Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
6-21-3, 2-12-2-0B1G
Penn State
20-8-2, 9-6-2-0B1G
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penn State | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Michigan State | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Spartans Drop Home Finale to No. 11 Penn State
2/25/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
EAST LANSING - No. 11 Penn State used three first-period goals en route to a 4-1 win over the Michigan State hockey team on Saturday night at Munn Ice Arena. Villiam Haag, one of eight seniors playing at Munn for the final time, scored for the Spartans.
Nate Sucese got the scoring started or Penn State, as he got his first of two goals in the opening period at the 11:18 mark to give the Nittany Lions a 1-0 lead. David Goodwin set up the goal with a diagonal pass from the boards at the top of the right circle, hitting Sucese at the far side of the crease where he tapped the puck into a wide open net.
Denis Smirnov made it 2-0 with a power-play goal at the 14:12 mark as he snapped the puck over Ed Minney's glove from the top of the left circle.
Sucese finished off a 2-on-1 during a 4-on-4 situation with 50 seconds to go in the first to extend the PSU lead to 3-0.
"We didn't play a very smart game," MSU head coach Tom Anastos said. "Our execution was poor and we made poor decisions all over the rink."
The Nittany Lions (20-8-2, 9-6-1) made it tough for the Spartans to get back in the game, stifling three power play opportunities and limiting MSU's quality scoring chances all night.
The Spartans (6-21-3, 2-12-2) eventually got on the board courtesy of Haag with 9:22 to go in the game. Off a faceoff in the PSU end, Patrick Khodorenko got control of the puck and went to the net. Goaltender Peyton Jones knocked the puck away from Khodorenko, but Haag was waiting for a rebound and backhanded it into the net for his sixth goal of the year.
Holland picked up an assist on the goal, giving him points in three consecutive games.
Unfortunately for the Spartans, PSU got the goal back less than two minutes later as Andrew Sturtz got the puck past Minney, making it 4-1.
Minney finished with 31 saves for the Spartans.
It was the final home appearance of the season for the Spartans' eight seniors - Joe Cox, Thomas Ebbing, Chris Knudson, Justin Selep, JT Stenglein, Connor Wood, Haag and Holland -- who were honored in a ceremony following the game.
"That's a really good group of people," Anastos said. "They're guys that come to the rink and bring it every day. They have smiles on their faces, they push each other and it's a pretty close-knit bunch, in spite of their different personality makeup. The group, in general, was a pleasure to spend time with."
The Spartans will hit the road for their final four regular-season games, playing at Ohio State next weekend (March 3-4) and then at Minnesota (March 10-11).
