The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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MICHIGAN IN THE PROS Penguins won the championship. "But I came to a team with great guys and have enjoyed the ride." Hagelin played in the Stanley Cup Finals once and the Eastern Conference Finals three times with the Rangers, who reached the Stanley Cup Finals in 2014 but lost to the Los Angeles Kings in five games. He was traded to Anaheim for forward Emerson Etem after the Rangers lost to Tampa Bay in game seven of the 2015 Eastern Conference Finals. The veteran notched only four goals, 12 points and a minus-10 rating in 43 games before the Ducks traded him to the Penguins Jan. 16. Hagelin registered 10 goals and 17 assists in 37 regular-season games in Pittsburgh and recorded six goals and 10 assists and went plus-nine in 24 playoff games. NHL.com reported that coach Mike Sullivan, an assistant with the Rangers during Hagelin's first two NHL seasons, had installed a system that allowed Hagelin to start using his speed again. As a result, Hagelin notched six game-winning goals for the Penguins after having zero with Ducks. Pittsburgh was 20-16-7 before acquiring him and went 28-10-1 after to finish second in the Metropolitan Division. "He's been a huge key for this success," teammate Patric Hornqvist said. "[Hagelin] brings so much speed to that line. Him and [Phil] Kessel play really well together. "They played with [Evgeni] Malkin first, and then [Nick] Bonino came in and they got even better. He's been a really key guy." And now he's a Stanley Cup champion. Major League Baseball FORMER MICHIGAN PITCHERS ARE EXCELLING IN THE MAJOR LEAGUES Former Michigan pitchers Rich Hill and Zach Putnam are having good seasons with the Oakland Athletics and Chicago White Sox, respectively, but both were also battling injuries that threatened to shorten their seasons. Heading into the July 12 All-Star Game, Hill stood 9-3 with a 2.25 ERA and 90 strikeouts in 76 innings. The Chicago Cubs were scouting him, MLB.com reported, as a possible trade addition to their rotation after the All-Star break, and he impressed July 7 after coming off the disabled list. He notched 10 strikeouts in a 3-1 win over Houston after missing just over a month with a strained left groin. "We've seen quite a few of these games from him this year and to come back so effective after a long layoff and an injury is really impressive," manager Bob Melvin told the Associated Press. "We've gotten him back to 100 pitches or so, and he's pitching in the same fashion he did before he left." Hill pitched six innings and gave up two runs in a 4-2 loss to Pittsburgh July 2, his first outing since May 29.