Weekend Rewind: What you may have missed

By Michael Caples –

Between the big football game in East Lansing and the Detroit Tigers hiring a new manager (good luck to Brad Ausmus), there were plenty of sports distractions for the Michigan hockey audience this weekend. That’s why we’re here, though – to help out in these situations.

Here’s a look at what hockey things you may have missed this weekend:

Red Wings building a winning streak

The Wings have now won three straight, with all three taking place out on the west coast. After a 2-1 win over Vancouver Wednesday night, Detroit registered a pair of weekend wins against Calgary and Edmonton. After a 4-3 win over the Flames Friday, the Wings shut out the Oilers, posting a 5-0 road victory Saturday night (see our recap here). Darren Helm returned to the line-up and scored, while Petr Mrazek recorded a shutout in his first NHL game of the season.

The bad news for the Wings, however, is that Brendan Smith got hurt in a late fight during the Saturday night win. That means the club has called up Adam Almquist, who will make his NHL debut tonight when the Wings take on the Winnipeg Jets.

Griffins heating up after pair of weekend wins

The Grand Rapids Griffins picked up road wins on Friday and Sunday, which means they are now on a five-game win streak.

On Friday, a pair of goals from Tomas Jurco powered GRG to a 6-4 win over the Lake Erie Monsters. Tom McCollum stopped 21 of the 25 shots he faced to record the win.

On Sunday, the Wings’ AHL affiliate moved into first place in the Western Conference with a 3-1 win over the Rockford IceHogs. Tristan Grant, Teemu Pulkkinen and Landon Ferraro scored for the Griffins, while McCollum recorded another win after stopping 34 of 35.

Wolverines sweep Huskies

Michigan hosted Mel Pearson and the Michigan Tech Huskies this weekend, and they recorded a pair of wins in the process. The Wolverines picked up a 3-2 overtime win on Friday, and a 2-1 win on Saturday.

Click here for our recap and photo gallery from Friday night.

Click here for our recap and photo gallery from Saturday night.

Spartans sweep Yellow Jackets

Michigan State welcomed American International College to East Lansing for a Friday/Sunday series, and the Spartans registered wins both days. On Friday, MSU recorded a 5-4 win, while they did so in a much more convincing fashion Sunday, posting a 4-0 win.

Click here for our Sunday recap and photo gallery from the Spartans’ win.

Broncos sweep their first NCHC weekend

The Western Michigan Broncos took part in their first weekend series as members of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference, and so far so good for WMU.

On Friday, the Broncos recorded a 3-2 overtime win over Colorado College, thanks to a goal from Kyle Novak in the extra frame. Frank Slubowski stopped 29 shots in the win.

Things went a little smoother for the Broncos the next night; they posted a 5-1 win over the Tigers on goals from Dennis Brown, Chase Balisy, Josh Pitt, Justin Kovacs and Colton Hargrove. Slubowski tended to the pipes to record his third win of the season.

Ferris State sweeps road set with Huntsville

Ferris State traveled down to Alabama Huntsville for a weekend WCHA match-up, and had no problems with their new surroundings.

Friday night, the Bulldogs posted five goals on the Chargers, and recorded a shutout at the same time. Dominic Panetta, Garrett Thompson, Kenny Babinski, Kyle Schempp and Scott Czarnowczan all scored for the Bulldogs in the win, while C.J. Motte turned aside 21 shots for his fourth win of the season.

On Saturday, things were a little tighter. Justin Buzzeo’s third-period goal on a FSU power play broke a 2-2 tie, and led the Bulldogs to a 3-2 win. It was Buzzeo’s second goal of the night. Motte made 19 saves to improve to 5-0-0 on the season.

Northern Michigan travels to Alaska for a split

The Wildcats made the trek to Alaska for the weekend, and returned home with a series split against the Nanooks. On Friday, a rally in the third period that saw NMU pull within one turned out to not be enough, as they lost 5-4. However, the Wildcats rebounded, and recorded a 2-1 win on Saturday. Stephan Vigier’s power-play goal in the first turned out to be the game-winner, as Mathias Dahlstrom stopped 22 shots to preserve the lead over the final 40 minutes of play.

Lake State wins shootout then falls to Wisconsin

Lake Superior State headed out to Wisconsin for a non-conference match-up this weekend, and it was a tale of two very different games for the Lakers. On Friday, LSSU and Wisconsin played to a 3-3 tie in regulation, and Lake Superior prevailed in the ensuing shootout. However, the Lakers watched a three-goal first-period lead evaporate over 60 minutes. That trend would continue into Saturday’s contest, one where Wisconsin scored eight on Lake State. Final score read 8-1 in favor of the home team, with Kevin Czuczman’s lone goal being followed by six straight from the Badgers.

Plymouth drops lone weekend contest

The Plymouth Whalers traveled to Mississauga on Friday, and they headed back home with a 4-2 loss. Ryan Hartman and Zach Lorentz had the lone goals for the Whalers, while Alex Nedeljkovic stopped 29 of the 32 shots he faced (the Steelheads added an empty-netter at the end).

Saginaw splits weekend set

The Saginaw Spirit played a pair of weekend home games, and one went better than the other. On Friday, the Spirit recorded a 6-3 win over the Owen Sound Attack, thanks in large part to a two goal and two assist outing from Eric Locke. Saturday, however, saw the Spirit’s three-game win streak come to a close, as three second-period goals from the Greyhounds turned out to be too much to overcome.

Muskegon drop two

The Muskegon Lumberjacks dropped a pair of games this weekend. On Friday, the ‘Jacks lost 5-4 to the Dubuque Fighting Saints on the road. The next night, in a home contest, Muskegon fell to Cedar Rapids by a score of 3-2.