Epic Fail as UConn Hockey Player's Bold 'Michigan' Move Backfires in OT Showdown

Mike Legg was not the creator of the 'Michigan' move, as many thought; he picked it up from Bill Armstrong, an old Western Michigan player.

Armstrong supposedly had used the move to score four goals while playing for the Albany River Rats in the minor leagues. The move was likely used somewhere else beforehand, but that is not the problem.

The rush for a player to discover they're in just the right spot to make the 'Michigan' has to be thrilling: behind the net, puck in just the right spot, poised to pick it up and stuff it in over the goalie's shoulder, a maneuver deserving of a trip to the Frozen Four.

For one UConn player, the moment might have been historic. Like Penn State, UConn had never experienced the Frozen Four, and this was their first NCAA Tournament appearance. But he wasn't quite there.

The fault of the 'Michigan' is its vulnerability; unless you've mastered it, you'll risk breaking one of hockey's unwritten laws: keeping your head up where traffic is. Instead, the UConn player's head was totally on the puck and completely vulnerable.

Penn State's defenseman saw his schematics right away and flattened him like a truck driver who turned the wrong corner.

The result? Penn State responded with a counterattack that could have ended the game in an ironic twist, turning UConn's flashy try into their odd-man rush.

For the UConn player, the switch from being ready to score the coolest goal of his life to lying flat as the other team bore down the ice was likely agonizing.

However, Penn State ultimately won the game when they scored later, further adding to UConn's overall embarrassment.