No. 7 Michigan stumbles in its season opener

ANN ARBOR — With 12 new players and no exhibition games this season, Michigan head hockey coach Brandon Naurato said before the year that it might take some time for his team to gel.

The seventh-ranked Wolverines opened the season Friday against Minnesota State, and it appears cohesion is still a work in progress. The Mavericks scored five goals on 21 shots and defeated Michigan 5-2 at Yost Ice Arena.

Seven freshmen and five transfers are new to the Wolverines this year after the team lost most of its production from last season’s squad, which reached the Frozen Four for the third straight year.

MSU had little pressure in the offensive zone throughout the game, but it was dangerous off the rush. The team failed to capitalize on the first three two-on-one games, but scored in the next two. Brian Carrabes fired a wrister past Ferris State transfer Logan Stein to tie the game at 4:25 of the second.

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Four minutes later, Michigan defenseman Jacob Truscott turned the puck over after catching an edge and falling to the ground, giving the Mavericks an immediate chance. Brett Moravec received a centering shot from Campbell Cichosz and made a clever move to give the team the lead.

Rhett Pitlick, a transfer from Minnesota who is familiar with the Wolverines, gave MSU some breathing room 63 seconds into the third period. A loss of possession by Tim Lovell prompted Pitlick to score on a breakaway goal. Just over two minutes later, the Mavericks added more security when Luke Ashton strolled in from the spot and hammered a shot just under the crossbar.

Sophomore Garrett Schifsky briefly gave the Wolverines some life, knocking down a feed from freshman Michael Hage, a 2024 first-round pick, with 5:03 left to pull them within two points. The momentum was fleeting as MSU responded with 2:20 remaining.

Michigan, which lost five of its top six scorers from 2023-24, finished 1-for-2 on the power play and used the man advantage to take a 1-0 lead in the first minute of the second. During the team’s preseason media day video conference, defenseman Jacob Truscott and forward TJ Hughes raved about the addition of sophomore transfer William Whitelaw, who scored 10 goals as a freshman for Wisconsin. The 2023 third-round pick showed it on Friday when he fired a one-timer past Alex Tracy after a setup from Hage.

The Wolverines finished the game with 34 shots on goal, but didn’t create many second chances. The two teams complete the two-game series on Saturday at 6 p.m.