Day three was the most exciting yet, mostly because scrimmages finally got underway. Early on, Michigan forward Zach Hyman left the ice after being hit with a puck; he did return however, and later scored a goal (more on that in a bit). Nick Bjugstad changed his practice jersey number to 27, his current number with Minnesota. Could this be a hint that his stay-or-go decision has been reached?
Starting lineups for the first scrimmage:
- Red: D Rasmus Bengtsson – Jonatan Nielsen, F Joe Basaraba – Drew Shore – Joe Devin, G Andrew Volkening
- White: D Josh McFadden – Alex Petrovic, F Garrett Wilson – Vincent Trocheck – Anthony Luciani, G Michael Houser
The white jerseys controlled the puck for most of the scrimmage, and scored both goals (from Francis Beauvillier and Bjugstad, respectfully). Jonathan Racine continued to impressed me with his defensive play, including a takeaway that saved a goal. Michael Matheson‘s play was also solid, with Kyle Rau and Vincent Trocheck having some nice scoring chances.
Starting lineups for the second scrimmage:
- Red: D Bengtsson – Nielsen, F Logan Shaw – Shore – Steven Hodges, G Andrey Makarov
- White: D McFadden – Petrovic, Josh Birkholz – Bjugstad – Beauvillier, G Sam Brittain
Bjugstad shined again, with the first goal of the scrimmage. He was the most dominant player on the ice, and he was actually directing the offense. If he does sign with Florida, expect the 6′-6″ Golden Gopher to make an impact in the NHL almost immediately. The second goal came from Wade Megan, for the Red jerseys, on a breakaway. The White jerseys did answer back with Trocheck goal, but that would be their end of their offense. Hyman returned to the ice with Matheson welcoming him back with a hard hit. Hyman would get the last laugh, tying the game. The Red jerseys had many breakaway chances, and controlled the puck late in the scrimmage. Denver’s Brittain was solid in net, and even poke-checked Jonathan Huberdeau when he got close to the net on a chance. Huberdeau wouldn’t be denied however, and scored the game winning goal.
After the scrimmage, both sides played a shootout, and ended the practice with a center-ice stick salute.
Videos from Day Three below (and all can be accessed from LBC’s YouTube page at any time here)