March 16, 2005

Farmington Hills, Mich. - Super Six tournament action kicks off Thursday afternoon at 4:35 p.m. when sixth-seeded Alaska Fairbanks faces off against third-place Northern Michigan. In the late quarterfinal, fifth-ranked Michigan State takes on no. 4 seed Nebraska-Omaha. Quarterfinal winners will advance to play no. 1 Michigan and no. 2 Ohio State, who earned second-round byes based on their regular-season success. The Wolverines, the tournament's top seed, will draw the lower-ranked remaining team in the semifinals and the Buckeyes will skate with the higher seed. Friday night's winners will battle for the 2004-05 Mason Cup in Saturday's Super 6 Championship game at 7:35 p.m., while the semifinal losers will play a consolation game at 4:35 p.m.

Super 6 - Quarterfinals:

#6 Alaska Fairbanks vs. #3 Northern Michigan, Thursday 4:35 p.m.:

First Round Results:

Alaska Fairbanks: W 6-3 at Bowling Green, W 6-3 at Bowling Green

Northern Michigan: L 1-2 v. W. Mich., W 4-2 v. W. Mich., W 4-1 v. W. Mich.

Quarterfinal Preview:

Northern Michigan is making its fourth straight trip to the CCHA Super 6 Championships at Joe Louis Arena, while the Nanooks head to Detroit for the second time in four years. The Wildcats have dominated the all-time series with Alaska Fairbanks 17-3-4, including a 2-1-1 mark this season. The two teams split a weekend series in Marquette, with UAF handing NMU its first home loss of the season on February 4^th, while Northern Michigan took three points during its visit to Fairbanks in early December. The Nanooks and Wildcats are meeting in the postseason for the second straight year, last season Northern swept UAF at the Carlson Center in first-round tournament action.

Key Stats:

Both teams advanced to the Super 6 based in large part to balanced offensive attacks. The Wildcats had seven different goal scorers, and tallied nine goals, in their first-round series against Western Michigan. Nine different players lit the lamp for Alaska Fairbanks in a pair of 6-3 wins at Bowling Green.

Key Match-Up:

Senior forward Kevin Gardner scored three goals and led Northern Michigan out of a 0-1 hole in last weekend's first-round match-up with the Broncos. Sophomore Curtis Fraser leads the Nanooks in post-season points with 2-3-5, four of which came last weekend, including a pair of goals, against BGSU.

Bryan Marshall and the UNO freshmen led the Mavericks past LSSU.

#5 Michigan State vs. #4 Nebraska-Omaha, Thursday 7:35 p.m.:

First Round Results:

Michigan State: W 2-1 v. Miami, W 5-4 v. Miami (ot)

Nebraska-Omaha: W 4-3 v. Lake Superior, W 4-3 v. Lake Superior (ot)

Quarterfinal Preview:

The Spartans advanced out of the CCHA first round for the 14^th straight year with a sweep of seventh-seeded Miami, while Nebraska-Omaha is making its first trip to Joe Louis Arena in four seasons. The Mavericks, 10-10-0 all-time in postseason play, will be celebrating the anniversary of their one and only win in the Super 6, a March 17, 2000 7-4 upset of top-ranked Michigan, on Thursday evening. The Spartans lead the overall series with UNO 12-5-0, a mark that includes a weekend split between the two teams at Munn Ice Arena in mid-October. The two teams have faced off in post-season action just once, a 6-0 MSU victory in the 2000 Super 6 championship game.

Key Stats:

Five of Michigan State's past six games have been decided by one goal or less. The Spartans are 5-1-0 in that span and are 6-8-0 in one goal games this season. This weekend's quarterfinal match-up features the second-ranked offense in the CCHA, Nebraska-Omaha has averaged 3.50 goals per game this season, versus the second-ranked defense in the league, the Spartans are allowing just 2.45 goals per contest.

Key Match-Up:

A pair of Spartans have found their stride down the stretch and lead Michigan State into the Super 6 on the heels of a four-game winning streak. Senior captain Jim Slater has scored three points in three of his past five games, while sophomore netminder Dominic Vicari is 5-0-0 with a 2.15 GAA and a .924 save percentage in the teams last five games. Six of the eight Maverick goals in last weekends sweep of Lake Superior were scored by freshmen, including a pair by forward Brandon Scero.

Super Six - Semi-Finalists:

#1 University of Michigan:

First Round Results:

Michigan: W 10-1 v. Notre Dame, W 1-0 v. Notre Dame (ot)

Team Preview:

The Wolverines have won eight straight and currently ride an 11-game unbeaten streak (9-0-2), their longest such streak of the season. Michigan has advanced to the Super 6 Championship four straight years and has gone 10-5-0 all-time in CCHA semifinals. The Maize and Blue won back-to-back CCHA championships in 2002 and 2003 before falling 4-2 to Ohio State last season. The Wolverines are a combined 8-3-2 against the other five Super 6 teams, including a 6-1-2 record against potential semifinal opponents Alaska Fairbanks, Michigan State, and Nebraska-Omaha.

Key Stats:

With the nation's highest scoring offense, 4.50 goals per game, and the 17-ranked defense overall, at 2.50 goals against, the Wolverines are one of the most balanced teams in college hockey.

Key Players:

Junior forward Jeff Tambellini leads all Michigan players in postseason scoring with 5-8-13 in 11 career playoff games. Fellow junior Al Montoya boasts a 9-2-0 record with a 1.55 GAA and a .933 save percentage, with three shutouts, in his postseason career.

Junior Dave Caruso won 24 games this season in the Buckeye net.

#2 Ohio State University:

First Round Results:

Ohio State: W 4-2 v. Ferris State, L 1-0 v. Ferris State (ot), W 5-4 v. Ferris State (ot)

Team Preview:

Ohio State returns to Joe Louis Arena as the defending Super 6 champions. The Buckeyes are making their fourth consecutive trip to Detroit for the CCHA championships, tying a team record set during the 1981-85 campaigns. The Scarlet and Gray are 10-9-0 all-time at the `Joe' and boast a 6-3-1 record against Super 6 opponents this season. Ohio State will face off in the late semifinal Friday night against Michigan State, Nebraska-Omaha or Northern Michigan.

Key Stats:

OSU's special teams have been just that this season. The Buckeyes own the league's top penalty-kill unit (86.9 percent success rate) and the second-ranked power play, clicking 22.2 percent of the time.

Key Players:

Twelve different Buckeyes have registered double-digit points this season. Two forwards, junior Rod Pelley and freshman Tom Fritsche, have reached the 40-point plateau, while three more sophomore Matt Beaudoin, junior Dan Knapp, and freshman Dominic Maiani have topped the 30 point mark. Junior goaltender Dave Caruso set a new school record with 24 wins in a season by backstopping Ohio State to a first-round series win over Ferris State.