SAULT STE. MARIE - Lake Superior State opens its second weekend of regular-season hockey games with a home-and-home series against Upper Peninsula rival Northern Michigan. The series begins Friday night at 7:07 p.m. ET at the Berry Events Center in Marquette. The series will shift to Taffy Abel Arena for Saturday's weekend finale. Saturday's game will be a part of LSSU's annual homecoming events of Great Lake State Weekend.
The teams are only scheduled to meet once this season in Western Collegiate Hockey Association play, so this weekend's series includes two non-conference games.
Both games will be broadcast live on 99.5 YES FM and a live video feed can be found on WCHA.tv.
Former Laker forward Ian Ward '76 will host the ceremonial puck drop prior to Saturday night's game. Ward was a member of the Lakers' 1974 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) National Championship team. He, along with four other Alumni Association award recipients, will also be introduced during the first intermission.
The Lakers (0-2-0, 0-0-0 WCHA) return home to the U.P. following a bumpy first weekend of regular season games at the annual Ice Breaker Tournament in Portland, Maine. The Lakers jumped out to an early two-goal lead over now No.1-ranked North Dakota on goals by sophomore newcomer J.T. Henke (1-1--2) and freshman Mitch Hults (1-0--1). Another freshman, Jake Hand (0-2--2) added an assist on both goals.
During the Lakers' second game of the Ice Breaker, the Royal Blue and Gold found themselves down early but went to the dressing rooms tied at one goal apiece after the first period. Gage Torrel (1-0--1), another of Lakers' coach Damon Whitten's impressive freshmen forwards, accepted a centering pass from Gus Correale (0-1--1), who came off the bench and flew into the offensive zone to intercept Jake Hildebrand's clearing attempt. Once the puck was on the Monticello, Minn., native's stick, Torrel buried his first collegiate goal.
Another night featuring a flurry of three unanswered goals doomed the Lakers in the second game. The Spartans went on to defeat the Lakers 4-1 behind an impressive performance by one of the nation's top goaltenders in Hildebrand.
Hand found himself in a three-way tie for the league's lead in freshman scoring following last weekend's action. Hand's two helpers against North Dakota tie J.T. Henke (1-1--2) for the Lakers' points lead. Both are tied for fifth place in the league.
The Lakers are 2-4-0 against the Wildcats (0-0-2) since the teams joined the WCHA. Overall, the Lakers trail the Wildcats 38-65-10. The Lakers trail by one game (24-25-6) to the Wildcats in games played in Sault Ste. Marie.
Northern Michigan features reigning WCHA Rookie of the Week, Atte Tolvanen. Making his collegiate debut, Tolvanen logged a .930 saves percentage in making 66 saves on 71 shots, helping Northern Michigan open the campaign with a pair of hard-fought ties on the road at Wisconsin. Tolvanen's 66 saves tied for the nation's lead over the weekend.
The Wildcats return all five of their top scorers from last year including 20-point scorers Darren Nowick (7-16--23), Shane Sooth (6-15--21), Brock Maschmeyer (9-11--20), and Dominik Shine (7-13--20).
Ticket Information:
Tickets for Friday's game in Marquette can be purchased online at http://www.nmu.edu/tickets/ or by calling 906-227-1032. To purchase tickets for Saturday's series finale at Taffy Abel, go to http://www.lssutickets.universitytickets.com or call the Norris Center box office at (906)-635-2602.
Notes about Great Lake State Weekend (GLSW):
GLSW began in 1995 and this year, LSSU celebrates the 20th year anniversary of homecoming weekend for students, alumni, families and the twin Saults. Homecoming tradition includes kids programming, family entertainment, tailgating, Laker Hockey, Hall of Fame Inductions, presentation of the Bud & Mary Mansfield Parents of the Year Award, the LSSU Alumni Awards Banquet, Athletic Alumni Reunion, and many other reunions.
For more information of the events during the 20th annual Great Lake State Weekend, go to http://www.lssu.edu/glsw/.