The NMU hockey team knows that when they travel to Ohio this weekend to face the Miami Redhawks, it will be a win-or-go-home situation.

“I think everything intensifies; everything is put in the spotlight,” junior Derek May said. “Every move you make on the ice is an important one. We know we need to win if we want to keep the season going.”

The Wildcats opened the CCHA Playoffs last weekend with a pair of wins over CCHA rival Michigan State University. The ‘Cats outscored the Spartans 5-3 on Friday night, and 8-2 on Saturday night. Michigan State, a generally strong team in the CCHA, finished in 11th place this year after the team was hit hard by NHL departures and injuries.

Head coach Walt Kyle said the difficulties the Spartans faced this year affected the team the Wildcats faced in the Berry this past weekend.

“Michigan State was a team that has gone through a ton of adversity this year, and we were able to catch them when they were down, when they were injured, when they had guys from the club team playing,” Kyle said. “I think it’s a little tough to judge based on those scores. We’ve got some different challenges ahead of us here.”

Many fans attending the game were anxious to see how the ‘Cats would fare against Michigan State goalie Jeff Lerg, one of the best goalies in the NCAA. The Wildcats answered any questions by scoring eight goals Saturday. That was the most goals that Lerg has given up in his four-year NCAA career.

NMU goalie Brian Stewart, who oftentimes has carried the team in close victories this season, said it was nice to see his team score the eight goals and take some of the onus off of him.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “It obviously took some pressure off.”

On March 13 and 14 the Wildcats will travel to Oxford, Ohio, to take on an opponent with whom Stewart is all too familiar. Three weeks ago when the two teams met, Stewart made 89 saves as the Wildcats took three points from the Redhawks.

Stewart said he doesn’t mind playing in tough games.

“It keeps you in the game,” Stewart said. “I sometimes don’t mind those types of games as long as we end up on top.”

Kyle emphasized the key to this weekend was putting last weekend’s sweep in the background and focusing on each upcoming game.

“You’re always happy when (you get a sweep), but when you are in the playoffs, you always have to look and realize that your next opponent is going to be better,” Kyle said. “We’ve got a real challenge ahead of us this weekend and we’re not going to spend a lot of time dwelling on last weekend.”

He added that maintaining focus and not making mistakes could be the game-changer this weekend.

“The biggest thing (about playing in the playoffs), I think, is that the mistakes are magnified. You have to understand your mistakes. You can’t take untimely penalties, you can’t turn pucks over, you can’t have bad changes,” Kyle The NMU hockey team knows that when they travel to Ohio this weekend to face the Miami Redhawks, it will be a win-or-go-home situation.

“I think everything intensifies; everything is put in the spotlight,” junior Derek May said. “Every move you make on the ice is an important one. We know we need to win if we want to keep the season going.”

The Wildcats opened the CCHA Playoffs last weekend with a pair of wins over CCHA rival Michigan State University. The ‘Cats outscored the Spartans 5-3 on Friday night, and 8-2 on Saturday night. Michigan State, a generally strong team in the CCHA, finished in 11th place this year after the team was hit hard by NHL departures and injuries.

Head coach Walt Kyle said the difficulties the Spartans faced this year affected the team the Wildcats faced in the Berry this past weekend.

“Michigan State was a team that has gone through a ton of adversity this year, and we were able to catch them when they were down, when they were injured, when they had guys from the club team playing,” Kyle said. “I think it’s a little tough to judge based on those scores. We’ve got some different challenges ahead of us here.”

Many fans attending the game were anxious to see how the ‘Cats would fare against Michigan State goalie Jeff Lerg, one of the best goalies in the NCAA. The Wildcats answered any questions by scoring eight goals Saturday. That was the most goals that Lerg has given up in his four-year NCAA career.

NMU goalie Brian Stewart, who oftentimes has carried the team in close victories this season, said it was nice to see his team score the eight goals and take some of the onus off of him.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “It obviously took some pressure off.”

On March 13 and 14 the Wildcats will travel to Oxford, Ohio, to take on an opponent with whom Stewart is all too familiar. Three weeks ago when the two teams met, Stewart made 89 saves as the Wildcats took three points from the Redhawks.

Stewart said he doesn’t mind playing in tough games.

“It keeps you in the game,” Stewart said. “I sometimes don’t mind those types of games as long as we end up on top.”

Kyle emphasized the key to this weekend was putting last weekend’s sweep in the background and focusing on each upcoming game.

“You’re always happy when (you get a sweep), but when you are in the playoffs, you always have to look and realize that your next opponent is going to be better,” Kyle said. “We’ve got a real challenge ahead of us this weekend and we’re not going to spend a lot of time dwelling on last weekend.”

He added that maintaining focus and not making mistakes could be the game-changer this weekend.

“The biggest thing (about playing in the playoffs), I think, is that the mistakes are magnified. You have to understand your mistakes. You can’t take untimely penalties, you can’t turn pucks over, you can’t have bad changes,” Kyle The NMU hockey team knows that when they travel to Ohio this weekend to face the Miami Redhawks, it will be a win-or-go-home situation.

“I think everything intensifies; everything is put in the spotlight,” junior Derek May said. “Every move you make on the ice is an important one. We know we need to win if we want to keep the season going.”

The Wildcats opened the CCHA Playoffs last weekend with a pair of wins over CCHA rival Michigan State University. The ‘Cats outscored the Spartans 5-3 on Friday night, and 8-2 on Saturday night. Michigan State, a generally strong team in the CCHA, finished in 11th place this year after the team was hit hard by NHL departures and injuries.

Head coach Walt Kyle said the difficulties the Spartans faced this year affected the team the Wildcats faced in the Berry this past weekend.

“Michigan State was a team that has gone through a ton of adversity this year, and we were able to catch them when they were down, when they were injured, when they had guys from the club team playing,” Kyle said. “I think it’s a little tough to judge based on those scores. We’ve got some different challenges ahead of us here.”

Many fans attending the game were anxious to see how the ‘Cats would fare against Michigan State goalie Jeff Lerg, one of the best goalies in the NCAA. The Wildcats answered any questions by scoring eight goals Saturday. That was the most goals that Lerg has given up in his four-year NCAA career.

NMU goalie Brian Stewart, who oftentimes has carried the team in close victories this season, said it was nice to see his team score the eight goals and take some of the onus off of him.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “It obviously took some pressure off.”

On March 13 and 14 the Wildcats will travel to Oxford, Ohio, to take on an opponent with whom Stewart is all too familiar. Three weeks ago when the two teams met, Stewart made 89 saves as the Wildcats took three points from the Redhawks.

Stewart said he doesn’t mind playing in tough games.

“It keeps you in the game,” Stewart said. “I sometimes don’t mind those types of games as long as we end up on top.”

Kyle emphasized the key to this weekend was putting last weekend’s sweep in the background and focusing on each upcoming game.

“You’re always happy when (you get a sweep), but when you are in the playoffs, you always have to look and realize that your next opponent is going to be better,” Kyle said. “We’ve got a real challenge ahead of us this weekend and we’re not going to spend a lot of time dwelling on last weekend.”

He added that maintaining focus and not making mistakes could be the game-changer this weekend.

“The biggest thing (about playing in the playoffs), I think, is that the mistakes are magnified. You have to understand your mistakes. You can’t take untimely penalties, you can’t turn pucks over, you can’t have bad changes,” Kyle The NMU hockey team knows that when they travel to Ohio this weekend to face the Miami Redhawks, it will be a win-or-go-home situation.

“I think everything intensifies; everything is put in the spotlight,” junior Derek May said. “Every move you make on the ice is an important one. We know we need to win if we want to keep the season going.”

The Wildcats opened the CCHA Playoffs last weekend with a pair of wins over CCHA rival Michigan State University. The ‘Cats outscored the Spartans 5-3 on Friday night, and 8-2 on Saturday night. Michigan State, a generally strong team in the CCHA, finished in 11th place this year after the team was hit hard by NHL departures and injuries.

Head coach Walt Kyle said the difficulties the Spartans faced this year affected the team the Wildcats faced in the Berry this past weekend.

“Michigan State was a team that has gone through a ton of adversity this year, and we were able to catch them when they were down, when they were injured, when they had guys from the club team playing,” Kyle said. “I think it’s a little tough to judge based on those scores. We’ve got some different challenges ahead of us here.”

Many fans attending the game were anxious to see how the ‘Cats would fare against Michigan State goalie Jeff Lerg, one of the best goalies in the NCAA. The Wildcats answered any questions by scoring eight goals Saturday. That was the most goals that Lerg has given up in his four-year NCAA career.

NMU goalie Brian Stewart, who oftentimes has carried the team in close victories this season, said it was nice to see his team score the eight goals and take some of the onus off of him.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “It obviously took some pressure off.”

On March 13 and 14 the Wildcats will travel to Oxford, Ohio, to take on an opponent with whom Stewart is all too familiar. Three weeks ago when the two teams met, Stewart made 89 saves as the Wildcats took three points from the Redhawks.

Stewart said he doesn’t mind playing in tough games.

“It keeps you in the game,” Stewart said. “I sometimes don’t mind those types of games as long as we end up on top.”

Kyle emphasized the key to this weekend was putting last weekend’s sweep in the background and focusing on each upcoming game.

“You’re always happy when (you get a sweep), but when you are in the playoffs, you always have to look and realize that your next opponent is going to be better,” Kyle said. “We’ve got a real challenge ahead of us this weekend and we’re not going to spend a lot of time dwelling on last weekend.”

He added that maintaining focus and not making mistakes could be the game-changer this weekend.

“The biggest thing (about playing in the playoffs), I think, is that the mistakes are magnified. You have to understand your mistakes. You can’t take untimely penalties, you can’t turn pucks over, you can’t have bad changes,” Kyle The NMU hockey team knows that when they travel to Ohio this weekend to face the Miami Redhawks, it will be a win-or-go-home situation.

“I think everything intensifies; everything is put in the spotlight,” junior Derek May said. “Every move you make on the ice is an important one. We know we need to win if we want to keep the season going.”

The Wildcats opened the CCHA Playoffs last weekend with a pair of wins over CCHA rival Michigan State University. The ‘Cats outscored the Spartans 5-3 on Friday night, and 8-2 on Saturday night. Michigan State, a generally strong team in the CCHA, finished in 11th place this year after the team was hit hard by NHL departures and injuries.

Head coach Walt Kyle said the difficulties the Spartans faced this year affected the team the Wildcats faced in the Berry this past weekend.

“Michigan State was a team that has gone through a ton of adversity this year, and we were able to catch them when they were down, when they were injured, when they had guys from the club team playing,” Kyle said. “I think it’s a little tough to judge based on those scores. We’ve got some different challenges ahead of us here.”

Many fans attending the game were anxious to see how the ‘Cats would fare against Michigan State goalie Jeff Lerg, one of the best goalies in the NCAA. The Wildcats answered any questions by scoring eight goals Saturday. That was the most goals that Lerg has given up in his four-year NCAA career.

NMU goalie Brian Stewart, who oftentimes has carried the team in close victories this season, said it was nice to see his team score the eight goals and take some of the onus off of him.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “It obviously took some pressure off.”

On March 13 and 14 the Wildcats will travel to Oxford, Ohio, to take on an opponent with whom Stewart is all too familiar. Three weeks ago when the two teams met, Stewart made 89 saves as the Wildcats took three points from the Redhawks.

Stewart said he doesn’t mind playing in tough games.

“It keeps you in the game,” Stewart said. “I sometimes don’t mind those types of games as long as we end up on top.”

Kyle emphasized the key to this weekend was putting last weekend’s sweep in the background and focusing on each upcoming game.

“You’re always happy when (you get a sweep), but when you are in the playoffs, you always have to look and realize that your next opponent is going to be better,” Kyle said. “We’ve got a real challenge ahead of us this weekend and we’re not going to spend a lot of time dwelling on last weekend.”

He added that maintaining focus and not making mistakes could be the game-changer this weekend.

“The biggest thing (about playing in the playoffs), I think, is that the mistakes are magnified. You have to understand your mistakes. You can’t take untimely penalties, you can’t turn pucks over, you can’t have bad changes,” Kyle The NMU hockey team knows that when they travel to Ohio this weekend to face the Miami Redhawks, it will be a win-or-go-home situation.

“I think everything intensifies; everything is put in the spotlight,” junior Derek May said. “Every move you make on the ice is an important one. We know we need to win if we want to keep the season going.”

The Wildcats opened the CCHA Playoffs last weekend with a pair of wins over CCHA rival Michigan State University. The ‘Cats outscored the Spartans 5-3 on Friday night, and 8-2 on Saturday night. Michigan State, a generally strong team in the CCHA, finished in 11th place this year after the team was hit hard by NHL departures and injuries.

Head coach Walt Kyle said the difficulties the Spartans faced this year affected the team the Wildcats faced in the Berry this past weekend.

“Michigan State was a team that has gone through a ton of adversity this year, and we were able to catch them when they were down, when they were injured, when they had guys from the club team playing,” Kyle said. “I think it’s a little tough to judge based on those scores. We’ve got some different challenges ahead of us here.”

Many fans attending the game were anxious to see how the ‘Cats would fare against Michigan State goalie Jeff Lerg, one of the best goalies in the NCAA. The Wildcats answered any questions by scoring eight goals Saturday. That was the most goals that Lerg has given up in his four-year NCAA career.

NMU goalie Brian Stewart, who oftentimes has carried the team in close victories this season, said it was nice to see his team score the eight goals and take some of the onus off of him.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “It obviously took some pressure off.”

On March 13 and 14 the Wildcats will travel to Oxford, Ohio, to take on an opponent with whom Stewart is all too familiar. Three weeks ago when the two teams met, Stewart made 89 saves as the Wildcats took three points from the Redhawks.

Stewart said he doesn’t mind playing in tough games.

“It keeps you in the game,” Stewart said. “I sometimes don’t mind those types of games as long as we end up on top.”

Kyle emphasized the key to this weekend was putting last weekend’s sweep in the background and focusing on each upcoming game.

“You’re always happy when (you get a sweep), but when you are in the playoffs, you always have to look and realize that your next opponent is going to be better,” Kyle said. “We’ve got a real challenge ahead of us this weekend and we’re not going to spend a lot of time dwelling on last weekend.”

He added that maintaining focus and not making mistakes could be the game-changer this weekend.

“The biggest thing (about playing in the playoffs), I think, is that the mistakes are magnified. You have to understand your mistakes. You can’t take untimely penalties, you can’t turn pucks over, you can’t have bad changes,” Kyle The NMU hockey team knows that when they travel to Ohio this weekend to face the Miami Redhawks, it will be a win-or-go-home situation.

“I think everything intensifies; everything is put in the spotlight,” junior Derek May said. “Every move you make on the ice is an important one. We know we need to win if we want to keep the season going.”

The Wildcats opened the CCHA Playoffs last weekend with a pair of wins over CCHA rival Michigan State University. The ‘Cats outscored the Spartans 5-3 on Friday night, and 8-2 on Saturday night. Michigan State, a generally strong team in the CCHA, finished in 11th place this year after the team was hit hard by NHL departures and injuries.

Head coach Walt Kyle said the difficulties the Spartans faced this year affected the team the Wildcats faced in the Berry this past weekend.

“Michigan State was a team that has gone through a ton of adversity this year, and we were able to catch them when they were down, when they were injured, when they had guys from the club team playing,” Kyle said. “I think it’s a little tough to judge based on those scores. We’ve got some different challenges ahead of us here.”

Many fans attending the game were anxious to see how the ‘Cats would fare against Michigan State goalie Jeff Lerg, one of the best goalies in the NCAA. The Wildcats answered any questions by scoring eight goals Saturday. That was the most goals that Lerg has given up in his four-year NCAA career.

NMU goalie Brian Stewart, who oftentimes has carried the team in close victories this season, said it was nice to see his team score the eight goals and take some of the onus off of him.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “It obviously took some pressure off.”

On March 13 and 14 the Wildcats will travel to Oxford, Ohio, to take on an opponent with whom Stewart is all too familiar. Three weeks ago when the two teams met, Stewart made 89 saves as the Wildcats took three points from the Redhawks.

Stewart said he doesn’t mind playing in tough games.

“It keeps you in the game,” Stewart said. “I sometimes don’t mind those types of games as long as we end up on top.”

Kyle emphasized the key to this weekend was putting last weekend’s sweep in the background and focusing on each upcoming game.

“You’re always happy when (you get a sweep), but when you are in the playoffs, you always have to look and realize that your next opponent is going to be better,” Kyle said. “We’ve got a real challenge ahead of us this weekend and we’re not going to spend a lot of time dwelling on last weekend.”

He added that maintaining focus and not making mistakes could be the game-changer this weekend.

“The biggest thing (about playing in the playoffs), I think, is that the mistakes are magnified. You have to understand your mistakes. You can’t take untimely penalties, you can’t turn pucks over, you can’t have bad changes,” Kyle can’t have bad changes,” Kyle said. “You never know when a play is going to happen that will dictate the winner of a game or a series. Every time you are on the ice you have to expect that that play will happen and just maintain

maximum focus.”

May said that while he thinks his team has a good chance to win this weekend, he doesn’t think they can repeat Saturday’s eight-goal performance.

“We only mustered up seven shots on goal last time we were in Miami, so I don’t think we can put up eight (goals),” May said. “But I think we can get a few and play good defense and leave with some wins.”

When asked if his team has the talent to pull off a playoff run similar to last year’s third place CCHA finish, Kyle said it wasn’t even on the team’s mind.

“We’re not even looking like that right now,” Kyle said.

“We’re just looking at Friday night.”