DETROIT — The Michigan hockey team promises it isn’t taking Bowling Green lightly.
Granted, the Wolverines spoke highly of the Falcons entering the final regular-season series in which senior goaltender Shawn Hunwick had to be perfect to earn a mere split. Did they overlook streaking Bowling Green then? As they Admitted, they’re guilty as charged.
Senior forward David Wohlberg didn’t sugarcoat it. The Wolverines (15-9-4-1 CCHA, 23-11-4) were underprepared last time around, when they lost their chance at a share of the CCHA regular-season crown at Bowling Green.
“I thought we walked into that weekend thinking, ‘There’s going to be two games that are going to be somewhat easy,’ ” Wohlberg said. “That (series) really opened our eyes to how good of a team they were.”
This time around, it would seem impossible for Michigan to underestimate the CCHA’s version of Cinderella. But that’s not to say that the Falcons (5-19-4-3, 14-23-5) aren’t talented enough to advance to Saturday’s title game on their own merits.
“I thought after that weekend (that) they were a much better team than their record,” said Michigan coach Red Berenson on a conference call Tuesday. “When they hired (coach) Chris Bergeron … it was just a matter of time before that team would take a step, and obviously they’ve taken that step.”
Since Bowling Green’s 4-3 victory over the Wolverines, the Falcons have proven that it was no fluke and that they are legitimately eyeing the CCHA Tournament title and the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament that accompanies it.
After the loss at Bowling Green, Berenson noted that Falcon netminder Andrew Hammond has the potential to steal his team a playoff series. But Hammond’s done more than that: he’s earned two. Both have come in similar fashion — on the road, facing elimination.
“Every team seems to have a good goalie this time of year,” Berenson said. “They just come in different sizes.”
Last weekend, the Falcons trailed regular-season champion Ferris State after one period in Big Rapids, 3-0.
Instead of being content with reaching the quarterfinals, Bergeron told his team something that completely tilted the ice.
“We told the team that they hadn’t given up on themselves the whole year, and that this wasn’t the time to do it,” Bergeron said on the conference call. “If they would have quit on that game and quit on each other, they would have regretted it.”
There’s no reason to believe that Bowling Green will pick the semifinal game against Michigan to do so, either. So after watching the unbelievable comeback on tape, Berenson has stressed to the Wolverines that if the early goal, or even three of them, does come, the game is far from over.
“We know that this time of year, no lead is safe,” Berenson said. “You’ve got to play 60 minutes. It’s always a little bit about your opponent, but it’s more about you.”
But Joe Louis Arena has been kind to the Wolverines this season. Michigan has gone 3-0 there so far. And for junior forward A.J. Treais, Joe Louis was home ice growing up, as a member of Little Caesar’s hockey teams.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to have success playing at the Joe,” Treais said. “It’s a comfortable place for me to play, especially in these big stages.”
While Berenson doesn’t think that the arena dictates how fired up his team is for a game, he thinks the importance of the game most certainly does. This week, then, should have the Wolverines bouncing off the walls.
“Just like last weekend, we knew playing Notre Dame in the first round at home, the motivation and incentive would be there,” Berenson said. “The crowd was great. It’ll be similar down there. … We’ll feel some comfort level playing there.”
NOTE: Both of Friday’s semifinals will be televised on Fox Sports Plus. Saturday’s title game, a 7:35 p.m. puck drop from Joe Louis, will be shown on Fox Sports Detroit.