Photo by: Rey Del Rio/MSU Athletic Communications
Neil’s Notebook: Upward Trending Spartans Keep Focus on the Next Game
1/24/2019 9:49:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
By Neil Koepke
MSUSpartans.com staff writer
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – It was only a few weeks ago that Michigan State was battling to end a frustrating winless streak, and appeared on track to finish the 2018-19 season last in the Big Ten.
But when conference victories are worth three points in the standings, and wins in shootouts and 3-on-3 overtimes give a team two points, you can move up in the standings quickly if you can put a string of victories together.
Thanks to three-straight victories – at Penn State and two at home last weekend against Minnesota – the Spartans have climbed from seventh to fourth place.
And suddenly, MSU is in position to finish in second, third or fourth place and earn home ice for the first round of the Big Ten playoffs March 8-10.
With 10 games still to play, starting with this weekend's series at third-place Notre Dame, the Spartans have a legitimate shot for a high finish in the hotly contested conference race.
"That would be huge, just getting that extra rest and having the home crowd would be pretty cool,'' MSU left wing Taro Hirose said about the possibility of his team earning a spot among the top four teams and hosting a best-of-three playoff series.
"But it's a long ways away and we've got a lot of big games coming up. Right now, we're focusing on one game. With three points for a win it's easy to move up and down, so we're not resting on our laurels and we're tying to keep moving up.''
As December turned into January, Michigan State was starving for victories and mired in a five-game winless streak at 0-3-2. This month, however, the Spartans (9-12-3 overall, 5-7-2-2) are 3-2-1-1 and eager to make a splash in the Big Ten.
MSU's next challenge is against No. 11/12 Notre Dame (13-9-1, 6-6-1-1), which has 20 points, one more than the Spartans (19). The two teams collide at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and at 7 p.m. Saturday at Compton Family Arena.
Ohio State, with 29 points, has opened an eight-point lead on second-place Minnesota (21), which is one point in front of Notre Dame and two up on MSU. The Spartans are one point ahead of Michigan (18), with Penn State and Wisconsin tied for sixth place with 17 points apiece.
"You can move a lot in one weekend. You can go either way just as quick,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "The Big Ten has been tough, not just for us but for everybody. Getting six points last weekend was outstanding, and hopefully, we can build on that and keep winning.
"There's only a few points separating everyone. With 10 games to go, it's a little bit of a sprint. And if we can keep picking up points each weekend, that would be great, and we'd love to have another sweep along the way.
"Hopefully, we can keep it up and put ourselves in position to get home ice for the first round of the playoffs. That would be a great accomplishment for this group.''
But the Spartans' emphasis continues to be on the next game and series, and not so much projecting where they can finish.
"Our focus all along has been the next game and we'll stick with that,'' Cole said. "We have to get ready for Friday and grind it out, and if we do enough things right enough times, that stuff sorts it all out.''
After facing the Fighting Irish, Michigan State plays a home series with Wisconsin, faces Michigan in Ann Arbor and Detroit, is back home against Penn State, and after a week off, finishes the regular season with a visit to Ohio State.
MSU junior captain Sam Saliba said his team didn't pay attention to the preseason rankings which had the Spartans finishing seventh for the third-straight season.
"It wasn't any different when things were going south. But just like that, we've won three in a row and we have a ton of confidence,'' he said. "Second place isn't too far out of reach. There's a ton of belief and excitement in our room.''
Saliba said there's no mystery as what the Spartans have to do over the last 10 games to end up with a strong finish.
"We have to continue to do what we've done in the last two weekends. It's not a secret recipe,'' he said. "We know what works, we know what we're good at, and it's sticking to our game plan.''
Cole has liked what he's seen from his players since they returned from the holiday break in late December. The Spartans have worked hard to get better and they're getting rewarded for their effort.
"In terms of their approach and battle, we are what we are and we're still building some things, but the group we have is playing extremely well, playing hard and playing for each other,'' the second-year MSU coach said. "I'm happy for them and we look forward to getting better.
"We were good for six periods last weekend. Mentally and physically, we finished things well. That was good to go through and to see that you can do it against a real good opponent.
"If nothing else, (the sweep) gives you the belief that if we do things right, we can win games.''
And if the Spartans can win a lot of games over the next six weekends, they'll likely be starting the Big Ten playoffs at Munn Arena.
THE IRISH-SPARTANS RIVALRY: Michigan State holds a 62-48-11 edge in the series which started with a 3-1 Notre Dame victory on Jan. 18, 1922. The teams met three more times in the 1920s with the Irish winning each game. The series resumed in 1970-71 and MSU won six of the first seven in the new era of the rivalry. Notre Dame has won eight of the last 10 meetings, including a 3-1 and 2-1 sweep earlier this season on Nov. 16-17. Last season, Notre Dame won two games at Munn Arena, 3-1 and 2-0, in early December, and the teams split a regular-season ending series at Notre Dame – the Irish winning the opener, 6-3, but the Spartans spoiled Irish Senior Night with a 4-3 win.
SCOUTING THE IRISH: After starting the season 3-1, Notre Dame lost four of its next five, including three at home – two vs. NCAA defending champion Minnesota Duluth and one against Ohio State. But the Irish won seven games in a row from Nov. 10 to Dec. 7. However, they hit another tough stretch with four losses in its their next five games. Last weekend, Notre Dame defeated Wisconsin, 6-4, in Madison and then tied the Badgers, 2-2, at the United Center in Chicago, but earned two points in the Big Ten with a win in the 3-on-3 overtime.
Michigan State and Notre Dame played two low-scoring games at Munn Arena in November, with the Irish winning 3-1 and 2-1. The first game was essentially a one-goal contest with Notre Dame adding a late empty-net goal.
"They defend well and if you get through their defense, you have to contend with (junior) Cale Morris, who's one of the best goalies in the country,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "Probably, the biggest thing culturally is that they tend not to beat themselves.
"They play a really good game for 60-65 minutes and they'll make you work and won't make a lot of dumb mistakes. And if you do, they're good at capitalizing. So mentally, you have to be real sharp against them.''
Notre Dame earned five of six points from Wisconsin last weekend without three of its best forwards.
Junior Cal Burke (9-12-21), the team's top goal-scorer, missed the series because of an appendectomy. Junior Cam Morrison (7-7-14) sat out with an upper body injury, and senior Joe Wegwerth (7-4-11) is out for the season after having knee surgery. Burke and Morrison are Notre Dame's third- and fourth-leading scorers and Wegwerth is tied for sixth.
The Irish offense is led by senior forward Dylan Malmquist and senior defenseman Bobby Nardella. Each has six goals and 16 assists for a team-leading 22 points. Nardella is the seventh-highest scoring defenseman in the nation.
Freshman right wing Michael Graham scored two goals in both games against Wisconsin last weekend. Three of Graham's goals came on power plays. He has five goals and six assists for 11 points in 22 games.
Notre Dame is averaging 3.04 goals per game, which is No. 4 in the Big Ten and No. 21 in the nation. The Irish power play is converting 19.5 per cent of their chances (6th, 23rd). MSU, thanks to 16 goals in the last three games, is averaging 3.0 goals (4th, 22nd). Its power play is at 23 percent (3rd, 11th).
Defensively, the Irish are allowing 2.39 goals per game, which is second in the Big Ten and 17th nationally. Their penalty kill is at 80.5 percent (2nd, 31st). The Spartans' GAA is 3.50 (7th, 52nd) and penalty kill is 75.5 percent effective (No. 7, No. 54).
In goal, Morris has a 10-7-2 record, a 2.37 goals-against average and a .924 saves percentage. His GAA is second-best in the Big Ten. Last season, Morris was the Big Ten's Player of the Year and Goalie of the Year, an NCAA West First-Team All-America, Hobey Baker Finalist and won the Mike Richter Award as the best goaltender in the nation.
MSU and Notre Dame didn't play each other for four seasons when the Spartans left the CCHA for the Big Ten and the Irish joined Hockey East. The series resumed in 2017-18 when Notre Dame was added to Big Ten as an affiliate member.
Other than last season's 6-3 Irish victory in the series opener at Notre Dame, almost every game has been close. The Irish have won 3-1, 2-1, 3-1 and 2-1 at Munn Arena and 6-3 at home, but lost the season finale last year, 4-3.
"Every time we've played Notre Dame, it's been like that – low-scoring games with the exception of our first game there last season,'' MSU junior center Sam Saliba. "They're a defensive type of team and like to shut it down, and so do we.
"We like to play the right way and they like to play that way as well. Nothing is easy in these games. But we like the way we've been playing and we have to find a way to close it out this weekend.''
MSU's top four scorers against Notre Dame are Taro Hirose (2 goals, 3 assists, 5 points); Patrick Khodorenko (2-1-3); Mitchell Lewandowski (2-1-3), and defenseman Jerad Rosburg (1-2-3).
Notre Dame coach Jeff Jackson has led the Irish to four appearances in the Frozen Four – 2008, 2011, 2017 and 2018. Notre Dame has lost twice in the NCAA title game – to Boston College in 2018 in Denver and last season to Minnesota Duluth, 2-1, in St. Paul, Minn. Jackson, a 1978 graduate of Michigan State, has a career record of 491-237-81 in 20 seasons, and he's 309-185-56 in 14 seasons at Notre Dame. Jackson won two NCAA titles as head coach at Lake Superior State in 1992 and 1994 and was an assistant when the Lakers won the national title in 1988.
LEWANDOWSKI IS NO. 2 STAR: Sophomore right wing Mitchell Lewandowski scored two goals in both victories over Minnesota last weekend and he was selected as the Big Ten's No 2 Star. It's his fifth career conference weekly award. Lewandowski is MSU's third-leading scorer with 11 goals and 14 assists for 25 points in 24 games. He's scored five goals in the last three games – all Spartan victories.
Notre Dame freshman forward Michael Graham was the Big Ten's First Star and junior forward Tanner Laczynski of Ohio State was the Third Star.
IN THE BIG TEN: Michigan and No. 15 Penn State meet on Thursday night in Ann Arbor and then at Madison Square Garden on Saturday as part of the Big Ten's fourth-annual Super Saturday – College Hoops and Hockey doubleheader. Indiana and Maryland meet in basketball at noon and U-M and PSU face off on the ice at 7 p.m.
The Nittany Lions and Wolverines split their first series at Penn State in November.
In the other conference series, Minnesota plays host to Wisconsin on Friday and Saturday. The teams split their first series in Madison in early November.
First-place Ohio State is idle this weekend.
The No. 4/3 Buckeyes (15-5-4 overall, 8-3-3-2, 29 points) extended their lead over second-place Minnesota (9-10-4, 6-5-3-0, 21 points) to eight points. No. 12/15 Notre Dame (13-8-2, 6-6-1-1, 20 points) is in third place and Michigan State (9-12-3, 5-7-2-2, 19 points) went from seventh to fourth with its sweep of Minnesota.
Michigan (8-9-6, 4-5-4-2, 18 points) is fifth while Wisconsin (8-10-4, 4-4-4-1, 17 points) and Penn State (13-9-2, 5-8-1-1, 17 points) are tied for sixth place.
MSUSpartans.com staff writer
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – It was only a few weeks ago that Michigan State was battling to end a frustrating winless streak, and appeared on track to finish the 2018-19 season last in the Big Ten.
But when conference victories are worth three points in the standings, and wins in shootouts and 3-on-3 overtimes give a team two points, you can move up in the standings quickly if you can put a string of victories together.
Thanks to three-straight victories – at Penn State and two at home last weekend against Minnesota – the Spartans have climbed from seventh to fourth place.
And suddenly, MSU is in position to finish in second, third or fourth place and earn home ice for the first round of the Big Ten playoffs March 8-10.
With 10 games still to play, starting with this weekend's series at third-place Notre Dame, the Spartans have a legitimate shot for a high finish in the hotly contested conference race.
"That would be huge, just getting that extra rest and having the home crowd would be pretty cool,'' MSU left wing Taro Hirose said about the possibility of his team earning a spot among the top four teams and hosting a best-of-three playoff series.
"But it's a long ways away and we've got a lot of big games coming up. Right now, we're focusing on one game. With three points for a win it's easy to move up and down, so we're not resting on our laurels and we're tying to keep moving up.''
As December turned into January, Michigan State was starving for victories and mired in a five-game winless streak at 0-3-2. This month, however, the Spartans (9-12-3 overall, 5-7-2-2) are 3-2-1-1 and eager to make a splash in the Big Ten.
MSU's next challenge is against No. 11/12 Notre Dame (13-9-1, 6-6-1-1), which has 20 points, one more than the Spartans (19). The two teams collide at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and at 7 p.m. Saturday at Compton Family Arena.
Ohio State, with 29 points, has opened an eight-point lead on second-place Minnesota (21), which is one point in front of Notre Dame and two up on MSU. The Spartans are one point ahead of Michigan (18), with Penn State and Wisconsin tied for sixth place with 17 points apiece.
"You can move a lot in one weekend. You can go either way just as quick,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "The Big Ten has been tough, not just for us but for everybody. Getting six points last weekend was outstanding, and hopefully, we can build on that and keep winning.
"There's only a few points separating everyone. With 10 games to go, it's a little bit of a sprint. And if we can keep picking up points each weekend, that would be great, and we'd love to have another sweep along the way.
"Hopefully, we can keep it up and put ourselves in position to get home ice for the first round of the playoffs. That would be a great accomplishment for this group.''
But the Spartans' emphasis continues to be on the next game and series, and not so much projecting where they can finish.
"Our focus all along has been the next game and we'll stick with that,'' Cole said. "We have to get ready for Friday and grind it out, and if we do enough things right enough times, that stuff sorts it all out.''
After facing the Fighting Irish, Michigan State plays a home series with Wisconsin, faces Michigan in Ann Arbor and Detroit, is back home against Penn State, and after a week off, finishes the regular season with a visit to Ohio State.
MSU junior captain Sam Saliba said his team didn't pay attention to the preseason rankings which had the Spartans finishing seventh for the third-straight season.
"It wasn't any different when things were going south. But just like that, we've won three in a row and we have a ton of confidence,'' he said. "Second place isn't too far out of reach. There's a ton of belief and excitement in our room.''
Saliba said there's no mystery as what the Spartans have to do over the last 10 games to end up with a strong finish.
"We have to continue to do what we've done in the last two weekends. It's not a secret recipe,'' he said. "We know what works, we know what we're good at, and it's sticking to our game plan.''
Cole has liked what he's seen from his players since they returned from the holiday break in late December. The Spartans have worked hard to get better and they're getting rewarded for their effort.
"In terms of their approach and battle, we are what we are and we're still building some things, but the group we have is playing extremely well, playing hard and playing for each other,'' the second-year MSU coach said. "I'm happy for them and we look forward to getting better.
"We were good for six periods last weekend. Mentally and physically, we finished things well. That was good to go through and to see that you can do it against a real good opponent.
"If nothing else, (the sweep) gives you the belief that if we do things right, we can win games.''
And if the Spartans can win a lot of games over the next six weekends, they'll likely be starting the Big Ten playoffs at Munn Arena.
THE IRISH-SPARTANS RIVALRY: Michigan State holds a 62-48-11 edge in the series which started with a 3-1 Notre Dame victory on Jan. 18, 1922. The teams met three more times in the 1920s with the Irish winning each game. The series resumed in 1970-71 and MSU won six of the first seven in the new era of the rivalry. Notre Dame has won eight of the last 10 meetings, including a 3-1 and 2-1 sweep earlier this season on Nov. 16-17. Last season, Notre Dame won two games at Munn Arena, 3-1 and 2-0, in early December, and the teams split a regular-season ending series at Notre Dame – the Irish winning the opener, 6-3, but the Spartans spoiled Irish Senior Night with a 4-3 win.
SCOUTING THE IRISH: After starting the season 3-1, Notre Dame lost four of its next five, including three at home – two vs. NCAA defending champion Minnesota Duluth and one against Ohio State. But the Irish won seven games in a row from Nov. 10 to Dec. 7. However, they hit another tough stretch with four losses in its their next five games. Last weekend, Notre Dame defeated Wisconsin, 6-4, in Madison and then tied the Badgers, 2-2, at the United Center in Chicago, but earned two points in the Big Ten with a win in the 3-on-3 overtime.
Michigan State and Notre Dame played two low-scoring games at Munn Arena in November, with the Irish winning 3-1 and 2-1. The first game was essentially a one-goal contest with Notre Dame adding a late empty-net goal.
"They defend well and if you get through their defense, you have to contend with (junior) Cale Morris, who's one of the best goalies in the country,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "Probably, the biggest thing culturally is that they tend not to beat themselves.
"They play a really good game for 60-65 minutes and they'll make you work and won't make a lot of dumb mistakes. And if you do, they're good at capitalizing. So mentally, you have to be real sharp against them.''
Notre Dame earned five of six points from Wisconsin last weekend without three of its best forwards.
Junior Cal Burke (9-12-21), the team's top goal-scorer, missed the series because of an appendectomy. Junior Cam Morrison (7-7-14) sat out with an upper body injury, and senior Joe Wegwerth (7-4-11) is out for the season after having knee surgery. Burke and Morrison are Notre Dame's third- and fourth-leading scorers and Wegwerth is tied for sixth.
The Irish offense is led by senior forward Dylan Malmquist and senior defenseman Bobby Nardella. Each has six goals and 16 assists for a team-leading 22 points. Nardella is the seventh-highest scoring defenseman in the nation.
Freshman right wing Michael Graham scored two goals in both games against Wisconsin last weekend. Three of Graham's goals came on power plays. He has five goals and six assists for 11 points in 22 games.
Notre Dame is averaging 3.04 goals per game, which is No. 4 in the Big Ten and No. 21 in the nation. The Irish power play is converting 19.5 per cent of their chances (6th, 23rd). MSU, thanks to 16 goals in the last three games, is averaging 3.0 goals (4th, 22nd). Its power play is at 23 percent (3rd, 11th).
Defensively, the Irish are allowing 2.39 goals per game, which is second in the Big Ten and 17th nationally. Their penalty kill is at 80.5 percent (2nd, 31st). The Spartans' GAA is 3.50 (7th, 52nd) and penalty kill is 75.5 percent effective (No. 7, No. 54).
In goal, Morris has a 10-7-2 record, a 2.37 goals-against average and a .924 saves percentage. His GAA is second-best in the Big Ten. Last season, Morris was the Big Ten's Player of the Year and Goalie of the Year, an NCAA West First-Team All-America, Hobey Baker Finalist and won the Mike Richter Award as the best goaltender in the nation.
MSU and Notre Dame didn't play each other for four seasons when the Spartans left the CCHA for the Big Ten and the Irish joined Hockey East. The series resumed in 2017-18 when Notre Dame was added to Big Ten as an affiliate member.
Other than last season's 6-3 Irish victory in the series opener at Notre Dame, almost every game has been close. The Irish have won 3-1, 2-1, 3-1 and 2-1 at Munn Arena and 6-3 at home, but lost the season finale last year, 4-3.
"Every time we've played Notre Dame, it's been like that – low-scoring games with the exception of our first game there last season,'' MSU junior center Sam Saliba. "They're a defensive type of team and like to shut it down, and so do we.
"We like to play the right way and they like to play that way as well. Nothing is easy in these games. But we like the way we've been playing and we have to find a way to close it out this weekend.''
MSU's top four scorers against Notre Dame are Taro Hirose (2 goals, 3 assists, 5 points); Patrick Khodorenko (2-1-3); Mitchell Lewandowski (2-1-3), and defenseman Jerad Rosburg (1-2-3).
Notre Dame coach Jeff Jackson has led the Irish to four appearances in the Frozen Four – 2008, 2011, 2017 and 2018. Notre Dame has lost twice in the NCAA title game – to Boston College in 2018 in Denver and last season to Minnesota Duluth, 2-1, in St. Paul, Minn. Jackson, a 1978 graduate of Michigan State, has a career record of 491-237-81 in 20 seasons, and he's 309-185-56 in 14 seasons at Notre Dame. Jackson won two NCAA titles as head coach at Lake Superior State in 1992 and 1994 and was an assistant when the Lakers won the national title in 1988.
LEWANDOWSKI IS NO. 2 STAR: Sophomore right wing Mitchell Lewandowski scored two goals in both victories over Minnesota last weekend and he was selected as the Big Ten's No 2 Star. It's his fifth career conference weekly award. Lewandowski is MSU's third-leading scorer with 11 goals and 14 assists for 25 points in 24 games. He's scored five goals in the last three games – all Spartan victories.
Notre Dame freshman forward Michael Graham was the Big Ten's First Star and junior forward Tanner Laczynski of Ohio State was the Third Star.
IN THE BIG TEN: Michigan and No. 15 Penn State meet on Thursday night in Ann Arbor and then at Madison Square Garden on Saturday as part of the Big Ten's fourth-annual Super Saturday – College Hoops and Hockey doubleheader. Indiana and Maryland meet in basketball at noon and U-M and PSU face off on the ice at 7 p.m.
The Nittany Lions and Wolverines split their first series at Penn State in November.
In the other conference series, Minnesota plays host to Wisconsin on Friday and Saturday. The teams split their first series in Madison in early November.
First-place Ohio State is idle this weekend.
The No. 4/3 Buckeyes (15-5-4 overall, 8-3-3-2, 29 points) extended their lead over second-place Minnesota (9-10-4, 6-5-3-0, 21 points) to eight points. No. 12/15 Notre Dame (13-8-2, 6-6-1-1, 20 points) is in third place and Michigan State (9-12-3, 5-7-2-2, 19 points) went from seventh to fourth with its sweep of Minnesota.
Michigan (8-9-6, 4-5-4-2, 18 points) is fifth while Wisconsin (8-10-4, 4-4-4-1, 17 points) and Penn State (13-9-2, 5-8-1-1, 17 points) are tied for sixth place.
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