The Miami RedHawks (9-4-0) performed well in their conference on Friday as the first NCHC team in the Friendship Four, won 4-0 over the RIT Tigers to advance to the championship game.
Related: Miami shuts down RIT 4-0, advances to Friendship Four finals
Four different skaters scored for the Red Hawks: Bradley Walker, Ilia Morozov, Matteo Giampa and Doug Grimes, while goaltender Matteo Drobac earned his second shutout of the season, stopping 23 of the 23 shots he faced.
RIT’s Jakub Krbecek made 27 saves on 29 shots but allowed two early goals in the first period. Miami jumped on him early and created a lot of traffic up front, capitalizing on rebounds throughout the game.
Miami’s penalty kill and Drobac deliver
Miami finished a perfect 3-for-3 on the penalty kill and leaned heavily on Drobac during RIT’s push late in the second period. He made some great saves on those two kills and looked confident the rest of the match. Drobac made nine saves in the second period and eight in the third, including a pair of breakaway stops that halted potential momentum for RIT.
The RedHawks kept out most of the RIT attempts despite a few Grade-A looks, as reflected in the College Hockey News recording chart below.
Miami also blocked nine shots as a team. Ryder Thompson returned from injury and blocked two shots. Ethan Hay also blocked two. Miami cleared the pucks well, protected the front of the net and handled most of its second-chance opportunities.
RedHawks controlled property
Miami controlled possession for much of the night, and a lot of that came from excelling in the faceoff circle and holding the offensive zone. The RedHawks won 30 of 54 matchups, which equates to 55.6%.
Hay was again the highlight. He went 9-for-10 (90%) on draws and remains Miami’s most consistent option in the circle. His ability to win draws in the defensive zone while a man down was crucial, and he also created a few chances in the attacking zone through clean wins.
Morozov took the most draws and went 7-for-16. While the percentage was lower, he was relied on in key spots, including several shifts against RIT’s top line and on the power play. Miami finished 1-for-5 on the power play; the only goal was by Morozov in the first.
Morozov also played perhaps his best defensive game of the season. His defensive presence, backchecking and support play were strong all night, and one of his biggest defensive plays came in the third period, when he lifted the stick of a RIT at the edge of the blue paint to stop an easy tap opportunity. This was during RIT’s attempt to climb back, and Morozov was instrumental in keeping the 2-0 lead.
Miami’s uses international chips to gain an advantage
Miami used the larger international court to their advantage with speed, puck movement and active defensemen holding the blue line and keeping the pucks in the offensive zone. There was more space to work with, and players like Vladislav Lukashevich, Casper Nassen and Morozov grew up playing on these types of records in Europe, so there was a degree of familiarity in the way they handled the extra space.
In Ryan Sikes’ scorecard, which he sent to me, Lukashevich finished plus-3.45 on the skater impact card, which was the highest of the match between both teams. He finished with two assists and was plus-3. He remains their attacking driving defender and smartly stays where he is without squeezing too much. Defender Owen Lalonde also played a strong game defensively and finished with plus-2.48 on the scorecard.
Miami had timely and clear line changes, which is important on a bigger level. They rolled all four lines, just as head coach Anthony Noreen said after the St. Cloud State series last weekend. He said they don’t have a first, second, third or fourth rule, and he wasn’t lying.
Walker opened the scoring just under three minutes into the match by pulling one home from the slot after a pass from Hay. It was Walker’s second goal as a RedHawk and the first point for Nick Mikan, who had the assist.
The line of Mikan, Hay and Walker had its best game of the season and spent much of the night taking on the RIT top line, handling those teams well. Mikan also finished plus-1.97 on the scorecard above.
Next
Miami will face No. 20 Union College on Saturday at 2:45 PM EST due to ice problems. Union defeated Sacred Heart early on Friday by a final score of 8-1, so the RedHawks have their work cut out for them.
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