MINNEAPOLIS — They say what goes around comes around.
And after Friday’s loss to No. 8 Minnesota, the No. 16 Michigan hockey team needed to ensure the saying rang true Saturday. Through a stellar performance from sophomore defenseman Seamus Casey and a complete turnaround of Friday’s special teams performance, they did.
Friday’s penalty kill faltered under pressure, allowing three Golden Gopher power-play goals to reach the back of the net — two of which occurred with Casey in the box. So the Wolverines knew they needed to have Casey on their penalty kill, as well as retaliate with a stronger special teams performance.
Even though Minnesota had fewer penalty minutes than Michigan, the Wolverines capitalized on two-of-five power plays and went five-for-five on the penalty kill.
And both of those power play goals came from Casey.
“Special teams was the difference of the whole weekend,” Casey said. “Them last night, us tonight. Our power play getting back to it was good.”
Casey kickstarted the goal scoring eight minutes into the first period on the Wolverines’ first power play. Sophomore forwards Rutger McGroarty and Gavin Brindley created a triangle with Casey at the peak, passing around the Gopher penalty kill unit. Once Casey got the puck, he skated to the point and shot it past the entire Minnesota unit and its netminder.
However, Michigan was quickly forced into submission as a minute later, its penalty kill sprung into action. Tainted by Friday’s showing, the unit needed to come back stronger. And not only did it kill off two penalties in the first period, but it did so in a dominant manner. Junior forward Dylan Duke had a shorthanded opportunity — a shot he has capitalized on in the last two weekends — and Minnesota tallied minimal shots on goal.
But, the true test came when sophomore forward T.J. Hughes cross-checked a Gopher skater from behind and sent him forcefully into the boards. After a quick review by the referees, Hughes was assessed a five-minute major penalty and ten-minute game misconduct, ejected from the game. But the Wolverines took this disadvantage in stride, killing off the penalty, even earning some “boos” from the home crowd toward its own team as the clock winded down.
“I think we have a lot of confidence in our penalty kill,” Casey said. “Friday night wasn’t great, they made some good plays on Friday night, but we’ve been over 90% this second half and its all from confidence, and just staying connected with each other.”
The success of these five-minutes held the Wolverines’ commanding 3-0 lead heading into the third period. Had Minnesota scored on that power play, its comeback effort that eventually tied the game in the third period could have resulted in a weekend sweep for the Gophers. Instead, Michigan held on long enough to force overtime.
The Wolverines’ top-ranked power-play unit got a taste of an advantage for the last 16 seconds of the third period, as Minnesota forward Rhett Pitlick received a cross-checking penalty. As the game headed into overtime, Pitlick’s penalty carried over, and Michigan held a four-on-three advantage for nearly the first two minutes.
Michigan dominated on its power play, winning battles to the puck and maintaining possession. And similar to his first power-play goal, Casey utilized the space given and found the perfect shot. With the Gophers focused on defending Brindley, McGroarty and Duke, Casey took a wide-open shot and netted the puck, solidifying the overtime win for the Wolverines.
Michigan coach Brandon Naurato put Casey’s performance simply: “He’s a stud.”
After being assessed two penalties on Friday that resulted in two Minnesota power-play goals, Casey skated into Saturday’s game with a desire for redemption. With his power-play goals bookending the game, and the Wolverines’ special teams coming back with vengeance, Michigan proved through the game, and the whole series, that what goes around truly does come back around.