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| Pat Christman/The Free Press |
1. Check the record book: The Mavericks haven't swept anyone for awhile, but you only had to go back to last season (Jan. 7-8 against American International) to find that. As for scoring nine goals, well, that took some work. That hasn't happened since March 6, 2004 when they beat Nebraska Omaha 9-1. This game was all MSU, and it really didn't matter what the situation was. The Mavericks scored three short-handed goals and two power-play goals. Huntsville's only goal came in a 5x3 situation.
2. Everybody's scoring: Michael Dorr scored two short-handed goals, and Zach Lehrke had the other. Lehrke also had another goal and an assist for a three-point game (he was the No. 1 star). Eriah Hayes had a goal and an assist, and Josh Nelson finished with two assists. Other goal scorers included Matt Leitner, J.P. Burkemper, Johnny McInnis and Corey Leivermann. That was Leivermann's first goal and first point of the year. In all, 13 players had at least one point for the Mavericks.
3. Confidence before CC: So what does MSU get out of beating up a 1-17-1 team that just found out this week that it won't be eliminated as a program at the end of the season? Well, confidence. The Mavericks got a lot of guys on the score sheet and really took it to the Chargers from the get-go on Saturday. For Dorr, who had just one goal going into the night, two shorties certainly seemed to give him a lift. "A lot of guys have been frustrated with the lack of scoring, myself included, so a blowout really helps with confidence," he said. Next week will be a little tougher, as the Mavericks will host No.6 Colorado College.
Deep thought: Lehrke's first goal, which made it a 2-0 game, was a thing of beauty. He jumped over the boards for a shift and picked up a loose puck in the neutral zone, then he skated it in and fired on net. He got his own rebound and skated around the back of the net and back out to the left circle and took another shot through traffic. That one went in for the unassisted goal.
Quote of the night: "It was a great weekend, and we still had to work hard to do it. Four goals last night and nine tonight. Obviously, something was working. Our forecheck. We were shooting pucks, getting on rebounds, so that's good. Hopefully, we can carry the momentum to next weekend."
Read the game story here.
Around the WCHA: Bemidji State 2, Denver 1 ... North Dakota 1, Nebraska Omaha 0 ... Minnesota Duluth 4, Wisconsin 2 ... Colorado College 4, Alaska Anchorage 3 ... Minnesota 6, Michigan Tech 2
2 comments:
Shane,
Any idea why the penalty on Dorr's breakaway didn't count?
I thought that there was a rule change that if a delayed penalty was called and the opposing team scored that the penalty would still count. Instead, it got waved off last night. Is there something I missed?
Jeff,
You're right about the rule change regarding a delayed penalty. If a goal is scored during a delay, the penalty is still served.
I asked Dorr about it and he said the explanation they received was that Dorr would have been awarded a penalty shot. But since he scored the goal, the penalty shot was nullified.
Seems like an odd ruling to me. My gut tells me the refs got it wrong, and MSU still should have received a power play after the goal (but no penalty shot). But I don't know that for a fact. Perhaps if WCHA officiating director Greg Shepherd is in town next weekend, I'l ask him.
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