When the final buzzer sounded Friday night — as the crowd erupted and the players huddled together with joy — it was clear how much this result meant to the Michigan hockey team.
No. 11 Ohio State had just pulled its goalie in the dying minutes to fuel late-game pressure, but the Wolverines fended off the attack en route to a 3-2 win at Yost Ice Arena.
The victory was emblematic of just how much Michigan (11-11-3 overall, 6-7-2-1 Big Ten) has improved this season. Almost three months ago, the Wolverines got swept on their road trip to Columbus due to a weekend of lackluster hockey.
“It’s just been night and day,” junior forward Michael Pastujov said of the progress. “We’ve gotten everyone back, everyone’s clicking. Everyone’s buying in, so I mean, it’s just been so fun to see and so fun to play with everyone.”
Friday’s game against the Buckeyes (15-9-3, 8-7-2) took its final turn late. With less than four minutes remaining and the game tied, 2-2, senior forwards Will Lockwood and Jake Slaker went to work.
Lockwood fed the puck to Slaker in the slot, who then took a shot. It was deflected by goaltender Tommy Nappier, but Lockwood collected the rebound and got another shot from a shallow angle.
Nappier blocked that shot, too. But Lockwood collected the rebound once again, wrapped around the net and got it past Nappier for the game winner. The goal helped continue a run that has now seen the Wolverines take 14 of 15 potential points dating back to an early-January sweep of Notre Dame.
“Will’s just such a good captain,” Pastujov said. “I was just so happy for him, for him to be the one on the ice, that was just ecstatic.”
Over three minutes into the opening period of the game, Slaker sent the puck to sophomore forward Jimmy Lambert in the slot. Lambert took a shot and Nappier appeared to have saved it but it crept behind him. From there, the two fought to get there first until Lambert won and sent it into the net for the Michigan.
Upon review, though, the goal was called back because of offsides on the zone entry leading up to the play.
That decision didn’t shake the Wolverines’ confidence. Two minutes later, senior defenseman Luke Martin dished the puck back into the slot from the blue line. Junior forward Jack Becker collected it with his back to the goal, spun around and took a shot that was deflected by Nappier.
It didn’t matter, though. Pastujov crashed the net from the left side just in time to score on the rebound for the opening goal of the night.
“Coming right after the disallowed goal, it was a huge momentum boost,” Pastujov said. “It’s something we’re pretty good at, managing our emotions when things are up and down, but it was just a good keep from Luke Martin up top and Becker just puts it on net and I had a feeling it was coming, and I was just fortunate to tap it in.”
Michigan moved the puck with a creative ease early on in the game, which gave the offense a sort of fluidity. What’s more, the Wolverines precise poke checks — especially in the neutral zone — helped them win the puck quickly and provide the offense more opportunities.
Slaker got called for tripping under three minutes into the second frame, putting Michigan on its first penalty kill of the night. The unit almost escaped harm free, until forward Carson Meyer took a shot with seven seconds remaining. The puck took a strange bounce off senior defenseman Griffin Luce to make its way past sophomore goaltender Strauss Mann, thus evening the game.
Due to penalties from both sides, the Wolverines found themselves headed to four-on-four hockey with two minutes to go in the second period. Lambert won the ensuing face off in the attacking zone and fed the puck to sophomore defenseman Cam York, who skated across the slot and launched the puck into the net to give Michigan a 2-1 lead.
“He’s a great player,” Michigan coach Mel Pearson said of York. “He’s had a number of chances, and it’s good for him to score because he’s had some great looks and some great opportunities, so that’ll help his confidence. But he’s a fun player to watch and I’m glad he’s on our team.”
Midway through the third period, Michigan went on the penalty kill after Pastujov got called for slashing. A couple possessions later, defenseman Grant Gabriele fired the puck past Mann from near the right circle to level the game once again.
As things unfolded late, though, Lockwood had the final say to further build his team’s hot streak and self-belief.
“The field’s wide open,” Pastujov said. “Coming after christmas, the Big Ten is wide open, the national ranking is wide open. Making the tournament. I think we have a chance to do whatever we want this year.”