At 5-7 in the CCHA and 10-10-0 overall, the Michigan hockey team has had a forgettable first half.

But if the Wolverines continue their inconsistent play, they will be always be remembered. They will be the team that failed to make the NCAA tournament for the first time in 20 years, breaking the longest active streak in the nation.

Last time the Wolverines watched their peers in late March, their season was stunningly similar. The 1989 team got off to a mediocre start, 10-9-3 immediately after the Great Lakes Invitational. Michigan went on to win 11 of its last 15 games but still missed out on the postseason.

With almost no room for error, Michigan’s home-and-home matchup with Western Michigan means more than most games against the Broncos – especially after the Broncos came into Yost and left with a victory a year ago.

“We’ve got to go into every game thinking this is the biggest game of the year,” senior defensemen Steve Kampfer said. “It starts tomorrow, that’s the biggest game of our year. And then Saturday’s the biggest game of our year and we got to translate that into every game.”

The Wolverines’ special teams will play a big part in the series as their fourth-ranked penalty kill will face a Bronco power play that is last in the conference.

Perhaps more important is the other side of the special teams battle. Michigan's power play has continued to improve from a dismal start. It goes up against a penalty kill sliding in the opposite direction – out of the last seven goals given up by the Broncos, six have them have come when they are short-handed.

But despite what appears to be a special teams advantage, the Wolverines’ success depends on improvement in five-on-five play. Through twenty games they have the same amount of goals scored as goals against, 36, when both teams are playing at full strength.

“We’re a .500 team, five-on-five. That’s not good enough,” Michigan coach Red Berenson said. “We can talk all we want about how we have to play better and we have to work on this and that, but we’ve got to do it. We’ve got to do it in the games. This is the time.”

As time continues to tick down on the season, Michigan has no choice but to make a significant turnaround if it wants to see its usual postseason appearance.

“We’ll turn it around,” Berenson said after getting swept by rival Michigan State for their fourth straight loss on November 14. “It’s just a matter of when.”

Since that time, Michigan has remained inconsistent, splitting three of its four series. Nearly two months later, Berenson continues to wait for his team to consistently find the right direction.

How will he know when the Wolverines are back to performing at their potential?

“It’s going to be a convincing (10-game) segment,” Berenson said. “We need more than one game or one period obviously. … I wouldn’t be surprised if this team went on a run, but we haven’t proven that we can.”