The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/111015
������ michigan hockey lead. Continually poor defensive-zone play and weak goaltending cost U-M two more goals just four minutes into the final frame, and the end result was Michigan���s ninth loss (now 10 after a 7-4 defeat to Notre Dame Feb. 8) of three goals or more. On The Rise ��� Junior Derek DeBlois: Michigan was counting on the stout defensive forward to raise his offensive profile this season, seeing greater potential in him after he scored six goals in 2012. However, DeBlois fell victim to the slump that seems to have consumed the entire U-M roster, netting just three goals and five assists in his first 25 games with a plus/minus of minus-2. Over the past four games, though, DeBlois has come alive, netting three goals overall, including his first career two-goal night in the Maize and Blue���s sweep of Michigan State Feb. 1-2, while keeping his scoring streak alive with a tally in a 7���4 loss to Notre Dame Feb. 8. DeBlois now ranks fifth among the Wolverines with seven goals. Top Freshman ��� Cristoval ���Boo��� Nieves: Senior center A.J. Treais sat atop the Michigan scoring lead for the first four months of the season, but with seven points in his last four games, Nieves now stands No.��1 with 23 points on eight goals and 15 assists. After enduring an eight-game goal drought, Nieves notched his fourth goal of the year in a 3-2 loss to Lake Superior Jan. 19. He had an assist a week later in a series with Western Michigan, then exploded with three goals and two assists against MSU, including the game winner in a 3-2 victory Feb. 1. Series To Watch ��� March 1-2 vs. Ferris State: Michigan will close out its regularFreshman Cristoval Nieves tallied season schedule when it hosts the Bulldogs, seven points in his last four games to and while the Wolverines have no shot of become U-M���s top scorer (23 points). winning the CCHA title or earning a firstphoto by per kjeldsen round bye in the conference tournament, they can still earn home-ice advantage for that first round by finishing among the top eight teams. Presently, U-M sits 10th, six points out of eighth. Michigan knows it will be on the road for a quarterfinal series, a daunting challenge considering the Maize and Blue haven���t won a road series all year, but to play back-to-back series away from Yost will almost certainly prove their undoing. ��� Michael Spath