Michigan Tech showed that they are for real tonight at the WCHA Final Five quarterfinal in Milwaukee. Here are my impressions from tonight's contest. The first period was, as expected, pivotal. Going into the game, I felt MTU stood a good chance if they could keep it close through the first twenty minutes. Well, at the end of one, NMU had taken 18 shots on Jamie Ram, and none had gone in. MTU had something like five shots, but came out leading 1-0. Northern had the better of the play in the period, esp since Tech made several trips to the box, giving the 'Cats ample power- play opportunities. Northern converted on a power play about a minute into the second, but Tech regained the lead shortly afterward. At this point, NMU seemed to be a bit deflated, and had trouble staying organized and completing plays the rest of the way. Ram was rock solid in net, and MTU suddenly looked the better team on the ice. By the time it was over, it was 5-1 Tech, including an empty-netter to ice it. The game against the Gophers will be very interesting -- Ram is on his game, and you know what they say about hot goalies in the playoffs... To my eyes as a neutral observer, Tech is playing with a lot of heart. They're still not as skilled as the others in the playoffs, but they're carrying a great "what have we got to lose?" attitude. The battle of the bands tonight clearly went to MTU, IMHO. The NMU band was loud but stilted, and they shared their upper-deck perch with cheerleaders. The Tech band was rinkside, and seemed to have a ball all night, playing Beer-Barrel Polka "for all you Wisconsin fans" and belting out "We're number 10! We're number 10!" with exuberence. They also did a nice "Sing Sing Sing." The battle of mascots ended in a tie. Between the first and second periods, the Husky and the Wildcat had a wrestling match, won by the former by a takedown. The Wildcat got his own back in the second intermission by taking his hockey stick and breaking it on the Husky's knee, Tonya Harding-style. The crowd loved it. (The Husky made a speedy recovery, for those wondering, although it remains to be seen how he'll do in the free skate.) That's about it for my color commentary. There were quite a few penalties called, but most if not all of them were good calls from my vantage point. NMU had an early goal waved off when the whistle had clearly blown before the puck went in. The Bradley Ctr was only about half-full. It won't be tomorrow.... On Wisconsin, john nash [log in to unmask]