Eleven Spartans on Opening-Day NHL Rosters
10/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
Oct. 2, 2009
East Lansing, Mich. - Eleven former Michigan State hockey players are on opening-night rosters for teams in the National Hockey League. Only one former Spartan was in action when the 2009-10 NHL season officially opened on Thursday evening, but five more will join action today when games get underway at noon eastern time.
The complete list of NHL opening day rosters can be found on the NHL site. The Spartans who made those rosters:
Justin Abdelkader, Detroit Red Wings
David Booth, Florida Panthers
Rod Brind'Amour, Carolina Hurricanes
Shawn Horcoff, Edmonton Oilers
Duncan Keith, Chicago Blackhawks
Tim Kennedy, Buffalo Sabres
John-Michael Liles, Colorado Avalanche
Drew Miller, Tampa Bay Lightning
Ryan Miller, Buffalo Sabres
Jim Slater, Atlanta Thrashers
Mike Weaver, St. Louis Blues
John-Michael Liles and the Avs were on the opening-night docket, and posted a 5-2 victory over San Jose. Today, the NHL schedule has two games which feature Spartans on both teams. The first occurs when Florida and Chicago face off in Finland in a game that will start at noon. The Detroit Red Wings and St. Louis Blues drop the puck at 3 p.m. in Sweden. Both games are available as part of the NHL's Game Center Live package. Tonight, Carolina kicks off its season with a home game against Philadelphia.
Last season, 15 former MSU players skated in at least one game in the National Hockey League.
