PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Thursday night, the No. 9 Michigan hockey team watched the world of college hockey turn upside down, as three national championship contenders suffered stunning losses — No. 1 Western Michigan fell to Ferris State, No. 2 Michigan State tumbled to New Hampshire and No. 4 Penn State was defeated by Clarkson.
But Friday night, it was the Wolverines’ turn to take down a top-10 team, as Michigan (3-0) toppled No. 7 Providence (0-1), 5-1, behind a second-period offensive surge.
To start the first period, Michigan’s anchor was its defense. Providence came out swinging, relentlessly prodding the offensive zone and forcing the Wolverines’ back to goal early on.
Michigan’s defense stood its ground by clogging the slot and forcing the Friars to the perimeter. This was backed by a resolute performance by the special-teams unit, which produced two penalty kills. A pair of goals from sophomore forward Michael Hage and senior forward TJ Hughes was enough to complement the strong defensive outing and leave the Wolverines with a 2-1 lead entering the second period.
And in the second, the offense took over where the defense left off.
“We had a plan going into it,” Schock said. “We just executed that gameplan. We knew what they had in the first. They came out hot, and we had to respond with that. We came out and executed our plan in the second.”
Freshman defenseman Drew Schock helped spark the fireworks show about two minutes into the second period. Schock finished off a well-worked team move with a thundering shot from the faceoff circle which junior forward Garrett Schifsky tapped in for 3-1. Three minutes later, Michigan’s strong power play reared its head, as Hage cut in from the left and doubled his own tally for the Wolverines’ fourth.
With less than six minutes left in the second period, Schock rubber-stamped a dominant 20 minutes with a goal of his own. He once again exploited space in the left side of the offensive zone and curled in a pass from Schifsky.
It was the culmination of a period in which Michigan put it all together on offense. The Wolverines demonstrated both speed and discipline in the aggressive press that has characterized their offensive approach so far this season, as well as their depth. Michigan’s power-play units frequently included some combination of newcomers freshman defenseman Henry Mews, freshman forward Adam Valentini and junior forward Jayden Perron, who transferred from North Dakota.
“It’s crazy,” sophomore defenseman Dakoda Rhéaume-Mullen said. “That’s why when we stuck to our structure, you have guys to make those plays. It wasn’t really, other than the first one, individual effort. It was five passes and then just finding that open guy.”
In the third period, Michigan continued to dictate the game through its offense, but in a much more muted fashion. The Wolverines maintained control of the puck and continued to pile on pressure and shots, dictating the game state despite the goals drying up. By the end of the night, Michigan racked up 32 shots on goal to Providence’s 16. The disparity reflects Wolverines’ offensive dominance and ability to create at will — sparked by the run of pressure, possession and scoring that began in the second period.
“That’s just winning hockey in general,” Michigan coach Brandon Naurato said. “But for a group of 11 freshmen, 14 new guys, to do it this early in the season, is rewarding as a coach, and now got to keep going.”
In that second period, the Wolverines did what three of college hockey’s best programs had failed to do the night before. They delivered a statement of intent to help seal an impressive victory in its first true test of the young season.
