Some comments from last night's game. I haven't had a chance to watch the tape (it was televised as the PRIME GotW), so these are all "live" impressions. (A) I have to acknowledge UIC for no longer being goons. The Flames came into the game as the least penalized team in the CCHA and seemed to live up to that. Four years ago, a 9-3 UM-UIC game would have seen 30-40 penalties between the two teams. They go at it again tonight, but I believe (and hope) that even the bad blood generated by playing the same team twice within 24-27 hours will not escalate this one into a free-for-all. (B) A real solid game was turned in by some 3rd and 4th liners for the Wolverines. I thought that Matt Herr was outstanding and Justin Clark continues to improve, including netting his first collegiate goal. Bobby Hayes also turned in another workman-like performance. (C) Freshman defenseman Bubba Berenzweig recorded his first UM goal, ending a streak of goal-less games by Wolverines wearing #3 that dated back to November of 1990. Bubba is becoming a fan favorite at Yost. (D) Marty Turco made a couple of nice saves in the first two periods, but didn't look overly sharp in the UM net. In the third, it appeared that he was playing for the shutout and that he kind of gave up after UIC scored their first goal (on a second rebound, argh!...someone should have cleared it by then). I sit near the other end of the rink, but the 2nd and 3rd UIC goals appeared to be soft. As for Turco actually playing 60 minutes in a 9-3 game (that was 8-0 at one point)... Gregg Malicke was dressed as the backup but doesn't appear to be fully ready to go following a knee injury sustained the previous Friday. I believe that UM's third netminder, Greg Daddario, will be suited as the backup tonight. I also think Turco would have come out after 40 minutes or possibly after UIC's first goal had Daddario been dressed last night. (E) Michigan's 6th goal was unique. With a 5-on-3 advantage, UIC coach Larry Pedrie pulled his netminder. The score was 5-0 at that point, nearing the end of the 2nd period. I thought is was a good move because if UIC could have scored 6-on-3, the lead would have been cut to 5-1 and they still would have had about 4:00 of power play time...because the second UM penalty was a major. However, the move backfired as UM's John Madden scored his 7th (yes, 7th!) shorthanded goal of the season into the empty net. (F) Last...and least except for the anal retentive stat buffs like myself...Michigan SHOULD have had a 10th goal. Bobby Hayes scored late in the 3rd period to make the game 10-3, but referee Steve Piotrowski waved it off. The call had no effect on the game, but taken out of context it was probably the worst call I've ever seen Piotrowski make. The UIC goaltender (Spencer) dropped and began to make ice angels, apparently sitting on the puck...however, he missed it and the puck was in the back of the net. A couple of players from each team quickly arrived in the crease and Piotrowski blew the whistle. When he saw the puck in the net, I think he thought that someone poked it in from under Spencer, but not so...the initial shot hit the back of the net long before Piotrowski blew the whistle. The two linesmen looked at each other in amazement, wondering why Pi was waving off a clear goal. It would have been Michigan's third straight game in double digits. I'm looking forward to seeing the replay on this, to confirm that my eyes weren't deceiving me. John H (U Mich) [log in to unmask] PS - An open question for UIC fans. What happened to captain Rob Hutson. He was nowhere to be found, literally. I'd like to hear the scoop from someone at/near UIC. HOCKEY-L is for discussion of college ice hockey; send information to [log in to unmask], The College Hockey Information List.