DETROIT – The Northern Michigan University hockey team rode into the Great Lakes Invitational off of an overtime victory against Ferris State 2 weeks earlier in Marquette.

The Wildcats weren’t able to keep that momentum going Tuesday night against No. 10 Michigan as they fell by the same score, 3-2, to the Wolverines. Northern held a 2-1 lead in the second period but couldn’t hold on in the end even as the Wildcats outshot Michigan 37-34.

“I thought it was a good game,” NMU head coach Walt Kyle said. “I liked us early. I think both teams traded chances coming off of a long break. I think both teams gave up too many chances for a coach. I liked our effort and it was a good hockey game. Both teams played well.”

In front of the largest crowd they’d played in front of all season, the Wildcats got off to a decent start as forwards Filip Starzynski and Robbie Payne had nice scoring opportunities, but couldn’t put the puck past Michigan goalie Steve Racine. After shutting down the Wolverines offense for the majority of the period, Tolvanen let in a goal on a rocket shot by Cutler Martin that snuck under the crossbar.

Trailing 1-0 in the second, Northern tied the game on a nifty goal by Gerard Hanson. The junior got a cross-ice feed from Ryan Trenz and beat Racine glove-side for his first goal of the season. At the 11:41 mark, the Wildcats took the lead on a goal by suburban Ann Arbor native Dominik Shine. During a scrum in front of the Michigan net, the Wildcats got several whacks at the puck before it squirted free. Shine and teammate Cohen Adair went for it at the same time and Shine tapped it into the wide-open net.

The advantage didn’t last, though, as Michigan tied the game a little more than a minute later. Justin Selman scored for the Wolverines on the power play, knotting the game at 2-2. Michigan had a chance to take its second lead as it received a five-minute power play thanks to a contact-to-the-head penalty on Hanson. However, Tolvanen and the Wildcats penalty kill stood tall and kept the game tied at the end of the period.

In the third, Northern struggled at the start as the Wolverines kept the puck in the Wildcats defensive zone during the early minutes. At the 4:05 mark, Michigan’s Kyle Connor scored his 12th goal this season to give the Wolverines a 3-2 advantage. Connor weaved his way around the back of the net and lifted a shot over Tolvanen.

NMU had a huge opportunity to tie the game late in the period when it was awarded a five-minute power play of its own, but couldn’t capitalize and were dealt a disappointing loss.

The Wildcats play Michigan State, which lost to Michigan Tech 3-2 in overtime in the other tournament semifinal, in the third-place game at 3:30 p.m. today. The game will be televised on Fox Sports Detroit. The Huskies and Wolverines tangle at 7 p.m. for the GLI title in a game also to be televised on FSD.

Ryan Stieg can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 246. His email address is rstieg@miningjournal.net.