Ann Arbor, Michigan- The Michigan-Dearborn University Wolves entered tonight's game at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube in a very unusual position. In addition to only having won 3 games on the season to date, they were winless in the CSCHL, which in the years I have been covering the Eagles is unheard of. Fortunately for the Eagles, and not so fortunate for the Wolves, the patterns remain the same. In conjunction with the Eagles 7-5 victory last night at Michigan-Dearborn, the Eagles complete the series sweep tonight with a hard fought 3-2 victory.

The first period of the game began with the Wolves coming out flying and setting the tone. Despite the fact that the Wolves started off quick, it did not stop the Eagles from having numerous scoring opportunities and a ton of shots, amounting to 20 for the period. However, the first period was also the most productive one of the three on the night for the Wolves who were awarded the only goal of the period 11:40 in. Matthew Chromy's shot took an unlucky bounce off of goaltender Erik Schardt into the back of the net to give the Wolves the 1-0 lead which they would not relinquish for the remaining of the period.

The second period of the game consisted of the Eagles really controlling the course of play and getting a ton of great scoring opportunities and having them get stopped by goaltender Matthew Janiga. Just 1:21 into the period, the Eagles equalized the score at 1 a piece on Ryan Connolly's goal. The Eagles throughout the period attacked and attacked and attacked, and were finally rewarded with only 2:13 left in the period on Anthony Winrod's goal to give the Eagles a 2-1 lead going into the third period.

The third period of the game began very similarly to the first period with the Wolves really controlling the play early and the Eagles playing a bit flat. Michigan-Dearborn was rewarded for their play five minutes into the period on the Power Play, with Matthew Chromy's second goal tying the score at 2. The Eagles however found a way in a final period with only 7 total shots on goal to get one final one by Matthew Janiga, with the goal being credited to Ian Chornoby with 9:13 remaining to give the Eagles a 3-2 lead that they would carry to victory. The Eagles did a great job in the closing minutes controlling the puck and keeping it trapped in the Michigan-Dearborn end and in conjunction with Erik Schardt making a key save with 37 seconds left with Dearborn pulling their goalie successfully ran out the rest of the clock to end the weekend with a series sweep and a 3-2 victory.

The biggest thing to note about this game was the shot discrepancy. The Eagles outshot the Wolves on the night 42-15, with an offensive attack that looked more like the Eagles of a few years back than of the more controlled, defensive oriented hockey team that we have seen over the past few weeks. Bottom line though, the reason this game remained 3-2 was due to the outstanding play from both goaltenders, Matthew Janiga and Erik Schardt. Despite the shot differential, I felt as if the Wolves had the better opportunities throughout the night. However, they just couldn't find a way to get the goals needed to get them over the top to take the game. The game wasn't as physical as the Michigan-Dearborn/EMU games have been in the past, but it was overall a relatively clean hockey game, and hard fought on both sides.  In addition, after seeing the effort from the Wolves tonight, it really makes me wonder how they have yet to find a way to get more than 2 points in the CSCHL. That sure didn't look like a last place team.

Overall though, I thought the Eagles played a great game overall. They seemed to know what Michigan-Dearborn was going to do before they did it, and seemed to be in the right positions all night. I also found the offensive attack to be really comforting as they pushed and pressured the Wolves throughout the three periods, and prevented Michigan-Dearborn from getting many shots themselves. Despite how well they played, the Eagles are still a bit lucky they managed to get three past the Dearborn goaltender to take the victory. 

Looking Ahead:
The Eagles are now off for the remainder of 2007. The Eagles return to the ice January 4th and January 5th up at Central Michigan University to take on the Chippewas's DII ACHA Club team for a pair of games. The following week the Eagles return to CSCHL Conference play with a pair of games in Bensenville, Illinois against Robert Morris University. The Eagles do not return to the friendly confines of the Ann Arbor Ice Cube until January 18th for a two game series against the current CSCHL leaders Lindenwood University.

I wish everyone a safe, wonderful holiday season and a prosperous new year to come.

Until 2008,

Go Green!
-Kevin