Scouting The Opposition: Frozen Four

In just a few hours Union will be playing in its first ever Frozen Four...I can't believe I was just able to type that.

Their opponent in the semifinals is Ferris State. They, like Union, are new to the Frozen Four. Yet, they are probably the best opponent Union has faced so far in this tournament.

Ferris State won the CCHA during the regular season. The CCHA sent five teams to the tournament, and Union has already beaten two of them (Michigan St. and Umass-Lowell). In fact, so far this tournament the ECAC is 3-1 against the CCHA (Cornell beat Michigan, and lost to Ferris State), so much for the EZAC.

In the tournament, Ferris State has won both games by identical 2-1 scores. The first win was over Denver, and the second over Cornell.

Ferris State is a very strong defensive team. They rank in the top 10 in both defense and penalty kill.

"Going into the Regional we had 460 blocked shots, and people kept talking about our willingness to sacrifice our body and put ourselves in the line for the guy next to you," said Ferris State goalie Taylor Nelson. "And I think that's the big part of the success that was attributable to us winning the regional. I mean, our penalty kill in both those games was phenomenal. Guys putting their bodies on the line. They understand the ramifications of a lost game; it's over. The season's done. And this group of guys is such a tight knit group of guys and we don't want this to end yet. We want to keep going."

(My favorite thing about that quote is I feel Grosenick could've said a similar thing when asked about Union's defense.)

Scoring will be at a premium in this game, and an early lead will be important to both clubs.

When scoring first Union is 15-5-6, Ferris State is 12-6-2. When leading after one Union is 21-2-4, Ferris State is 10-2-0. However, when trailing after one Union is 0-3-1 and Ferris State is 2-6-1.

Union has crushed its opponents in the first period this season, outscoring them 62-20. Ferris State has barely outscored its opponents with a 28-23 advantage in the first. If Union can jump out to an early lead like they have done all season, they should have a good chance of advancing to the finals.

Either way this should be one of the toughest and most exciting games the Dutchmen have played all season. Hope everyone is excited and ready for the game, and LET'S GO U!