman goalie Kim Martin sports the WCHA’s top save percentage with a .959 in leage play. She is fifth nationally in goals against average with a 1.48 gaa. Martin is second in the nation in saver percentage with a .948. Bulldog senior goaltender Riitta Schaublin is No. 10 nationally in goals against average with a 1.75.
BADGER NOTES: Wisconsin enters the weekend’s series with firm control of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, holding a 18-1-3 record in league play and 39 points. Senior forward Sara Bauer leads the conference in point scoring with 12 goals and 29 assists for 41 points in WCHA play. She is No. 3 nationally in points per game having scored 18 goals and 34 assists (52 points) for a 1.86 points per game average. The Badgers also have three more players in the top ten in point scoring in WCHA play alone. Junior forward Jinelle Zaugg currently leads the league in goal scoring with a total of 17 goals in 22 conference games. Junior Meghan Duggan leads the WCHA freshman in scoring with 15 goals, 14 assists and 29 points in 22 league games. Badger senior goalie Christine Dufour is No. 1 nationally in save percentage with a .949. She is also first in goals against average with a 0.91.
SERIES: Minnesota Duluth holds a 17-12-5 advantage in the all-time series with Wisconsin dating back to the 1999-2000 season. The two squads skated to a series split earlier this season with the Bulldogs taking the first game 2-0 before falling to the Badgers in a 1-0 contest the next day. UMD handed Wisconsin its only loss of the season with the 2-0 Bulldog win at the Kohl Center back on Nov. 24th. WCHA front-runner Wisconsin can claim the WCHA regular season crown with a win and a tie or two wins against the second-place Bulldogs.
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The No. 2 Wisconsin women’s hockey team goes head-to-head with No. 7 Minnesota Duluth Feb. 2-3 in a series that could determine the regular season conference champion. In their final road series of the regular season, the Badgers look to improve upon their 13-game unbeaten streak as well as claim the WCHA crown.
For the 24-1-3 Badgers, it will take one win and a tie, or two wins to guarantee their second consecutive WCHA regular season title. Wisconsin has already clinched home ice for the first round of the WCHA playoffs, though the opponent has yet to be determined.
Women’s hockey fans can watch and listen to Saturday’s contest as Wisconsin and Minnesota Duluth will be featured as the USCHO Game of the Week. The audio and video feeds can be found by clicking here. (http://www.uscho.com/agate/item,WGOTW.html)
The last time the two foes met, each team walked away with a shutout victory. The Bulldogs won 2-0 on Nov. 24, issuing the UW its only loss of the season. The Badgers responded the next day with a 1-0 win.
Most recently, the UW has been relentless against its opponents, out-scoring them 39-2 in eight contests since Jan. 1. In addition, Wisconsin has shut out its opponent in six of its last seven games, including both games last weekend against Minnesota State.
Outstanding efforts by Wisconsin veteran Sara Bauer have continued to lead the Cardinal and White. Against MSU, Bauer recorded eight points, including five on Saturday, which tied her best-ever points-performance as a Badger and led to her second WCHA Offensive Player of the Week honor this season.
The 5’3” forward leads the nation in points with 52 (18 goals, 34 assists), which is 15 more than any other player in the WCHA. She stands just two points away from becoming the seventh player in NCAA history to reach 200 career points.
As a team, the UW boasts four of the top five point-scorers in the WCHA. Bauer (52 points), Meghan Duggan (37), Meaghan Mikkelson (35) and Jinelle Zaugg (35) all rank in the top five while Erika Lawler (29 points) is tied for ninth among league players.
In net for the Badgers, after making 20 saves on Jan. 27 to record her 16th career shutout, senior Christine Dufour tied the school record for career shutouts. Jessie Vetter also earned a shutout with 18 saves on Jan. 26 to notch her third consecutive shutout.
Holding a 16-7-3 overall record and 15-5-2 league record, the Bulldogs have rebounded from some early-season losses. In their last nine competitions, UMD is 7-0-2. They most recently took three points from Ohio State after beating them 5-3 Friday and skating to a 1-1 tie Saturday.
Minnesota Duluth’s Noemie Marin and Jessica Koizumi lead the squad in points with 31 and 29, respectively. The two seniors have notched 15 goals apiece this season, with eight and seven, also respectively, scored on the power play.
Senior Riitta Schaublin and freshman Kim Martin share time between the posts for the Bulldogs. Schaublin owns a .925 save percentage and a 1.75 goals-against average. Martin holds a .948 save percentage and a 1.48 goals-against average.
The games are set to begin at 7:07 p.m. on Friday and Saturday at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center.
Wisconsin Athletic Communications Erin Starck
2/1/2007 8:54:12 AM
