Michigan Offense Unable to Click in Loss to No. 13 St. Cloud State

» Cameron Korpi made 23 saves on 26 shots in his third collegiate start.

» Defenseman Ethan Edwards led the Wolverines with four shots on goal.

» With the loss, Michigan is still searching for its first sweep of the season.

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — One night after its first shutout of the season, the 10th-ranked University of Michigan ice hockey team saw their fortunes turn in a 4-0 loss to No. 13 St. Cloud State. With Saturday night’s (Oct. 19) loss at Yost Ice Arena, Michigan was forced to accept a split in the non-conference series vs. SCSU.

Following a challenge by the visitors during a break in play, Kienan Draper was assessed a five-minute major penalty for high sticking at 7:48 to give the Huskies a lengthy advantage.

After three and a half periods without a goal at Yost, St. Cloud State finally broke through with a power-play tally after a Husky forward found space in the right circle with just enough time to receive a pass and unleash a one-timer that found twine at 8:27.

Michigan dismissed the remainder of the extended power play to move to 2-for-3 on the penalty kill in the early going. The Wolverines got their own chance with the man-advantage at 17:13 when a Husky was sent off for holding, but it came and went without a goal.

After one period of play, Michigan was behind on the scoreboard 1-0. The home side also trailed the Huskies in both shots on goal (9-7) and faceoffs (10-5) as the group searched for a spark.

The second period saw a stronger effort from the Wolverines, but the team continued to be stymied in their attempts to tie the game both at even strength and on the power play. Sophomore forward Nick Moldenhauer saw one opportunity miss by inches during a chaotic offensive zone sequence, but the SCSU netminder stood tall.

In the middle period, U-M led in both shots on goal and faceoffs. Several close calls nearly tied the game, but the team failed to register a goal through 40 minutes.

Less than 30 seconds into the final frame, St. Cloud State won an offensive zone faceoff before skating into a loose puck and firing a wrist shot from the hash marks that trickled through Korpi to double the SCSU lead and depress the budding momentum.

Several times, a shuffle in front of the St. Cloud crease created an opportunity for a Wolverine to bang a loose puck into the net, but the team failed to convert on either the initial chance or subsequent rebounds.

As Michigan’s offense looked increasingly desperate for a momentum-building…