A budding rivalry continues this weekend against the RedHawks
Ryan Kartje
Daily Staff WriterNovember 4th, 2009
With the distinction as the No. 1 team in the country and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament championship game last season, the Miami (Ohio) hockey team certainly has high hopes.
But nothing will compare to what The Miami Student — the school's student newspaper — had to say in Oct. 2007 about the team.
“Miami has all the necessary components to become a dynasty in the world of collegiate hockey,” beat writer Mike Zoller wrote.
Since then, the phrase has caught fire in Oxford.
But the Michigan hockey team, who has reached just as many Frozen Fours (one) as Miami in the past two years, has a few contentions with that claim.
“A dynasty, huh?” said junior forward Matt Rust, baffled by the claim.
And although a hockey dynasty at Miami may be a bit of a stretch, the fact remains the Michigan-Miami matchup is slowly becoming one of college hockey’s most anticipated weekend series.
Last year, in Michigan’s first series against the RedHawks, the Wolverines came up with just one goal on the weekend and were swept in Oxford.
But back in Ann Arbor two months later, Michigan gave Miami a taste of their own defensive medicine, sweeping the RedHawks in convincing fashion and only allowing one goal on the weekend.
The budding rivalry has been gaining steam ever since the Wolverines' 14-game winning streak (1998-2003) against the RedHawks snapped. Although Michigan holds a 43-3-1 record against the RedHawks at Yost Ice Arena, the Wolverines are hesitant to get too confident — especially against the No. 1 team in the country.
For junior goaltender Bryan Hogan, not having to play at Miami's Goggin Ice Arena this year is a lucky break for the Wolverines and especially for him as Michigan's netminder.
“Those fans are ruthless,” Hogan said. “And the warm-ups were the worst part of the game. Every time your own guy scored on you, they’d cheer. So our team had a little thing, I’d tell them, ‘Make sure you guys hit me and don’t score during warm-ups.’ They’re crazy.”
That intensity surrounding the matchup has contributed to the creation of the CCHA’s newest rivalry. And although the game doesn’t hold the same significance as an in-state or Big Ten rivalry game might, the fact that these teams are often in the conference’s top few slots has made it competitive in itself.
“You can tell that (the RedHawks) just believe in themselves now,” Michigan coach Red Berenson said. “They’ve got the record to go with it, and there’s been some good games between us. It’s another real strong program in our league. Just like Notre Dame has emerged, Miami has been emerging for some time.”
This year, with the two teams separated by just three spots in the national rankings, the significance of this weekend’s series is paramount for the rest of the conference slate.
And since Miami is not in the Wolverines' conference cluster this season, Michigan will only get two shots at defeating what they call “the best offense in the country.”
“Obviously, you want to beat the No. 1 team in the country,” freshman forward Chris Brown said. “As far as a rivalry goes, it’s going to be a bloodbath on the ice.”
Printed from www.michigandaily.com on Fri, 12 Mar 2010 17:31:30 -0500