Inside College Hockey | 2004 NCAA Midwest Regional

March 27, 2004
NCAA Tournament | Midwest Regional
Thomas Turns it On
Vanek continues to perform in the playoffs; sets up meeting with UMD

By James Jahnke

Minnesota 5, Notre Dame 2
Team	Goal	Str
Time	Assists
First Period
1-ND	Cory McLean (10)	EV
0:54	A. Gill, M. Walsh
2-ND	Aaron Gill (17)	PP
19:18	M. Walsh, R. Globke
Second Period
1-MN	Matt Koalska (13)	EV
0:26	T. Vanek, C. Harrington
2-MN	Danny Irmen (14)	PP
9:13	C. Harrington, G. Guyer
3-MN	Thomas Vanek (25)	44
16:24	Unassisted
Third Period
4-MN	Thomas Vanek (26)	EV
11:52	M. Koalska, K. Ballard
5-MN	Troy Riddle (24)	EN
19:24	Unassisted
Goaltending
ND: Morgan Cey, 59:01, 40 saves, 4 GA
MN: Kellen Briggs, 60:00, 20 saves, 2 GA
Penalties: ND 8/16; MN 8/16
Power Plays: ND 1-5; MN 1-5
Attendance: 5,325

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Thomas Vanek doesn’t have the best reputation. Even after a stellar three-point performance in Minnesota’s 5-2 first-round victory over Notre Dame on Saturday, the joke in the pressroom attributed the success to Vanek being well-rested from not playing hard during the early months of the regular season.

Sure, Vanek sometimes coasts through shifts, periods and games – but not as often as people say. And his effectiveness during the playoffs, where players are often ultimately judged, is undeniable.

Vanek, the reigning Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player, dominated the second half of Saturday’s game, breaking a 2-2 stalemate late in the second period and adding an insurance goal early in the third. He was an offensive threat from the get-go, ringing a shot off the post behind Irish goaltender Morgan Cey during the first shift of the game.

“Playoffs are always a little more fun than the regular season, I think,” Vanek said. “I like playoffs. It’s a one-game shot in college and you’ve got to bring your best every night from here on out. Getting two goals, I don’t know if that really matters. We just want to win every game.”

Vanek doesn’t seem to play with any more urgency during the playoffs – he just makes things happen. He has accounted for the game-winning goal in Minnesota’s last three tournament games, and also assisted on the marker that put the Gophers up 3-1 in last year’s championship contest.

If the Gophers win their third-straight national title in a couple of weeks, odds are that Vanek will have supplied a good chunk of the firepower.

“Your top players have to be your top players this time of year,” Gophers coach Don Lucia said. “Tonight, our big guys scored."

Minnesota Duluth 5, Michigan State 0
Team	Goal	Str
Time	Assists
First Period
1-MD	Evan Schwabe (18)	EV
12:16	J. Williams, T. Hambly
Second Period
2-MD	Jesse Unklesbay (5)	EV
1:14	N. Anderson
3-MD	Brett Hammond (7)	EV
5:36	M. Peluso, J. Hardwick
4-MD	Junior Lessard (29)	EV
8:13	E. Schwabe, J. Hardwick
5-MD	Junior Lessard (30)	PP
13:01	E. Schwabe, T. Brosz
Third Period
No Scoring
Goaltending
MS: Dominic Vicari, 28:13, 11 saves, 4 GA; Matt Migliaccio, 31:47, 12 saves, 1 GA
MD: Isaac Reichmuth, 60:00, 23 saves, 0 GA
Penalties: MS 5/10; MD 4/8
Power Plays: MS 0-4; MD 1-5
Attendance: 5,325

JUNIOR PLAYS SECOND FIDDLE TO NO ONE

Minnesota-Duluth senior forward Junior Lessard must have felt like a movie star Saturday.

Before the Bulldogs faced off against Michigan State, everyone was asking, “Is Junior playing today?” “How’s Junior’s knee?” “Will he be effective?” “Does UMD have a chance without him?”

After the game, in which Lessard scored two goals, he was peppered with similar questions. “How did it feel?” “Were you close to not playing?” “When did you decide you would?”

Lessard admitted the widespread concern about his left knee was a bit flattering. Kind of an “All this attention for little ole me?”-type thing. But his very presence in the lineup, along with those of fellow walking wounded Tyler Brosz and Tim Hambly, were certainly major contributors to UMD’s 5-0 dismantling of MSU.

“Mentally, when you get those players back it changes the team’s thought process,” Bulldogs coach Scott Sandelin said. “And it gives you more depth. Certainly, at this time of year, you need that. Offensively, those guys contribute.”

Lessard said he wasn’t sure he would play until testing his knee – which he hurt while trying to avoid a check at last weekend’s Final Five – on Saturday morning. He had sat out of practice all week, but said the joint felt strong during the morning skate and it was close to 100 percent for the game.

And he played like it. Lessard scored the fourth and fifth goals of the game. In the end, they didn’t decide the outcome, but when he scored them in the second period, the goals utterly demoralized the Spartans.

“I was excited myself, and I think a lot of other guys were excited to see me back out there,” Lessard said. “You just want to play hard. I really didn’t care about the hat trick. It doesn’t matter if I score at all. At this time of year, I just want the win.”

INCH's Three Stars of the Night

3. Evan Schwabe, Minnesota Duluth
Though overshadowed by Lessard, Schwabe had a goal – the game-winner – and two assists of his own Saturday. His line gave the Spartans fits every time it was on the ice.

2. Junior Lessard, Minnesota Duluth
Shaking off a bum knee he has as a keepsake of the Final Five, Lessard potted two goals in the decisive second period against the Spartans.

1. Thomas Vanek, Minnesota
The star Austrian always seems to have a little more jump in the postseason. On Saturday, he notched two goals – including the game-winner – and assist, two pipes and was active in both zones.

SEEN AND HEARD AT VAN ANDEL

• Minnesota athletic director Joel Maturi might win the award as the hardest working man in show business this weekend. Maturi was checking out the view from the Van Andel pressbox Saturday morning, and looking a bit tired, having just arrived from Providence. On Friday at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center, he watched the Gopher women’s hockey team defeat Dartmouth 5-1. He hopped a plane for Grand Rapids immediately and was on hand for the men’s game versus Notre Dame. Afterward, he was en route back to RhodeIsland for the women’s title game. And with the Gopher women’s basketball team playing in the Sweet 16 in Norfolk, Va., Maturi could potentially be torn in a third direction, but he said he’s only going to watch the women’s hoop team if they win and advance to the Final 8. Smart man.

• From the Van Andel pressbox, one has to look through a layer of glass and a large net to see the ice. With all of the protective measures being established in hopes of keeping fans safe, Dave Ellis of Spartan Sports Zone theorized that we can’t be far from the days when the rink will be covered by a giant plastic bubble, ala the table hockey game in your arena lobby. Ellis said he’s in favor of the idea as long as they install a “boo” button for fans to push.

• In an arena named after a wealthy Dutchman, it seemed only reasonable that the rink announcer referred to Minnesota’s hottest player as “Tom Van Ek” after the Austrian sensation scored both of his goals. And speaking of Vanek, kudos to the Gopher fan with the big Austrian flag that was unfurled after each of his goals.

• Lucia, who played 124 games for the Irish as a collegian, was able to step outside his role as the coach of the enemy for just a second and be proud of his old school’s accomplishments this season. “It was great for college hockey to have a big-name program like that in the tournament. I was a proud alum today. When I walked out on the bench the (Notre Dame) Fight Song was going and it sounded good. Maybe not as good as the (Minnesota) Rouser this time of year, but if they wouldn’t have been playing us, I would’ve been rooting for them.”

• Speaking of Lucia’s alma mater, the coach put a black nylon covering over the neck brace he’s been wearing for the past few weeks at the advice of some former players who said he would look better on TV that way. “I kind of looked like a priest out there. I didn’t want Notre Dame to have any advantage. But I could probably never be a priest. I don’t think I could handle the celibacy.”

• One of the more entertaining moments of Minnesota-Duluth’s blowout of Michigan State came when the person wearing the Sparty Spartan mascot outfit decided to visit the UMD Penalty Box (the loud and well-lubricated group of UMD students that follows the Bulldogs wherever they play). The muscular Sparty, outfitted in his full Spartan regalia was greeted with chants of “Go Big Blue,” “Hey, Nice Skirt,” and “Steroids Suck!” The members of the Penalty Box could be excused for being a little cranky. They left Duluth at 6 p.m. (CST) Friday night and made the 14-hour drive to Grand Rapids, arriving just
three hours before the first game on Saturday.

• Notre Dame coach Dave Poulin said he got more than 100 messages from former players congratulating the Irish on their first ever NCAA Tournament bid. Ten percent of those 100 had called him before Sunday’s selection show was over.

• MSU coach Rick Comley hinted that changes might in store for the Spartans’ roster. While Joe Markusen and Steve Swistak are the only players graduating from the program, Comley said he’s not convinced everybody else will be back. Whether he was referring to the possible pro careers of Jim Slater and A.J. Thelen or otherwise, wasn’t clear.

• Comley also praised UMD while taking a veiled shot at his team. “Duluth is an old-time college hockey team. They only have one draft pick. For those kids, these are the best four years of their lives. There aren’t a lot of prototypical professional players on their team, just a lot of really, really good college players.”

PLUSSES AND MINUSES

It was an impressive showing by the Fighting Irish and their fans in the school’s first NCAA hockey tournament appearance. With a good band on hand and more fans in the building than would fit in the Joyce Center, the Golden Domers were a welcome addition to the field of 16. The only continuing complaint comes from the school’s seemingly endless confusion about their school colors. With the team wearing navy and gold, why so much green among the Notre Dame faithful?

Kudos to the guy INCH spotted wearing an old Illinois-Chicago sweater in the stands. If only the Flames were still around today…

Even more annoying than the dimly lit press box and placid crowd at Van Andel Arena was the censoring of the video replay system. ESPN’s feed was shown on the arena’s video board in real-time during play and after whistles. But when the network would show replays, the live feed on the video board was covered by an NCAA logo. More than once, the crowd audibly groaned when a second chance to see a good goal or stellar save was taken away.

Far be it from me to point the finger at one player as the reason for a loss, but MSU freshman goaltender Dominic Vicari was anything but sharp against UMD. He made just 11 saves on 15 shots, and the Bulldogs’ fourth goal, in particular, was a softie. All a team needs is for its goalie to play well enough to give them a chance to win (see Minnesota, North Dakota and Boston College). Vicari didn’t do that.

WHAT'S NEXT

Minnesota and UMD advance to the regional final, where they will fight for a spot in the Frozen Four, at 1 p.m. Sunday. It will be the sixth time this season the rivals have met, with the Bulldogs holding a 4-1-0 edge. But the Gophers won the most recent meeting, 7-4, on March 19.

Notre Dame, meanwhile, bids adieu to a strong senior class featuring the likes of Rob Globke, Aaron Gill, Neil Komadoski, Brett Lebda and Tom Galvin. But Fighting Irish coach Dave Poulin has plenty of reasons to look forward to the 2004-05 season. The goalie tandem of Morgan Cey and David Brown might be the best in the nation next season, and there’s still talent up front in the likes of Mike Walsh, Cory McLean, Matt Amado and Tim Wallace. Along the blue line, young Wes O’Neill will be a year older, stronger and wiser, as will freshman Noah Babin. Add to the mix a solid recruiting class, and the Irish will be a threat to repeat their NCAA Tournament bid.

Michigan State loses just two players – defenseman Joe Markusen and little-used forward Steve Swistak – to graduation. There is still a chance junior Jim Slater could sign a pro contract or freshman A.J. Thelen could opt into to NHL Draft, but the Spartans should have all their key players back next season. That includes goalies Vicari and Matt Migliaccio.

Special reporting by Jess Myers.