Neil's Notebook: Spartans Looking to Climb Big Ten Standings
2/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
By Neil Koepke
MSUSpartans.com staff writer
EAST LANSING - Ten down, 10 to go.
At the halfway point of the Big Ten regular season, Michigan State is sitting in fourth place in the six-team conference, looking up at first-place Michigan, second-place Penn State and third-place Minnesota.
The Spartans (10-12-2 overall, 4-4-2-2 Big Ten) still have the same goal - finish first or second and earn a first-round bye the Big Ten Tournament in Detroit, March 19-21.
The best way to catch and pass teams ahead of you is to beat them and take care of the teams below you.
That's the challenge facing Michigan State as it skates into the second half of the conference schedule. The Spartans still play two games against all three teams ahead of them.
The Wolverines are eight points up on MSU, the Nittany Lions are six points ahead and the Gophers are only two.
The Spartans' quest is legitimate but in order for it to come to fruition, they need to continue to be responsible defensively and find some offense that can turn close games into victories - especially against the contenders - and likely series splits into sweeps.
MSU's first opportunity to make a significant climb in the standings is this weekend when Penn State visits Munn Arena for a pair of games - at 7 p.m. Friday and 6 p.m. Saturday.
After a series at last-place Wisconsin next weekend, the Spartans visit Minnesota, Feb. 26-27, then host the Badgers, March 6-7, before two more games against Michigan to close the season - at MSU, March 13; at U-M, March 14.
But first, the Nittany Lions come to town as the second-hottest team in the nation, boasting an eight-game unbeaten streak (6-0-2) and one of the most productive forward lines in the nation.
"It's really an important series. Since probably early December, I think we've been playing pretty well, but we're going to have to step up to the challenge and put ourselves back in the race,'' MSU coach Tom Anastos said. "We dropped back a spot, giving up those three points (in the 4-1 loss to Michigan in Chicago last Saturday) so when you're playing teams ahead of you, you've got to win them.''
The No. 19 Nittany Lions (15-7-4, 7-2-1-0), arguably the most improved team in the country from last season, have won three straight and are coming off a 5-2, 4-1 sweep of Wisconsin.
Four weeks ago, MSU and Penn State met for the first time this season, in State College, and the Spartans had to settle for a 2--2 tie and shootout win in the series opener. In the second game, the Nittany Lions completely dominated MSU, 5-2, to come away with four of the six points in the series.
In some ways, the Spartans have tried to block out their loss at PSU, but maybe it's good that they remember the post-game frustration over how poorly they played and use it as motivation this weekend.
"I don't think we were that hot that weekend, even in the first game,'' senior defenseman Ron Boyd said. "I think our guys went into the game thinking like we were playing the old Penn State from year. They're a much different team. We have to realize they're ranked No. 19 in the nation. "We have to come out with the mentality that they're a (NCAA) tournament contender.''
If the Nittany Lions, who still have four games left with Minnesota and two at home against Michigan, have as solid of a first half as they did in the first, they'll be in good position to at least earn an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament. This is only PSU's third season as a varsity program.
Penn State's high-scoring unit of senior center Taylor Holstrom, junior right wing Casey Bailey and sophomore left wing David Goodwin has accounted for 37 goals, 39.7 percent of the team's offense.
Bailey leads PSU with a team-high 19 goals and 14 points for 33 points. Holstrom is second with six goals and 21 assists for 27 points, while Goodwin has 12 goals and 12 assists for 24 points. None of the trio has been drafted by an NHL team.
The Nittany Lions also have a solid second line with Scott Conway, a freshman from Basingstoke, England, centering Eric Scheid on right wing and Dylan Richard on the left. Scheid has 22 points (13-9), Conway 19 points (6-13) and Richard 17 points (6-11).
"We have to keep that top line to the outside and don't let then get to the net as easily as the last time we played them,'' Boyd said. "They work the puck in deep and try to get it to the net. It's a grind type of hockey and we have to make them play the way we want to play.
"I think we're good enough to shut them down. Let them come down the ice, we'll make them go wide and if they take those shots, Hildy (goalie Jake Hildebrand) is going to spot every shot from the faceoff and over. We just have to pick up guys following the play and block them out.''
The Goodwin-Holstrom-Bailey line combined for four goals and four assists in PSU's win over MSU. In the tie in the series opener, Goodwin scored the tying goal, with Holstrom and Bailey assisting, with 7:49 left in the third period.
Penn State has scored 24 goals in its last five games - 5, 5, 5, 4, 5 - for an average of almost five per game. The Nittany Lions are ranked No. 5 in offense nationally, averaging 3.58 goals per game.
"Penn State is playing really well. They have a lot of things going for them right now, and I'm sure their confidence is sky high,'' Anastos said. "They're putting up big numbers on offense, their power play is consistent and they have good penalty-killing units.''
While Michigan State has used only one goaltender all season - junior Jake Hildebrand - Penn State has played three. Sophomore Eamon McAdam faced the Spartans in the tie, junior Matthew Skoff played in the victory, but now senior PJ Musico has started the last three games and came out a winner. He's 4-0-1 in his last four games.
Musico replaced Skoff in the second period in PSU's 5-4 come-from-behind win over Northern Michigan on Jan. 23. The next night, after NMU took a 3-0 lead in the first period, Musico took over for McAdam to start the second period and PSU rallied for a 5-5 tie.
Musico then won 4-2 against Vermont in Philadelphia, and 5-2 and 4-1 last weekend vs. Wisconsin.
"They're as hard of a working team as we'll play all season,'' Anastos said of the Nittany Lions. "They've had a number of games in which they've been down by multiple goals and have climbed back to tie and win. They're an older team, they're strong and play with physicality.''
That's the way Penn State played in dominating the Spartans 5-2 four weeks ago.
"Their emotional level and compete lever were much higher than ours. They were hungrier than we were, and that's not good enough, especially when you're on the road,'' Anastos said.
Last season, Penn State finished 8-26-2 overall and 3-16-1 in the Big Ten. For the Nittany Lions, the biggest positive of last season was beating Michigan three times, including in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.
This season, Penn State got off to a good start against some weak-to-middle-of-the-road teams, going 5-1-2. The Nittany Lions split with highly ranked UMass-Lowell on the road in mid-November, and followed it up by splitting a series at Michigan.
"They have a line that's emerged as a top line in the country, and when that happens, there's a lot of confidence that can be built from that,'' Anastos said. "They had some wins and put some wins together and that helps confidence, too. They have some guys really emerging, they're getting balanced scoring, and some good components are really going for them.
"Plus, if you can score five goals a game, you'll win a lot of games. Even four.''
PSU lost two games in a tournament in Pittsburgh to Robert Morris and Western Michigan, but it's only lost one game in 2015 - to Ohio State, 5-4, on Jan. 9. The Nittany Lions started their streak the next afternoon, with a 4-1 win over the Buckeyes.
"You have to beat them at their own game,'' junior defenseman John Draeger said. "They're a hardworking team, they get pucks in (the offensive zone) and they're going to play the body. We have to be prepared for that. And we have to put it right back in their face. Get pucks deep and go lay on the body.
"They'll throw 100 pucks into our zone. They'll chip it in, make us go back and I'm going to be one of them. And they'll try to run you through the end boards. We have to be smart, get pucks out quickly.''
MORE GOALS, MORE WINS: Michigan State's goaltending and defense have been reliable, efficient and a team strength most of the season. But the Spartans' ability to finish good scoring chances is still inconsistent.
If MSU hopes to make a run at a top-two finish, it needs to boost its offensive production.
"We've been able to stand up to almost everybody we've played so far. If we can get some better production from our offense, it'll help our confidence and help us get the results we've been working toward,'' Anastos said.
"If we can get our scoring to emerge, we can really get over the hump and turn the corner. We're getting a good number of scoring chances. But we're not converting them. It some cases, it's as simple as hitting the net. We don't force goaltenders to make a stop, and then you get people into traffic areas to compete for second and third chances.''
Michigan State ranks No. 1 in defense in the Big Ten and 24th in the nation with a 2.46 goals-against average. Offensively, however, the Spartans are No. 5 on offense in the Big Ten and 45th nationally, averaging 2.25 goals per game.
The Spartans have the best penalty killing in the conference at 86.7 percent efficiency, ranking 13th nationally.
Matt Berry, who had an assist on MSU's only goal in last Saturday's 4-1 loss to Michigan, still leads the Spartans in scoring with eight goals and nine assists for 17 points. Michael Ferrantino is tied for second with nine goals and six assists for 15 points. Mackenzie MacEachern also has 15 points, on six goals and nine assists.
Matt DeBlouw has scored one goal in the last two games against Michigan and is now tied for seventh in scoring with Villiam Haag. DeBlouw has six goals and three assists for nine points. Haag has five goals and four assists.
INJURY UPDATE: The Spartans are a fairly health bunch, except for one player - Brent Darnell. The senior right wing suffered a lower body injury in the second period Saturday when he was checked along the boards and fell awkwardly into the side boards. He stayed in the game and played most of the rest of the way but wasn't as effective as usual.
"I thought he was gutty to try to play through it,'' MSU coach Tom Anastos said. "I played him because he said he could go but I was concerned that he would injure it further. He's doubtful for the weekend, but we'll see later in the week.''
Darnell is the team's fourth-leading scorer with six goals and seven assists for 13 points. Since Dec. 5, Darnell has five goals and 11 points in his last 11 games.
BIG TEN UPDATE: Minnesota is unbeaten in its last four games at 3-0-1 but whether the Gophers are back on track is unclear because their last two opponents have been last-place Wisconsin and fifth-place Wisconsin.
Minnesota's hopes of getting back in the conference title race may depend on how it does against first-place Michigan on Friday and Saturday at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis.
The Wolverines are six points ahead of the Gophers and this is the last time the teams meet. U-M swept Minnesota, 4-3 in overtime and 7-5, in Ann Arbor, Jan. 9-10.
Michigan is 8-1 overall since Christmas and 12-2 since Nov. 21.
Minnesota is 5-5-2 since Christmas and 7-5-3 since Nov. 21.
In the Big Ten's third series this weekend, Wisconsin is at Ohio State. The Badgers (2-18-4 overall, 0-8-2-2 Big Ten) are still seeking their first conference victory. The Buckeyes (7-15-2, 2-8-0-0) have lost six straight.
