Only 24 hours earlier, Red Berenson dissected his Michigan hockey team’s first loss of the season, stressing the need for a better start.

He couldn't have asked for more than what he got Saturday night.

David Wohlberg scored eight seconds into the Wolverines’ non-conference tilt with previously-unbeaten Nebraska-Omaha, sparking No. 3 Michigan to a 6-1 win at Yost Ice Arena.

"Our team had to make a better commitment to this game and I thought we played with more passion, more emotion," Berenson said. "We had more energy, we had more push and we had more conviction in our game tonight."

A change in how Michigan aligned its offensive attack and a bit of puck luck didn't hurt matters.

Berenson switched up his first and second lines, bumping seniors Louie Caporusso and Luke Glendening off his top line, pairing Wohlberg with Matt Rust and Chris Brown.

The line produced immediate results as Wohlberg delivered the fastest goal in modern school history, taking a pass from Rust and firing a shot into the back of the net. Textbook it wasn't, but it did the trick.

And it was only the beginning.

Michigan (3-1-2) again wasted little time in adding to its lead in the second period. Carl Hagelin needed only 55 seconds to kick-start a three-goal explosion in which the Wolverines scored on their first three shots on goal in the period.

Left-winger Scooter Vaughan scored two straight goals, putting Nebraska-Omaha (5-1) into the same four-goal hole that the Wolverines fell into during Friday night's 4-2 loss.

"It was a world of difference tonight," Vaughan said. "Everyone was ready to play, everyone wanted to play and was excited to play. They took it to us last night and we really had a statement to prove tonight."

After Friday’s sluggish showing, the Wolverines demonstrated how effective its offense can be when properly executed. Michigan made the most of its shots, keeping pressure on Mavericks goalie John Faulkner all night.

Rather that being careless with the puck, Michigan played better possession hockey. The passes were crisp and on target, and after a night when the Wolverines allowed Nebraska-Omaha to dictate the play, they turned things around in a hurry.

"I think there was a lot of desperation tonight," Hagelin said. "It comes down to us playing well from the get-go and winning battles and making the right play. Now we know we can't just play on 90 percent of our full talent. We need to show up."

Faulkner’s counterpart, Bryan Hogan, got all the support he needed.

Hogan, making his second regular-season start, made 35 saves, not allowing a goal until the Mavericks used an Alex Hutson power play goal to get on the board.

The start made all the difference.

Wohlberg’s first-period goal represented the fastest goal in the program's modern history. The previous mark was established by Mike Knuble, who scored 12 seconds into a game on Nov. 19, 1994.

Michigan’s defense made Wohlberg's early goal stand up, protecting the one-goal lead before Hagelin’s first-minute score in the second. The scoring proved critical as Michigan took five of its 10 penalties in the second period, forcing its power play to keep the nation's top-scoring team at bay.

"We were lucky because they had those power plays and we were playing in our zone," Berenson said. "But we still survived the period, we still scored the important goals."

Glendening continued the strong offensive effort, pushing Michigan’s lead back to four with a goal with 9:52 remaining. Ben Winnett put the finishing touches on the win with a power-play goal with 6:30 remaining.

The Wolverines return to CCHA play next weekend in a home-and-home series with Ferris State.

"We've got a lot of players playing well -- we just have to get our whole team playing well," Berenson said. "Tonight's probably the best game we've had thus far. It's just too bad it came on the heels of a stinker like (Friday) night."

Jeff Arnold covers Michigan hockey for AnnArbor.com and can be reached at (734) 623-2554 or by e-mail at jeffarnold@annarbor.com. Follow him on Twitter @jeffreyparnold.