Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

[Caustic Undertow]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

This is as tough a home playoff matchup as I could imagine for Michigan. Jeff Jackson has been Michigan kryptonite for his entire career, and Michigan was fortunate to escape South Bend with a split this season. If Notre Dame puts things together this weekend Michigan is in for a tough, tough ride.

In my time of following Michigan Hockey there has only ever been one truly notable conference playoff series--at Michigan State, two years ago. Michigan swept on its way to a stunning conference tournament title. The concept of a playoff series is fun, but the match ups are usually pushovers and Michigan rarely even gets pushed to a third game, and in those cases often due to fluky losses. This series has the unique potential to be a legitimate powerhouse barn-burner. I don't know the PWR scenarios, but I suspect that bubble-sitting Notre Dame can play its way into the tournament, or at least set themselves up for a berth with a split at the Joe.

It is as much of a must-watch playoff series as you will ever get. I'm legitimately concerned.

 

[JoeZ]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

This is as tough a home playoff matchup as I could imagine for Michigan. Jeff Jackson has been Michigan kryptonite for his entire career, and Michigan was fortunate to escape South Bend with a split this season. If Notre Dame puts things together this weekend Michigan is in for a tough, tough ride.

In my time of following Michigan Hockey there has only ever been one truly notable conference playoff series--at Michigan State, two years ago. Michigan swept on its way to a stunning conference tournament title. The concept of a playoff series is fun, but the match ups are usually pushovers and Michigan rarely even gets pushed to a third game, and in those cases often due to fluky losses. This series has the unique potential to be a legitimate powerhouse barn-burner. I don't know the PWR scenarios, but I suspect that bubble-sitting Notre Dame can play its way into the tournament, or at least set themselves up for a berth with a split at the Joe.

It is as much of a must-watch playoff series as you will ever get. I'm legitimately concerned.

Also do not forget that the preseason rankings had the leprechaun #1 so it's not like they're chopped liver.

I said it when it was announced Jeff Jackson was taking over there - "Watch out for them in a few years". I have always respected him as a coach. I still can't get why he was forced out at the NTDP.

 

[JoeZ]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

Basketball team playing in the quarterfinals of the B1G tourney Friday @ 6:30.
Puck drops @ 7:30
Is there any chance some of the timeouts might be filled with hoops on the new scoreboard?
It should be ending about the same time the 2nd period starts.

 

[IrishHockeyFan]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

This is as tough a home playoff matchup as I could imagine for Michigan. Jeff Jackson has been Michigan kryptonite for his entire career, and Michigan was fortunate to escape South Bend with a split this season. If Notre Dame puts things together this weekend Michigan is in for a tough, tough ride.

In my time of following Michigan Hockey there has only ever been one truly notable conference playoff series--at Michigan State, two years ago. Michigan swept on its way to a stunning conference tournament title. The concept of a playoff series is fun, but the match ups are usually pushovers and Michigan rarely even gets pushed to a third game, and in those cases often due to fluky losses. This series has the unique potential to be a legitimate powerhouse barn-burner. I don't know the PWR scenarios, but I suspect that bubble-sitting Notre Dame can play its way into the tournament, or at least set themselves up for a berth with a split at the Joe.

It is as much of a must-watch playoff series as you will ever get. I'm legitimately concerned.

The thing that gives Michigan such a huge advantage I think is that this is a series. Anything can happen in one game and since Jackson has had a lot of success in his career -- both at Lake State and in South Bend -- against Michigan, winning one game would seem to be doable. But winning twice... maybe having to win two in a row if Michigan wins Friday... No one who will be playing was born the last time Notre Dame won games on consecutive days at Yost. I'm not completely sure of it, but I think it was 1978. Wooden sticks, no cages, and Mike Johnson would have been a Hobey winner (if it had existed) with numbers like he put up this year!

We did play one memorable 3 game series with you guys at Yost, in 1998. We won the first game kind of easy, I think taking a huge lead into the third and holding on to win by 2. Michigan won the next night in OT 2-1 and won 4-3 on Sunday, after Notre Dame had taken a 2-0 lead. Following the game Berensen said it was the toughest series he had had at Michigan, and then Red and a Michigan player (can't remember which one) both said following the NCAA championship game that year in Boston how that series was what pushed them to the title.

 

[bluevox]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

I said it when it was announced Jeff Jackson was taking over there - "Watch out for them in a few years".

Agreed.

I still can't get why he was forced out at the NTDP.

I think some of the ND folks can better address this, but I think JJ left the NTDP to be an assistant coach with the Islanders. He also had a stint a the head coach of Guelph, but I may be mistaken with which happened first.

 

[wooderson]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

The thing that gives Michigan such a huge advantage I think is that this is a series. Anything can happen in one game and since Jackson has had a lot of success in his career -- both at Lake State and in South Bend -- against Michigan, winning one game would seem to be doable. But winning twice... maybe having to win two in a row if Michigan wins Friday... No one who will be playing was born the last time Notre Dame won games on consecutive days at Yost. I'm not completely sure of it, but I think it was 1978. Wooden sticks, no cages, and Mike Johnson would have been a Hobey winner (if it had existed) with numbers like he put up this year!

We did play one memorable 3 game series with you guys at Yost, in 1998. We won the first game kind of easy, I think taking a huge lead into the third and holding on to win by 2. Michigan won the next night in OT 2-1 and won 4-3 on Sunday, after Notre Dame had taken a 2-0 lead. Following the game Berensen said it was the toughest series he had had at Michigan, and then Red and a Michigan player (can't remember which one) both said following the NCAA championship game that year in Boston how that series was what pushed them to the title.

IHF: Would you say that the first round series against Ohio was more of an example of Notre Dame getting their act together and returning to form or the Buckeyes just falling apart? It looked like two pretty easy wins on paper, which I think is always impressive in a play-off series where the season is on the line for both teams. Should that make Michigan fans worry or just laugh even harder at Ohio? Hopefully the latter, I feel like I need to double-down on the hate today to make up for yesterday...

 

[IrishHockeyFan]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

I think some of the ND folks can better address this, but I think JJ left the NTDP to be an assistant coach with the Islanders. He also had a stint a the head coach of Guelph, but I may be mistaken with which happened first.

He left Lake State for the NTDP, then coached Guelph in the OHL. He was fired by Guelph after 2-plus seasons and went to the Islanders from there, the second year in the NHL being the lockout season. He was named head coach at Notre Dame during what would have been playoff time in the NHL in May of 2005. The lockout wasn't officially over yet, although that season had long been cancelled. He left both Lake State and the USNTDP for philosophical reasons of one sort or another. I think similar differences led to his dismissal at Guelph as much as the record, as he had winning records in his two full seasons.

One of the knocks on Jackson coming into Notre Dame was that he would become frustrated with Notre Dame's half-hearted commitment to hockey sooner rather than later, and would look for another green pasture. In fact during the 2008-2009 season before Notre Dame announced the building of the CFIA he and the administration had a heated "discussion" about extensive plans that then appeared stalled for Notre Dame to upgrade the Joyce Center. Implicit promises had been made that appeared unfulfilled and I wondered if Jackson would be around in a year or two then. While I know the "discussion" took place, the substance of the conversation was only rumored. The scuttlebutt was that Jackson delivered an ultimatum to come up with something concrete. Late in that season news of the new building was announced, and his stay at Notre Dame was assured.

IHF: Would you say that the first round series against Ohio was more of an example of Notre Dame getting their act together and returning to form or the Buckeyes just falling apart? It looked like two pretty easy wins on paper, which I think is always impressive in a play-off series where the season is on the line for both teams. Should that make Michigan fans worry or just laugh even harder at Ohio? Hopefully the latter, I feel like I need to double-down on the hate today to make up for yesterday...

More the former than the latter. Summerhays in goal was a huge factor. He played quite well and the team has been playing better in front of him for most of the last 2/3rds of the season. The turnaround really started the previous week against MSU. We began doing a lot of things that had been absent for quite a while. Scoring first, scoring even strength goals, getting good play between the pipes, killing penalties, so yeah, we did a decent job of getting the act together. All of that was nowhere in sight for a month or more. Notre Dame fans were kind of shocked to see Johnson start the final regular season game, and I think had Summerhays started, ND would have won that one too. Ohio State looked to me a lot like they looked when they came to South Bend in October and beat us. Still aggressively forechecked, still looked solid defensively on Friday and for the most part Saturday, perhaps a little dumb or frustrated play both nights (a lot of penalties including a 10 minute misconduct, although we lacked discipline for much of the weekend too).

Still, I don't know how "worried" you need to be. Playing at Yost has to make Michigan supremely confident. Our chances lie on your boys being OVER confident. I suppose the 20+ series winning streak may play into our favor, but even if it does for a game, you have to win twice. If Michigan is going to lose a series (and eventually they HAVE to, right? Right???) it isn't going to be some 1-12 matchup against Bowling Green, it will be against a good team that struggled earlier in the year and fell in the standings. Not saying this is the series, but that's likely the scenario. I do think this weekend has the potential to be the series to watch among the entire slate this weekend in all of the conferences, and I would bet dollars to doughnuts that whoever wins it will win in Detroit.

 

[kdilks]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

The thing that gives Michigan such a huge advantage I think is that this is a series. Anything can happen in one game and since Jackson has had a lot of success in his career -- both at Lake State and in South Bend -- against Michigan, winning one game would seem to be doable. But winning twice... maybe having to win two in a row if Michigan wins Friday... No one who will be playing was born the last time Notre Dame won games on consecutive days at Yost. I'm not completely sure of it, but I think it was 1978. Wooden sticks, no cages, and Mike Johnson would have been a Hobey winner (if it had existed) with numbers like he put up this year!

Pulling up the magical pdf file again...Notre Dame had a win and a tie at Yost in one weekend in 82, an overtime win and a tie in one weekend in 1980, and February 1978 would have been their only clean sweep at Yost (along with 2 sweeps in the early 70s at the Coliseum).

 

[Hockeybuckeye]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

IHF: Would you say that the first round series against Ohio was more of an example of Notre Dame getting their act together and returning to form or the Buckeyes just falling apart? It looked like two pretty easy wins on paper, which I think is always impressive in a play-off series where the season is on the line for both teams. Should that make Michigan fans worry or just laugh even harder at Ohio? Hopefully the latter, I feel like I need to double-down on the hate today to make up for yesterday...

Ohio State if you please. Ohio is a MAC school down in the Appalachian foothills. Who's posting this, Brady Hoke?

 

[JoeZ]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

He left Lake State for the NTDP, then coached Guelph in the OHL. He was fired by Guelph after 2-plus seasons and went to the Islanders from there, the second year in the NHL being the lockout season. He was named head coach at Notre Dame during what would have been playoff time in the NHL in May of 2005. The lockout wasn't officially over yet, although that season had long been cancelled. He left both Lake State and the USNTDP for philosophical reasons of one sort or another. I think similar differences led to his dismissal at Guelph as much as the record, as he had winning records in his two full seasons.

I vaguely recall some chatter around A2 at the time that he wanted to stay but was forced out by USAHockey.

"Philosophical differences" would fit the bill.

 

[wooderson]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

Ohio State if you please. Ohio is a MAC school down in the Appalachian foothills. Who's posting this, Brady Hoke?

I'm sorry, you're right. There are just so many fine institutions in the state of Ohio that it's easy to get them mixed up sometimes. I'll make sure to call the Bowling State Golden Zips by their full and proper name from now on.

 

[Hockeybuckeye]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

I'm sorry, you're right. There are just so many fine institutions in the state of Ohio that it's easy to get them mixed up sometimes. I'll make sure to call the Bowling State Golden Zips by their full and proper name from now on.

lol! At least you didn't say THE Ohio State. Some PR guy was obviously immensely overpaid for that tackey add-on.

 

[bluevox]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

Ohio State if you please. Ohio is a MAC school down in the Appalachian foothills.

You realize, of course, that the only reason this meme continues is that you folks down south get so up in arms about.

 

[owslachief]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

I would just like to point out that a great many of your schoolmates were cheering on your most bitter rival to share a Big Ten title with you. That can't have been good for your collective souls.

[Embed Collective Soul video here].

 

[MUnRPI]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

You realize, of course, that the only reason this meme continues is that you folks down south get so up in arms about.

Try: Ohio of ohio

That'll really **** 'em off

 

[wolverineTrumpet]

Try: Ohio of ohio

That'll really **** 'em off

Lol. I still refer to them as an Ohio state university.

Anyway, big series this weekend. While I do remember the 10-1 playoff game against Notre Dame mentioned many posts ago (we saw all 3 goalies from both teams "goalie, goalie, goalie, sieve, sieve, sieve") this is a very different year from that.

I'm expecting this to go to 3 games. Like several other UM fans I've talked to, I would feel better about playing the higher ranked Lake State. For any Notre Dame fans making the trip, I hope you feel as welcome at Yost as quack and I felt at Notre Dame, I think every usher we walked past said "welcome to Notre Dame" to us.

 

[WeAreNDHockey]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

For any Notre Dame fans making the trip, I hope you feel as welcome at Yost as quack and I felt at Notre Dame, I think every usher we walked past said "welcome to Notre Dame" to us.

Believe it or not, this "welcome to Notre Dame" crap is a sore spot with some Notre Dame fans. I've actually grown tired of hearing it, I mean how many times do I need to be welcomed. I've only been there a few hundred times now. If you read some of our football message boards people even think it's all part of the downfall of the football program and a select few go bat-5h!t crazy when discussing it.

 

[Jeff_Jackson_for_Pres.]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

I will be making the trek. Haven't been to Yost in decades. Decades. Eesh.

I don't really care if I'm welcomed or not, just as long as my team does well.

 

[Hockeybuckeye]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

You realize, of course, that the only reason this meme continues is that you folks down south get so up in arms about.

I just find it amusing. Actually I'm half Wolverine by birth as Dad was born & raised in Michigan and other family members are U of M alum, Ferris, Western and I never heard anyone in Michigan, family or otherwise call Ohio State just Ohio before Brady Hoke did and I'm on Michigan's campus numerous times a year talking with coaches in other sports and they always say Ohio State. Just throwing it out there. See everyone at the Joe in a week and a half!

 

[JoeZ]

Re: Michigan Wolverines 2011-2012 hockey thread

I just find it amusing. Actually I'm half Wolverine by birth as Dad was born & raised in Michigan and other family members are U of M alum, Ferris, Western and I never heard anyone in Michigan, family or otherwise call Ohio State just Ohio before Brady Hoke did and I'm on Michigan's campus numerous times a year talking with coaches in other sports and they always say Ohio State. Just throwing it out there. See everyone at the Joe in a week and a half!

And just where does Coach Hoke hail from? That should tell you something.