For the first time in three weeks, the No. 4 Michigan hockey team gave sophomore goaltender Bryan Hogan the breathing room he had grown so well-accustomed to this year.

The Wolverines put on a clinic in Friday night’s second period against Lake Superior State, scoring three goals in nine minutes, coasting to a 6-2 victory at Yost Ice Arena.

Coming into the weekend, Hogan had been receiving more than 4 goals in support from his offense. But in Michigan’s last three games with Hogan as the starter, the Wolverines netted just four tallies.

The Wolverines entered the series with a huge advantage in speed, and they finally exploited that in the final moments of the first period. With 10 seconds remaining and Lake Superior State on the power play, an errant Laker pass skidded back towards center ice, where sophomore forward Matt Rust scooped up the puck and skated in alone on goaltender Pat Inglis.

Rust angled in from the right circle, going backhand to forehand and sending the shot over Inglis’s glove, tying the score at one.

Michigan began forcing Lake Superior State into several backbreaking mistakes in the second frame. Just 1:14 into the period, senior winger Travis Turnbull stole the puck from behind the Laker net and centered a pass in the slot for freshman David Wohlberg, who was left alone. The freshman beat Inglis stick-side for his 11th goal of the year, and the momentum carried from there.

Just 32 seconds later, Lake Superior State won a faceoff in their own zone, only for a Laker to inexplicably send a pass right to freshman winger Luke Glendening. With no defenseman in sight – even Inglis was well out of position having not expecting the errant pass – Glendening hit the open net, giving the Wolverines a two-goal lead.

The tallies by Wohlberg and Glendening mark the sixth time this season that Michigan has scored goals less than one minute apart.

The Wolverines put the exclamation point on the period with 10:54 left. Sophomore defenseman Chad Langlais faked a slapshot from the left point, sending Inglis down to the ice. Langlais immediately sent a pass to sophomore center Louie Caporusso in the right circle. Caporusso filled the open net for the power-play tally. Caporusso hadn’t scored in seven of his previous eight games.

The Wolverines maintained control into the third period. Three minutes into the frame, Rust took a pass in the right circle from sophomore Carl Hagelin, and promptly sent a wrist shot past Inglis stick-side. Rust’s seventh goal of the season made the score 5-1, effectively putting the game out of reach.

The Lakers lone highlight of the final period came with 13:21 remaining. Sophomore center Rick Schofield snuck behind the Wolverine defense and sent a gorgeous wrist shot from the left circle over Hogan’s glove and into the top-right corner of the net.

Caporusso added insult to injury with 8:33 remaining in the contest. As a Lake Superior State power play just ended, Caporusso raced out of the penalty box and past the Laker defense. Caporusso took an outlet pass from sophomore forward Ben Winnett, raced through the slot all alone, and beat Inglis stickside, making the score 6-2. Caporusso now lead the nation with 22 goals.

The Lakers struck first at the 6:05 mark, when sophomore winger Will Acton fired a one-timer from the right circle past Hogan.