Michigan State 5, St. Lawrence 3
10/27/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Oct. 27, 2006
EAST LANSING, Mich. -
Michigan State Head Coach Rick Comley
On getting offensive contributions from sources like Kivisto and Dunne...
We definitely need some development in those areas. You especially feel good for a guy like Kurt (Kivisto), who might have earned a spot on the third line with his play tonight. That is how desperately we are looking for some balance in putting this thing together.
On the play of the third and fourth lines...
We haven't played many games yet, so I thought our conditioning is average. I thought the top two lines worked really hard tonight, but they got tired easily. It was good to get some scoring from the third and fourth lines - something we didn't have to rely on as much last year. I ended up playing the fourth line a lot more and a lot later in the third period than I would.
On the game as a whole...
This was a good game to watch. St. Lawrence is a team that works hard. They pass well and they are high-risk, similar to Western Michigan. They are either going to hurt you, or you are going to get a two-on-one. I lost count of how many odd-man rushes and breakaways we had. It was one of those games where you could have had a dozen goals, but you end up needing an empty-net goal to win.
On evaluating the team...
I don't necessarily think it was an ugly win. Technically speaking, we are a 1-2 team (with the exhibition loss to the USNTDP squad last Thursday), so we got back to .500 for the season tonight. I think you just have to judge the team on what you have seen to this point, that is the reality of it. Anytime you play a team that pinches in the offensive zone as hard as they do it isn't going to be pretty, because there isn't a lot of speed to the game at times. Overall, I think the most important thing is to win the game, and not get frustrated with the amount of pucks that didn't go in.
St. Lawrence Head Coach Joe Marsh
His overall impressions of the game... I thought that the first period was all Michigan State, but after we got that goal at the beginning of the second period I thought we battled. Michigan State is a very physical team that won a lot of stick battles. They came up the middle of the ice well and were very good on the counter attack.
On the importance of this road trip...
This is a very big trip for our team. We take a lot of pride in our non-conference scheduling and we always have. We want to go out and play against the toughest teams in the toughest buildings. I think this will be a good growing experience for our young players.
On St. Lawrence captain Kyle Rank...
He's not a guy that'll be a 40-goal scorer but he's a guy that can get paid to do this. He's a tough kid and he works hard at the game. He'll play defensively and block shots.
Michigan State Sophomore Center Kurt Kivisto
On his game-winning goal...
It started with a good cycle we had developed earlier in the game, with Warner and Sturges. I got a chance to take the puck to the net and I just threw it on goal - it happened to slip through the five hole.
On his emotions after scoring...
It was thrilling. I didn't play much last year, but I put a lot of time in practicing. Finally getting an opportunity to help the team in an early season win is really rewarding. We aren't the line that is supposed to go out and score all the goals, so to actually help the team offensively feels good. It felt really good to actually put a puck in the net.
On his family being in attendance...
My mom, dad, sister and cousin were here, so it was nice to score my first goal in front of them. They are from Brighton, so it is only about a 45-minute drive. They come up just about every weekend, as much as they can, as long as it doesn't conflict with one of the other family members sporting event.
On being in the lineup...
I found out about it yesterday after practice, when coach posts the lineup. It's one of those things that you don't really know until you see the final lineup. You always work hard during the week, hoping to see your name on there Thursday evening after practice. It always feels good when you are able to call home and tell your mom and dad you're going to be in a lineup.
Michigan State Junior Defenseman Jeff Dunne
On contributing after dealing with injuries in his career...
It's a lot of fun to get out there. I got through a couple of bumps and bruises and ultimately we won, which is the best reward.
On St. Lawrence...
They're a tough-nosed team. They really battled hard, and we expected that. We knew that they were going to send two men on the forecheck. I thought our defense played really well against that, getting the puck out of the zone.
Michigan State Freshman Forward Jay Sprague
On his first collegiate goal...
I had just gotten off the bench and I was the high man on the forecheck. Nick Sucharski and Chris Lawrence were in forechecking and the puck came to me. I took a quick look, fired it on net, and it went in. They say no shot is a bad shot so I threw it on net and got lucky.
