Michigan State University Athletics
Spartan Icers Meet Michigan In Non-Conference Tilt.
2/12/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Feb. 12, 2002
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
THIS WEEK
Michigan State plays just one game this week as the Spartans (20-6-5 overall, 15-5-4 Central Collegiate Hockey Association) meet Michigan (18-8-5, 15-5-4 CCHA) in a non-conference match at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit Saturday. Faceoff is set for 7:35 p.m. EST.
RADIO
Saturdays's game can be heard live on WVFN-AM 730 "The Fan", the home of Spartan hockey. Play-by-play man Scott Moore, in his fifth season as the radio voice of MSU hockey, will call the action. He's joined by former Spartan All-American goaltender Joe Blackburn, who provides color commentary.
Spartan fans can also hear live play-by-play action of MSU hockey via the Internet. Broadcasts can be accessed by logging on to www.msuspartans.com, the official website of Spartan athletics, or www.espn.com.
TELEVISION
Saturday's game will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Net Detroit beginning at 7:30 p.m. Matt Shepard will handle play-by-play duties and is joined by analyst Fred Pletsch and rinkside reporter Shireen Saski.
TICKET UPDATE
Tickets for Saturday's Michigan State-Michigan game are still available. Prices ranges from $9-25. Tickets can be purchased through Ticketmaster via phone at (248) 645-6666 or via the Internet at www.ticketmaster.com. Fans can also call the Joe Louis Arena box office at (313) 396-7575.
Standing-room tickets, priced at $9, are available for all remaining MSU home games. For more information on Spartan hockey tickets, contact the MSU ticket office at (517) 355-1610 or 1-800-GO STATE.
MSU INJURY UPDATE (as of Feb. 11)
The Spartans report no injuries heading into Saturday's game vs. Michigan.
THE SPARTANS...
* Enter Saturday's game vs. Michigan with a five-game unbeaten streak against the Wolverines (4-0-1). MSU hasn't gone six straight games vs. UM without a loss since Dec. 9, 1988-Dec. 10, 1989, when the Spartans reeled off six victories in a row.
* Are 11-2-1 when holding the Wolverines to two or fewer goals since the start of the 1996-97 season. MSU is 2-4-3 against UM during that same span when allowing three or more goals.
* Feature four seniors - Joe Goodenow, Adam Hall, Andrew Hutchinson and Jon Insana - whose career record at Joe Louis Arena is 14-4-1, includuing a 5-1-1 mark vs. Michigan in Detroit.
* Have not lost two regular-season contests in the same season at Joe Louis Arena since 1996-97, when Minnesota handed the Spartans a 5-3 loss in the 1996 College Hockey Showcase Nov. 30 and MSU fell to Lake Superior State by a 5-0 score in the first round of the '96 Great Lakes Invitational. State lost to North Dakota in the GLI championship match earlier this season.
* Have skated to consecutive draws with the Wolverines (3-3 at Spartan Stadium Oct. 6 and 1-1 in Ann Arbor Jan. 19). In the 80-year history of the Michigan State-Michigan rivalry, the two teams had never skated to back-to-back ties prior to this season.
* Packed 74,554 into Spartan Stadium for the Oct. 6 season opener between MSU and Michigan, while 6,978 saw the Jan. 19 tilt at Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor. A crowd of nearly 20,000 is expected for Saturday's contest at Joe Louis Arena, meaning that MSU and UM will have played in front of more that 100,000 fans in the three regular-season meetings between the two teams this season.
THE WOLVERINES...
* Enter the weekend in a first-place tie with the Spartans in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association standings with a 18-8-5 overall record and a 15-5-4 mark in conference play.
* Come into Saturday's game with a five-game winning streak, currently the longest in the CCHA and tied for seventh-best in the nation.
* Have posted a 5-1-1 mark since junior forward Mike Cammalleri was sidelined with mononucleiosis. The junior from Richmond Hill, Ont., was Michigan's leading scorer with 15-11--26 in 19 games before coming down with the illness.
* Haven't gone winless against the Spartans in regular season play since the 1997-98 campaign, when MSU earned three CCHA wins against Michigan and added a victory in the Great Lakes Invitational championship game.
* Are in the midst of a seven-game stretch against teams with plus-.500 records. Michigan swept Nebraska-Omaha (currently 18-11-3) in Ann Arbor last weekend and follows Saturday's game with a home series against Ohio State (14-12-4 entering the week) and a home-and-home set with Western Michigan (16-10-4).
THE MSU HEAD COACH
Ron Mason (St. Lawrence '64) is in his 23rd season with the Spartans and 36th year as a college coach. The winningest mentor in college hockey history, Mason has piloted the Spartans to a 628-267-69 (.687) mark since taking over for the legendary Amo Bessone in 1979. His overall record currently stands at 917-377-83 (.696), with win no. 900 coming Oct. 20 vs. Ferris State at Munn Ice Arena.
Mason guided MSU to its second NCAA hockey championship in 1986 and his 21 NCAA Tournament appearances are an all-time record. He also has taken eight teams to the NCAA Frozen Four, including seven Spartan squads. Mason has more victories at one school than all but two coaches in NCAA hockey history. He's surpassed by only Bob Peters of Bemidji State (703 wins), who retired at the end of the 2000-01 season, and Jack Parker of Boston University (648). His number of wins with the Green and White are more than all but five coaches have during their collegiate careers.
The seven-time Central Collegiate Hockey Association Coach of the Year led the Spartans to league regular-season titles in 1985, 1986, 1989, 1990, 1998, 1999 and 2001. He's also guided MSU to CCHA playoff crowns in 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1990, 1998, 2000 and 2001. The league honored Mason by renaming the CCHA playoff trophy in his honor last year.
Mason, who won the Spencer Penrose Award as national coach of the year in 1992, has coached 20 Spartans to All-American honors and seen 45 of his former MSU skaters move on to the National Hockey League.
