From The Press Box
12/11/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Michigan State vs. Notre Dame
Dec. 11, 2004 * East Lansing, Mich.
Post-Game Quotes
MSU Head Coach Rick Comley
On the game ...
"It was obviously very hard fought. It was frustrating early for us. I think we played very well the first two periods and it's tough to be down 1-0 after that. We just seemed to be snake bit, but we had so many chances you had to believe the puck was going to go in."
On the semester ...
"It has been such a tough semester for these kids. They have been working so hard and we can't get a rhythm. It's just up and down and up and down. Then tonight we have that one bad power play and the crowd started booing us; the guys on the bench didn't know what to think. But then we scored those two goals and everyone could feel the crowd behind us."
On the break ...
"It's so nice to get a win before the break. We can take some time off with a smile on our face. The kids live so game by game, and it will be nice for them to remember this win over the break. We can focus more on what is ahead."
On the team ...
"Colton Fretter has really turned into the goal scorer that we all thought he could be. And it's nice to see Chad Hontvet come off the bench and play so well in his first game of the year. Tommy Goebel got a nice goal in front of the net too. We've just got so many talented kids in there with the ability to score, we just need to put it all together and get some bounces."
ND Head Coach Dave Poulin
On the overall game ...
"With seven minutes to go on the road in a 1-1 game and you had chances to score in the third period. (Dominic) Vicari came up big on a couple of occasions in the third period."
On the overall weekend ...
"The one thing we will take out of the weekend is that we played better. We battled hard and we played better. That's what we have to look at at this point. Friday night was probably the best game that we played this year as a total team, without four regulars in the lineup, and we've got to look at it and say `okay we can build from that'."
On the play of SO G David Brown ...
"David was real solid. I think he probably wants the second on back, but other than that he was real solid. We've got to have great goaltending, and we know that, and most teams know we can't survive without great goaltending."
MSU Players
Tommy Goebel, So., F
What was going through your mind when the score was 1-0...
"It is pretty much how it has been all season; the same situation where we are getting tons and tons of chances but we can't seem to put the puck in the net. It's good that we finally battled back in a game and won from behind."
What was going through your mind when you saw the puck in the net...
"I was happy. I think it was the happiest goal I have ever scored. It felt good to get that off my back, especially since we won the game. It felt good."
How does this game effect the team going into the break before the GLI...
"I hope it can set the tone for us. Everyone can take sometime to think about some stuff and hopefully come back and start playing together as a team. We could have won both games this weekend. We should have won both games this weekend. Hopefully that will set the tone for us."
Chad Hontvet, Jr., F
On your reaction when coach said you were in the line up tonight...
"It's been awhile, probably seen the beginning of last January. I have been working hard in practice; it's just nice to get in there and get a chance and show them that you can play. So it's nice."
On your play tonight...
"I feel really good, first game all year. We are half-way through our season so you are not going to be your best, but I felt I did pretty good."
What was expected of you tonight...
"I pretty much know my role, just to go in there and bang, free up the puck for the other guys and help them get the scoring chances. If I get a rebound, then that is good for me."
On the tying goal...
"That was really big. We needed something to get us going there and that was huge."
Ash Goldie, Sr., F
On the hat trick...
"The biggest thing is that we got the win and that was all we were hoping to do tonight. It was a tough night down there, so we just wanted to get out and win this game. So it was huge for us.
"It was a good feeling, but the biggest thing is those goals lead to the win. I don't want to take away anything from the team and what everybody did tonight. I am just proud of everyone in that room. We did a great job tonight."
On the team bouncing back from last night...
"I thought we did an excellent job tonight. It was a tough loss down there. We could of just died and rolled over and not come out tonight with any energy, but we didn't do that. It was a good show of character from the guys in the room. It was a good outcome tonight."
How this game will prepare the team for the GLI and the second half of the season...
"The last two weekends were big for us. We wanted two big weekends to lead us into the GLI, but we split both series. It was disappointing, but we ended on a winning-note, which is a good thing. We got some good things to carry on into the GLI. Hopefully we can do that with a two-week break here."
