St. Cloud split sign of progress
By K.D. Warvie - DMG Sports WriterDespite gaining only a split in their series with St. Cloud State this past weekend, Michigan Tech played as well as it had all season in the two-game series.
The Huskies broke a losing streak against SCSU, played better on the specialty teams, and showed some grit after getting two goals down on Saturday.
"St. Cloud's a team that's had our number in the recent past, so getting a win Friday night does two things," Tech coach Jamie Russell said. "It puts an end to that and the second thing was whenever you win on Friday you have a chance for a sweep.
"We did some good things on Friday night. We held them 0-for (on the power play), scored a shorthanded goal and, for all intents and purposes, we were 1-for-3 on the power play. We scored right after their power play ended, so we did a good job there.
"We dug ourselves a hole with some penalties early on Saturday. Brett Olson and Jordan Baker are two guys we are really leaning on on the penalty kill and they were the guys in the box. That definitely hurt us.
"They scored a couple of power-play goals, but we chipped away (at the lead). I thought we had a very good second period. We cut the lead in half. Malcolm (Gwilliam) hit a goal post, Mike VanWagner hit a crossbar early in the third, so 5-on-5 I thought we played some good hockey. We just needed to tighten things up a little bit on the penalty kill."
Still, as is always the case, there was some bad mixed in there with the good. While Gwilliam, and his first line mates Olson and Alex MacLeod continued to produce points in bunches, Tech's other three lines are struggling to a bit to score.
Gwilliam, Olson and MacLeod have combined for 22 points so far this season. The Huskies' other forwards, meanwhile, have just five points between them.
"Our first line is doing it all for us right now," Russell said. "They're carrying us offensively.
"Those guys are a big part of our penalty kill. We need to get some secondary scoring. I don't care where it comes from. If it's the second line, third line, fourth line, we need some guys that are chipping in and helping out offensively."
Genoe has solid weekend between the pipes
Freshman goaltender Kevin Genoe got the start both nights against SCSU. He played very well in both games and allowed just four goals in the two games.
He stopped 53 of the 57 shots fired in his direction over the weekend. His play against SCSU earned him the nod for the opening game of the upcoming series with third-ranked North Dakota this Friday night.
"He was outstanding," Russell said of Genoe. "I was really happy with his play, getting his first collegiate win, then getting his first win in the WCHA.
"We gave him the start Saturday and you have a question mark, can a kid go back-to-back at this level, and he answered that question. I'm very happy where he's at and he'll get the start Friday night against North Dakota."
Gordic getting better every game
Another freshman, forward Milos Gordic, continues to impress with his play. While his numbers may not be eye-catching, Gordic is having an impact on the offensive end.
He is using his large frame to do yeoman's work along the boards. Once the big fella gets the puck on his stick, opponents can't seem to take it away from him.
Gordic set up a quality scoring chance for linemate Jordan Baker with his work in the corner on Friday night. Since being moved up to the first line, he seems to be settling in nicely.
"We're just playing with confidence right now," Gordic said. "We're getting opportunities and the goals are going to some.
"When you get opportunities the goals are going to come. We're just going to keep playing well and we'll be successful in that area."
K.D. Warvie can be reached at kwarvie@mininggazette.com.
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SportsFan77
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11-04-09 1:29 PM
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To be a solid College Hockey team you need to sweep at home and split on the road. But I do agree this was a small step forward. Friday night MTU was able to keep the play along the boards fighting for the puck. There is such a fine line for MTU Hockey, they need to play almost a perfect game to get a win. They are not going to score much and they must stay away from bad penalties. That said, after watching both games this past weekend I do think they could finish 7th or 8th in the WCHA with a little luck. This week will give us some additional information when the play the Fighting Souix of North Dakota.
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