KALAMAZOO - Somewhere this season, between surprising losses to Northern Michigan, Alaska-Fairbanks and Bowling Green, the Michigan hockey team found a way to win a regular season conference championship.

After unexpectedly splitting a home series with CCHA bottom-feeder Bowling Green on Jan. 25-26, the Wolverines found themselves not only trailing Michigan State in the CCHA standings, but also in danger of not making the NCAA Tournament.

With its remaining series coming against top-20 teams Nebraska-Omaha, Ohio State and Western Michigan, the chances for a CCHA title seemed slim, and the chances for an NCAA bid were bleak.

But five weeks and eight wins later, the Wolverines are suddenly the hottest team in college hockey - now fourth in the Pairwise Rankings - and are CCHA title holders.

"I think we got better and as the season goes on, you hope to get better," Michigan forward Mike Cammalleri said. "I think everybody has stepped it up a little bit -everyone's contributing and that's great. That's a winning combination."

Said Michigan coach Red Berenson: "When you look at the young players, the season, the schedule, the adversity and everything else, this is a good accomplishment for this team."

Michigan defenseman Andy Burnes described Saturday's 6-2 win over Western Michigan as a microcosm of the Wolverines season.

The Wolverines played a lackluster first period and trailed 2-1 after 20 minutes. But after fighting back to a 2-2 tie heading into the third period, the Wolverines took over, scoring four goals in the third period for a 6-2 win.

Similarly, Michigan's season has been a roller coaster. A 2-4-1 start hit rock bottom with a sweep by Northern Michigan in Yost Ice Arena. The Wolverines responded and rallied back into contention going 10-2-3 in their next 15 games before the disappointing losses to Alaska-Fairbanks and Bowling Green.

But with their backs against the wall late in the year, the Wolverines have answered the call again. Since losing 4-2 to Bowling Green, Michigan has not dropped a game in nine CCHA contests, while the then-first-place Michigan State team slipped up twice.

The Wolverines will now open CCHA Tournament play on Friday by hosting Lake Superior - the worst team in the conference. Just two wins against the 12th-place Lakers stand between Michigan and the CCHA semifinals in Detroit, where the Wolverines would be one of the favorites.

The bubble that the Wolverines were on for the NCAA is no longer a factor; barring a stunning upset at the hands of Lake Superior, Michigan appears to be a lock for the NCAAs.

And with that worry out of the way and the celebration of a league regular season title behind them, the Wolverines can focus on continuing their recent string of success.

(Winning the regular season championship) "is one step for our team, it's one goal that we set at the beginning of the year and we accomplished," forward John Shouneyia said. "But we've got to keep going - it's obviously not the end."

What you may have missed ...

Over spring break, Michigan went 4-0-0, sweeping both Ohio State and Western Michigan to become CCHA regular season champions. The Wolverines have won nine straight conference games, and are the hottest team in the CCHA heading into the tournament. Here is a recap of the games over break.

Feb. 22 - Michigan 4, Ohio State 0 - Michigan goalie Josh Blackburn made 24 saves and junior John Shouneyia recorded three assists as the Wolverines blanked the Buckeyes at home. Michigan scored three times in the first 10 minutes and never looked back.

Feb. 23 - Michigan 6, Ohio State 3 - Freshman Eric Nystrom had two goals and senior Craig Murray had a powerplay goal on senior night, as the Wolverines guaranteed themselves no less than second place in the CCHA by sweeping the Buckeyes.

Mar. 1 - Michigan 4, Western Michigan 2 - The Wolverines grabbed at least a share of the CCHA title thanks to their win over the Broncos at home and Michigan State's 3-2 loss to Ferris State. Mike Cammalleri made his return in this game and recorded one assist.

Mar. 2 - Michigan 6, Western Michigan 2 - Michigan scored four times in the third to come from behind and beat the Broncos in Kalamazoo to become CCHA champions.