1990–91 Northern Michigan Wildcats men's ice hockey season

The 1990–91 Northern Michigan Wildcats men's ice hockey team represented Northern Michigan University (NMU) in college ice hockey. In its 15th year under head coach Rick Comley, the team compiled a 38–5–4 record.[1] The Wildcats won the 1991 National Championship, their first national title.

1990–91 Northern Michigan Wildcats men's ice hockey season
National Champion
WCHA, Champion
WCHA Tournament, Champion
NCAA Tournament, Champion
Conference1st WCHA
Home iceLakeview Arena
Record
Overall38–5–4
Conference25–3–4
Home23–0–2
Road11–5–2
Neutral4–0–0
Coaches and Captains
Head CoachRick Comley
Assistant CoachesWalt Kyle
Morey Gare
Captain(s)Dean Antos
Darryl Plandowski
Dave Shyiak
Brad Werenka
Northern Michigan Wildcats men's ice hockey seasons
« 1989–90 1991–92 »

Season

Northern Michigan was looking to bounce back after a disappointing season. Getting star defenseman Brad Werenka back from injury, now in his fifth year, was a big help. The maturation of sophomores Scott Beattie and Jim Hiller would provide a scoring punch that led the nation but, most importantly, starting goaltender Bill Pye recovered from a poor 1989–90 season.[2]

Scoring early and often

From the start of the season it was apparent that the Wildcats had one of the best offenses in the nation. Their scoring prowess, combined with playing seven consecutive games at home, allowed NMU to get off to an 8–0–1 start. Their winning streak ended when they hit the road to play Minnesota; without the advantage of the Lakeview Arena crowd NMU took only 1 point over the weekend and allowed the Gophers to take the top spot in the WCHA standings.[3]

Road woes

Northern Michigan followed up their first loss of the season with a visit to the east, taking on Hockey East powerhouse Maine. The Black Bears shut down the high-flying Wildcat offense, holding NMU to three goals in two games. After the pair of losses, NMU returned home to face nearby rival Michigan Tech and were able to right the ship with two wins in the home-and-home series. Two weeks later NMU headed to North Dakota to take on the Fighting Sioux in a vert important series. Though the scores were close, NMU won both games, putting them ahead of Minnesota, who was busy playing non-conference games. After the big win the Wildcats had a letdown against St. Cloud State, a program that had just joined the WCHA, losing both road games to the Huskies. NMU had a one-point lead in the conference standings but Minnesota had two games in hand and it looked like the two teams would fight for the MacNaughton Cup all the way to the finish.

Unbeaten streak

With 10 of their next 14 games at home, NMU saw an opportunity to make a run at their first WCHA title. After utterly dominating Ohio State in a non-conference matchup, the Wildcats swept Colorado College before taking three points on road against Minnesota–Duluth. NMU got their revenge against St. Cloud with a pair of home wins, then headed to Colorado to face Denver where the porous defense gave Northern Michigan their biggest scoring weekend of the season with 20 goals in two games. NMU would end the season with a program-record 26-game unbeaten streak and extended that mark to 30 games in the following campaign.

WCHA showdown

By the end of January, Northern Michigan and Minnesota were tied atop of the conference standings with identical 20–3–3 records. While NMU hosted non-conference Bowling Green, Minnesota took on Minnesota–Duluth and could only manage a single point in two games. The two teams headed for a clash of the WCHA titans in Marquette with the Gophers up by a point while Northern Michigan had two games in hand, a reversal of situation back in December. The teams fought to a 3–3 tie in the first game but the Wildcats offense broke through in the second match, giving NMU a much needed win and the lead in the WCHA standings.

While Minnesota licked its wounds with a week off, NMU faced MTU for their second home-and-home. The Huskies were no match for the Wildcats, and with the two wins, NMU won the MacNaughton Cup with two games to spare. The conference title all but guaranteed Northern Michigan a spot in the NCAA Tournament but, when they headed to Wisconsin and won both games against the defending national champion Badgers, Northern Michigan showed they weren't going to rest on their laurels.

WCHA tournament

NMU took on Colorado College in the quarterfinals and used the Tigers as a proverbial punching bag. While the Wildcats scored 13 goals in the two games, Bill Pye got his fourth shutout of the season, a new program record.[4] After dropping North Dakota in the semifinal, NMU faced Minnesota for the championship. Prior to the game the NCAA had already announced the seeding for the NCAA tournament and Norther Michigan was given the second western slot.[5] Despite being guaranteed a first round bye, the Wildcats weren't distracted by their good fortune and held the Gophers back, winning the close affair 4–2 with an empty net goal to seal the match. Bill Pye was named the Tournament MVP, and is the only player in history to win the award more than once (as of 2019).[6]

NCAA tournament

With a week of to rest and prepare for the quarterfinals, Northern Michigan was gearing up to face Boston College but, surprisingly, the Eagles were upset in the first round by Alaska–Anchorage. When the Seawolves arrived at Marquette, Northern Michigan expected to run roughshod over the unheralded team. Early in the first game it appeared they were going to do just that but after building a 3-goal lead UAA scored the next two to give NMU a challenge. Anchorage did everything in their power to win the game but the Wildcat offense was just too powerful, and Northern Michigan took the first game 8–5. It was a similar case in the second game and when the dust settled NMU won the game 5–3 and advanced to the Frozen Four. The two wins against Alaska–Anchorage saw two more program records set; the first win was Northern Michigan's 35th of the season, breaking the mark set by the 1980 team, while the rematch saw Bill Pye winning his 30th game of the year, breaking Steve Weeks' previous record, also set in 1980.

In the national semifinal NMU took on a familiar foe in Maine. The top eastern team had easily dispatched Minnesota in their quarterfinal and were looking for a repeat performance from December but this time the Wildcats were ready for the stifling Black Bear defense. In front of a mostly favorable crowd, Northern Michigan outlasted Maine by scoring 4 of the last 5 goals and winning 5–3 to advance to their second championship game.

National championship

With one game left, only Boston University stood in the way of NMU's first national championship. From the start the two teams seemed evenly matched but in the first the puck bounced in BU's favor and the Terriers scored three times to build a big lead. The Wildcats headed into the locker room worried about their deficit but as the nation's top offense, scoring was one thing they knew they could do. One of the four team captains, Dean Antos finally got NMU on the board in the second period and the team took off. In what head coach Rick Comley would later call their best period of the season, Northern Michigan scored five unanswered goals in middle frame to take a 5–3 lead after 40 minutes.

Comley's counterpart, Jack Parker, responded to the turn of events by replacing his goaltender at for the third. The initial result was poor as Scott Beattie scored his third goal of the game to open the period. BU finally responded with a goal from a falling Dave Thomlinson but Darryl Plandowski's second of the night gave NMU back their three-goal lead. With less than 12 minutes remaining, the Wildcats started to believe they were going to win the national championship but BU kept coming. In a short span Tony Amonte and Shawn McEachern scored, with each assisting on the other's goal, to cut the lead down to one. Northern Michigan tightened up defensively and kept the Terriers off the scoresheet until 39 seconds when Dave Sacco chipped the puck into the net with the goaltender pulled. With their lead evaporated, NMU nearly lost the game outright with seconds to play but Bill Pye snagged a shot from Amonte out of the air and keep the game tied.[7]

In the overtime session Northern Michigan seemed to regain its focus and continued to fire the puck on goal but couldn't find the back of the net. Disaster nearly struck the Wildcats when Kevin O'Sullivan got free in the left circle and fired a shot that eluded Bill Pye's right pad and hit the post behind him. The puck deflected across the front of the net then bounced right to BU's leading scorer, Shawn McEachern, who had to hurry a shot at a nearly open net. Rather than hit the twine the puck struck the same post yet again, slid all the way across the goal line and bounced off Brad Werenka's skate back in front of the net where Pye was finally able to cover it before it entered the net. Not to be outdone, off of the ensuing faceoff, Northern Michigan's Tony Szabo hit the crossbar with a slapshot leaving both teams feeling fortunate for the close misses.

The chances kept coming in the second 10-minute overtime session but both goaltenders stood tall. In took a third overtime before a team would break the tie and just under two minutes in Mark Beaufait grabbed the puck after a drop pass from Plandowski and skated towards the left circle. Two BU players followed Beaufait as he headed for the goal line, allowing Plandowski to skate unchecked into the slot. Right when he got to the goal line, Beaufait extended his stick as far in front of him as he could and slipped the puck around a sliding defender right to Plandowski. BU's goaltender, Scott Cashman, had over played Beaufait and left the net essentially vacated so when Plandowski shot the puck there was no one there to stop it and NMU's eighth goal of the night ended one of craziest games in NCAA history.[8]

Beattie and Plandowski became the first two players to score hat-tricks in the same NCAA Championship game, a feat that has not been repeated since (as of 2019).

Awards and honors

Scott Beattie was named as the Tournament MOP and his hat-trick in the finale gave him the program record for goals in a season (48). Beattie was joined on the All-Tournament Team by teammates Bill Pye, Lou Melone and Brad Werenka. Beattie's 89 points led both his team and the nation in scoring, becoming NMU's first (and only as of 2019) NCAA Scoring Champion. Rick Comley's team posted a program record 38 wins, tied for the 3rd-highest total ever (as of 2019) and received the Spencer Penrose Award as the national coach of the year.[9]

Brad Werenka set a program record for goals, assists and points in a season by a defenseman (20, 43 and 63 respectively) and was named to the All-American West First Team along with Beattie.[10] Bill Pye's program-record 32 wins led the nation and he was a Second Team All-American.

NMU's dominance throughout the season was recognized with a clean sweep of the individual WCHA awards: Scott Beattie was named Most Valuable Player, Tony Szabo received the Rookie of the Year, Werenka was awarded the Student-Athlete of the Year and Rick Comley got his second Coach of the Year Award.[11] Beattie, Werenka and Pye were all named to the All-WCHA First Team.[12] while Szabo made the inaugural conference Rookie team.

Standings
Conference Overall
GP W L T PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
Northern Michigan†*3225345418589473854283133
Minnesota32225549151974530105215142
Wisconsin3219112401321084426153174143
North Dakota3218122381481274324172207171
St. Cloud State3212164281241524118194170186
Minnesota-Duluth3211156281141334014197142164
Michigan Tech329212201051344113253139164
Colorado College329221191061394013261129169
Denver3252521295182386302109224
Championship: Northern Michigan
† indicates conference regular season champion
* indicates conference tournament champion

Schedule

[4]

Date Opponent# Rank# Site Result Record
Regular Season
October 12 at Colorado College Broadmoor World Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado W 7–5  1–0 (1–0)
October 13 at Colorado College Broadmoor World Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado W 8–3  2–0 (2–0)
October 19 vs. North Dakota Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 6–0  3–0 (3–0)
October 20 vs. North Dakota Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan T 5–5 OT 3–0–1 (3–0–1)
October 26 vs. Laurentian Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 10–1  4–0–1 (3–0–1)
November 2 vs. Wisconsin Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 6–1  5–0–1 (4–0–1)
November 3 vs. Wisconsin Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 4–2  6–0–1 (5–0–1)
November 9 vs. Denver Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 9–2  7–0–1 (6–0–1)
November 10 vs. Denver Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 6–3  8–0–1 (7–0–1)
November 16 at Minnesota Williams Arena • Minneapolis, Minnesota L 3–5  8–1–1 (7–1–1)
November 17 at Minnesota Williams Arena • Minneapolis, Minnesota T 4–4 OT 8–1–2 (7–1–2)
November 23 at Maine* Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine L 1–4  8–2–2 (7–1–2)
November 24 at Maine* Alfond Arena • Orono, Maine L 2–4  8–3–2 (7–1–2)
November 30 vs. Michigan Tech Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 6–3  9–3–2 (8–1–2)
December 1 at Michigan Tech MacInnes Student Ice Arena • Houghton, Michigan W 4–3  10–3–2 (9–1–2)
December 7 vs. Minnesota–Duluth Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 6–3  11–3–2 (10–1–2)
December 8 vs. Minnesota–Duluth Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 8–0  12–3–2 (11–1–2)
December 16 at North Dakota Winter Sports Center • Grand Forks, North Dakota W 5–3  13–3–2 (12–1–2)
December 17 at North Dakota Winter Sports Center • Grand Forks, North Dakota W 7–5  14–3–2 (13–1–2)
December 20 at St. Cloud State National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota L 3–4  14–4–2 (13–2–2)
December 21 at St. Cloud State National Hockey Center • St. Cloud, Minnesota L 4–6  14–5–2 (13–3–2)
December 28 vs. Ohio State* Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 10–0  15–5–2 (13–3–2)
December 29 vs. Ohio State* Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 8–3  16–5–2 (13–3–2)
January 4 vs. Colorado College Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 6–2  17–5–2 (14–3–2)
January 5 vs. Colorado College Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 6–2  18–5–2 (15–3–2)
January 11 at Minnesota–Duluth Duluth Arena Auditorium • Duluth, Minnesota T 2–2 OT 18–5–3 (15–3–3)
January 12 at Minnesota–Duluth Duluth Arena Auditorium • Duluth, Minnesota W 5–4  19–5–3 (16–3–3)
January 18 vs. St. Cloud State Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 8–3  20–5–3 (17–3–3)
January 19 vs. St. Cloud State Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 8–1  21–5–3 (18–3–3)
January 25 at Denver DU Arena • Denver, Colorado W 12–2  22–5–3 (19–3–3)
January 26 at Denver DU Arena • Denver, Colorado W 8–3  23–5–3 (20–3–3)
February 1 vs. Bowling Green* Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 9–3  24–5–3 (20–3–3)
February 2 vs. Bowling Green* Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 7–2  25–5–3 (20–3–3)
February 8 vs. Minnesota Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan T 3–3 OT 25–5–4 (20–3–4)
February 9 vs. Minnesota Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 6–4  26–5–4 (21–3–4)
February 15 at Michigan Tech MacInnes Student Ice Arena • Houghton, Michigan W 4–1  27–5–4 (22–3–4)
February 16 vs. Michigan Tech Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan W 6–2  28–5–4 (23–3–4)
February 22 at Wisconsin Dane County Coliseum • Madison, Wisconsin W 6–1  29–5–4 (24–3–4)
February 23 at Wisconsin Dane County Coliseum • Madison, Wisconsin W 4–3 OT 30–5–4 (25–3–4)
WCHA Tournament
March 1 vs. Colorado College* Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan (WCHA Quarterfinal game 1) W 7–0  31–5–4 (25–3–4)
March 2 vs. Colorado College* Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan (WCHA Quarterfinal game 2) W 6–3  32–5–4 (25–3–4)
Northern Michigan won series 2-0
March 10 at North Dakota* Civic Center • Saint Paul, Minnesota (WCHA Semifinal) W 8–4  33–5–4 (25–3–4)
March 11 at Minnesota* Civic Center • Saint Paul, Minnesota (WCHA Championship) W 4–2  34–5–4 (25–3–4)
NCAA Tournament
March 22 vs. Alaska–Anchorage* Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan (National Quarterfinal game 1) W 8–5  35–5–4 (25–3–4)
March 23 vs. Alaska–Anchorage* Lakeview Arena • Marquette, Michigan (National Quarterfinal game 2) W 5–3  36–5–4 (25–3–4)
Northern Michigan won series 2-0
March 28 vs. Maine* Civic Center • Saint Paul, Minnesota (National Semifinal) W 5–3  37–5–4 (25–3–4)
March 30 vs. Boston University* Civic Center • Saint Paul, Minnesota (National Championship) W 8–7 3OT 38–5–4 (25–3–4)
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll.
Source:

Roster and scoring statistics

[13]

No. Name Year Position Hometown S/P/C Games Goals Assists Pts PIM
17Scott BeattieSophomoreCKimberley, BC4648418966
18Jim HillerSophomoreRWPort Alberni, BC4322416359
5Brad WerenkaSeniorDTwo Hills, AB4720436336
25Tony SzaboFreshmanFFlint, MI4739205960
10Dallas DrakeJuniorCTrail, BC4422365889
19Kevin ScottSeniorLWVernon, BC4727305742
20Mark BeaufaitJuniorCRoyal Oak, MI4719304918
14Dean AntosSeniorCKillam, AB4017264363
8Phil SoukoroffJuniorDFernie, BC476333922
15Darryl PlandowskiSeniorWLloydminster, AB4416163260
22Ed WardSeniorRWEdmonton, AB46131831109
44Lou MeloneJuniorDMilford, MI471232434
33Joe FrederickFreshmanRWMadison, WI409112077
4Geoff SimpsonSophomoreDPort Alberni, BC442151727
24Dave ShyiakSeniorRWBrandon, MB36691580
27Bryan GanzFreshmanFIron Mountain, MI25481214
23Scott SmithFreshmanDSault Ste. Marie, MI1439122
21Mark OlsonJuniorFSchenectady, NY2347116
26Garett MacDonaldFreshmanDBurnaby, BC41281056
7Steve CarpenterFreshmanDPrince George, BC3207724
16Steve WoogFreshmanFSaint Paul, MN162244
6Phil NeururerJuniorDBrooklyn Park, MN111236
3Dave HuettlSophomoreFFond du Lac, WI802212
2Dan RuohoSophomoreLWMadison, WI60119
1Bill PyeSeniorGCanton, MI390114
29Jamie WelshFreshmanGMarkham, ON50000
30Rob KruhlakSophomoreGCalgary, AB110000
Total

Goaltending statistics
No. Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
29Jamie Welsh52481005400.8892.29
30Rob Kruhlak11428520181420.8872.52
1Bill Pye39230032341098494.8862.84
Total4738541334

1991 National Championship

(W2) Northern Michigan vs. (E2) Boston University
Scoring summary
Period Team Goal Assist(s) Time Score
1st BU Ed Ronan 1–0 BU
BU David Sacco 2–0 BU
BU Ed Ronan 3–0 BU
2nd NMU Dean Antos Werenka and Beattie 3–1 BU
NMU Mark Beaufait Malone and Soukoroff 3–2 BU
NMU Scott Beattie Malone and Scott 3–3
NMU Darryl Plandowski Frederick 4–3 NMU
NMU Scott Beattie unassisted 5–3 NMU
3rd NMU Scott Beattie unassisted 43:08 6–3 NMU
BU Dave Tomlinson 45:59 6–4 NMU
NMU Darryl Plandowski Soukoroff 48:24 7–4 NMU
BU Tony Amonte McEachern 52:24 7–5 NMU
BU Shawn McEachern Amonte 54:51 7–6 NMU
BU David Sacco Tomlinson 59:21 7–7
3rd Overtime NMU Darryl Plandowski Beaufait and Antos 81:57 8–7 NMU
Goaltenders
Team Name Saves Goals against Time on ice
NMUBill Pye7
BUJohn Bradley5
BUScott Cashman3

Players drafted into the NHL

1991 NHL Entry Draft

[16]

= NHL All-Star Team = NHL All-Star[17] = NHL All-Star[17] and NHL All-Star Team = Did not play in the NHL
RoundPickPlayerNHL Team
6119Mike Harding†Hartford Whalers
9177Corwin Saurdiff†San Jose Sharks
12253Jason Hehr†New Jersey Devils

† incoming freshman

1991 NHL Supplemental Draft

[18]

PickPlayerNHL Team
7Mark BeaufaitSan Jose Sharks
17Rob KruhlakNew Jersey Devils
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See also

References
  1. "2009-10 WCHA Yearbook 113-128" (PDF). WCHA. Retrieved June 1, 2014.
  2. "Golden Season- Part 1: 1990-91 NMU Hockey". Northern Michigan Wildcats. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  3. "1990‑91 Minnesota". College Hockey News. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  4. "Northern Michigan Wildcats ice hockey Record Book" (PDF). Northern Michigan Wildcats. Retrieved October 12, 2019.
  5. "Golden Season- Part 2: 1990-91 NMU Hockey". Northern Michigan Wildcats. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  6. "WCHA Awards". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved August 28, 2013.
  7. "COLLEGE HOCKEY; Boston U. Left Dazed in Finale". The New York Times. April 1, 1991. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  8. "Try, Try, Try Again". Sports Illustrated. April 8, 1991. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  9. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on January 16, 2010. Retrieved July 11, 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. "Men's Ice Hockey Award Winners" (PDF). NCAA.org. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
  11. "WCHA Awards". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
  12. "WCHA All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
  13. "Northern Michigan Univ. 1990-1991 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  14. "Golden Season- Part 2: 1990-91 NMU Hockey". Northern Michigan Wildcats. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  15. "Golden Season- Part 3: 1990-91 NMU Hockey". Northern Michigan Wildcats. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  16. "1991 NHL Entry Draft". Hockey DB. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  17. Players are identified as an All-Star if they were selected for the All-Star game at any time in their career.
  18. "1991 NHL Supplemental Draft". Hockey DB. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
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