The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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APRIL 2025 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 37 BY CLAYTON SAYFIE W in one game in a Big Ten Tour- nament opening series against Penn State, and the Wolverines were going to feel much better about their NCAA Tournament chances. But Mich- igan was swept by the Nittany Lions at Yost Ice Arena, making for a long, nerve-wracking wait for the field to be announced March 23. Michigan entered the Big Ten quar- terfinals 18-13-3, before losing to PSU 6-5 in overtime and 5-2 in regulation March 7-8. In the first game, the Wolverines were outshot by 10 (36-26) and surrendered a power-play goal in overtime. That put more pressure on the sec- ond game, Michigan hoping to win and force a third tilt for the right to advance to the semis, but the Wolverines didn't take control of a highly competitive 60 minutes. The score was tied 1-1 less than two minutes in, the Wolverines trailed 3-2 late in the third but surrendered two goals — one late in each of the last two periods — to lose 5-2. Michigan attempted 33 shots to PSU's 37, making a point to get the puck on net, but the Wolverines couldn't light the lamp enough. "Overall, we lacked a sense of ur- gency," head coach Brandon Naurato said. "A bounce here, a bounce there … but we didn't do enough to guarantee a win in 60 minutes." "We definitely tried to shoot the puck as much as we could today," sophomore forward Nick Moldenhauer said. "No shot was a bad shot, but we just couldn't get enough through. They blocked too many, and it just didn't work out for us." With two straight losses and a record only three games above .500, Michigan left Yost with an uncertain future. NCAA TOURNAMENT HOPES ALL BUT DEAD According to College Hockey News, Michigan had a 70 percent chance to make the 16-team NCAA Tournament entering the best-of-three series with Penn State, but the odds are now 27 per- cent, with the Maize and Blue check- ing in 14th nationally in the PairWise rankings. Grabbing one of the 10 at- large bids looks like a long shot, which is a major disappointment for a pro- gram that is coming off three consecu- tive Frozen Four appearances, including the last two under Naurato. "It's really just up to fate whether we're in the tournament or not," sopho- more forward Nick Moldenhauer said. "Our plan is just to still train like we normally would and just be prepared if we get chosen to go play the tourna- ment. We're definitely looking for that to happen, but it's really just up to fate right now." Leaving it up to fate is a problem that made it a "long couple weeks" for Nau- rato and his Big Ten fourth-place Wol- verines. Michigan had defections from key players late in the process ahead of the season, including Seamus Casey waiting until May to choose to head to the pros and Rutger McGroarty signing with the Pittsburgh Penguins in August, ahead of preseason practices. Those are chal- lenges Naurato and Co. had to deal with, among other factors. The third-year head coach vowed that the Wolverines will be in a much better spot moving forward, using this season as a lesson. "We'll see what our fate is the next two weeks," Naurato said after losing the second night to Penn State. "Michi- gan will never be in this spot again … ever, ever, ever, ever, as long as I'm here. We know the core of the issues. It'll never happen again." ❑ ❱ MICHIGAN HOCKEY Michigan Hockey Swept By Penn State In Big Ten Tournament Senior defenseman Ethan Edwards tallied 21 points (5 goals, 16 assists) this season, but the Wolverines face long odds for receiving an NCAA Tournament bid March 23. PHOTO COURTESY MICHIGAN ATHLETICS 2024-25 HOCKEY SCHEDULE (18-15-3 Overall, 12-10-2 Big Ten) Date Opponent Result Oct. 4 Minnesota State L, 5-2 Oct. 5 Minnesota State W, 4-1 Oct. 11 at Arizona State W, 4-1 Oct. 12 at Arizona State T, 3-3 Oct. 18 St. Cloud State W, 3-0 Oct. 19 St. Cloud State L, 4-0 Oct. 25 USNTDP U-18 Team (Exh.) W, 5-4 (OT) Nov. 1 at Boston U. W, 5-1 Nov. 2 at Boston U. W, 5-4 (OT) Nov. 8 Notre Dame W, 2-1 (OT) Nov. 9 Notre Dame W, 4-2 Nov. 22 at Penn State W, 6-5 Nov. 23 at Penn State W, 10-6 Nov. 29 at Western Michigan L, 4-1 Nov. 30 Western Michigan W, 2-1 Dec. 6 at Minnesota L, 6-0 Dec. 7 at Minnesota L, 2-0 Dec. 13 Wisconsin L, 4-0 Dec. 14 Wisconsin W, 3-2 (OT) Jan. 3 vs. Ohio State^ L, 4-3 Jan. 5 Ohio State W, 3-2 (OT) Jan. 10 at Notre Dame W, 5-3 Jan. 11 at Notre Dame L, 7-4 Jan. 17 Michigan State W, 3-2 (OT) Jan. 18 at Michigan State L, 4-1 Jan. 24 at Wisconsin L, 5-4 Jan. 25 at Wisconsin T, 4-4 (SO, W) Jan. 31 Penn State L, 5-4 Feb. 1 Penn State W, 7-3 Feb. 7 at Michigan State W, 2-1 Feb. 8 vs. Michigan State* L, 6-1 Feb. 14 Minnesota W, 3-2 (OT) Feb. 15 Minnesota T, 2-2 (SO, W) Feb. 27 at Ohio State L, 2-1 (OT) Feb. 28 at Ohio State W, 4-3 Mar. 7 Penn State# L, 6-5 (OT) Mar. 8 Penn State# L, 5-2 ^ Wrigley Field, Chicago; * Little Caesars Arena, Detroit; # Big Ten Tournament