Even though the league plays under the banner, “Expect the Unexpected,” Friday night’s CCHA results pushed the limits of credulity. Lake State stole a must-game from the defending champs in Mankato, St. Thomas couldn’t field a full roster, yet they pushed first place Bemidji into overtime on the strength of Lucas Wahlin’s leap, steal and dish, a play worthy of the nightly NBA highlights. And straight from the pages of Ripley’s “Believe it or Not!,” the hottest team in the league—Bowling Green—was blown out at home by Michigan Tech. Friday’s results tossed the CCHA standings into the blender once again.
On Saturday, RinkRap descended into the heart of this historic pennant-race, parachuting into Slater Arena with NY Times writer Neal Boudette, seeking to capture the feverish CCHA race from the inside.
Saturday, 5:40 pm EST Slater Arena’s concourse was teaming with college hockey royalty. Bowling Green’s career scoring leader Nelson Emerson had jetted in from his L.A. Kings job to see his son Quinn, BG’s speedy sophomore. Coaching giant Jerry York was on hand to celebrate the 40th anniversary of BG’s national title, ditto 17-year NHL veteran Garry Galley. Current BG coach Ty Eigner paused long enough to describe a recent surgical scar and to name his starting goalie—freshman Cole Moore—a newsworthy flash. Eigner dashed off to his team’s dressing room before justifying the move.
Coaches abhor goalie controversies—too much room for media second guessing. But Eigner exposed himself with the choice of rookie Moore, and benching loyal veteran Christian Stoever. Twice in the last three contests Eigner had given both goalies the hook mid-contest, but he had given his rookie much more leeway than he had with Stoever. This decision—declared 90 minutes before puck-drop—was Eigner pushing all his poker chips into the middle of the table. All in on Moore, and let the chips fall.
6:00 pm Inside Michigan Tech’s inner coaching sanctum on the west side of Slater Arena, Huskies coach Joe Shawhan was receiving free advice on a knee replacemen from Boudette. Ten feet away, assistant coach and hockey savant Jordy Murray spoke about his club’s surging power play, having just finished meeting with Tech’s special teams. A season ago Tech was last in the CCHA with the man up. Today they are third, converting over 20% of the time.
“Last year we were holding on to the puck too long, waiting for that perfect play,” Murray said, making a point to credit fellow assistant Tyler Shelast on the team’s improvement from a year ago. “This year the mentality is—let the puck do the work, create shot opportunities, hunt, recover, do it again. Look for a seam pass and get the goalie moving.”
Shawhan limped over, willing to discuss Friday’s 7-0 win despite having five standouts nursing injuries home in Houghton. “You go with what you got, and you don’t makes excuses,” Shawhan said. “No need to play with fear, lay it out there, you’ve got 60 minutes to exert yourselves.”
6:15 pm
7:10 pm Minutes after Jerry York dropped the ceremonial puck, the CCHA’s Steve McInchak dropped a live disc, and it was Game On. Unlike Friday night, this game began with much tighter checking. Bowling Green came out afire, testing Tech with multiple scoring chances. By the halfway mark of the period the ice surface leveled, every skater a wall-banger, desperate for possession.
Up in press row, Times writer Boudette, a Boston U. alum and an Eastern college aficionado, shared an observation: “This is much more physical than Hockey East.” Appropriate for a game of this magnitude and intensity, the refs “let them play,” at least until the 19th minute of the game. It was then that both McInchak and Andy Thackaberry whistled minors on Tech, presenting the Falcons with a golden opportunity: a full two minutes with a two-man advantage.
“That’s a huge chance,” Eigner said post game. “There’s moments in games where you don’t know until after the fact that it’s a big opportunity.”
An opportunity lost, thanks in no small part to the active sticks of the Tech penalty killers. The game raged on, a physical battle balanced precariously on the edge of violence, with the goaltenders stealing center stage: BG’s rookie Moore vs the Tech’s fifth-year star Blake Pietila. The two put up zeroes through two stanzas. The second intermission presented a gut-check for the visiting Huskies.
Shawhan doesn’t speak at every intermission, but his presence filled the sweaty room this night. “To win a playoff series, we’re going to have to win two-games somewhere in order to advance,” Shawhan said. “It’s hard to do.” He challenged his team to overcome their fatigue, conceding later, “the guys are tired, hurt, banged up and depleted.”
The Final Act
That fatigue may have factored in Bowling Green’s first goal of the weekend, less than three minutes into the third. German-born Falcon Tommy Pasanen rushed into the Huskies’ zone, slammed on the brakes, freezing the Tech defense, then sliding the puck perfectly to Seth Fyten. The senior wasted no time burying his shot past Pietila’s stick side, giving the home team its first lead of the weekend. The sellout crowd finally got it’s chance to roar.
“It felt great,” Fyten said in post. “Always nice to score at home, the fans are amazing.”
“The building was great,” said Eigner. “I thought we’d get going.”
The whispers on press row was that it was now Bowling Green’s time, that Tech might have to concede the split. But two of the least likely candidates in the building flipped the script.
First it was Evan Orr, Tech’s part-time defender (14 GP) who had yet to score all year. In his first shift after the Fyten goal, the bottom-pair defenseman stepped into a passing lane, and found himself with a clean look at the BG goal. Orr let go a fluttering shot, fooling Moore to the near side, and suddenly, Tech was back in the game. In the post-game, no reporter pressed Eigner about his choice of goalies. There is little doubt that Moore wanted that one back.
The next goal came five minutes later, as Tech rookie Chase Pietila let fly with a missile from the point. His first career goal turned out to be the game-winner, changing the trajectories of two teams with one mighty blast.
“Unreal experience, game’s on the line so I just gave it everything I had,” Pietila said, a man-child who is emerging as the team’s toughest leader. “I was super excited and showed it. It was more than just me out there, but I was happy to contribute.”
Big brother Blake took care of the rest, turning aside the rest of the BG chances, before Logan Pietila (Blake’s twin) fired an arrow 150 feet for an empty-net bullseye. The Pietila gang had skated into the barn of the hottest team in the league and come away with a six-point sweep.
Although Shawhan insists that he never looks toward the end game, he admits to coveting home ice in the fast-approaching playoffs. Out-of-town scores were coming in hot during the joyous post game, and the coach learned his club had tied St. Thomas for third place, two points out of second.
“Our guys have been through a lot,” Shawhan said, “sweeps are hard. It was tough, in this building? It was a grind.”
The visitors’ hallway was a giddy montage of equipment managers and wet-haired players scrambling to collect gear, some stopping to talking to the media.
“This is huge, giant,” said long-time radio man Dirk Hembroff.
“We’re on cloud nine,” said Tyrone Bronte, the speedy Australian who has built a modest three-game scoring streak during this stretch drive. Bronte has moved up the Tech depth chart as the Husky injuries mount. “I feel more involved. Taking on the responsibility that’s been given to me and play the best I can for the team.”
Bronte is one of several players embodying Shawhan’s favorite saying, “Next man up.” Shawhan’s message in the post-game locker room was filled with sentiment. “I’m a very proud father,” Shawhan said, recapping his speech. “When they went down 1-0, it would have been easy to feel sorry for themselves, but they found that grit. What I’m, most proud of is that when they needed to perform, they found that grit. That’s what life is about.”
Two headliners slid out the exit anonymously: reigning CCHA player of the year Blake Pietila, and journeyman defenseman Evan Orr. It was Orr who got game-puck honors from his mates, while Pietila had to wait a couple of days before being named CCHA goalie of the week. In this better-late-than-never run from the Huskies, both played starring roles this night, critical footnotes in this CCHA pennant race for the ages.
Loose Biscuits from Slater
said with a laugh about his six-foot-three enforcer. “He’s got a mean streak to him.” . . . Despite Saturday’s crowd packed with BG supporters in orange, chants of “Let’s Go Huskies” filled the air in the third period. “Our group is incredible,” Shawhan said. “They travel so well.”Joe Shawhantook exception, and rocked Pfoh. “I was just protecting my goalie, who happened to be my goalie” Chase said. “Yeah, ‘little brother,’” Chase Pietila a bump behind the play. Younger brother Blake Pietila gave Tech goalie Brett Pfohplayed his entire career for York. “I wouldn’t be sitting here talking to you if it weren’t for Jerry York.” . . . In Friday’s game, BG’s Ty Eigner and all the returning members from the ’84 national champs attending the team breakfast and the squad’s pre-game meeting. There was also a formal “Road to the Championship” Q & A at BG’s Schmidhorst business college, a live intermission interview on FloHockey.TV and a post-game autograph session. The winningest coach of all time kept smiling throughout. Jerry YorkBG Hockey kept the G.O.A.T of college hockey coaching quite busy Saturday. It started with