Midweek Roundup: February 9, 2022
Previewing a weekend clash with Sparty; greeting the latest signees; taking stock of the class of ‘25; Pro Blue at the NHL ASG and in Beijing
This weekend, the University of Michigan men’s hockey team will renew its vigorous in-state rivalry with the Michigan State Spartans, first hosting the Green and White in Ann Arbor on Friday, then going to Little Caesars Arena for a neutral site game Saturday being billed as the “Duel in the D.”
Coming off last weekend’s bye, the Wolverines find themselves in a three point deficit to Ohio State in the B1G standings, albeit with two games in hand, after the Buckeyes defeated Wisconsin once in regulation and once in overtime over the weekend.
The above graphic, courtesy of College Hockey News, shows that while the Buckeyes top the standings in terms of raw points, Michigan does hold an edge in terms of points percentage.
With that said, this weekend’s double header with the conference’s cellar dwellers (sorry Sparty) carries with it a certain pressure to take care of business and take all six available points. Meanwhile, the Buckeyes will be hosting third-place Minnesota.
What’s New with MSU?
2022 has been unkind to Spartan hockey, and that’s putting it mildly. Michigan State is 0-8 in the year, and it hasn’t been pretty at either end of the ice.
The Spartans have conceded four or more goals in five of their eight games in 2022 and have failed to score more than two in all but one. It doesn’t take a mathematician to assert that such a formula is bound to be problematic.
Those results tell a grim story, but to make matters worse, the Spartans’ goaltending has actually masked their defensive deficiencies. Senior starter Drew DeRidder has posted an exemplary .934 save percentage in his 19 appearances this year, and sophomore backup Pierce Charleston has a respectable .909 in 9 appearances to his name.
Perhaps coach Danton Cole could turn to DeRidder a bit more often, but a team getting goaltending of that caliber does not belong at the bottom of the conference standings.
One explanation for this season’s futility have been recurring injuries for senior forward Mitchell Lewandowski, who was supposed to be the Spartans’ offensive engine.
Lewandowski has been effective when he’s played, but he has appeared in just fifteen of the Spartans’ twenty-eight games. In those fifteen appearances, he has posted eighteen points, which has him just one of the team lead (a fact that speaks to this team’s offensive struggles).
If Lewandowski does suit up for the Wolverines, it will be his first action of the new year.
When Last We Met the Spartans…
In early November, Michigan swept the Spartans, first boat racing them 7-2 in Ann Arbor, then holding its little brothers at bay for a 3-2 win in East Lansing.
Matty Beniers opened the scoring (on his birthday no less), and the Wolverines wouldn’t look back all weekend. Beniers himself would go on to score four times over the two-game sweep.
For a full breakdown of the weekend, follow the below link for that weekend’s column:
13 Future Wolverines Signed
Michigan announced late last week a thirteen-member class of newly minted signees for the class of 2026. The class is headlined by Rutger McGroaty and Frank Nazar III, who were both in town last week representing the NTDP. Brandon Naurato describes Nazar as potentially the fastest skater available in this Spring’s draft and touted McGroaty’s leadership as well as the unique combination of power and skill he brings to the ice.
The class features six Michiganders, two Floridians, two Minnesotans, and three Canadians.
Taking Stock of the Class of ‘25
As we herald the impending arrival of a fresh class of recruits, it felt like an appropriate time to take stock of this year’s freshmen. Coming on the heels of the single most talented recruiting class in the history of college hockey and composed of just five players, it wouldn’t be difficult to overlook the Wolverines class of ‘25. However, even the most cursory glance at their production suggests that overlooking this year’s freshman class would be a grievous error.
To carve out a niche on any college hockey team as a freshman is a difficult feat, much less a team as stacked with talent as the Wolverines. The current sophomore class has normalized the notion that freshmen can arrive in Ann Arbor and contribute straight away. Nonetheless, any given hockey coach is apt to feel more comfortable icing an experienced upperclassman over a first year. As the old saying goes, “tie goes to the veteran.”
That’s what makes it all the more impressive that all five of this year’s freshmen—Mackie Samoskevich, Dylan Duke, Mark Estapa, Ethan Edwards, and Luke Hughes—have all established themselves as regular contributors to one of the nation’s leading contenders for the national title.
Up front, the class’ three forwards (Samoskevich, Duke, and Estapa) have found their way into Michigan’s lineup via varying paths. Though Michigan’s class of ‘25 is small, it is multi-talented.
Over the course of the season, Samoskevich has emerged as a fixture in this lineup by establishing himself as a terror in transition, thanks to his fleet feet and wicked shot.
Whether he is riding shotgun with other Wolverine offensive stars or bringing some extra firepower to the bottom six, Samoskevich has made a positive impact. On a team known for its skating and skill, the Connecticut-born forward wasted no time whatsoever in making himself stand out by virtue of those same attributes.
Then you have Dylan Duke, a player whose guile in the offensive zone makes it quite forgivable if you’ve ever confused him for a player several years his senior. Duke is a player with an astute awareness of the most dangerous spaces available in the offensive zone, and he is an exceptional player at finding those areas and creating offense. In playing below the offensive faceoff dots, he may well be the most dangerous of any of Michigan’s myriad gifted attackers.
Of the three freshmen forwards, it is Mark Estapa whose place in the lineup is least assured. Nonetheless, Estapa is a player who commands your attention whenever he is on the ice. He is an all gas, no brakes forechecker with plenty of speed and skill to take advantage of the rewards he reaps through his aggression. Estapa has shown a bit of a penchant for penalties (probably the main reason he isn’t yet a lock in the line up for a full-strength Michigan roster), but his unique ability to put opposing defenders under duress suggests that he will hold a valuable place on this team for years to come.
If this year’s freshman forwards highlight the Wolverines’ versatility in attack, the freshmen constituent on the back end highlights the identity of Michigan hockey in 2022. We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: nothing stands out about watching Michigan quite like the team’s ridiculous ability to dictate the tempo of a game through its skilled assembly of defensemen. Freshmen Luke Hughes and Ethan Edwards are both perfect embodiments of that style.
Edwards, who began the year slowly, has proved himself to be a fixture on Michigan’s blue line. We here at Gulo Gulo have paid especially close attention to Edwards’ confidence on the puck, which he uses to work wonders for the Wolverines in transition.
To have one freshman defender having as impressive a season as Edwards would be outstanding for any program, but, at Michigan, Edwards is not even the team’s best first year on the blue line. He isn’t even the best freshman defenseman drafted by the New Jersey Devils. That distinction belongs to Luke Hughes.
As the above chart from Lassi Alanen shows, Hughes has already established himself as one of college hockey’s best defenseman offensively and in transition. The ridiculous fluidity of his skating reminds Michigan fans of his older brother Quinn, except Luke is three inches taller than his eldest brother, allowing him to pair his absurd skating with an unavoidably long reach. As Alanen’s chart shows (and if you’re interested check out his Twitter page for more similar charts), Hughes has room for improvement defensively, but whatever deficiency he has shown in his own zone pales in comparison to the upside he brings elsewhere. In his few months in Ann Arbor to date, Hughes has shown that Michigan fans will be lucky to watch a player of his caliber for however long he graces NCAA hockey with his presence before heading off to the show.
In summary, the Class of 2025 might not be the biggest Wolverine recruiting class, nor the most decorated. Nonetheless, all five of its members already have carved out niches for themselves on the most talented team NCAA hockey has ever seen. Suffice it to say that recruiting and player development is going well in Ann Arbor.
Pro Blue at the NHL All-Star Game and in Beijing
It’s been a banner week for Michigan hockey’s emeritus contingents, representing the maize and blue at both the NHL All-Star Game and Beijing Olympics.
Zach Werenski, Dylan Larkin, and Kyle Connor (all Michigan natives in addition to alums of the University and none of them older than twenty-five) were selected to this year’s festivities in Las Vegas.
Larkin and Connor each competed in the fastest skater competition (eventually won by Jordan Kyrou), and while they didn’t win, Larkin can at least still claim the competition’s all-time fastest lap (which definitely didn’t feature any shenanigans involving a running start).
Meanwhile, Werenski won the first (and I would venture to say last) “Fountain Faceoff,” in which contestants attempted to fire glowing pucks into various targets scattered across the Bellagio’s trademark water feature.
Ultimately, that competition was more ambitious in its scope than it was enjoyable to watch, but far be it for us to chide the NHL for taking a chance on something.
Lastly, we must have dedicated hundreds if not thousands of words by now to coverage of current Wolverines Kent Johnson, Brendan Brisson, Owen Power, and Matty Beniers’ selection to their respective Olympic teams, but we’ve failed to highlight the presence of two Michigan alums on Team USA: goaltender Strauss Mann and defenseman Steve Kampfer.
We at Gulo Gulo know other fan bases are exhausted by Michigan fans’ reverence for the school’s traditions and legacies, and, to be frank, there are times when we grow weary of the school beating the drum of its heritage rather than developing an authentic modern identity.
But, this is a Michigan hockey blog, so we suspect you’ll indulge us for a moment, and the circumstances feel right for a break from our typical disdain for pontification about a given program’s legacy.
The NHL All-Star Game is a mostly meaningless affair. The quality of the competition is boring; the players selected often seem an imperfect representation of who the league’s best were in a given season; the skills competition can be fun, but it often feels as though television fails to do justice to the talent of the athletes involved.
Nonetheless, I found it impossible not to marvel at the two photos shown above: one of Larkin, Werenski, and Connor, and the other of the four Michigan representatives on Team USA.
The two pictures, when viewed together, offer a simple reminder: wherever hockey is being played at an elite level, the University of Michigan boasts ample representation.