MINNEAPOLIS — The No. 6 Michigan hockey team got outdueled by No. 7 Minnesota in almost every possible aspect in Friday’s 6-0 loss. The Golden Gophers walked all over the Wolverines — and Minnesota won the all the all-important physical duel, too.
Friday was far from Michigan’s first physical matchup of the season. In just the last two weeks, the Wolverines have traded penalties in wins over Penn State and have been battered and bruised into defeat by No. 7 Western Michigan. After all, Michigan brings that mentality into every game regardless of the opponent.
“We’re intentionally trying to do (be physical) every game,” Wolverines coach Brandon Naurato said Nov. 30. “The field position, feeding our forecheck, being physical, beating people up the ice … that’s the sign of a great team.”
While Michigan may have matched physicality with its opponents in past games, the Golden Gophers proved a tougher challenge. As Minnesota continued to fire shots at net early in the first period, it continued to lay hits, too, hits that made the Wolverines feel the Gophers’ presence. Michigan adjusted to the Broncos’ bruising nature throughout last week’s game, but against Minnesota, it never really found a rhythm.
The game’s physicality manifested itself in plenty of penalties throughout the game. There were 10 penalties called in total, including one major penalty and one game misconduct — both called against the Gophers. Several times throughout the game, kerfuffles broke out during stoppages. Players exchanged words, pushed and shoved before settling down and instead taking their emotions out with their play.
“The whole team’s trying to be physical,” graduate defenseman Jacob Truscott said Friday. “We don’t really like each other, so trying to establish that physical presence and trying to get some momentum.”
Even though the tangible penalty numbers of Friday’s rivalry game may have leaned in slight favor of the Wolverines, the intangible effects of the Gophers’ physical style of play played to their advantage in the game. Minnesota was aggressive on the forecheck, which helped it gain possession in the offensive zone and sustain pressure on Michigan. That pressure allowed the Gophers to get off to a hot start in the first period that they wouldn’t relinquish.
While a lack of physicality led to the Wolverines’ downfall in their loss to Western Michigan last Friday, they were able to switch gears the next day and ramp up the brawniness. Michigan came out with a plan to reciprocate the Broncos’ intensity — and it found success en route to a 2-1 win. Downplaying Friday’s struggles with physicality, Naurato doesn’t seem to doubt that the Wolverines could flip that same switch once more on Saturday.
“There were some penalties, I actually didn’t think (it was) like a hard game,” Naurato said. “It wasn’t like a hard game … We didn’t make it hard for them so they made plays and scored, but I don’t think they really made it hard for us.”
Michigan was certainly defeated in more ways than just the physical battle on Friday. But from the outset, Minnesota used its aggressive, physical play to set a tone — a tone that made its way into all aspects of the game and had a big hand in its dominant win.
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