Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
Alaska Fairbanks (CCHA QF-Game 1)
Alaska-Fairbanks Upsets #5 Michigan State, 2-1
3/10/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
March 10, 2006
East Lansing, Mich. - Alaska-Fairbanks netminder Wylie Rogers made 36 saves and lifted the Nanooks to a 2-1 upset over No. 5 Michigan State on Friday night at Munn Ice Arena, taking a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three quarterfinal series of the CCHA playoffs. Michigan State (20-11-8) finished 1-for-11 on the power play and must win the final two games of the series in order to advance to Joe Louis Arena for the CCHA semifinals.
"You never know how you are going to play after a layoff, and I thought we were sluggish early," said head coach Rick Comley. "They got the lead, and I think they played very well with the lead. (Wylie) Rogers played big in net as well. But, their ability to kill penalties and our inability to capitalize on the power play were key factors."
The Nanooks scored the game's first goal at 5:59 of the first period on Trevor Hyatt's second goal of the season. Nathan Fornataro's wrister from just outside the left circle deflected off target and behind the net, but the shot forced netminder Jeff Lerg down into the butterfly. Lucas Burnett picked up the loose puck, skated it to the opposite side and slipped a pass to Hyatt waiting on the doorstep. The freshman caught Lerg out of position and deflected the pass across the goal line, giving Alaska-Fairbanks the early 1-0 lead.
The Spartans created quality scoring chances throughout the period, but Nanook defensemen blocked 12 shots and netminder Wylie Rogers made 14 saves, keeping MSU off the board. Michigan State recorded eight shots on its five power-play opportunities in the opening stanza, but could not solve the conference's top-ranked penalty kill unit. Despite being outshot 14-10, Alaska-Fairbanks carried a 1-0 lead into the first intermission.
Michigan State opened the second period pressing for the equalizer, but UAF held defensively and was able to extend its lead to two goals at the 1:57 mark. Kelly Czuy started the play, lasering the puck cross-ice and seemingly dumping the puck into the Spartan zone. Aaron Lee displayed great hand-eye coordination at the blue line, batting the puck down with his stick and controlling it as he skated across the blue line. After two strides, Lee stepped into a slap shot from the top of the left faceoff circle, beating Jeff Lerg high glove side, giving the Nanooks a 2-0 lead.
A broken stick gave Michigan State a great chance to pull within one at the 13:00 mark, but the Spartans failed to capitalize once again. With a power play set to expire, a Nanook skated to the bench after breaking his stick. The Spartans took to a pseudo 5-on-3 advantage, and with the extra space, sent the puck into the slot and created a scrum in front of the net. MSU had three good looks at the goal, but two fanned shots and a missed chance on the doorstep kept the game at 2-0.
Entering the game as the league's most penalized team (9.1 penalties/21.7 minutes per game), the Nanooks committed its ninth penalty at the 18:28 mark. Having started the game 0-for-8 on the power play, MSU finally solved the UAF penalty kill at 19:23 of the second period on David Booth's 11th goal of the season. After the Spartans cycled the play in the corner, Potter collected the puck and teed up a slapshot in the middle slot. The shot found its way through traffic, deflecting off the skate of Justin Abdelkader and onto Booth's stick on the doorstep. Booth snapped a shot off the back of netminder Rogers and into the net, cutting the deficit to 2-1 after two periods of play.
Carrying a one-goal lead into the final stanza, UAF kept the Spartans on their heels and nearly pulled away seven minutes into the period. A Michigan State defensemen fell down at the blue line, allowing Kyle Greentree to skate into the MSU zone uncontested. On the breakaway, Greentree faked the forehand, but Lerg did not budge and anticipated the backhand shot. Lerg extended his left pad to the goal post and stopped the breakaway, keeping MSU within striking distance with 13 minutes remaining.
UAF protected its one-goal lead for the remainder of the period, playing defensively and with more discipline. Without the aid of the power play, the Spartans failed to sustain any substantial pressure within the Nanook zone. However, at the 16:59 mark, Tyler Eckford took a boarding penalty and sent the Spartans on the power play for the 10th time. Working the power play from behind the net, Tim Kennedy looked to get the puck to fellow freshman Tim Crowder three times, but the two could not connect on a pair of doorstep passes or a centering feed as the power play expired with one minute left.
After a timeout, the Spartans played the final minute with six attackers, hoping to find the equalizer. The Spartans did not capitalize on several scrums in front of the net, but after the Nanooks failed to bury an empty net goal, MSU had one last chance when the faceoff came back deep into the UAF zone with 5.8 seconds left. Penalties after the faceoff took the draw outside the zone with 3.1 seconds left, and Alaska-Fairbanks escaped with a 2-1 win.
The Spartans and Nanooks will play the second game of the best-of-three series tomorrow night at Munn Ice Arena. Faceoff is set for 7:05 p.m. ET.
Spartan Notebook
* Michigan State suffered just its fourth home loss in CCHA Tournament games, and falls to 45-4 in games on its home ice. The loss snaps a 19-game winning streak at Munn Arena in the postseason.
* Only once has Michigan State lost back-to-back quarterfinal games in the CCHA Tournament; in 1991, the Spartans were swept by Western Michigan (4-3, 4-2).
* This is the third straight one-goal game in the quarterfinal round for the Spartans, who defeated Miami (2-1, 5-4 OT) in last year's playoffs.
* UAF wins its second consecutive playoff game against MSU, having defeated the Spartans in last year's consolation game in Detroit. MSU is 4-2 all-time in postseason games against the Nanooks.
* In five seasons as a #2 seed in the CCHA Tournament, MSU has lost at least one game in the Tournament. It lost a game in this round in both 1982 and 1983, yet won the title.
* MSU went 1-for-11 on the power play, matching its most power play opportunities in a game this season - the Spartans had 11 chances (and converted just once) in a 3-0 win over North Dakota, and was 2-of-11 against Colorado College in a 6-3 loss to the Tigers in the championship game of the GLI.
