Michigan Tech hits the road, visits Bemidji State
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BEMIDJI, Minn. -- For the last two weekends, the Michigan Tech Huskies hockey team hosted a U.P. rival, and on each Friday night, the Huskies lost 3-2 in overtime, outshooting their opponents in both losses.
On both Saturdays the Huskies bounced back with wins.
If there is one area of their game that head coach Joe Shawhan and the Huskies can point to as being a key factor in the losses, it is goal scoring, something the Huskies do not do easily. That may seem like a strange statistic, considering that the Huskies have scored five goals three times and have scored three goals or more five times, if you include their two scrimmages along with their nine regular season games. Yet, the fact remains that the Huskies have to fight for every goal they score, which is a major factor in why they are 5-4 on the season and 2-2 in CCHA play, good for eight points.
Only St. Thomas has scored less goals than Michigan Tech to this point in the season.
On Friday against Northern Michigan, both of the Huskies' tallies came from the hash marks in, in an area of the ice known as the slot, or "hard ice," depending on the coach.
"That's where the majority of goals are scored nowadays, in that paint area," said co-captain Trenton Bliss after Friday's loss. "It's not easy. You've got to fight to get inside positioning.
Bliss shared insight after the game about how much attention the Huskies have been giving to getting to the front of the net with the puck.
"That's been kind of our emphasis," he said. "We've been kind of struggling to get goals of late, so it's getting back to the basics: getting to the net, shooting pucks, and then trying to get rebounds."
For Bliss, who sits third on the team with four goals through the team's first nine games, getting to the hard ice has become something he does as often as possible.
"I've just been, just been patient," he said. "(I) trust in my linemates to get the job done, get shots on net, and (I've just been in the) right place at the right time."
After the loss on Friday, the Huskies bounced back hard on Saturday to earn a 5-2 win at the Berry Events Center in Marquette. Bliss and sophomore center Arvid Caderoth scored on back-to-back power plays to help the Huskies regain the lead at 3-2. From there, junior center Logan Pietila scored his second goal of the game and senior winger Brian Halonen added an empty-netter to seal the win.
Pietila's two goals pushed his total this season to five, good for second behind Halonen's six. A player who struggled with no goals and four points last season, Pietila has six points in six games in 2021-22, and no one is more excited for the third-year forward than his coach.
"Logan has had to evolve, and he's changing, and it's paying off for him," said Shawhan during his weekly radio interview with Dirk Hembroff on Mix 93 Monday. "He's working hard to evolve his game. It's always great to see him have success."
Shawhan attributes Pietila's ability to make changes in his game to how hard he works each day in practice.
"He's a guy that doesn't shortcut anything," Shawhan said. "He works extremely hard. He approaches it the right way. He just has some things in his game that can make him consistently better and they aren't natural to him. I give him a ton of credit for going after that and trying to improve."
On the road to face the Beavers
This weekend, the Huskies hit the road for their first full weekend of CCHA action away from the friendly confines of the MacInnes Student Ice Arena. They travel to Bemidji State to face the Beavers, who are tied for the top spot in the conference standings with Minnesota State thanks to a 5-1 record, good for 15 points. They are fresh off a sweep of the Lake Superior State Lakers last weekend.
The Huskies and Beavers are set to start at 8:07 p.m. Friday at the Sanford Center in Bemidji, Minnesota. Saturday, the two squads are set for an opening faceoff at 7:07 p.m.
The Beavers are led by senior Owen Sillinger, older brother of the NHL's Columbus Blue Jackets center Cole Sillinger. Owen has four goals and 12 points through 10 games this season. Their other brother, Lukas, a sophomore, is also off to a good start for the Beavers with three goals and nine points.
Senior Tyler Kirkup leads the team in goals with six.
In goal, the Beavers are still searching for their heir apparent to Zach Driscoll, who left the program after his senior season. Sophomore Gavin Enright has seen the most action, getting into five games. He has a 3-2-0 record with a 2.62 goals against average and .913 save percentage.