MSU Faces U.S. National Team on Wednesday, Dec. 17
12/15/2003 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Dec. 15, 2003
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Tickets still remain for this Wednesday's exhibition contest against the U.S. National Team at Munn Ice Arena. Tickets are $8 apiece and available through the MSU Athletics Ticket Office, located in Jenison Field House, or by phone at 517.355.1610.
Michigan State (9-8-1 overall, 7-4-1 CCHA) has been off since splitting a two-game set with Michigan Dec. 5-6. The Spartans dropped game one 2-0 at Michigan, before rebounding with a 2-0 shutout at Munn Ice Arena in game two.
Junior forward Jim Slater leads MSU in scoring with 10-14-24 totals, while junior forward Mike Lalonde is second with 12-9-21 totals. In goal, freshman netminder Dominic Vicari is 5-6 with a 2.36 goals-against average and a .918 saves percentage.
The U.S. National Team program brings a 12-12-2 record into the contest, including a three-game unbeaten streak (2-0-1). The U.S. Team skated past Air Force 4-2 on Dec. 7; beat RIT 9-4 Dec. 12 and skated to a 5-5 overtime tie vs. RIT on Dec. 13.
Four current Spartans have skated for the U.S. National Team, including junior forward Lee Falardeau, sophomore forward David Booth, sophomore defenseman Corey Potter and freshman defenseman A.J. Thelen. All told, 12 former Spartans have played in Ann Arbor including current Nashville Predators forward Adam Hall (1999-2002) and Colorado Avalanche rookie blueliner John-Michael Liles (2000-03).
Wednesday's game marks just the third meeting in the series history with each team winning one game apiece. In the first-ever meeting, the U.S. program upset MSU, 6-4 on Oct. 3, 2000. Last year, MSU skated to a 4-3 win on Oct. 5.
