It is improvement week for the Michigan Wolverines’ ice hockey team as they welcome the stars of tomorrow for a Friday night exhibition:
The No. 10 Michigan Wolverines (3-2-1) will finally get to catch their breath. After a whirlwind start to the season with three non-conference series against NCAA Tournament hopefuls, the Wolverines will face off in an exhibition game against the United States National Team Development Program (USNTDP) on Friday night at Yost.
The USNTDP (4-8) is the home of tomorrow’s stars. In fact, four current Wolverines are USNTDP alums — Jacob Truscott, Tyler Duke, Dakoda Rhéaume-Mullen and Christian Humphreys — and have spoken openly about the lessons they took from their time with the national team.
Michigan has won three straight over the USNTDP, and Friday’s game will serve as the perfect warmup before traveling to Boston to face third-ranked Boston University next weekend. Most importantly, the exhibition will allow the Wolverines to address some key concerns before moving into conference play in two weeks.
Exhibitions are the only games of the season where winning takes a back seat to improvement. Against the USNTDP, Michigan will look to improve its power play and decide on a starting goalie.
Before the year, no one would have suspected the Wolverines would have one of the most potent penalty-killing units and a below-average power play. Frankly, the opposite would have been presumed because that has been the story of Michigan’s special teams the last three seasons. However, the trends have reversed so far this year.
Michigan’s power play is currently converting at an anemic 10.5-percent clip, which is dead last among Big Ten teams. For comparison, the Wolverines have converted at a 27.9-percent clip the last three seasons, peaking with a staggering 33.6 percent last season.
There is one issue beyond the chemistry of acclimating several new players: among the 12 available forwards, 10 of them have a right-handed shot. This alone has caused logistical headaches for the unit as they position and reposition on the attack. The good news is the power play is head coach Brandon Naurato’s specialty and if anyone can get this unit humming for Big Ten play, it’s him.
In net, Michigan has been fortunate to have been presented with the challenge of deciding between two reliable options. Through six games, the goalie duties have been split down the middle, but now is the time to make a decision.
Graduate transfer Logan Stein (.925 save percentage) has been buzzing after overcoming his opening night struggles and is fresh off of a shutout last Friday against St. Cloud State. Competing with Stein is true freshman Cameron Korpi (.915 save percentage) who has not looked like a rookie three games into his collegiate career. Although it appears Stein is now the favorite, Korpi is certainly the future for the Wolverines.
It’s improvement week in Ann Arbor, and although the USNTDP is more focused on shaping the future of hockey, they wouldn’t mind impacting the present as well.
Game 1
When: Friday, Oct. 25, 7 p.m. ET
Where: Yost Ice Arena, Ann Arbor, MI
How to watch: BIG+
How to listen: WXYT 1270 AM / Varsity Podcast Network