Michigan State University Athletics
Neil’s Notebook: Spartans’ Four Goals Not Enough in Loss at ASU
11/10/2018 10:40:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
By Neil Koepke
MSUSpartans.com staff writer
TEMPE, Ariz. – Four goals in college hockey should be enough to win the game. For Michigan State on Friday night against Arizona State, it wasn't enough.
Defensive breakdowns doomed the Spartans, who rallied from a 2-0 deficit in the second period to take a 3-2 lead only to see the Sun Devils score three straight goals - one late in the middle period and two in the third – and hold on for a 5-4 victory in front of a standing-room only crowd of 923 at the Oceanside Ice Arena.
Arizona State (8-3) broke a 3-3 tie midway through the third period with two goals in a span of 3 minutes and 21 seconds and never relinquished the lead. MSU made it a one-goal game on sophomore David Keefer's first goal of the season with 5:54 left, but couldn't capitalize on a few good chances in the final minutes.
"We have to be better defensively. We weren't horrible but when we made mistakes, they made good plays,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "We had two bad reads in the third period.
"I thought we were in pretty good control (early in the third period). We had good things going on and all of a sudden, it's 5-3. The bottom line is we can't give up five goals.''
The Spartans (4-3) worked hard in the final five minutes for the tying goal and had a few good looks. In fact, right wing Mitchell Lewandowski had three quality chances from the slot. The first was deflected out of the rink by the stick of an ASU defender, the second, on a quick turnaround shot, went wide and the third was stopped high on the stick of ASU goalie Joey Daccord (17 saves).
"I remember on the spin, I tried to just throw it on the net and it went wide and the one Taro (Hirose) gave me (on a pass into the slot), I tried to go blocker and it hit his stick,'' Lewandowski said. "(Daccord) used to play in the USHL (U.S. Hockey League) and I knew he was a good goalie.
"Defensively, we have to be better, myself included. We scored four goals and that should be enough to win. So, our offense is there. But it's hard to win when you give up five goals. We have to eliminate that. Their goals, I think we can prevent most of them.''
Defenseman Jerad Rosburg and forwards Brody Stevens and Hirose scored for Michigan State in the second period. Stevens scored on a tip-in that was originally awarded to Tommy Apap.
Michigan State will try salvage a split of the series at 9 p.m. (EST) Saturday at Oceanside Arena.
The Arizona State victory was its second straight over a Big Ten team in less than a week. The Sun Devils upset then-No. 6 ranked Penn State, 4-3 in overtime, last Saturday in University Park, Pa.
ASU, in its fourth year as a varsity program and third playing a full Division I schedule, has won six of its last seven games. The Sun Devils got goals from five players – PJ Marrocco, Steenn Pasichnuk and Filips Buncis in the second period and Jordan Sanhu and Brett Gruber in the third period. High-scoring forward Johnny Walker, who has a nation-leading 11 goals and 17 points, was held scoreless with three shots on goal.
Arizona State won only eight games last season and it has already equaled that total in 11 games this year.
"That's a good hockey team. They're surprising a lot of people,'' Lewandowski said. "They chip pucks in and make you work, and they can skate. They get pucks out and battle hard.''
MSU goalie John Lethemon made 21 saves. His biggest stop helped the Spartans stay in the game, trailing 2-0, eight minutes into the second period. ASU left wing Tyler Busch took a pass in the right circle and was looking at an open net as he let go with a one-timer, but Lethemon darted to his left to stop the shot and prevent a 3-0 MSU deficit.
One minute and 34 seconds later, Rosburg's shot from the point eluded Accord and the Spartans were back in the game. Stevens tipped Zach Osburn's shot from the right point past Accord at 12:03 and Hirose scored unassisted, stealing the puck in the ASU zone and firing in his own rebound for a 3-2 MSU lead at 15:39.
The three Spartan goals came in a span of 6 minutes and 2 seconds.
"We have to build off what we did offensively and grow defensively,'' MSU junior center and captain Sam Saliba said. "A couple of breakdowns really hurt us. We battled hard to get the tie and take the lead, and right there we have to shut it down defensively. We have to play better in our own end and manage pucks better.''
"They're a good team. They're physical, they have good offensive players and play the right way. They have a good speed and they're a good 200-foot team.''
Cole said there were some good things to like about his team's game on Friday, but the odd-man rushes and rebound goals overshadowed the positives.
"We made a couple of bad plays and they end up in our net,'' he said. "Two bad reads in the third period. We can't do that.
"On one of the (rebound goals), we got the block on the shot but it went right to their guy on the backdoor. And then their guy is driving to the net and we have to pick up the guy on the backside. John (Lethemon) has to make the first save and we have to pick up the other guy.
"I was more concerned about how they got to those scoring situations as opposed to how it broke down after.''
MSU's offense was balanced with four players scoring goals, defensemen chipped in with a goal by Rosburg and three assists, including two by freshman Dennis Cesana. Hirose also had two points with a goal and an assist.
"I though Khodorenko's line had a decent game. We did some good stuff,'' Cole said. "I think sometimes we get caught up where we think we're going to play a chess game.
"You have to play with emotion, you have to play with passion. When we did, we were a lot better.''
SPECIAL TEAMS WON BY ASU: Michigan State had the first three power plays of the game and failed to score, only putting three shots on goal. Arizona State had the next three and converted on its first power play – the first goal of the game.
So, the Spartans were 0-for-3 and Sun Devils were 1-for-3.
"Our power play has to be better,'' MSU's Mitchell Lewandowski said. "Their first goal was on a power play. We were 0-for-3. We have to sharpen up and sharpen up in all areas.''
Michigan State had scored at least one power-play goal in its first six games, going 9-for-26 for a stellar 34.6 percent success rate going into the weekend. The Spartans were No. 1 in the Big Ten and No. 5 nationally. MSU is now at 31 percent and still ranks 5th.
IN THE BIG TEN: Michigan opened conference play with a 2-1 victory over Notre Dame in Ann Arbor. The No. 14/15 Wolverines (5-3, 1-0 Big Ten) fell behind 1-0 early in the second period and then scored two power-play goals in a span of 6 minutes and 41 seconds to take a 2-1 lead. In the third period, No. 6 Notre Dame (4-4-1, 0-1 Big Ten) was held to two shots on goal, despite having two power plays, while Michigan had 16 shots on goal. Notre Dame has lost four of its last five games and has scored only six goals during that span.
No. 14/16 Minnesota (2-3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) fell behind Wisconsin, 2-0, in the second period and then erupted for three goals in 1 minute and 14 seconds to go up 3-2 in the middle period, and held on the rest of the way for the victory in Madison, Wis. The No. 20 Badgers (4-5, 0-1 Big Ten) outshot the Gophers, 15-6, in the third period but couldn't solve Minnesota goalie Mat Robson, who made 30 saves.
No. 7 Ohio State (5-3-1, 1-1 Big Ten) shut out Colgate, 3-0, in Hamilton, N.Y. Sean Romeo made 19 saves to earn his second straight shutout in eight days. He blanked Notre Dame 1-0 last Friday, also on the road.
No. 8 Penn State (7-1) scored three goals in each of the second and third periods and cruised to a 7-2 non-conference victory over Robert Morris in University Park, Pa. Nittany Lions forward Nikita Pavlychev had two goals and two assists.
The seven teams play again Saturday at the same venues, except for Penn State and Robert Morris. That series switches to Robert Morris for the series finale.
MSUSpartans.com staff writer
TEMPE, Ariz. – Four goals in college hockey should be enough to win the game. For Michigan State on Friday night against Arizona State, it wasn't enough.
Defensive breakdowns doomed the Spartans, who rallied from a 2-0 deficit in the second period to take a 3-2 lead only to see the Sun Devils score three straight goals - one late in the middle period and two in the third – and hold on for a 5-4 victory in front of a standing-room only crowd of 923 at the Oceanside Ice Arena.
Arizona State (8-3) broke a 3-3 tie midway through the third period with two goals in a span of 3 minutes and 21 seconds and never relinquished the lead. MSU made it a one-goal game on sophomore David Keefer's first goal of the season with 5:54 left, but couldn't capitalize on a few good chances in the final minutes.
"We have to be better defensively. We weren't horrible but when we made mistakes, they made good plays,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "We had two bad reads in the third period.
"I thought we were in pretty good control (early in the third period). We had good things going on and all of a sudden, it's 5-3. The bottom line is we can't give up five goals.''
The Spartans (4-3) worked hard in the final five minutes for the tying goal and had a few good looks. In fact, right wing Mitchell Lewandowski had three quality chances from the slot. The first was deflected out of the rink by the stick of an ASU defender, the second, on a quick turnaround shot, went wide and the third was stopped high on the stick of ASU goalie Joey Daccord (17 saves).
"I remember on the spin, I tried to just throw it on the net and it went wide and the one Taro (Hirose) gave me (on a pass into the slot), I tried to go blocker and it hit his stick,'' Lewandowski said. "(Daccord) used to play in the USHL (U.S. Hockey League) and I knew he was a good goalie.
"Defensively, we have to be better, myself included. We scored four goals and that should be enough to win. So, our offense is there. But it's hard to win when you give up five goals. We have to eliminate that. Their goals, I think we can prevent most of them.''
Defenseman Jerad Rosburg and forwards Brody Stevens and Hirose scored for Michigan State in the second period. Stevens scored on a tip-in that was originally awarded to Tommy Apap.
Michigan State will try salvage a split of the series at 9 p.m. (EST) Saturday at Oceanside Arena.
The Arizona State victory was its second straight over a Big Ten team in less than a week. The Sun Devils upset then-No. 6 ranked Penn State, 4-3 in overtime, last Saturday in University Park, Pa.
ASU, in its fourth year as a varsity program and third playing a full Division I schedule, has won six of its last seven games. The Sun Devils got goals from five players – PJ Marrocco, Steenn Pasichnuk and Filips Buncis in the second period and Jordan Sanhu and Brett Gruber in the third period. High-scoring forward Johnny Walker, who has a nation-leading 11 goals and 17 points, was held scoreless with three shots on goal.
Arizona State won only eight games last season and it has already equaled that total in 11 games this year.
"That's a good hockey team. They're surprising a lot of people,'' Lewandowski said. "They chip pucks in and make you work, and they can skate. They get pucks out and battle hard.''
MSU goalie John Lethemon made 21 saves. His biggest stop helped the Spartans stay in the game, trailing 2-0, eight minutes into the second period. ASU left wing Tyler Busch took a pass in the right circle and was looking at an open net as he let go with a one-timer, but Lethemon darted to his left to stop the shot and prevent a 3-0 MSU deficit.
One minute and 34 seconds later, Rosburg's shot from the point eluded Accord and the Spartans were back in the game. Stevens tipped Zach Osburn's shot from the right point past Accord at 12:03 and Hirose scored unassisted, stealing the puck in the ASU zone and firing in his own rebound for a 3-2 MSU lead at 15:39.
The three Spartan goals came in a span of 6 minutes and 2 seconds.
"We have to build off what we did offensively and grow defensively,'' MSU junior center and captain Sam Saliba said. "A couple of breakdowns really hurt us. We battled hard to get the tie and take the lead, and right there we have to shut it down defensively. We have to play better in our own end and manage pucks better.''
"They're a good team. They're physical, they have good offensive players and play the right way. They have a good speed and they're a good 200-foot team.''
Cole said there were some good things to like about his team's game on Friday, but the odd-man rushes and rebound goals overshadowed the positives.
"We made a couple of bad plays and they end up in our net,'' he said. "Two bad reads in the third period. We can't do that.
"On one of the (rebound goals), we got the block on the shot but it went right to their guy on the backdoor. And then their guy is driving to the net and we have to pick up the guy on the backside. John (Lethemon) has to make the first save and we have to pick up the other guy.
"I was more concerned about how they got to those scoring situations as opposed to how it broke down after.''
MSU's offense was balanced with four players scoring goals, defensemen chipped in with a goal by Rosburg and three assists, including two by freshman Dennis Cesana. Hirose also had two points with a goal and an assist.
"I though Khodorenko's line had a decent game. We did some good stuff,'' Cole said. "I think sometimes we get caught up where we think we're going to play a chess game.
"You have to play with emotion, you have to play with passion. When we did, we were a lot better.''
SPECIAL TEAMS WON BY ASU: Michigan State had the first three power plays of the game and failed to score, only putting three shots on goal. Arizona State had the next three and converted on its first power play – the first goal of the game.
So, the Spartans were 0-for-3 and Sun Devils were 1-for-3.
"Our power play has to be better,'' MSU's Mitchell Lewandowski said. "Their first goal was on a power play. We were 0-for-3. We have to sharpen up and sharpen up in all areas.''
Michigan State had scored at least one power-play goal in its first six games, going 9-for-26 for a stellar 34.6 percent success rate going into the weekend. The Spartans were No. 1 in the Big Ten and No. 5 nationally. MSU is now at 31 percent and still ranks 5th.
IN THE BIG TEN: Michigan opened conference play with a 2-1 victory over Notre Dame in Ann Arbor. The No. 14/15 Wolverines (5-3, 1-0 Big Ten) fell behind 1-0 early in the second period and then scored two power-play goals in a span of 6 minutes and 41 seconds to take a 2-1 lead. In the third period, No. 6 Notre Dame (4-4-1, 0-1 Big Ten) was held to two shots on goal, despite having two power plays, while Michigan had 16 shots on goal. Notre Dame has lost four of its last five games and has scored only six goals during that span.
No. 14/16 Minnesota (2-3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) fell behind Wisconsin, 2-0, in the second period and then erupted for three goals in 1 minute and 14 seconds to go up 3-2 in the middle period, and held on the rest of the way for the victory in Madison, Wis. The No. 20 Badgers (4-5, 0-1 Big Ten) outshot the Gophers, 15-6, in the third period but couldn't solve Minnesota goalie Mat Robson, who made 30 saves.
No. 7 Ohio State (5-3-1, 1-1 Big Ten) shut out Colgate, 3-0, in Hamilton, N.Y. Sean Romeo made 19 saves to earn his second straight shutout in eight days. He blanked Notre Dame 1-0 last Friday, also on the road.
No. 8 Penn State (7-1) scored three goals in each of the second and third periods and cruised to a 7-2 non-conference victory over Robert Morris in University Park, Pa. Nittany Lions forward Nikita Pavlychev had two goals and two assists.
The seven teams play again Saturday at the same venues, except for Penn State and Robert Morris. That series switches to Robert Morris for the series finale.
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