SOUTH BEND, Ind. — With the Michigan hockey team on its first power play of the night against No. 14 Notre Dame, freshman forward Eric Ciccolini handled the puck near the back center of the offensive zone. He swung the puck to his right, and junior forward Michael Pastujov then sent it near the right side of the crease to senior forward Nick Pastujov.
Notre Dame goaltender Cale Morris hugged the post, but the older Pastujov quickly moved the puck across his body and snuck it around Morris to give the Wolverines a one-goal lead just over seven minutes into the opening period.
Michigan has frequently struggled to convert on its power plays throughout this season, one of the leading causes of its shortcomings. But on the power play unit’s first outing of Friday night, there was no hesitation. That goal came less than twenty seconds into the man advantage.
And though the Wolverines’ power play didn’t find the same success on its other opportunity of the night, it didn’t matter. The defense and penalty kill unit stayed steady, holding the Fighting Irish empty handed from their three chances to help Michigan (8-11-2 overall, 3-7-1 Big Ten) notch a 3-0 victory.
“(Sophomore goaltender) Strauss (Mann), number one, did a great job,” Michigan coach Mel Pearson said of the penalty kill. “I thought our guys, (assistant coach) Kris Mayotte did a real good job — I thought Kris did a real good job of just working with them and then doing what they needed to do. We blocked some shots — we just kept things to the outside and didn’t give them too many looks, which was good. ”
Notre Dame (10-8-3, 5-4-2-1) had some quality chances in the opening frame but couldn’t find twine. Much of this was due to Mann’s solid start to the game. This was on full display with about seven minutes to go in the first frame. Forward Michael Graham found the puck in the crease and took two consecutive shots, but Mann stopped both.
The Wolverines came close to adding to their lead midway through the second period. Freshman forward Johnny Beecher skated behind the opponent’s net and dished the puck near the crease to senior forward Will Lockwood. Despite the crowd near him, Lockwood managed to get two clean shots. But Morris saved both to keep it a one-goal affair.
The Fighting Irish consistently got shots to the net throughout the rest of the game. That said, Michigan positioned itself skillfully when defending and as a result many of the shots came from wide angles. Mann handled these with ease, holding onto the puck when necessary and deflecting shots out of harm’s way other times to prevent easy second chances. He finished the night with 32 saves.
And then less than two minutes into the final period, Beecher and freshman Nick Granowicz helped put the game away. Beecher took a shot from the left circle and Morris deflected it. But Beecher then got the rebound to take another shot from a shallower angle, and by chance, Granowicz was in the crease at the right time to channel it into the net and give the Wolverines a two-goal lead.
“I got cross-checked in the back and I was kinda on the ice there and I picked my head up and the puck just went off my forehead and in,” Granowicz said. “Guess it was just a lucky bounce, a little gift for me.”
Pearson noted the Wolverines’ puck management was a bit sloppy in the second period, and that struggles on breakout plays gave Notre Dame opportunities. Thus, to him, Granowicz’s goal early in the final period was critical in changing the tone, before fifth-year senior Jacob Hayhurst added an empty-netter for the final say in the dying minutes.
“That gave us some cushion and we haven’t had much of a cushion in all these tight games,” Pearson said of Granowicz’s goal. “We’re learning to play with the lead. We’re still learning to play with the lead and what it takes, especially on the road to hang in there. And find a way to win the game.
“We did that. We got that second goal, maybe a break on it, and we haven’t had many breaks or bounces this year. So we take them when we can get them.”