The outcome of the Bulldog hockey weekend series against Michigan Tech is now a five-game losing streak and their second consecutive time being swept.
The winless weekend was marred by multiple issues between the two games. Friday’s 3-2 loss was plagued by penalties, as the Huskies (6-2-0, 4-0 in CCHA) took the lead on back-to-back power-play goals in under three minutes. Saturday’s 3-1 loss featured the Huskies forcing Ferris State to pull freshman goaltender Connor McDonough from his collegiate debut after they netted three goals on six shots in the first 1:05.
Since the 4-2 victory against Bemidji State on Oct. 25, the Bulldogs (2-8-2, 15 in CCHA) have not been able to get into the win column. The five-game losing streak is the longest since last season’s seven consecutive defeats alongside another five-game string of losses.
After Saturday’s sweep-deciding loss, head coach Bob Daniels, albeit dissatisfied with the defeat, was in good spirits about his team.
“It’s so disappointing coming in here and have to talk about loss again,” Daniels said. “But, I’ll tell you, I’m buoyed by the fact that we played pretty damn well. I’m super excited about getting back to work on Monday and seeing what this team can become because that was a pretty good hockey club out there the last two and a half periods.”
Ferris began their first game of the weekend with a first-period tally from junior forward Gavin Best. After taking the 1-0 lead in the first frame, Michigan Tech rattled off three unanswered goals, two of which were back-to-back power-play goals in under three minutes in the second period. The Bulldogs rallied once more after sophomore forward Cole Burtch netted a tally to pull within one, but that’s where all scoring stopped, and a 3-2 final was declared in favor of the Huskies.
In the second half of the weekend slate, Michigan Tech struck fast and early. McDonough’s first start for the Bulldogs was spoiled in 1:05, as the Huskies found three goals in that span. The trio of tallies was enough for the coaching staff to pull the rookie netminder and opt for senior goaltender Noah West.
West, a fifth-year transfer from Michigan, was critical of the decision to start the young goaltender.
“I don’t even have words for the decision that was made to do what they did, but they did that,” West said. “Yeah, we lost five in a row. But to put a freshman in that situation, it’s just it’s not fair to the kid, it’s not fair to the team. Like I don’t even have the words for it. The two freshmen goaltenders, I love them to death. I want to see them succeed but to do that to them, that’s just unacceptable.”
West’s relief of McDonough comes as his sixth consecutive game played and his 11th total contest. The veteran netminder declined to elaborate further on his frustration, but added that “it’s not a science experiment,” but they would “move on from it” and “learn.”
Following the swap in the first period, West turned away all 17 shots from Michigan Tech. However, senior forward Kaleb Ergang found the Bulldogs’ only goal of the night in the twilight of the third period.
With the weekend’s theme seemingly being the Huskies winning off of multiple goals scored quickly, Ergang believes the setback on Saturday night came in just 1/6th of the contest.
“If you go over the whole game, the full 60 minutes, I think it’s 10 minutes that really killed us tonight,” Ergang said. “The other 50, I think we’re the better team. I think we’re dominant in 50 minutes.”
For Daniels, the losses aren’t on the quality of the team’s plays, but it comes down to “finding a way to capitalize more on our chances.”
Ferris State will go on the road next week to face Lake Superior State at Taffy-Abel Arena on Friday, Nov. 15 at 7:07 p.m. After that, they will head south to Traverse City to finish their series against the Lakers in the “Traverse City Showdown” on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 6:07 p.m.