Acadia gives GMC, Lutz reason for renewed pride
PALO ALTO, CA. — General Motors is rescuing itself from nose-diving market share by changing its entire manufacturing scope and switching over to high-tech engines, and is now even building trucks that arenÂ’t really trucks, in the traditional sense. General Motors vice president Bob Lutz arrived at the media launch of the GMC Acadia in Palo Alto just in time to capture the essence of what such a new vehicle can mean for the corporation.
The Acadia is a breakthrough on several fronts. It is the first crossover SUV built by GM, joining siblings-to-come such as the Buick Enclave, Saturn Outlook, and a Chevrolet to be named later. With lighter, safer, unibody construction, attached to car-like, rather than truck, platform, the Acadia handles with impressive agility, particularly when compared to midsize GM trucks like the Envoy or Yukon.
By not being true, full-size trucks, apparently they must be called crossovers. Or can we call them trucklets? Whatever, they are zooming past mid and full sized SUVs in sales for the first time ever, so the emergence of the Acadia shows GMÂ’s departure from its dedicated reliance on larger, once-profitable trucks and their revised but aging, pushrod engines.
“This is about as good as we know how to do it right now,†Lutz told the assembled auto writers. “We may know better five years from now, but right now, this is it. This is something new, a crossover SUV. The Acadia has a four-cam, aluminum V6 with a six-speed transmissionÂ… ItÂ’s a traditional design, with great proportions – muscular, stable, athletic, yet with beautiful lines, a unitized body, ultramodern design, car-like suspension systemÂ…itÂ’s aerodynamic, itÂ’s lighter, and it has similar or greater interior volume than an Envoy or Yukon. This is a ‘no excuseÂ’ vehicle, and itÂ’s a perfect fit for the GMC brand.Ââ€
LutzÂ’s candor is always refreshing, and he sliced past GM loyalists in their traditional posture of defending low-tech-on-a-budget approach that GM rode to supremacy 30 and 40 years ago. Lutz simply acknowledges the importance of high-tech engines.
“The 3.6 multi-valve?†Lutz said, referring to the Acadia engine. “ThereÂ’s no limit to the power we can get out of it. Many of us felt that in this day of customers having increased technical knowledge, it helps our marketability to have an engine like this to compete against the great German and Japanese engines.Ââ€
The “high feature†3.6-liter V6, first designed for Cadillac, has dual overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder, with variable valve-timing, and makes 275 horsepower in the Acadia. A six-speed automatic with either front-wheel or all-wheel drive. Traction control, and StabiliTrak further aid stability. It swept through a series of hairpin turns in the mountains, even with four on board, and there is room for a couple more in the third row seats. Three rows of seats, seating for eight, is a major selling point for the Acadia, and there is still storage room behind the fold-down third-row seats, which are surprisingly large and quite easy to access. Folding down rows two and three creates 117 cubic feet of storage.
The automatic transmission has a neat little “tap shift†button on the side of the shift knob for manual up and down shifts. That proved useful in hustling around the tightly twisting mountain roads, because you can drop down into third and be at the right spot in the power band for the curvy, hilly stuff. The little button is concave at the bottom, where you downshift, so you can do it without taking your eye off the road. I would prefer steering wheel mounted paddles, because then you could shift manually without taking one hand off the wheel.
If I had a major criticism it is that Acadia still feels big – big enough to have less of a truck feel than the larger GM SUVs, but more of a truck feel than performance oriented crossovers such as the new Acura MDX, or the Lexus RX350. Those are second-generation crossovers, with a large headstart on GM.
Lutz discussed the importance of coordinating North American, European, Asian, and Brazilian production as a preferable way to cut costs.
“If you get yourself healthy by sacrificing future products, you could be out of business,†Lutz said. “You have to forge ahead and pour money into new products. You can’t save your way to prosperity. Revenue is the answer, which means making cars and trucks that people will be willing to part with their money for.
“The quality difference is so close now. Every new vehicle has the same quality, the same safety, and all have multi-cam aluminum engines. The difference is – does your vehicle make an emotional connection with the viewer? If not, people go to ‘default,Â’ which is like buying an appliance. The default brand is, obviously, Toyota.Ââ€
When Lutz speaks, crowds gather, and every phrase divulges something special, whether it is within GMÂ’s public-relations parameters, or not. For example, he was asked if the rumored-to-be Chevrolet version of the Acadia might replace the midsize TrailBlazer.
“The TrailBlazer is somewhat similar in size, but IÂ’m not sure weÂ’re announcing any plans to have a Chevrolet version of the Acadia yet,†said Lutz. “Undeniably, midsize SUVs are rapidly declining, going extinct. Right now, we have the Outlook for Saturn, the Enclave for Buick, along with the Acadia for GMC, and theyÂ’re all different. The trick will be to make the Chevrolet version different againÂ…And from what IÂ’ve seen, it will be radically different.Ââ€
So much for not making the announcement.
John Larson, the youthful-looking GMC-Pontiac-Buick general manager, sat back and smiled at the Lutz presentation. It was suggested that being responsible for three brands with impressive new Pontiac Solstice and G6, Buick LaCrosse, Lucerne and now Enclave, and the new Sierra, Envoy and now Acadia for GMC, Larson must have enjoyed the last five years more than his first dozen at GM.
“I donÂ’t know about that,†said Larson, turning pensive. “ItÂ’s been satisfying to see some recent things come together, but for all the successes weÂ’ve had, I canÂ’t help but think about the plants weÂ’ve closed and the people weÂ’ve had to lay off.Ââ€
TheyÂ’d better be careful, or else guys like Lutz and Larson could ruin GMÂ’s image, which has faded from 1970s-era Corvettes and Camaros to a bean-counter-dominated conglomerate that had lost its soul while dwelling on tradition rather than modernization. After driving the Acadia hard through the California mountains, and talking to Lutz and Thomas afterward, it appears that maybe the lost soul has been located, and new and modernized products indicate GM can refocus on its faltering market share.
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The feature-filled Acadia, starting in the low-$30,000 range, will help that.
“We see GMC as a complement, not competition, for Chevrolet,†said Larson, who added that he interacts with his counterparts at Chevrolet on a daily basis.
Still, it always has seemed to me that GMC’s motto as “Professional Grade†is a clever way to imply it’s bigger, stronger and more exclusive than competitors, but it more subtly might include Chevy shoppers, even though the GMC and Chevy pickups and SUVs are identical under differing sheet metal.
Performance is impressive, as are the interior features. Three rows of seats and seating for eight is a major selling point for the Acadia, and there is still storage room behind the fold-down third-row seats, which are surprisingly large and quite easy to access. It takes a large vehicle to have so much territory inside those walls, and folding down rows two and three creates 117 cubic feet of storage.
The automatic transmission has a neat little “tap shift†button on the side of the shift knob for manual up and down shifts. That proved useful in hustling around the tightly twisting mountain roads, because you can manually drop it down into third and be at the right spot in the power band for the curvy, hilly stuff. The little button is concave at the bottom, where you downshift, so you can do it without taking your eye off the road. I would prefer steering wheel-mounted paddles, because then you could shift manually without taking one hand off the wheel.
If I had a major criticism it is that Acadia still feels big for a crossover – big enough to have less of a truck feel than the larger GM SUVs, but more of a truck feel than performance oriented crossover SUVs such as the new Acura MDX, or the Lexus RX350.
But still, the Acadia is a breakthrough for GM, and it may become the halo vehicle for the corporationÂ’s second largest division.
Pretty heady stuff, for a trucklet.
Just when game seems over, BMW X5 rewrites rules
SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Selecting the 2007 North American Car of the Year will be the most difficult itÂ’s been in over a dozen years that IÂ’ve been on the jury. As competitive as the vote on the best of the all-new vehicles is, the companion Truck of the Year choice is even tougher, with virtually all 16 entries eminently qualified.
The new BMW X5 is a perfect example. Seven years is a long run for any vehicle without revision, but the current X5 still seems new, after having rewritten the standard for performance-oriented SUVs when introduced in 1999. Its 2006 version, in fact, was the benchmark used by Honda in designing the new Acura MDX. Regular readers might recall my recent review of the MDX – you could look it up – in which I claimed that after pushing it hard through a heavy rainstorm on a road-racing track, against competitors that included the X5, I came away convinced that the MDX could be the best SUV available.
Following the MDX introduction, I had the opportunity to attend the introduction of the all-new 2007 BMW X5. Sure enough, just about the time you get the game figured out, somebody changes the rules of the game. The new X5 looks similar to the existing one, but it drives with much more feel and precision, with more power and the availability of the almost-magical active steering system that makes it feel more agile despite being more than 7 inches longer, with weight up over 5,000 pounds. That added space contains a foldaway third row of occasional seats.
We toured the BMW factory in Spartanburg, S.C., where both the X5 and the Z4 sports car roll off the assembly line at random, almost in alternating order. We got to drive the new X5 on some great twisting two-lanes, and after the tour, we went to BMWÂ’s adjacent test track, to put the X5 through some specific drills that were much more severe than you could ever encounter in normal civilian driving.
The tests, on a skidpad, and amid some emergency handling cones on the larger track, proved that BMW had improved on every asset of the current model. Naturally, the vehicle Acura used as the MDX performance benchmark was the 2006 X5, and not the new one, which is significantly upgraded. A new 4.8-liter V8 with 350 horsepower and 350 foot-pounds of torque, and a revised 3.0-liter inline 6 with 260 horses and 225 foot-pounds are both upgrades. The X5 is upgraded enough that I might demand a recount with the MDX, because both vehicles are both at the upper echelon of the high-performance SUV segment.
Of great relevance to the debate is that both the BMW X5 and the MDX are candidates for 2007 Truck of the Year. But they are far from alone, or from any assurance they will even be favored by enough of us among the 50 jury members to make the final three.
For anyone who thinks it’s an easy choice, consider that along with the X5 and MDX, Truck of the Year also includes among other SUVs: the just-being-introduced GMC Acadia, the Audi Q7, Dodge Nitro, Hyundai Santa Fe, Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban, Saturn Vue Greenline hybrid, and Suzuki X7. That is a very intense group, but there are more. The proliferating crossover SUV category includes the Ford Edge, the Honda CR-V, the Acura RDX, and the Mazda CX-7 – all very strong candidates. On top of that, there is the new Jeep Wrangler, and the Toyota FJ Cruiser, two of the most impressive off-road-fun machines, and, last but certainly far from least, the Chevrolet Silverado pickup.
Go back over those 16 vehicles and pick one. Or three. Or, better yet, rank them 1-16. Degree of difficulty is high, with gusts up to impossible.
BMW chooses to call the X5 an “SAV†instead of “SUV,†meaning sports-activity vehicle, rather than sports-utility vehicle. Introduced in 1999, a test-run 1,400 X5s were sold from fall to the end of the calendar year, with nearly 32,000 X5s sold in its first full year, and later, sales increased to top the 100,000 mark.
X5 project director Albert Biermann, explained that BMWÂ’s objectives for the new X5 were to raise the level of the driving experience, increase the interior feeling of luxury, and upgrade the versatility of a fun, flexible vehicle with 7-occupant capacity. “The first X5 was a true icon,†said Biermann, “and we wanted to maintain the look of a sporty SUV. The new one should never be recognized as a ‘people mover.Â’ Ââ€
Biermann pointed out the raised command seat view for the front bucket seat occupants, and that the seats in the second row have 40 mm more room. “IÂ’m 6-foot-4,†he said, meaning he must slide the driverÂ’s seat well back, “and I can sit behind myself.Ââ€
Technically, the chassis has 15 percent higher torsional stiffness, and such tricks as an aluminum hood, cast aluminum front strut towers, and even a magnesium instrument holder, contributed to a sleeker stance with a 0.34 coefficient of drag, and 50-50 weight distribution on the front and rear axles. Instrumentation resembles the 7-Series luxury car, with improved cupholders, a navigation/information screen raised up higher, closer to eye level, and a large, clamshell-opening two-tier glove compartment.
As with any BMW, the secret is in the driving dynamics, and the X5 is, in a word, spectacular. Start with DSC (dynamic stability control), which regulates brakes and power to straighten you out, and add DTC (dynamic traction control), which adjusts power for maximum traction. Those two systems combine into Adaptive Drive, which unites the anti-roll system and adaptive shock absorbers. BMW was careful to make sure the complexities merged with the revised xDrive all-wheel drive system.
As recently as three years ago, xDrive almost-grudingly adjusted from rear-drive to allow 40 percent of its torque to go to the front wheels. The new system runs at a standard blend of 40-percent front/60-percent rear, and when necessary can redistribute anything up to 100 percent of that torque to the front. The system uses a battalion of stability-control sensors with to read steering angle, the level of grip, the yaw rate, and other inputs to instruct a clutch system how to react.
BMW officials insist that xDrive shifts power quicker than AudiÂ’s legendary quattro, or VolvoÂ’s slick Haldex system. Systems such as quattro or the Mercedes concept are passive, BMW says, in that they need to sense a problem, then react to it when it gets to a critical point. The xDrive sensors can actually predict symptoms of dangerous conditions and react to prevent the X5 from getting into the critical situation.
We canÂ’t say we understand such complexities, and it may take a few turns on ice-covered streets on the hillside of Duluth to fully appreciate them. But wait, thereÂ’s more.
Active Steering is a system that seems to intimidate many of the lead-footed test-drivers of the major auto magazines, who rip it mercilessly. None of them could possibly have conducted the same tests as I did, or they would only have praise for it. What it does is add a quickening-response to the steering feel as speed increases, which feels like a heaviness. Because it takes a bit more effort to turn at higher speed, but reacts much more quickly, a good driver would tend to not oversteer the car in an emergency – which means a good driver also wouldn’t reach the point of needing to correct, or over-correct, after a severe swerve.
On the test track, I drove an X5 through various phases on the skid pad, and through the slalom cones. In normal setting, traction and stability are governed by DTC; push the DTC button and the system adjusts to later activation, so you can let the rear end hang out a little – less precise, but maybe more fun if you like that sort of tail-wagging; and hold the DTC button down for 3 seconds, and DTC is shut off so there is no brake assistance, and the yaw angle can go to the physical limit of loss of control, although the antilock brakes still work.
I drove at all settings in reverse order, starting with the least control, which was still very good and made you drive well to avoid spinning out on the skid pad; then mid-range, for significantly better traction and less chance to spin out; and then the full-on DTC, which made the X5 work so well you simply couldnÂ’t lose traction on the tight circles and figure-8s of the skidpad.
On the slalom course, I darted and dived around the cones with increasing levels of control, too, then drove alongside the row of cones on the return road to do it again.
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After trying every setting, I switched to an X5 with the optional Active Steering. The difference was incredible. Slaloming through the cones was fun without it, as the X5 required very little steering correction at each cone. But with Active Steering, it needed NO corrections when going through the cones. I did it again, faster. Then one last time, dangerously fast. No problem.
It was so impressive that on my last round, I got a good laugh from some of the instructors because instead of simply returning along the row of cones down the return road, I actually slalomed through those close-set cones without ever knocking one over.
The X5 will cost something for all that technical expertise. Base price is $46,595 with the 6, and $55,195 for the 4.8 V8, which is shared with the 7-Series and top 5-Series sedans.
Amid all the superlatives about BMW technology, there are a couple things that I think proves BMW isn’t always right. First, the “iDrive†system, with one console knob distributing control for everything from climate to audio to navigation, has become less obtrusive to me with continued usage on test cars, but it is still needlessly complex and forces you to look away from the road several times in order to operate it. And second, BMW and Mazda are among the very few who offer a manual shift-gate for their automatic transmission stalks but make you push the spring-loaded lever forward to downshift and pull it back to upshift. That seems counter-intuitive to me, probably to most other prospective drivers, and obviously to nearly all other manufacturers.
YouÂ’ll never read car-mag guys complain about that, because it might tarnish their self-appointed macho status. After all, race cars with sequential manual shifters shift the same direction, but with good reason, because a sudden jolt of torque can cause a driver to be pushed back, and he might involuntarily downshift when already near the redline. That would be a bad thing, I hear you say, amid the sound of grenading gearbox parts. But on the road, in the real world, that wouldn’t happen.
Normal instincts tell normal drivers to push forward to upshift, and pull back – or down, as you look at the pattern – to downshift. I enjoy driving every car imaginable, and I find that BMWs and Mazdas are the only ones in which I don’t use the manual gate. The situation can be bypassed if there are remote paddles on the steering wheel or column. Maybe it’s a little thing, but as one who truly enjoys such manual control, it could be a deal-breaker.
So which is better — the MDX or the X5? Tough question. I’ll just have to test-drive both of them more on normal roads (wink-wink).
Goepfert, Kronick exorcise bad luck for Huskies sweep
OK, letÂ’s state the facts: St. Cloud State goaltender Bobby Goepfert is not superstitious, and does not believe in ritualistic concepts of guidance, and Dan Kronick, his teammate, has no overwhelming desire for revenge. Got that?
Too bad, but Goepfert and Kronick have no flair for melodrama, or they could have easily invoked superstition, black magic, and revenge as the primary reasons they led the Huskies to a 4-0, 4-2 sweep at Minnesota-Duluth, a sweep that extended their winning streak to four, their unbeaten streak to seven (4-0-3), and elevated them to WCHA contention at 4-3-3.
Goepfert hasnÂ’t converted to superstitions, but if thereÂ’s a way to make peace with any lucky charms that might be hanging aroundÂ…why not go for it? Goepfert, a senior, could have just consulted with Kronick, a junior winger, who might have assured him that both of them seem to thrive when they face Minnesota-Duluth. The Huskies have now beaten the Bulldogs five straight times, including the WCHA Final Five playoffs last spring.
Sure enough, when St. Cloud State swept 4-0, 4-2 victories in Duluth, Goepfert got his first season shutout and made 31 saves each night – 2 goals-allowed and 62 saves – and Kronick, a former UMD skater, won offensive player of the week honors in the WCHA by scoring the first goal in both games and adding two assists for the weekend.
Two weeks earlier, Goepfert described his play in a 5-5 tie at Minnesota as being typical of his season, poor statistical numbers but key saves when it mattered. At that time, Goepfert somewhat sheepishly admitted that the only thing he had done to incur bad luck was breaking a mirror before the season started. “It was a full body mirror, and it was behind a door,†Goepfert explained. “I go to open the door, and the mirror fell. It happened in early September.Ââ€
That issue came into clearer focus in Duluth, when Goepfert, who had criticized himself for not being his sharpest, was precisely that with a 31-save shutout and a 4-0 victory in the first game. Kronick, incidentally, scored the first – and game-winning – goal.
“We were good, and Bobby was REALLY good,†said coach Bob Motzko.
Goepfert pointed out that heÂ’s looking for team victories, rather than being concerned about shutouts or statistics. “IÂ’m not really a stat guy, and I donÂ’t care about shutouts,†he said. “But my numbers werenÂ’t good. I really donÂ’t know what changed, because I feel the same.Ââ€
At that moment, Goepfert, who is from the Long Island town of Kings Park, N.Y., and played junior hockey at Cedar Rapids in the USHL, recalled the previous discussion about the broken mirror. “I fixed the mirror, actually,†he said, reluctantly explaining the whole story. “Somebody told me if you break a mirror, itÂ’s seven years of bad luck. I thought, ‘Seven years is a long time.Â’ Ââ€
Among the folksy antidotes to the bad luck of breaking a mirror is to bury the pieces, preferably under a full moon. So, after talking about it following the 5-5 tie at Minnesota, Goepfert put it all together – playing well, giving up five goals, and having saved the broken mirror – as the Huskies rode the bus back home to St. Cloud for the second game of the series, Goepfert decided to take action. Just in case, you understand…
“It was after the Minnesota game, sometime after midnight,†Goepfert said. “The ground was good and hard, and thereÂ’s a place in my back yard with an old frozen fountain in it. I dug a hole and buried it there. But IÂ’m not really all that superstitious, and I donÂ’t want to come off like that.Ââ€
The only things that have come off since then are the numbers in Goepfert’s goals-against column. He made 30 saves in a 7-2 victory over Clarkson, then added 62 more saves – 31 each game – while allowing two goals in two games at Duluth. Three goals, 92 saves, not bad. His new goals-against average is 2.64, and his save percentage is .913.
KronickÂ’s story is completely different. He didnÂ’t have any all-WCHA history to live up to. In fact, he was first recruited to UMD, but didnÂ’t get much chance to play — 15 games, no goals. So Kronick, who is from the Saint Paul suburb of Inver Grove Heights, transferred to St. Cloud State. Last season, he made an impact on Huskies foes with his 6-foot-4, 225-pound frame, but he didnÂ’t score much. Except, that is, when St. Cloud State gave him the chance to face UMD, his former team.
The Huskies also swept the Bulldogs in that series in St. Cloud last season, and Kronick emerged with his best weekend, scoring a hat trick and assisting on a fourth goal in the first game, then scoring another goal in the rematch, to win WCHA player of the week honors. St. Cloud later ended UMDÂ’s playoff bid with a 5-1 victory at the league Final Five opening game. Kronick didnÂ’t score in that one, but he did get an assist on Matt HartmanÂ’s game-winning goal in the 8-7 overtime thriller against Minnesota.
Not that any of that history should have figured into this yearÂ’s series in Duluth. Or should it?
Kronick flashed past the left edge of the goal like a phantom to score the first goal in the Friday game, after the teams had battled scorelessly through the first period and 15:07 of the second, before Lasch jammed a pass across the slot and Kronick hammered it in on a power play before freshman goaltender Alex Stalock could get across to cover. A minute later, Nate Dey was amazingly wide open at the crease to score the first of his two goals on a pass from Austrian freshman Andreas Nodl to make it 2-0.
Midway through the third period, Goepfert made a spectacular save, and moments later Dey was racing to the other end to score again, and the Huskies finished it with Matt HartmanÂ’s empty-net goal.
Dey is supposed to score, replacing Jack Swanson at center between WCHA-leading scorer Nodl and high-scoring junior Andrew Gordon on the Huskies first line. Swanson, who had scored in all but one St. Cloud State game, missed the UMD series with a “lower body†injury suffered in the weight room, according to Motzko. The second line played up to first-line standards with Nate Raduns playing between Kronick and flashy freshman Ryan Lasch.
The top two units clicked in the second game, with the second line scoring three of the four goals, with Lasch scoring twice, including an empty-netter, and Kronick and Nodl getting the others. Again, it was Kronick who scored the gameÂ’s opening goal, breaking a scoreless tie at 4:22 of the second period, then on the lineÂ’s next shift he pounced on a turnover on the right side of the goal and knocked the puck across the crease where Lasch converted for a 2-0 lead.
This time UMD battled back, thanks to the first college goal by little-used freshman Mitch Ryan, from the Duluth suburb of Cloquet. After a hard-working shift, the puck popped loose just inside the blue line. Ryan whirled and fired, drilling a high, screened, 50-foot laser into the upper left corner.
“There was a quick turnover, and the shot went through somebodyÂ’s legs before it went over my right shoulder,†said Goepfert. “I hate giving up a guyÂ’s first goal, because youÂ’ve got to stop and dig the puck out for him.Ââ€
Nodl, the Huskies top goal-scorer, clicked for a power-play goal to make it 3-1 in the third, but Jeff McFarland scored for UMD with a quick wrist shot midway through the period to cut it to 3-2. No matter, Lasch – from Kronick – got an empty-net goal with 1:04 remaining to clinch the 4-2 victory. Nodl leads all WCHA scorers with 7-11—18, while Lasch (7-9—16), Dey (4-12—16) and Andrew Gordon (4-12—16) are close behind. In league scoring, the Huskies prized freshmen Nodl (7-8—15) and Lasch (5-7—12) stand 1-2.
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Kronick is suddenly up to 4-4—8, thanks to his 2-2—4 weekend in Duluth, and he now has scored 6-4—10 in four games against his old team. But he acknowledged that his first return to the DECC was a little strange, even though UMD has so many new players in the past two years he doesnÂ’t know many of them. “It was kinda hard walking in here to play,†he said. “And the visitorÂ’s dressing room is terrible. But once I popped the first goal in the first game, I felt better.Ââ€
“Last weekend it was Dey’s line’s turn, so maybe this was our week,†said Kronick, who went on to laud Raduns for his strong play, and just as he was about to praise the always-hustling Lasch, he noticed the diminutive, blond-haired freshman had just stepped out of the dressing room.
“And Lasch? HeÂ’s OK,†Kronick said. “They say heÂ’s 5-9, but you should say heÂ’s only 5-7.Ââ€
Lasch laughed at his linemate’s heckle, knowing which end of the measuring stick he’s at, listed at 5-foot-9 and playing alongside the 6-foot-3 Raduns and 6-foot-4 Kronick, whose presence give him a little extra room to maneuver. “The joke is, I really AM 5-7,†Lasch said.
Motzko paid tribute to UMD, which continues to play well, but has gone winless in seven straight league games, with only a 6-4 nonconference victory at Northern Michigan breaking an 0-6-1 stretch, leaving the Bulldogs 1-7-2 at the bottom of the WCHA. “TheyÂ’ve got good players, theyÂ’ve got size, speed, skill, theyÂ’re well-coached, and theyÂ’ll get it going,†Motzko said. “TheyÂ’re just snakebit right now.Ââ€
Goepfert sympathized with Stalock, in the UMD goal. “HeÂ’s a good goalie, and he kept UMD in it,†said Goepfert. “I met him when he made a visit to Cedar Rapids, where I played in the USHL.Ââ€
So, a snakebit team, with a goalie playing well but suffering from bad luck? Maybe someone should ask Stalock if heÂ’s broken any mirrors.
Mankato strategy stuns UMD women for DECC ‘firsts’
When Minnesota State-Mankato claimed a 5-5 tie at Minnesota-Duluth, it was definitely a moral victory for the Mavericks. The next night, Minnesota State-Mankato beat the Bulldogs 5-3, proving that, beneficial as moral victories are, the other kind are so much sweeter.
As a tactician, Mavericks coach Jeff Vizenor varies systems to put his women’s hockey team in the best position for an upcoming opponent. Generally, as the WCHA’s “Big Two†expanded to a “Big Three†with Wisconsin moving up to join programs at Minnesota-Duluth and Minnesota, that has meant a cautious, slow-it-down system to confront the perceived advantages of those elite teams.
Against such a plan, UMD had opened the season by sweeping 3-1, 6-1 games at Mankato, and as impressive as the Bulldogs were back in October, Vizenor knew his team hadn’t played well. So after the Mavericks journeyed by bus for the return series a week before Thanksgiving, Vizenor decided it was time for a change. He talked it over with his assistant coaches, and then with the players, and on Friday – the day of the series opener – he used the time of the game-day skate to put his players through a walk-through of a new game-plan on the DECC ice.
“It’s all in the timing,†said Vizenor. “And now was the time to change to something bold. We usually play to slow down Minnesota, UMD and Wisconsin, so this time, we decided to switch to an aggressive ‘2-3’ forecheck, and to have the defensemen pinch down in the offensive zone.
“We talked about it, and then we put it in Friday morning. We knew what we wanted to do, to go-go-go, and make it a track meet.Ââ€
UMD had not only swept at Mankato, but also had swept North Dakota, St. Cloud State and Bemidji State to stand 8-0, before losing two close games at Minnesota, and the Bulldogs had allowed only 10 goals all season, best in the WCHA, and they were playing senior goaltender Riitta Schaublin, who had a 0.83 goals-against record and a .964 save percentage. Vizenor admitted he had a few anxious moments, such as glancing up at the scoreboard and noticing the shots were 33-33 at one point in the first game. Totally out of character for the Mavericks at the DECC, but, since they had never gained a single point in that building in the teamsÂ’ histories, it was, as Vizenor said, time.
When it was over, Minnesota State-Mankato had achieved its first road point against the Bulldogs with the impressive 5-5 tie. The tie was most impressive because it was the Bulldogs who had to gain the tie, which they accomplished on Jessica KoizumiÂ’s fourth goal of the game, with 7.6 seconds left in regulation.
But the Mavericks werenÂ’t done. The next night they came back and beat UMD 5-3, for their first victory ever in the DECC ever. The Mavericks are 3-37-3 against UMD overall, but that didnÂ’t matter in the afterglow of the three-point weekend.
Junior winger Lindsay Macy scored two goals in each game, and if she didn’t get offensive player of the week for her pivotal goals in what may prove to be a watershed weekend for the Mavs, it was only because junior goaltender Britni Kehler won defensive player of the week for making 81 saves – 39 Friday and 42 Saturday – in helping hold down the explosive Bulldogs.
Vizenor hesitated when asked if it might have been the biggest weekend in the Mankato programÂ’s history, and he hesitated. “You know, we beat Â’em twice down here to start the season three years ago, so that was big,†he said. “But they were missing a few players that time.Ââ€
The players got full credit from the coach, who downplayed his strategical gem. In one move, Vizenor reunited center Amanda Stohr with wingers Maggie Fisher and Ashley Young, a move that was far from insignificant. That line made South St. Paul a force in Minnesota high school girls hockey for several years, and when the three decided to go to Mankato together, it seemed a no-brainer that they would stay together. However, Young was injured and missed her whole freshman season.
“This was actually the first weekend we’ve had them together,†said Vizenor.
Macy, who transferred from Wisconsin where she scored 37-37—74 in two seasons, is a junior who skates with center Shera Vis and right wing Kala Buganski on the first line, so the South St. Paul line – including Fisher, who led the Mavericks in scoring as a freshman last season with 16-7—23 – gives the Mavericks two lines with scoring punch.
“Macy was a force both days at Duluth, and sheÂ’s so disciplined and smart,†said Vizenor. “And Fisher has such good speed and works so hard. Both of them also made big defensive plays to help us hold the lead Saturday. Britni Kehler also had a great weekend. Every time we really needed a big save, she made one.Ââ€
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In the second game, after Macy and Fisher had scored two apiece, the Mavericks put the second game away with third-line center Jodi HelminenÂ’s empty-net goal. And fourth-line center Noelle Needham saw a lot of power-play action and wound up with two goals and an assist for the weekend, which, combined with steady and effective defensive play made it truly a team effort.
The new and more aggressive forechecking system made the Mavericks more forceful on offense at Duluth, it also had a large mental impact. A ‘2-3’ means two forwards attack hard in the offensive zone, while one forward stays back defensively with the two defensemen. Having two forecheckers go hard, and the strong-side defenseman pinch in to attack, it is a very offensive style. But the Mavericks didn’t just play the 2-3.
“It seems like we usually play 5, 7, or 10 minutes of real good hockey, then we have a letdown,†said Vizenor. “WeÂ’ve used a 2-3, and a 2-1-2 at other times. This time, after we had some success with our 2-3, I switched a couple times to a 1-2-2 and locked up their wings with our wings for a few minutes. Then IÂ’d go back to the 2-3. It forced us to refocus. I think using the 2-3 and then changing out of it a couple times kept everybody mentally sharp.Ââ€
The coach is now curious to see what kind of impact such success can have on the Mavericks. On Thanksgiving weekend, they head for Ohio State for another series, and he is not sure the aggressive 2-3 system will be effective.
“We adjust according to our opponent,†Vizenor said. “Ohio State, for example, has three or four great skating defensemen, so going with two hard forecheckers might not work as well. Our league has gotten so tough, we have to realize that one weekend doesn’t make the season.
“But the best part about our weekend in Duluth was that we competed hard for 60 minutes, both nights. ThatÂ’s all that matters.Ââ€
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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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