Ever since Travis Turnbull broke an 82-minute scoreless tie to give Michigan the Great Lakes Invitational title in December, he's been playing his best hockey of the season.

The Wolverines could have used his clutch goal the last time they played Michigan State.

During a 1-0 loss and 2-2 tie in January, Michigan's potent offense couldn't score under pressure.

But against the Spartans this weekend, Turnbull will replace injured senior forward Chad Kolarik and play on the Wolverines' first line for the first time this year. Without Kolarik, their second-highest scorer, the Wolverines will need Turnbull and others to step up on offense.

Kolarik will be sidelined for four to five weeks after suffering a hamstring injury against Lake Superior State last Saturday, a day after he and Kevin Porter became the first teammates in the country to reach 40 points each.

Turnbull, who has recently played on the third line, boasts the team's third-highest goal total (behind Porter and Kolarik) with 12. Half of Turnbull's 22 points have come in the 12 games after the GLI, and his performance has earned him the opportunity to replace Kolarik in Michigan's final series against a CCHA frontrunner.

"Obviously, it was nice to score that goal, but I haven't really put that in perspective at all, really," Turnbull said.

But Michigan coach Red Berenson described the goal as the turning point of the junior forward's year and said Turnbull's play is "a good combination of experience and confidence" that will work well on the first line. The last time Turnbull played on the top line, in last year's series against Notre Dame, he tallied four points in his strongest weekend of the 2006-07 season.

In practice this week, the Wolverines have worked on replacing Kolarik with Turnbull on special teams. Last month, all three of the Spartans' goals against Michigan were on the power play - a shocking statistic for the 10th-ranked Michigan penalty kill.

Freshman Matt Rust, a staple on the penalty kill, said the Wolverines had trouble last month because they underestimated Michigan State's ability to move the puck with the man advantage.

"They're one of those teams where they don't really stick to a structured power play - they try and switch it up, and they're really creative," Rust said. "There's really nothing you can do. You can watch endless amounts of film, but when it comes down to game time, you have to be ready for whatever they throw at you."

If Michigan can stifle the Spartans' power-play unit while creating scoring chances of its own, it could possibly clinch the CCHA regular-season title this weekend. Michigan State has lost three of its last six. The Wolverines haven't won at Munn Ice Arena since the 2004-05 season, and half of their 40-point duo will be wearing street clothes at the game.

Regardless, it's Michigan vs. Michigan State - which means there are never excuses for poor play.

"They brought back 20 returning players from a national championship team," Berenson said. "On paper, they're the team to beat."

Michigan at Mich. State

Matchup: Mich. 25-3-4; Mich. State 20-8-5

When: Tonight 8 P.M.

Where: Munn Ice Arena

TV/Radio: CSTV