April 6, 2008
NCAA Frozen Four
INCH Measures Up Michigan's Billy Sauer

By James V. Dowd

Billy Sauer has put together an outstanding junior season and will backstop Michigan at the Frozen Four.

Billy Sauer has always had the talent. He has always had the work ethic. He has always made saves that won his team games that they wouldn't have won otherwise.

But up until this year, Michigan's netminder had always been ridden with an inconsistency that had coaches pointing to the potential for a two-goalie system, fans holding their heads in the hands and Sauer, an eternal student of the game and of his own personal play, groping for answers about how he could put it all together after a number of frustrating losses.

Finally, as this season has unfolded, the junior, who only just turned 20 in January – an age younger than many college hockey players enter their respective programs – has worked with former Michigan goaltender Josh Blackburn, gained another year of maturity as a man and a player and found a level of consistency that is matched by few goalkeepers at any level.

Sauer has dazzled Michigan fans with a 1.89 goals against average and a .927 save percentage to rank in the national top ten of those categories. And his 30-4-3 record leads the nation in both winning percentage and total number of wins. Having compared this to his performance a year ago (25-14-1, 3.03, .896) his teammates rightfully named him the team's most improved player at the annual team awards banquet.

However you put it, this is a very different goaltender than the one who backstopped an 8-5 loss to North Dakota during the West Regional at the Pepsi Center one year ago. Match those improvements with past success against Notre Dame and Boston College, as well as some unfinished business against the Fighting Sioux, Sauer looks like a force to be reckoned with during this year's Frozen Four.

While busy preparing for the trip to Denver, Sauer took the time to share some of his thoughts on how the season has unfolded, this weekend's tournament and his future in hockey.

While busy preparing for the trip to Denver, Sauer took the time to share some of his thoughts on how the season has unfolded, this weekend's tournament and his future in hockey.

Inside College Hockey: What went through your mind when you were tested in the final minutes of your shutout against Clarkson? Were you nervous? Excited?

Billy Sauer: I was pretty excited. Actually, I didn't have whole lot of work until then. It was exciting to get tested with a two-goal lead late in game. I didn't want to go 6-on-3, but it was fun.

INCH Measures Up: Frozen Four Edition

Boston College's John Muse North Dakota's J-P Lamoureux Notre Dame's Mark Van Guilder

INCH: Thinking back to the beginning of this year, What was your honest opinion of this year's team and did you ever dream that you guys could make it this far?

BS: I don't think anyone thought that we would be nearly as good as we were. We had12 freshmen fresh going in, but when you have the leadership that we have, like Kevin Porter and Chad Kolarik, any team can be good. Everyone stepped up -- juniors and sophomores into leadership roles and once we got on that roll earlier in the season, we knew we were good.

INCH: What was your reaction to the departure of Jack Johnson and Andrew Cogliano last summer?

BS: I think we lost at lot of talent when we lost those two players. But the core group we had left was a group of key guys. That's what we were left with and when we started played I was excited for the leadership and talent that we had.

INCH: How about your own personal professional prospects? Have you talked with the Avalanche at all?

BS: They left me alone a lot of this year, and they don't want to bug me when I'm playing well. I went to their rookie camp this past summer, so I've been in this rink a few times because we played there last year as well. It's a cool feeling to be in the place that might be my home rink.

INCH: You've talked a lot this year about how working with Josh Blackburn has helped you a great deal. What's the biggest thing he has helped you learn?

BS: There haven't been too many small things. At the beginning of the year, we work on my depth. I needed to get out and challenge skaters to make them make first move instead of moving around more when I'm deeper in the crease.

INCH: What do you think the defining moment for this year's Michigan team was?

BS: Everybody knew we were good when we went on that streak early in the year, but they criticized us for playing teams weren't as good as last year – like a BU team that struggled earlier in the year, and we lost to Minnesota. But we won against Boston College when people said we weren't playing the best teams and then we came back and beat Wisconsin and Minnesota to win the college hockey showcase for first time in several years, so I think that was the moment.

INCH: Make your case for Kevin Porter in the Hobey Baker race.

BS: It's Porter, hands down. He's a leader. That's really what he's done – he has taken a freshman-laden team and made it the best team in country.

INCH: What are your early feelings about your semifinal matchup with Notre Dame? You have beaten them twice this year, and roughed them up at the Palace of Auburn Hills, do you think it will be a tougher matchup this time around?

BS: I definitely think we got lucky with the first win. We scored in the last few seconds to win. They're a very defensive team.

INCH: Who is Notre Dame's toughest skater to face?

BS: Personally, I don't look too much into that. They had been having trouble scoring but haven't had that problem in the tournament.

INCH: How did your team find out that you would be facing Notre Dame and what was your reaction?

BS: The funny thing is, we were coming back from Albany and we were on plane. My phone was on, but I wasn't getting signal. But as we descended it came back and a text message popped up saying that Notre Dame had won, so I told everyone on our team, and we were excited.

INCH: What did it mean to you to receive the team's Most Improved Player Award at Saturday's team awards banquet?

BS: It was a good feeling because it's a team-voted award. I'm glad they look at me this way. It's an honor, but at same time, it's about what you can do from now on.

INCH: If you are to win Thursday's semifinal game, who are you pulling for in the other semifinal?

BS: Both teams would be fun to face. With Boston College, we've beaten them a couple of times since I've been here. But at the same time, it'd be revenge against North Dakota.

INCH: The CCHA has two teams in the Frozen Four and another was an overtime goal away from being there as well. Will this finally make the case for your league in comparison with the WCHA?

BS: Everybody kind of prides themselves on the WCHA, and that it's the best league. So almost having three teams from the CCHA over WCHA teams, it's really a big feat. No one can be putting our league down. And look at last year, Michigan State was the last team to get in and they won the championship.