MSU Hockey Rallies, Downs Northern Michigan
12/7/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Dec. 7, 2001
MARQUETTE, Mich. - Andrew Hutchinson's (Hudson, Ohio) decisive goal with 12:30 left in regulation capped off a furious Michigan State comeback as the Spartans scored four unanswered tallies en route to a 4-2 win against Northern Michigan Friday. The win is the second straight come-from-behind victory for MSU (11-3-2 overall, 9-3-1 Central Collegiate Hockey Association) and keeps the host Wildcats (8-4-1, 6-4-1 CCHA) from creeping closer to the Spartans in the league standings.
Hutchinson's drive from the top of the far faceoff circle 6:30 into the third period was the culmination of a great play that also involved Adam Hall (Kalamazoo, Mich.) and Jim Slater (Lapeer, Mich.). Hall, bringing the puck across the center line, chipped a pass over a defender's stick to Slater, who was heading into the offensive zone on the far wing. Slater's drop pass ended up right on Hutchinson's tape and eventually found its way past Wildcat goaltender Craig Kowalski.
The trio of Hall, Brian Maloney (Bassano, Alta.) and John-Michael Liles (Zionsville, Ind.) got the Spartans back into the game in the second period with a pair of power-play goals. The first came 10:30 into the period when Kowalski stopped Liles' shot from the blue line but left a fat rebound for Hall, who converted for his team-leading eighth goal of the year.
Liles notched MSU's second goal a little more than four minutes later during a four-on-three, power-play opportunity, utilizing a screen from Hall to pick up his fifth goal of the season at 14:37. Maloney, who netted the Spartans' insurance tally with five minutes left in the third period, earned the second assist on both second-period goals.
The Wildcats scored the lone goal of the first period, capping off a tumultuous 23 seconds of action. The sequence started 5:40 before the break when MSU's Jim Slater and NMU's Alex Sawruk went off for matching minors. Northern Michigan thought they had a breakaway opportunity when Bryce Cockburn skated in on a breakaway but the play was whistled offside. Cockburn didn't hear the officials blow the play dead, however, and fired a shot on MSU goaltender Ryan Miller (East Lansing, Mich.), igniting a donnybrook that sent the Spartans' Andrew Hutchinson and the Wildcats' Chris Gobert and Peter Michelutti off for minors and giving MSU a man advantage.
The Spartan power play didn't get off to a quick start. Despite winning the draw, indecision among the MSU defensemen allowed the Wildcats' Dan Donnette to steal the puck, carry it into the offensive zone and unleash a shot from the top of the circles that appeared to be tipped as if fluttered past Miller at the 14:43 mark.
Northern Michigan extended its lead to 2-0 on a goal by Brent Robertson 5:50 into the second period. The sophomore, stationed just in front of the crease, one-timed a feed from Terry Harrison past Miller for his first goal and first point of the year.
"Mentally and physically, we're kind of tired," said MSU head coach Ron Mason. "It was a win from the heart tonight. We hung in there. It's 2-0 and if they get a goal it's over. But they didn't and we got the next goal and come back.
"It's a win on the road that you'll get occasionally, but not often."
Miller, whose outstanding play kept the Spartans in the game through the first 30 minutes, made a season-high 38 saves on the evening. Kowalski stopped 15 shots for the Wildcats.
MSU plays it last game prior to the holiday break tomorrow when they face the Wildcats for the last goame of a two-game CCHA series. Faceoff at Berry Events Center is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. EST.
