Lakers resume CCHA action with series at Ferris State

Fifteen players figured into the scoring during last weekend’s exhibition victories over Windsor and the U.S. Under-18 team, giving the Lake Superior State’s offense a confidence boost heading the Lakers’ upcoming Central Collegiate Hockey Association series at Ferris State. The Lakers play the Bulldogs at 7:05 p.m. Friday and 5:05 p.m. Saturday at Ewigleben Ice Arena in Big Rapids. Both games will be broadcast live on Rock 101 with free audio web streaming in www.rock101.net. A pay-per-view video feed is available on the B2 Network. LSSU, which is 1-2-1 overall and 1-1-0 in the CCHA, took three of four points during last year’s home series against the Bulldogs. The Lakers also claimed three of four points when they last played in Big Rapids on Dec. 8-9, 2006. They are 4-2-4 in their last 10 games against Ferris State. During last weekend’s exhibition games, Lake Superior State shut out Windsor 7-0 and beat the U.S. Under-18 team 7-3. LSSU coach Jim Roque was hoping a well-rested U-18 squad would test the Lakers’ conditioning level during last Sunday’s matinee. The U.S. squad rest Saturday after playing at Michigan Tech on Friday, while the Lakers played two games in less than 24 hours. LSSU gave up two quick goals early in the third period against the USA, but never relinquished the lead. The Lakers scored three unanswered goals during the final 11 minutes. Junior Brad Cooper and sophomore Rick Schofield both totaled 1-4—5 to lead the Lakers last weekend. Sophomore Will Acton amassed 4-0—4, scoring two goals in both games, and junior Nathan Perkovich had a goal in both games. Ferris State (2-2-0 overall, 1-0-1 CCHA) lost in a shootout at Western Michigan last Friday, but came back to beat the Broncos 5-2 at home last Saturday. The Bulldogs are currently second in the CCHA in power-play goals with eight, but have already given up three short-handed goals this season. FSU’s Zach Redmond leads the league in points by a defenseman with 0-6—6, but LSSU junior Steven Kaunisto is right behind him at 1-4—5. Senior forward Brendan Connolly leads the Bulldogs in scoring with 2-5—7.

Lakers Dominate in Exhibition Play

Lake Superior State University’s men’s hockey team put up 14 goals this weekend in exhibition play, posting 7 goals in 3 of their past 4 games. LSSU dominated Winsor on Saturday night 7-0 with Junior goaltender Mitch Edimondson posting 9 saves in a shutout performance. Will Acton started the scoring for the Lakers with Will Acton scoring on the power play 9:39 into the first period, with Brad Cooper and Rick Schofield assisting. Kyle Hanes started off the Lakers scoring barrage in the second period scoring at 3:30 with an assist by Fred Cassiani. Cassiani followed up his assist with two goals of his own just 22 seconds apart at 10:39 and 11:01 of the second with Simon Gysbers and Cooper assisting on the first goal and Cooper getting the lone assist on the second. Acton added another goal with just 25 seconds remaining in the period on the power play with Matt Cowie and Cooper assisting. LSSU added two more goals on the 12 shots they took in the third period with Nathan Perkovich scoring on the power play (10:29) and Steven Olesky scoring an even strength goal late in the period (18:21) to give LSSU a 7-0 win. Rick Schofield and Tyson Hobbins assisted on the Perkovich goal while John Scrymgeour got the lone assist on the Olesky goal. Lake Superior went 3-for-6 on the power play, recording 5 shots while Windsor went 0-for-5 with the extra attacker. LSSU goaltender Mitch Edimondson recorded 9 saves in the shutout, while his Windsor counterparts allowed 7 goals on 45 LSSU shots. On Sunday afternoon LSSU once again put up 7 goals against their opponent. LSSU’s Will Acton opened the scoring at 7:06 of the first period with Zac MacVoy assisting. The US Development Under 18 Team’s Chris Brown, a Michigan commitment, tied the game up at 1-1 two and a half minutes later with on the power play. Josh Sim put the Lakers up for good with a power play goal of his own at 12:04 with Troy Schwab assising. Matt Cowie gave LSSU a 3-1 lead with an even strength goal at 7:47 of the second period with MacVoy recording his second assist on the afternoon. Acton added his second goal of the afternoon at 15:59 on the power play with Macvoy again assisting; Schofield also recorded an assist on the goal Early in the third period Team USA battled back with Jeremy Morin, uncommitted, and Nick Mattson, a North Dakota commitment, notching goals less than 30 seconds apart at 6:40 and 7:09 respectively, to pull the game back to 4-3. LSSU responded with three goals later in the third period with Perkovich, Cooper, and Schofield each scoring goals. Perkovich scored even strength at 9:11 of the third period with Schofield assisting. Cooper and Schofield each scored on the power play with Gysbers and Kaunisto assisting on the Cooper goal at 11:17 and MacVoy assisting on the Schofield goal at 16:25. Lake Superior went 4-for-9 on the power play, 7-for-15 on the weekend, while the USA U-18 team went 1-for-5 with the extra attacker. LSSU goaltenders Pat Inglis and Brian Mahoney-Wilson split time in the goal for LSSU recording 11 saves and 8 saves respectively, Inglis allowed 1 goal while Mahoney-Wilson allowed two goals. Team USA’s Adam Murray, a Denver commitment, allowed 7 goals on the 35 LSSU shots he faced.

Lakers play host to exhibition games against Windsor and U.S. Under-18 team

SAULT STE. MARIE – After winning its Central Collegiate Hockey Association opener for the first time since 1999, the Lake Superior State hockey team is taking a break from league play to play host to exhibition opponents Windsor and the U.S. National Team Development Program’s Under-18 team. The Lakers play Windsor at 7:05 p.m. Saturday, and their game against the Under-18 squad is a Sunday matinee beginning at 1:05 p.m. at Taffy Abel Arena. Both games will be broadcast live on Rock 101 with free internet streaming on www.rock101.net. A pay-per-view video web stream is also available on the B2 Network. Sunday is Youth Hockey Day, and all youth hockey players who are wearing their team jerseys will receive free admission if accompanied by an adult who purchases a ticket. Windsor (2-6-0) is 0-2 against CCHA teams after losing 5-2 to Western Michigan and 4-1 to Ferris State on Oct. 4 and 5. LSSU is playing Windsor for the first time since Oct. 11, 2003. The Lancers’ roster includes Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, forward Mark Thorburn and seven former Ontario Hockey League players. The U-18 team, which is also 0-2 against CCHA opponents, is coached by former LSSU assistant coach Ron Rolston. The U.S. team, which plays Thursday at Rolston’s alma mater, Michigan Tech, lost 4-0 to Alaska and 4-1 to Michigan earlier this month. Rolston and LSSU coach Jim Roque were assistant coaches together under former Laker coach Jeff Jackson. Rolston was part of the coaching staff when the Lakers won the 1992 and ’94 national championships. LSSU is 0-2-1 in its last three meetings against the U.S. Under-18 squad. The Lakers lost 3-1 to the U-18s on Dec. 16, 2006. They also lost 4-3 during the 2005-06 season and tied 3-3 during the 2003-04 season. By beating Ohio State 7-3 last Friday in Columbus, the Lakers not only won their CCHA opener for the first time in nine years, they won a CCHA opener on the road for the first time since Oct. 20, 1995, at Northern Michigan. Junior forward Nathan Perkovich had two goals and two assists against the Buckeyes. Sophomore forward Chad Nehring and freshman forward Fred Cassiani added two goals each, and junior defenseman Steve Kaunisto had three assists. Kaunisto also scored one of the Lakers’ two goals during Saturday’s 4-2 loss to finish with four points for the weekend. LSSU goaltenders Pat Inglis and Brian Mahoney-Wilson split playing time. Mahoney-Wilson totaled 37 saves on Friday and improved to 1-1-0, while Inglis (0-1-1) had 33 saves on Saturday. Last Friday’s four-goal victory broke LSSU’s six-game stretch against Ohio State during which the goal differential averaged 1.33 goals per game. The Lakers and Buckeyes have split three straight series. Kaunisto currently leads the Lakers in points with 1-4—5, while junior forward Zac MacVoy and Perkovich both have 2-2—4. MacVoy has recorded a point in all four Laker games.

Lakers Split in Columbus

Lake Superior State University dominated the Buckeyes on Friday night scoring 7 goals in the game including 2 on the power play. Ohio State’s Hunter Bishop opened the scoring for the Lakers putting the puck past LSSU sophomore Brian Mahoney-Wilson just 14 seconds into the game. The Lakers Chad Nehring tied the game up at the 4:02 mark of the first period, scoring his first goal of the season, with John Scrymgeour and Tyson Hobbins assisting. Freshman Fred Cassiani scored his first collegiate goal at the 6:20 mark of the first with Nathan Perkovich and Steven Kaunisto assisting. Just under three minutes later, at 9:18, Perkovich notched his first of the season with Kaunisto and Troy Schwab assisting on the power play. OSU scored a power play goal of their own at 11:27 of the period to pull the Lakers lead to 3-2 at the end of the first period. LSSU and OSU swapped goals in the second period with LSSU’s Dan Barczuk and OSU’s Corey Elkins scoring at 11:27 and 16:54 respectively. Rick Schofield and Zac MacVoy assisted on the Barczuk goal, the Lakers 4th in the game chasing OSU starting goaltender Joseph Palmer. LSSU added three goals in the third period with Nehring, Cassiani and Perkovich each scoring their second goal of the game. Pat Aubry and Steven Olesky assisted on the Nehring goal just 27 seconds into the third period, Will Acton and Perkovich assisted on Cassiani’s second goal at 1:58 of the period, sending OSU backup Dustin Carlson packing after allowing 2 goals on 6 Laker shots. Simon Gysbers and Kaunisto assisted on the Perkovich goal at 14:44, giving LSSU a 7-3 lead. Lake Superior went 2-for-6 on the power play while Ohio State went 1-for-7 with the extra attacker. LSSU goaltender Brian Mahoney-Wilson recorded 37 saves on the 40 shots he faced, while his OSU counterparts allowed 7 goals on 37 LSSU shots. Saturday night LSSU struck first with Steven Kaunisto scoring his first goal of the season, and his fourth point of the weekend at 7:29 of the first period with Carter Lee and Josh Sim assisting. Ohio State scored the only goal of the second period with Zac Dalpe scoring his first goal of the season against LSSU goaltender Pat Inglis. LSSU regained the lead with Zac MacVoy scoring his second goal of the season with Dillin Stonehouse garnering the lone assist. LSSU was unable to maintain the lead for the second time in the game, allowed a goal to OSU on the power play at 8:24 of the third period while Nehring was in the box. OSU added the game winning goal 24 seconds later, and scored an empty net goal at 19:13 of the third period just after Inglis reached the Laker bench. Lake Superior went 0-for-5 on the power play, 2-for-11 on the weekend, while Ohio State went 1-for-4 with the extra attacker, 2-for-11 on the weekend. LSSU goaltender Pat Inglis recorded 33 saves on the 36 shots he faced, while OSU’s, Dustin Carlson recorded 27 saves on the 29 LSSU shots he faced.

Lakers Open CCHA Season at Ohio State

SAULT STE. MARIE – Lake Superior State and Ohio State are two Central Collegiate Hockey Association opponents with a recent history of hard-fought thrillers and a need to get off to a good start in 2008-09. The Lakers (0-1-1) head to Ohio State (0-1-1 overall, 0-1-1-1 CCHA) for their first CCHA test of the season. The teams play at 7:05 p.m. Friday and 8:05 p.m. Saturday at the Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio. Both games will be broadcast live on Rock 101. Lake Superior State tied Minnesota-Duluth, 2-2, and lost 3-2 to Michigan Tech during last weekend’s season-opening Superior Cup. Junior Zac MacVoy picked up an assist against UM-D and scored a goal against MTU, and sophomore Will Acton notched an assist in both games to lead the Lakers. Sophomores Tyson Hobbins and Dillin Stonehouse tallied their first career goals. Junior goaltender Pat Inglis’ 29-save effort, that included six overtime saves, was impressive, but the Bulldogs gave him his first collegiate shootout loss. UM-D scored the only goal during three shootout rounds last Friday. Ohio State came out on the winning side of its first shootout and defeated rival Miami 4-3 during Game 1 of a home-and-home series – the only league series of the weekend. The Buckeyes lost 7-3 at Miami on Saturday. Sophomore forward John Albert had a goal and three assists for the series to lead OSU. OSU was picked to finish seventh and LSSU 10th in the CCHA Pre-Season Coaches Poll. The Buckeyes return 15 letter winners from last year’s 12-25-4 team that placed 11th in the league standings. The Lakers return 19 letter winners from a team that finished 10-20-7 overall and placed 10th in the CCHA. The Lakers and Buckeyes split the last two series against each other, which were both played in Sault Ste. Marie. The average goal differential during the last six meetings between the two teams is 1.33. Last January, LSSU rebounded from a 4-3 loss with a 6-5 overtime win that sparked a five-game unbeaten streak. Twelve of the 13 Laker players who figured into the scoring during last year’s series are returning. MacVoy led the way with two goals and two assists, while senior forward Troy Schwab added two goals and an assist. Michigan travels to Northern Michigan for this weekend’s only other CCHA series. Eight league teams are playing non-conference opponents.

LSSU Falls Twice in Superior Cup

Lake Superior State University jumped out to an early lead with two power play goals against Minnesota Duluth with Sophomore Tyson Hobbins scoring his first goal of the season at 2:07 of the first period with Will Acton and Rick Schofield assisting. Simon Gysbers gave the Lakers a 2 goal lead at 16:10 of the first period with Steven Kaunisto and Zac MacVoy assisting. UMD scored a goal with just 3 seconds remaining in a Nathan Perkovich hooking penalty with MacGregor Sharp slipping the puck behind Laker goaltender Pat Inglis, at the 9:17 mark of the second period. The Bulldogs tied the game up at 2-2 while skating with a two man advantage at the 2:17 mark of the third period. The teams participated in an exhibition shootout, for Superior Cup purposes, with UMD winning on Justin Fontaine’s lone goal. Missing for LSSU was MacVoy, Schofield, and Perkovich. Neither team was able to score for the remainder of the third period or the 5 minute overtime. Lake Superior went 2-for-7 on the power play while Minnesota Duluth went 2-for-10 with the extra attacker. LSSU goaltender Pat Inglis recorded 29 saves on the 31 shots he faced, while his counterpart from Minnesota Duluth, Alex Stalock recorded 24 saves on the 26 LSSU shots he faced. Saturday night horrendous special teams play for the Lakers doomed their night against Michigan Tech. LSSU fell behind early allowing a short handed goal to MTU’s Malcolm Gwilliam at 1:59 of the second period putting the puck past Brian Mahoney-Wilson. Lake Superior tied the game up with a Zac MacVoy goal just 42 seconds later with Will Acton and Dillin Stonehouse assisting. Two minutes and thirty five seconds into the third period MTU’s Alex MacLeod gave the Huskies a 2-1 lead on the power play. LSSU’s Dillin Stonehouse tied the game at 2-2, on an unassisted goal at 9:58 of the third period. MTU scored another shorthanded goal at 15:01 of the period with Jordan Baker putting the Huskies third goal behind Mahoney-Wilson. Lake Superior went 0-for-9 on the power play while Michigan Tech went 1-for-8 with the extra attacker. LSSU goaltender Brian Mahoney-Wilson recorded 34 saves on the 37 shots he faced, while MTU’s, Josh Robinson recorded 25 saves on the 27 LSSU shots he faced. Officiating by CCHA referees with weekend was very questionable with the performance of Ryan Gordon being very suspect. The live audio feed for this weekend’s games was unavailable, it is reported that it will be back on the laker website for next weekend’s games.

Hockey Tailgate Tonight

Got the below e-mail from the Alumni Association this morning. The idea of encouraging tailgating is pretty cool; having 2 pages of rules and regulations in a tailgate policy is extremely lame. It’s not too late to make plans to attend Great Lake State Weekend 2008! And if there’s one thing you ought to plan to attend, it is Friday’s Alumni Tailgate party at the Lukenda Alumni House. This year for the first time ever we’re having an Alumni Tailgate party prior to Friday night’s Laker hockey game. You’re probably planning to come to the hockey game anyway, so instead of rushing around trying to feed yourself and your family before the game, just stop by Alumni House and eat here! The grill will be hot at the Lukenda Alumni House starting at 4:30 p.m. and we’re cooking up some great food. We’ll have steak sandwiches with onions, peppers, mushrooms and au jus, hot dogs, green beans, pasta salad, chips & dip and soft drinks. And if you like, you can bring your own adult beverages along. And no one will arrest you. How cool is that? You do have to follow some basic rules: Of course you must be 21 years of age or older to enjoy adult beverages. Be prepared to show photo identification proving that you are of legal drinking age. We don’t allow kegs, bongs or any drinking apparatus. Just single serve containers, preferably metal or plastic rather than glass. Check out the full Alumni Tailgate policy http://www.lssu.edu/glsw/pdfs/tailgatepolicy.pdf . The basic premise is, if you act like a responsible adult, then we’ll be fine. If you don’t, we’ll have to ask you to leave. Would you like to see the Tailgate become a regular part of Great Lake State Weekend festivities? We would! So let’s show the university community that alumni can have a beer or two and still behave like adults. If we can have a good, safe party, then we can do this again next year. And maybe we can do it bigger and better next time! Event specifics: What: Alumni Tailgate Party When: Friday, October 10, 4:30 to 7:00pm Where: Lukenda Alumni House, northeast corner of campus How much: Free if you are registered for GLSW; free will donation of $5 if not Details: Park in the Library parking lot and walk north to the blue & gold tent Here’s a secret: You don’t have to be going to the hockey game to come to the Tailgate party. Just stop by after work, bring a beer and enjoy some great food and camaraderie with old friends. This party is exclusive to alumni of Lake Superior State University and their families – this one’s for you! The weather forecast looks great for Friday – sunny and 60 degrees – but even if they’re wrong, we have a large tent, and if the weather is really nasty we can go inside Alumni House. Save time and hassle by registering online here https://www.lssu.edu/glsw/registration.php . For $15 you can register your entire family and feed them all weekend: Tailgate Friday night, Saturday brunch in the Quarterdeck and then the pre-game family BBQ and bash in the Student Activity Center. Check out the full schedule of events here http://www.lssu.edu/glsw/ I’m looking forward to seeing many of you during Great Lake State Weekend 2008. Come back to the campus, and Go for the Blue and the Gold! Susan (Frohmader) Fitzpatrick ‘87 Director of Alumni Relations

Lakers host UMD and MTU for Superior Cup

SAULT STE. MARIE – Lake Superior State and Northern Michigan are taking their turn to host the Superior Cup. The 2008 showcase brings Minnesota-Duluth to Sault Ste. Marie for the first time, while Michigan Tech is making its first trip to the Sault since December, 1998. The Lakers follow Friday’s season-opening game against the Bulldogs with a showdown Saturday against the Huskies. The games are part of Great Lake State Weekend festivities, and Outstanding Alumni Award winners will be introduced during second intermission Saturday. Both games will be broadcast live on Rock 101. An audio/video feed will be available for $6 on the B2 Network, which can be accessed via www.lssulakers.com/landing/index. The first Superior Cup was played last year in Duluth, Minn., and Houghton, Mich., and the Lakers tied UMD, 2-2, and lost to MTU, 4-3. Minnesota-Duluth leads the all-time series against LSSU, 6-3-3, but 11 of the 12 games have been played on the Bulldogs’ home ice. The only other game was during the 1993 NCAA Regional Tournament. Michigan Tech leads the all-time series against LSSU, 30-17-3, but the teams were 6-6-0 against each other from 1981-82 through 1983-84 when they were both members of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. Northern Michigan, which plays host to MTU on Friday and UMD on Saturday, is the favored team in the second annual Superior Cup after earning a No. 4 ranking in the 2008-09 CCHA Pre-Season Coaches Poll. LSSU was picked to finish 10th. Western Collegiate Hockey Association representatives Minnesota-Duluth and Michigan Tech were ranked eighth and ninth, respectively, in their league’s pre-season poll. LSSU returns nine of its top 10 scorers from last season, including junior forward Zac MacVoy, who led the Lakers in points with 8-9—17, and goal-scoring leader Nathan Perkovich, also a junior forward, who totaled 17-8—25. Perkovich scored a goal in both games of last year’s Superior Cup. His 17 goals last season was the most by a Laker since Terry Marchant scored 17 in 1997-98, and Perkovich has 32-15—47 through two collegiate seasons. Senior captain Troy Schwab, who was fourth in points last season with 6-18—24, has 20-58—78 through three seasons and has a shot at becoming LSSU’s first 100-point scorer since Joe Blaznek totaled 57-54-111 from 1994-98. The Lakers also return five experienced defensemen and goaltenders Pat Inglis and Brian Mahoney-Wilson, who split playing throughout most of last season. Inglis, a junior, was 4-10-4 in 2007-08, but had a 3-2-2 record and 2.24 goals-against average during his final seven games. Mahoney-Wilson finished 6-10-3 during his rookie campaign, including a 4-2-1 mark during his final seven starts. Michigan Tech is coming off a 14-20-5 season, while Minnesota-Duluth finished 13-17-6. The Bulldogs return junior goaltender Alex Stalock, who had a 2.35 GAA and .914 save percentage last season and earned one WCHA Pre-Season Player of the Year vote from league coaches. UMD’s top-returning scorers are seniors MacGregor Sharp (7-10—17) and Nick Kemp (7-8—15). MTU’s top-returning scorers are both defensemen -- senior Geoff Kindrade (5-14—19) and junior Drew Dobson (2-15—17). The Huskies graduated their top three scorers, who were all forwards.

Blues Win

LSSU’s Blue squad netted 3 goals to beat the Whites during Saturday’s annual Blue-White game. Junior defenseman Simon Gysbers opened the scoring for the white team on the power play at 8:19 of the first half, putting the net past walk-on candidate Mitch Zorzit. Sophomore forward Rick Schofield tied the game at 1-1, scoring for the blue team, with an even strength goal at 23:14 of the first half, putting a shot past LSSU third string goaltender Mitch Edmonson. Junior forward John Scrymgeour scored for the blue team, with what became the game winning goal just 32 seconds into the second half, slipping the goal past Brian Mahoney-Wilson. Rick Schofield added a second goal, an empty netter with just 27 seconds remaining in the game to give the Blue team a 3-1 win. The Lakers open their season at 7:05 p.m. this Friday, Oct. 10, at Taffy Abel Arena. They take on Minnesota-Duluth during the first round of the second annual Superior Cup, then meet Michigan Tech at 7:05 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 11.