The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/970722
MAY 2018 THE WOLVERINE 53 The Big Ten had three teams reach the Frozen Four: Michigan, Notre Dame and Ohio State. Minnesota- Duluth, the final team to make the tournament, was the fourth team in the Frozen Four and ended up the champion. "We expected to go there and win it," Pearson said. "When you get there and don't it's a huge dis- appointment, it's a huge letdown. I don't care where you started or what your record was in January or if you were picked to finish sixth in the Big Ten, it's a huge disappoint- ment. "There's only one team that feels really, really good about themselves at the end of the season." Michigan lost to Notre Dame 4-3 in the national semifinals, ending the special run. The Wolverines gave away a 2-0 lead, came back to tie it up at three, but fell when the Fight- ing Irish scored with 5.2 seconds left to win the game. It was a difficult end of the road for Pearson, who was visibly shaken when talking about the outcome. "When you get that close, it leaves a bitter taste," Pearson said. "It's sour, you play the game over and over again, and wonder what you could do differently. Do you have the right guys on the ice, are you playing some guys too much, blah, blah, blah. "You start going all over that again so that next time you're win- ning. You need to be good, but at the same time, you have to be lucky, you have to have luck." Michigan finished the season 22- 15-3. It has an established goalie in Lavigne, an experienced returning core and a coach that is determined to win a national championship. The Wolverines will lose their entire first line to either graduation or profes- sional contracts — Dancs is out of eligibility, Marody signed with the Edmonton Oilers and Calderone, who was U-M's captain, inked with the Dallas Stars — but the future of Michigan hockey is bright, brighter perhaps than it's been in years. "I like the direction of the pro- gram," Pearson said. "We have outstanding leadership, we have a great staff — the best staff in college hockey — a great fan base and we have some good pieces. It's only go- ing to get better." ❏ Hockey Rewind: NCAA Tournament Overall Record: 22-15-3 (11-10-3 Big Ten) Best Win — 3-2 over No. 3 seed Northeastern: In the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Michigan took on Northeastern, the highest-ranked No. 3 seed, less than an hour away from the Huskies' campus. Despite Northeastern's high- powered offense, Michigan sophomore goalie Hayden Lavigne stopped 19 of the 21 shots he faced and U-M advanced to the second round. Quote: "[Senior forward] Tony [Calderone] had a great year. The beauty of Michigan is there are always NHL people in the building every night — and a lot of them. I give him credit because he was consistent. He didn't just do it once in a while or one weekend, he did it each and every night. We always preach at Michigan, even in my previous years here, you want your seniors to have their best years their senior year. He earned himself an NHL contract, and he deserves it." — Michigan head coach Mel Pearson on Calderone earning an NHL contract with the Dallas Stars MVP — Junior forward Cooper Marody: After scoring 15 points in 18 games last season, Marody exploded to lead the entire Big Ten in scoring with 51 points. He had 16 goals and 35 assists, including two goals and two assists in Michigan's three NCAA Tournament games. He scored both goals against Northeastern. The second-team All-American signed a professional contract with the Edmonton Oilers following the season, after his NHL rights were traded to the team for a third-round pick by the Philadelphia Flyers in mid-March. Rookie Impact — Freshman defenseman Quinn Hughes: He had a dynamite rookie season at U-M, and it may be his only one. A projected top-10 pick in this year's NHL Draft (June 22-23), he could leave for the pros. This season, he scored five goals and had 24 assists to total 29 points, which was third on the team behind Marody and Calderone. Player To Watch — Sophomore goaltender Hayden Lavigne: After winning the starting job midway through the season, Lavigne played well enough to be called Michigan's best player by Calderone, the team's captain. He will be back next season, presumably as the starting goalie. He posted a .908 save percentage and a 2.81 goals-against average this season in 31 starts. — Andrew Vailliencourt Junior forward Cooper Marody paced the team with 51 points, which ranked first in the Big Ten and sixth nationally, en route to second-team All-America honors. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL