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CLICK HERE for Game Recap from Kristy McNeil and other pertinent information and HERE for current Pairwise Rankings.

What just happened (TL;DR): Michigan just won the Big Ten Hockey Tournament in Minneapolis for the second straight season! They responded well being down a goal twice, including once in the third period. AND…they killed off a game, holding a one goal lead for the final 8+ minutes. All very impressive feats that they’ve struggled with throughout the year. #EyeballEmoji

FINAL CORSI NUMBERS (www.collegehockeynews.com)

Forward Notes.

-After a back and forth boring first period, Michigan mostly dominated possession and shots for the rest of the game. While they did makes mistakes to give up a number of transitional chances, Michigan rolled their lines and were able to sustain zone time and create looks on net with basically every line contributing. Minnesota’s superstar top line did get their chances, but Michigan’s depth (h/t Alex) proved strong throughout the game.

-Rutger McGroarty tallied Michigan’s first two goals on similar chances. The first came on a rebound that Ethan Edwards threw on net. The rebound kicked to Rutger in the slot and he buried it. The second was a bomb from Keaton Pehrson off the end boards out in front. Again, Rutger was positioned well in front the of the net for the rebound dunk. He also provided the screen on the game-tying goal.

-I mentioned that this rink/game/team was never going to fit Dylan Duke’s strong suit. He’s never going to be as effective in an Olympic rink. For the most part, that was true. BUT…in the third period, in a tie game, Dylan Duke made a play. TJ Hughes made a great entry pass from the blue line right to Duke’s stick. Dylan went forehand, backhand around Justen Close’s out-stretched skate and finished inside the post for the game-winner. Right where you’d expect Duke to finish.

-The fourth line was impressive on Saturday night. Mark Estapa was great on the forecheck, winning pucks below the goalline. He also had a number of decent scoring chances, too, including ringing the iron on the penalty kill. Nolan Moyle, too, had a few decent chances and checked well on both ends. Nick Granowicz also made a really nice play backchecking in his own crease to breakup a very good look.

Seamus Casey had the game-tying goal (Patrick Barron)

Defense Notes.

-In zone, Michigan’s defense was pretty good. They didn’t get overwhelmed and trapped very often. There weren’t TOO many bad DZTOs. They generally were comfortable on the puck getting it up and out. Luke Hughes and Keaton Pehrson had a bit of a rough start. Luke also did have a couple turnovers he’d probably want back, but overall it was a pretty positive night.

-The defensive issues came in transition. Luke Hughes made a bad shot decision that lead to a 2v1. Keaton Pehson played it very poorly, allowing a simple pass across for a goal. Seamus Casey was also caught napping once that lead to a rush. Casey and Edwards were both caught in the offensive zone when Minnesota scored on their 2v0. Steve Holtz was completely undressed by Rhett Pitlick on a 1v1 for the third goal. Holtz is by all accounts a great dude with a phenomenal recovery story, but he’s probably not skating in an ideal defensive lineup for Michigan. A lot of the positives Michigan gained with the play in their own end, they gave away in transition.

-Despite getting burned on a couple of very bad OMRs, Seamus Casey did snipe a corner from distance to tie the game in the third period. It was his 7th goal of the season and his 24th point in his 33rd game. Not bad.

BIG NASTY. [Marc-Gregor Campredon]

Four wins. Four days. A trophy.

Old hat.

For the second straight year, Michigan pulled off the improbable and ran through the best the Big Ten had to offer for a conference tournament championship. They sealed it this evening by running away from Purdue, which never held a lead after the game's opening three minutes. The big, bad Boilermakers could only stay at arm's length, then the Wolverines laid the hammer down in an incredible second half only marred by some late free-throw trouble that never put the outcome in serious doubt.

Just about everything John Beilein touched turned to gold; he outdueled Purdue's Matt Painter in what's been the Big Ten's most intricately fascinating coaching matchup the last two years. Painter chose to hedge hard against the ballhandler on high screens in the first half; while Michigan went 3-for-11 on mostly wide-open threes, they drew Purdue's towering big men far from the hoop—the Wolverines went 13-for-19 inside the arc and didn't have a shot blocked or commit a turnover.

Much of that was due to the stellar play of Jon Teske, who scored 12 of his 14 points in the first-half minutes after Beilein gave Wagner the usual break following his first foul. Teske was a force on both ends and Beilein let him ride for 12 first-half minutes. Teske rewarded his coach's faith with dunks off the pick-and-roll, increasingly lengthy midrange shots off the pick-and-pop, a thunderous block, and a stellar late defensive posseession on an otherwise dominant Isaac Haas, who picked up a cheap frustration foul in response.

"I really have no words to explain," said Teske.

Big lights. Little dude. Huge buckets. [Campredon]

Zavier Simpson was masterful on both ends as well. His chemistry with Teske created multiple open baskets. He got the hoop with regularity and finished. When Purdue overplayed him on screens, he generated wide open looks for Michigan's shooters. He played lockdown defense on Purdue's best perimeter player, Carsen Edwards, who went only 3-for-9 in the first half.

"He's a pit bull," said Beilein. "We have a picture of a big, mean pit bull in our locker room for every game. And he is that guy. He's one that loves to play defense."

"Muhammad and I just wanted to come out and set the tone," said Simpson. "We wanted to play great defense from the start so our energy could be contagious. And as you've seen, others followed."

While the Wovlerines went into the break up 38-33, however, it felt like they'd missed a golden opportunity to blow the game open. The announcers, and most everyone else, felt a tight finish coming.

That did not happen. Painter chose not to continue playing with fire on screens, switching them to prevent open looks instead of sticking with the aggressive hedging approach. After a few forced shots over Haas, Simpson and Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman ruthlessly attacked the basket, combining for 15 second-half points and five assists.

"It takes a long time to sort of build up the substance to your team that can persevere and just won't give in," said Beilein. "They won't give in to fatigue. They won't give in to momentum changes. They just stick in there."

"You always learn something when you play them," said Painter. "And you fix something. As a coach you think you've got them figured out, you don't have them figured out."

Wagner was all smiles in the second half. [Campredon]

Moe Wagner, with his mother watching from the stands, removed any doubt of the outcome. His 4-for-5 second-half performance featured a Dirk-like turnaround fallaway three as the shot clock expired, a blow-by layup, and another triple right in the grill of Matt Haarms. He did more than just score; he led the break after a steal then hit a trailing MAAR for a big three, and he battled hard on the boards, helping M limit Purdue to three offensive rebounds after they'd pulled down seven in the first half.

"Those guards are good but not everybody has a guy like Wagner that can stick 3s, drive the ball, and play with passion," said Painter.

Then Duncan Robinson got a thunderblock on Carsen Edwards and Zavier Simpson slipped a beautiful pass to Teske for a posterizing dunk on Haas, and the party was on. Michigan stretched the lead as far as 18 before a too-little, too-late Purdue run got them as close as seven while the Wolverines scuffled at the charity stripe. That's a concern for later.

For now, Michigan is once again on a tear heading into the NCAA Tournament, and today's championship may well have locked up a three-seed. John Beilein is a wizard.

Back-to-back champs. [Campredon]

[Hit THE JUMP for more photos and the box score.]