Spartans Split Series at Lake Superior

As a young squad goes on the road this season, any points they pick up could be seen as a positive. The CCHA expects to be a very competitive league, so road points won't be easy to come by this year. The Spartans managed to earn three of six possible points this weekend by splitting the series with LSSU.

Friday Night

Special teams ruled the night as three of the five goals scored were with the extra attacker. LSSU jumped out to a 2-0 second period lead on goals by Ben Power and Nick McParland just 3:39 apart. Tanner Sorenson brought MSU back to within 1 with a power play tally late in the second period. However, LSSU scored just as the period was about to end to take a two goal lead into the final period.

Sorenson's goal was pretty big considering it was the first goal Michigan State has scored this season before the third period. The final frame continued to be a bright spot for MSU, as the Spartans played hard and Anthony Hayes brought Michigan State back to within one with 4:26 remaining in regulation, but LSSU managed to hang on for the 3-2 victory.

LSSU out-shot Michigan State 29-24 for the game. The Lakers went 2-4 on the power play, and MSU went 1-5. Yanakeff made 26 saves in a losing effort.

Saturday Night

Michigan State had never lost four straight games at the Soo, and the Spartans were trying to avoid this by picking up the win on Saturday. John Draeger got the game going with a power play marker in the first period to put Michigan State up 1-0. This was the first goal MSU has scored in the opening period this season. Tanner Sorenson made it 2-0 on the power play in the second period. Chris Ciotti pulled the Lakers to within 1 with a late 2nd period goal. However, Michigan State controlled the play in the final period as Matt Berry and Anthony Hayes put Michigan State up 4-1. The Lakers added an extra attacker goal late in the final period to make the final 4-2 MSU. Jake Hildebrand earned his first collegiate victory making 28 saves in his first career start.

The Spartans power play was clicking going 3-6 on the night to wrap up a pretty good 4-11 weekend. LSSU was 0-4 with the extra man.

The Spartans have a home & home with Bowling Green next weekend. LSSU vists Alaska.

Final Thoughts: The Spartans are going to need to get every point they can. They almost pulled off a comeback on Friday to potentially steal a point away from the Lakers. However, they regrouped and came back the next night to win and get the split.  The schedule is going to get a little tougher. A home and home against Bowling Green is followed up by another one with Michigan and a road trip to Miami.

Around the CCHA
 
Miami at Michigan: The Wolverines won 4-2 on Friday, before Miami comeback to earn the split with a 4-3 win on Saturday.

Notre Dame at Northern: The lone clean sweep of the weekend saw the Irish go up north and defeat Northern Michigan 5-2, 3-2.

Alaska at Ferris State: The Nanooks managed to earn a split with a 3-2 win on Saturday. The Bulldogs dominated Friday night in a 6-3 victory.

Ohio State at BGSU: The Buckeyes earned four out of a possible six points shutting out Bowling Green 1-0 on Friday before dropping a shoot-out on Saturday.  


CCHA Standings:

	GP	W	L	T	SOW	Points	Total Points Possible
Notre Dame	2	2	0	0	0	6	168
Ohio State	2	1	1	1	0	4	166
Alaska	2	1	1	0	0	3	165
Ferris State	2	1	1	0	0	3	165
Lake Superior State	2	1	1	0	0	3	165
Miami	2	1	1	0	0	3	165
Michigan	2	1	1	0	0	3	165
Michigan State	2	1	1	0	0	3	165
Bowling Green	2	0	1	1	1	2	164
Western Michigan	0	0	0	0	0	0	168
Northern Michigan	2	0	2	0	0	0	162

Games Next Weekend:

Friday:

Miami at Ferris State
Bowling Green at Michigan State  (Comcast)
Western Michigan at Notre Dame
Michigan at Northern Michigan
LSSU at Alaska

Saturday:

Michigan State at Bowling Green
Miami at Ferris State
Michigan at Northern Michigan
LSSU at Alaska

Sunday:

Western Michigan at Notre Dame



CCHA Power Rankings

1. Notre Dame (5-1-0, LW: 2). The Irish rise back to the top after sweeping a road series at Northern.

2. Miami (4-1-1, LW: 1). Miami falls from ranks of the unbeaten teams, but they earn a big road split in Ann Arbor.

3. Western Michigan (3-1-0, LW: 3). The Broncos have a big road series coming up.

4. Michigan (3-2-0, LW: 4). The Wolverines are looking to put together back to back nights in the same weekend, but a road trip to Marquette won't be easy.

5. Alaska (3-2-1, LW: 6). The Nanooks earned a split in the lower 48, and now they return how where they are difficult to beat.

6. Ferris State (2-2-2, LW: 7). If Ferris State wants to be a player in the top half of the league, this weekend coming up will go a long ways to showing they can do it.

7. LSSU (3-3-0, LW: 8). The Lakers make the long trek west.

8. Michigan State (2-3-1, LW: 9). The Spartans earn a road split in a tough league.

9. Northern Michigan (3-3-0, LW: 5). Getting swept at home never is a good thing.

10. Ohio State (2-2-2, LW: 10).  .500 seems to be a running theme in the CCHA.

11. Bowling Green (1-4-2, LW: 11). Not a terrible weekend getting two points, but losing more points than winning at home won't help in what is going to be a tight conference race.

Big Ten Power Rankings

1. Minnesota (3-1-0, LW: 1). The Gophers play a non-conference game against Canisius today, but a tie against the USA Development team certainly is going to raise an eyebrow.

2. Michigan (3-2-0, LW: 2). Michigan earned a tough split against a good Miami team.

3. Penn State (4-2-0, LW: 5). Some people might say they haven't beaten anyone, but they have won three straight which constitutes being on a roll right now. Plus, they now have the second highest winning percentage among Big 10 teams.

4. Michigan State (2-3-1, LW: 3). The Spartans look to get on a roll of their own next weekend.

5. Wisconsin (1-2-1, LW: 4). The Badgers won and tied at UMD.

6. Ohio State (2-2-2, LW: 6). The Buckeyes went unbeaten this weekend, and now have a weekend off before back to back home series - could a winning streak be coming?

Know Thy Enemy: Lake Superior

The CCHA season gets in full swing with five series. Michigan State will travel up to the Soo to take on LSSU this weekend for a pair of games.

Michigan State was swept at the Soo last season dropping a pair of one-goal games

The Lakers are entering a key part of their schedule - coming off of three road games. LSSU plays eight of their next ten at home, with three of those series being CCHA teams. It'll be extra important, because Notre Dame and Miami road series follow this stretch of games - so the schedule gets tougher.

LSSU is 2-2 on the season so far splitting a series with Michigan Tech and Bemidji State. LSSU beat Bemidji last weekend 2-0 before dropping the second contest 5-0.

CCHA History

This series marks the final time that Michigan State and LSSU will cross paths in a regular season CCHA series. The conference was founded in 1971, and LSSU was one of the early members admitted into the league coming in the following year in 1972. The Lakers have won three national titles (tied w/ MSU) with the last coming in 1994. They've made it to four Frozen Fours (last time in 1994), and they have been to the NCAA tournament ten times (1996). They last won a CCHA Championship in 1995-1996. LSSU finished last year in seventh place in the CCHA standings with 41 points, only one point out of 6th, and six points behind MSU for 5th.

Know (some of) the Players

Domenic Monardo (Sr.)        2 goals, 6 points

Chris Ciotti (So.)                   1 goal, 3 points

Six Players Tied with 2 points

 Goalie:

Kevin Kapalka (Jr.) 

Record: 2-2-0

GAA:  3.83

Save %:  .881

All-Time Series Notes:

Michigan State leads 68-34-13

Michigan State leads at LSSU 23-16-6

LSSU is 4-3-3 against MSU over the last 10 meetings

LSSU won both meetings at LSSU last season

LSSU hasn't won three in a row at home against Michigan State since October 14, 1988 (2-19-88, 2-20-88) 

Early Thoughts:

Historically, LSSU isn't the type of team that will light up the scoreboard, but they are always very tough to beat at home. LSSU's size certainly will test the Spartans this year, and the youth needs to show that they can play better on the road. It might be a little too obvious to say that the Spartans need to be able to put the puck in the net earlier in the game - zero goals before the third period this year isn't a stat you want to continue for very long. 

If MSU can keep the game low scoring, defensive, and limit the power play opportunities it gives up, Michigan State should be able to come away with points this weekend - which would be a nice start for a young team. The CCHA is deep this year, so it would be surprising to see anyone really run away with the conference, so every point you can pick up on the road is critical.

CCHA First Round Game 1 Recaps

#10 Alaska at #7 LSSU

 Two of the more defensive teams in the CCHA tallied 7 goals on 69 shots as the Lakers edged the Nanooks 4-3 in the first game of their best of 3 series. Alaska jumped out to a 1-0 lead on a goal from former Spartan Adam Henderson just 4:55 into the game. LSSU tallied the next three goals in the game, including two in the final three minutes of the first period, and one in the first five minutes of the second period.

Alaska did manage to make it a 3-2 game just 14 seconds into the 3rd period, but Kellan Lain responded just 46 seconds later to put LSSU up for 4-2. Alaska would add a late power play marker to get us to a 4-3 final. The Nanooks out-shot LSSU 39-30 for the game, and both teams went 1 for 4 on the power play.

Game 2 is tomorrow night in the Soo.

#11 Bowling Green at #6 Northern Michigan

It took Bowling Green just 53 seconds to plant a seed of doubt in the minds of the Wildcats, but Northern fought hard scoring a pair of third period goals to break a 2-2 tie and pull out the 4-2 victory. Bowling Green beat Northern last season in the best of three series. Northern won game one last year as well.

Bowling Green was trailing 2-1 in the second period before Adam Berkle tied it up. Andrew Cherniwchan broke the 2-2 tie just 1:27 into the 3rd period with a power play goal. Tyler Gron added the insurance marker with just over 8 minutes to go. BGSU out-shot Northern 33-26 for the game. Bowling Green was 0 for 3 with the extra man, and Northern was 1 for 2.

Game 2 is in Marquette tomorrow night.

#9 Ohio State at #8 Notre Dame

 Steven Summerhays made 33 saves to earn the shutout as Notre Dame beat Ohio State 2-0. Billy Maday scored both goals for the Irish, the first 9:08 into the game, and the second one just 2:50 into the second period. Ohio State out-shot Notre Dame 33-30 for the game. OSU was 0 for 5 on the power play and ND finished one for four.

Game 2 is in South Bend tomorrow night.

So what did we learn?

Well, getting out-shot seems to be the best recipe for winning. Though it usually stands the team with more shots means more opportunities, unless the quality shots just aren't there. The only margin that was somewhat shocking was Alaska with 39. The Nanooks aren't known for their offense, but they looked like they were throwing a lot of rubber on net.

Michigan State also moved up the PairWise into a tie for 10th place (up from a tie for 11th). Go byes!

Thoughts on the CCHA Weekend Ahead

After our short mid-week hiatus, we are here to talk about playoffs.

Yes coach, we are here to talk about playoffs. Though the Colts won't be in it. Specifically, we are talking about the Mason Cup.

 The Chase For The Mason Cup Begins March 2nd

 
The CCHA playoffs get started this weekend with three first round series, and although Michigan State is off this weekend (and we already know who the Spartans will play), three more quarterfinal spots are up for grabs in the best of three series this weekend.

This could be one of the most interesting CCHA tournaments ever since any one of these teams could make a run given how close the league standings have been all season long. 

Here is a look at each of the series this weekend:


#11 Bowling Green (10-21-5) at #6 Northern Michigan (16-12-6)

Bowling Green travels up to Marquette for a first round series for the second straight year. Last season, no one really gave Bowling Green a chance. Things went worse from there as Northern dominated the opening game of the series 6-3. However, they fought back to tie the series and ending up shocking the Wildcats in game three in a double OT thriller.

The two teams played just three weekends ago, and Northern swept the series 4-2, 2-0 in Bowling Green.

Northern Offense:   2.88 Goals/Game  (4th CCHA)
Bowling Green Offense:   1.67 Goals/Game  (11th CCHA)

Northern Defense:   2.68 Goals/Game (9th CCHA)
Bowling Green Defense:  2.83 Goals/Game (11th CCHA)

Northern Power Play:  19.5%  (24 for 123, 2nd CCHA)
Bowling Green Power Play  9.4 %   (15 for 159, 11th CCHA)


Northern Penalty Kill:  85.3 %  (133 for 156, 3rd CCHA)
Bowling Green Penalty Kill:  83.3 %  (145 for 174, 9th CCHA)

Thoughts:  Even though the Falcons have been playing better hockey, it is tough to see them winning two out of three again this year. I have to believe the playoff series last year will be in the back of the minds of all the Wildcats. With that said, the Falcons are going to be able to have some measure of confidence knowing they have done this once before.

My Pick:  Northern Michigan in Two.


#10 Alaska (12-18-4) at #7 LSSU  (16-15-5)

Alaska faces the task of coming back down to the lower 48 where they have only won three games this season (two of which were in Bowling Green). The teams split the season series (1-1) in Fairbanks. Alaska took the opening game 4-2, but they lost the second game 3-2. This series also took place just three weekends ago.

LSSU Offense:    2.56 Goals/Game  (9th CCHA)
Alaska Offense:  2.38 Goals/Game  (10th CCHA)


LSSU Defense:   2.67 Goals/Game (8th CCHA)
Alaska Defense:  2.59 Goals/Game (6th CCHA)

LSSU Power Play:   20.1 %  (27 for 134, 1st CCHA)
Alaska Power Play:  16.0 %  (25 for 156, 9th CCHA)


LSSU Penalty Kill:  83.8 %  (109 for 130, 7th CCHA)
Alaska Penalty Kill:  81.0 %  (119 for 147, 11th CCHA)

Thoughts:  On paper, this is probably the most even first round series. This series is very important for LSSU as they sit in 20th in the Pairwise (which means the Lakers will need a long CCHA tournament run to get them into the NCAA tournament). The numbers are fairly even until we start to talk about special teams. Obviously matching up the worst PK with the best power play will figure to favor the Lakers. With the lower scoring offenses this figures to be first to two wins (either that or one game will probably be 9-8).


My Pick:  LSSU in Three

#9 Ohio State (15-13-5) at #8 Notre Dame (17-16-3)

To be honest, I didn't think this would be a first round series for a couple of reasons. Notre Dame came in with very high expectations, but they struggled to find consistency.  With that said, the Irish have beaten just about everyone they faced which simply led to a lot of splits. On the flip side, Ohio State was in first place in the CCHA when 2012 started. But they finished 1-9-4 in their last 14 games after that impressive 14-4-1 start. That lone win though was at Western Michigan. Ohio State and Notre Dame split this season in South Bend. That series occured all the way back in October with Notre Dame winning the opening game 5-2 and dropping the second one 4-3.

Notre Dame Offense:  2.64 Goals/Game (8th CCHA)
Ohio State Offense:  2.70 Goals/Game (6th CCHA)


Notre Dame Defense:  2.78 Goals/Game (10th CCHA)
Ohio State Defense:  2.61 Goals/Game  (7th CCHA)

Notre Dame Power Play:    19.0% (33 for 174, 4th CCHA)
Ohio State Power Play:      18.1%  (30 for 166, 6th CCHA)


Notre Dame Penalty Kill:   81.5%  (110 for 135, 10th CCHA)
Ohio State Penalty Kill:    83.4 %  (126 for 151, 8th CCHA)

Thoughts: With the tail spin that the Buckeyes have been in, you can pretty much count on everyone picking Notre Dame in this series. Despite that 1-9-4 streak, Ohio State still finds themselves in the NCAA picture coming in 18th (tied) in the current Pairwise rankings. Notre Dame is the team that they are tied with, so the winner of this series could find themselves back in the hunt for a NCAA at-large bid (though the winner of this series probably will need to win next week as well). Everyone is waiting for Notre Dame to turn the light switch on with the amount of talent they have on their roster, and a short series could be the jump start they need. This time I'm going to agree with the majority, but I think Ohio State will make the Irish work for it....

My Pick: Notre Dame in Three.

This figures to be a great CCHA playoff season as the conference was tight from start to finish. So it wouldn't be too shocking to see a few series this weekend and next go the distance. Though, now that I've said that, here come the sweeps......

Krug Honored Yet Again

Torey Krug was named the RBC Financial Group CCHA Player of the Month for February. A nice feather in his cap, as he makes his claim for the CCHA player of the year.

Vote For Hobey

There is a link added on the left hand side that will directly take you to the vote for Hobey fan ballot. A few Spartans are on the list, but realistically, Torey Krug probably is the only one with a shot at being name a finalist - since he has the stats and name recognition.

Click Here For The Ballot

Vote as often as possible (I believe you are allowed 1 vote a day).

Torey is currently tied for 6th in the CCHA in overall scoring (includes non-conference games). He leads all defense in scoring. And anyone who has been watching MSU this season will tell you just how important Mr. Krug is to the team.

Senior Night Ahead

This Saturday will be the final regular season home game for nine Spartan seniors. 

Forwards:

Trevor Nill
Daultan Leveille
Brett Perlini
Mike Merrifield

D-Men:

Brock Shelgren
Tim Buttery
A.J. Sturges
Matt Carndell

Goalie:

Drew Palmisano

That's quite a bit of experience and leadership leaving the team. I would suspect Palmisano would get at least a Saturday start this weekend for his senior night. That will depend on how things go in practice this week, but the coaching staff will probably have a little bit of pressure in giving Palmisano the nod.

In case you are curious, this season the senior class accounts for:

Goals: 33  (out of 99)
Assists:  58

Four of the top five point scorers will all be back, unless someone decides to move on to the next level.

Main Series To Watch

It'd be too easy to say the entire CCHA this weekend, and you should pay attention considering how tight the race is for just about every position, but the biggest series outside of East Lansing is up at the Soo: Western Michigan at LSSU. This series will impact MSU's playoff positioning probably more than any other. LSSU is currently tied with Michigan State for fifth place, and Western Michigan is in second place - just four points ahead of MSU. The immediate concern for Spartans probably should be LSSU. Fifth place is the last first round bye position (though you'll be on the road in the quarterfinal round).

Check back later in the week for further details on the Alaska series.