It didn’t even take a full two minutes for the University of Michigan Wolverines men’s ice hockey team to open their 2021-22 scoring account in their exhibition opener against Bowling Green.
After a dominant first shift that kept the Falcons hemmed into their own end, Matty Beniers’ line hopped over the boards and had to retrieve the puck from their defensive zone for the first time. Rather than opting for methodical build up play, Beniers snapped a stretch pass from his own zone to a darting Kent Johnson who had snuck behind the Falcon defense.
In alone with time to spare, the normally extravagant Johnson pulled a patient forehand wrist shot out of his bag, which he tucked neatly past Zack Rose to register the Wolverines first goal of the young season.
By the time the final horn sounded on the third period, Johnson would have supplemented his goal with three assists.
If Beniers and Johnson (the second and fifth overall picks from last summer’s NHL Draft) got the ball rolling, it was a different tandem of Wolverine NHL draft choices who looked most dangerous on the night.
Brendan Brisson tallied a hat trick, not seeing a puck he didn’t want to shoot or a collision he didn’t want to embrace all night. His centreman Thomas Bordeleau looked at ease throughout the game, seeming always to dictate the pace of the game when he was on the ice and wreaking havoc off the cycle in the Falcons’ end. He finished the night with two assists but could easily have scored one or more himself.
Brisson’s first marker of the night came on a scintillating power play passing sequence.
Elsewhere across the stat sheet, Nick Blankenberg notched a pair of second period goals in his first game with a “C” sewn on his jersey, and the Wolverines’ specialty units were both perfect, scoring on both their power plays and snuffing out all three of the Falcons’.
The final scoreline, 7-1, reflected a game in which the Wolverines needed neither urgency nor intensity to dominate, a trend that may well continue throughout the season and is sure to vex Coach Mel Pearson.
Though the Falcons’ lone goal came with the game well out of reach, it was not unfounded based on the run of play. Michigans’ talented crop of skaters were at times cavalier with the puck, leaving themselves susceptible to careless offside whistles and odd man rushes. They had more than enough offensive talent to overcome this in the season opener but is sure to be a point of emphasis from Pearson moving forward.
Of course, all of this writing buries the true lede, which was the energy provided by the return of fans to Yost Ice Arena for the first time in 574 days. Though not quite sold out, the crowd was rowdy throughout the dusting of the Falcons.
Odds and Ends
Sophomore goaltender Erik Portillo looked sturdy through two and a half periods in which he seldom faced a serious threat and stopped all 19 shots he faced, before being spelled by Jack Leavy. Leavy faced five shots and surrendered the Falcons’ lone goal to Coale Norris, brother of former Wolverine Josh
Mackey Samoskevich, a freshman forward and first round draft choice of the Florida Panthers, did not dress for the Wolverines, which came as something of a surprise, though if there is a collegiate team with NHL first rounders to spare, this is it. We will see if this trend continues when the regular season kicks off next weekend.
Defenseman Luke Hughes had, to my eye, a slightly shaky Wolverine debut, showing both signs at the skill that made him a top-five pick in the draft and the limitations some pundits suggested made the selection a reach. He showed obvious grace as a skater and harbored no compunction about activating in the offensive zone. However, at times, he seemed to struggle in making attacking moves that cohered with his teammates’ movements, appearing a bit too individualistic in the offensive zone. Of course, this is a small nit to pick from the back of a true freshman defenseman making his NCAA debut.
I arrived at Yost early, keen to watch the Wolverines’ big guns fool around in warm up, in particular Kent Johnson. Johnson did not disappoint, showing off skills like the ones shown in the video below and translated those moves into a dazzling night after puck drop. However, as alluded to above, I found it was Thomas Bordeleau whose offensive game intrigued me most. His patience and calm on the puck left me feeling as though every time he was on the ice a goal was close at hand.
Having watched Matty Beniers help guide the U.S. to gold at last season’s World Juniors, I knew about the relentlessness of his 200-foot game. What I didn’t anticipate until I had the great good fortune to see him live was his soft hands and nimble feet. Beniers offensive game does not dazzle in the way of Johnson’s or Bordeleau’s, but make no mistake: He is a dangerous offensive player with outstanding vision, adept at sending and receiving passes as well as creating instant space with sudden punch turns.