Tech’s unlikely duo derails explosive Bulldog offense
It’s never to late to become a “scoring machine,” and it’s never too early to become a standout goaltender. Both theories were proven by Michigan Tech’s resilient young Huskies, when senior center Eli Vlaisavljevich and freshman goaltender Kevin Genoe collaborated to hand Minnesota-Duluth its most surprising loss of a strong first half.
The Huskies had a weekend off before resuming their quest to move up in the WCHA standings on Thanksgiving weekend, but they Genoe and Vlaisavljevich were reason enough for Tech to be thankful, upsetting Minnesota-Duluth for a split of their series in Duluth.
Not that it was easy. Nothing has come easy to the Huskies, whose lineup includes eight freshmen as coach Jamie Russell continues to shuffle and make up for gaps here and there. The first game at Duluth was a perfect ambush, put together mainly by Genoe, who was supurb to backstop a 3-2 Tech victory, even while UMD outshot the Huskies 50-19.
Genoe, who is from Qualicum Beach, a town on scenic Vancouver Island, 30 minutes from Nanaimo, is a youthful 19 after playing two years of junior hockey in Prince George, British Columbia. “I played both games against North Dakota, and had 40-some shots the first game,” Genoe said. “But this was the most shots I’ve faced. I don’t know if I ever had this many shots, anywhere. This is definitely one of the best games I’ve ever played.
“Our team did a fabulous job of blocking shots, and a couple of times I didn’t even see the shot. They had my back, and I had theirs.”
The DECC crowd, same as all WCHA arenas, can be tough on visiting players, especially goaltenders. And they were giving Genoe the usual heckles. But over in the corner, at the lower level, a cluster of Michigan Tech fans were seated together at the end where Genoe tended goal in the first and third periods. Genoe has a little ritual when time is out. He skated over to the left corner, circles, and comes back across the crease, careful to slide the back of his catching glove along the goal’s crossbar as he passes, then he skates to the right corner, circles and returns, sliding his goal stick along the crossbar as he heads back to the left corner — where the Tech fans were — in a long and loopy figure-8.
“It’s just something I do to keep relaxed,” said Genoe. “Having our fans right there was fantastic. They made me feel right at home.”
If being relaxed is responsible for his 48 saves and the 3-2 victory, Russell and the Huskies will take it.
Tech led 1-0 after one period, as senior Malcolm Gwilliam notched his sixth goal of the season on a power play. UMD gained a 1-1 tie on Jack Connolly’s goal in the second period, also on a power play, and Mike Seidel lifted UMD to a 2-1 lead in the third period, and it appeared Genoe’s gymnastics would go for naught.
However, Steven Seigo, a freshman defenseman who had been chipping in assists in recent weeks, connected for his first goal to tie the game 2-2. Then, with only 5:03 remaining, Vlaisavljevich scored a goal of opportunity after a dazzling 3-on-0 rush, and Tech had claimed its 3-2 lead. Genoe and the scrambling Tech defenders took over then and weathered UMD’s charge to the finish of the first victory for Michigan Tech in Duluth in four years.
Tech’s inability to generate much offense at Duluth didn’t matter, as long as Genoe kept the explosive Bulldogs harnessed. After Seigo’s goal tied it 2-2, the Huskies still held their discipline and didn’t mount any pressure. With six minutes left, the puck went back to the UMD defensemen, who backed into their zone as they prepared to attack against Tech’s fourth line.
Brady Lamb, a solid sophomore, suddenly fell as he backed up with the puck. He landed with a thud, and as the puck squirted loose, Vlaisavljevich hopped over him and gained possession. “I was coming up the ice and I saw the bobble,” Vlaisavljevich said. “I jumped over him and as I moved in, I heard Ryan Bunger calling, so I gave the puck back to him and went for the net. He made a great pass up ahead to Seth Soley.”
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Soley, deep on the right side, one-timed a relay across the goal-mouth, and Vlaisavljevich had an easy tap in at the left edge for the winning goal. Vlaisavljevich, who could visit a daytime TV game show to buy a couple of vowels, grew up in suburban Shoreview, Minn., the son of a hockey-playing dad from Eveleth’s Iron Range hotbed of decades past. Eli, as his teammates are quick to call him, played at Lincoln in the USHL before coming to Tech.
He got a kick out of being accused of turning into a scoring machine. When he came to Tech, he scored a goal at Vermont on the Huskies first road trip. During the ensuing three years, he had remained a steady, consistent worker who didn’t score, but was a valuable worker-bee at Tech. As a senior, he scored a goal against North Dakota on November 6, and Tech’s next series was in Duluth, when he scored undoubtedly the biggest goal of his college career.
“A scoring machine?” he laughed. Well, it was explained, it may have taken four years, but that goal meant he had scored at a goal-per-weekend clip. And, all humor aside, for having not gotten a shot for what seemed like hours, the fourth line executed that 3-on-0 with perfect precision and three tic-tac-toe passes. The shots at that moment were 47-18, but Tech led 3-2. The final shots read 50-19, but Tech held on for the 3-2 victory, thanks to Genoe. “On the smaller rinks, you’ve got to be able to make plays in close quarters,” said Vlaisavljevich. “When our goalie is playing that well, you’ve got to find a way to win.”
The next night, things didn’t go Tech’s way. Lamb made up for his inadvertent turnover the night before by scoring a pair of goals, the second of which made it 3-0 for UMD early in the second period, and Russell pulled Genoe, who had been nicked for three goals on 19 shots, for Josh Robinson, who didn’t fare much better, giving up the last five goals on 29 shots. Justin Fontaine scored four goals himself for UMD to take over the national scoring lead with 11. UMD outshot the Huskies 48-18 in that one and UMD had all eight on the board before Brett Olson, a sophomore from across the bay in Superior, Wis., scored to make it 8-1. .
“We played a game that really showed our youth,” Russell said after the second game. “We lost Bunger with a concussion on what I thought was a hit from behind.”
There was no call on Cody Danberg’s heavy hit, but when Tech’s Ricky Doriott slammed into Danberg a few minutes later, Doriott was calledfor a major and DQ for a hit from behind. Russell wasn’t complaining about the officiating, but as it happened, he lost two regulars, and already had three defensemen skating at forward.
“Our goaltending wasn’t as stellar [in the second game],” Russell said. “But I really liked our first period tonight. We’re young and making progress each week. A split on the road is good for us, but obviously when you win Friday, you know you could be going home with a sweep.”
“Vlaisavljevich does a lot of things for us, and we were able to roll four lines against a good team that plays an aggressive style.”
As the rebuilding process continues, freshmen like Genoe and Seigo give hope for the future, and seniors like Gwilliam and Vlaisavljevich offer some veteran stability.
Besides, Vlaisavljevich not only is a good influence on his teammates, but the “scoring machine” just needs one more goal to get up to an average of a goal per year. As hot hands go, it’s better to be late than never.
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About the Author
John Gilbert is a lifetime Minnesotan and career journalist, specializing in cars and sports during and since spending 30 years at the Minneapolis Tribune, now the Star Tribune. More recently, he has continued translating the high-tech world of autos and sharing his passionate insights as a freelance writer/photographer/broadcaster. A member of the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year jury since 1993. John can be heard Monday-Friday from 9-11am on 610 KDAL(www.kdal610.com) on the "John Gilbert Show," and writes a column in the Duluth Reader.
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