Michigan State University Athletics
Photo by: Andrew Knapik/MiHockey
Neil’s Notebook: Resilient Spartans Rally For Road Win at Michigan
11/15/2019 9:22:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
By Neil Koepke
MSUSpartans.com staff writer
ANN ARBOR – It was the quintessential come-from-behind victory.
Trailing 3-1 late in the second period, things didn't look for good for Michigan and looked fairly positive for Michigan here Thursday night.
But the Spartans, who were down 2-0 early in the second period, showed they're a resilient bunch and, led by several seniors, kept working and kept battling on the road.
And just like that, the game turned around, ignited by senior center Patrick Khodorenko's goal with 58 seconds left in the middle period.
After scoring just one goal in the first 29 minutes, MSU broke loose for three straight goals – Khodorenko's at 19:02 of the second period and two in the first nine minutes of the third – by Khodorenko at 3:44 and by senior left wing Logan Lambdin on a power play at 8:51.
The Spartans played solid defense the rest of the way, killed a late U-M power play and goalie John Lethemon, another senior, made a few clutch saves and MSU emerged with a rewarding 4-3 Big Ten victory in front of 5,233 fans at Yost Arena.
"I thought we kept with our systems and got our legs moving more in the second and third periods and that definitely helped,'' Khodorenko said. "We started a little slow in the first period but we battled the whole time.
"Overall, I thought we played a good 60 minutes. We've been down by more and just kept playing. Last week at Penn State, we were down 5-1 and came back and made it a one-goal game at the end. You just have to keep playing hard.''
For seniors Khodorenko, Lambdin, Lethemon, Sam Saliba, Jerad Rosburg and Butrus Ghafari, Thursday's victory at Yost Arena was their third in four seasons. As freshmen, MSU won both games at U-M.
"I know a lot of guys on the other team that are seniors so it means a lot to come in here as a senior and get a win,'' said Khodorenko, who has scored five goals in his last three games and has points in six straight contests.
Lambdin, who had an empty-net goal and assist last weekend at Penn State, was in the right spot at the right time to break the 3-3 tie 5 minutes and 7 seconds after Khodorenko's unassisted goal at 3:44 tied it.
"It was a good break out. (Tommy) Miller gave it to me and I went cross-ice (at the U-M blue line) to (Josh) Nodler and he drove low and found me open in a nice open area in the slot,'' said Lambdin, a 5-foot-8, 173-pounder from Newport, Mich.. "I just tucked it over the goalie's shoulder.
"When you score the game-winner at Yost, it's always a special feeling. It's up there,'' he said of the memorable goals of his career.
Michigan challenged the play for offside, but the officials' review showed Saliba's left skate in the U-M zone but his back skate was touching the ice outside the blue line. So, the call on the ice of a goal was confirmed.
"Give (Saliba) full credit. It's not an easy thing to do, to hold up, slow down and drag your skate like that,'' Lambdin said.
The Spartans (4-5 overall, 2-1 Big Ten) will go for their first sweep of the season when they face Michigan (3-6-2, 0-4-1-0) in the series finale at 7 p.m. Saturday at Munn Arena.
"They're going to come out fast. They're going to be angry. I would be if I lost at home,'' said Khodorenko, MSU's top scorer with six goals and seven assists for 13 points in nine games.
"They're going to be playing hard. We definitely have some more confidence going into our barn, and hopefully, our fans will get hopped up for our home game against them.''
MSU coach Danton Cole said his team didn't have its skating legs in the first period but started to get in sync in the second, and, of course, he liked the Spartans' resiliency when they trailed 2-0 and 3-1.
"You have guys going to class, you bus over and you have to get through the first period with (Michigan) flying,'' he said. "We did a good job but unfortunately we couldn't get out of the period with a 0-0 tie and they got one late.''
The Wolverines took a 1-0 lead with 27 seconds left in the opening period when they stole the puck just inside the blue line in their own zone, raced down the ice on a 2-on-2 rush that ended up with sophomore defenseman Nick Blankenburg firing the puck past Lethemon from between the faceoff circles.
"In the second period, we were OK but I didn't think we started moving our feet and playing the way we want to play until the end of the second,'' Cole said. "Patty's line got us going. And then in the third period, we were skating and making plays.
"The game is easier that way. And defensively, it's easier, too.
We gave up too much in the first two periods and a lot of it was where we were and our reads.
"We were chasing rushes, which is not a good way to play against these guys.''
After killing an MSU power play, in which the Spartans had some quality chances, U-M went up 2-0 at 6:48 of the second period on Garrett Van Wyhe's tap-in goal while standing in the crease behind Lethemon.
But 36 seconds later, Michigan State cut its deficit to 2-1 when Ghafari's shot from the left point beat U-M goalie Strauss Mann.
Less than three minutes later, Michigan got a break when freshman Johnny Beecher's shot from along the goal line below the left circle zipped over the right shoulder of Lethemon and the Wolverines were in good shape with a 3-1 league.
U-M nursed its two goal-lead for the next eight minutes before the Spartans launched their comeback.
Mitchell Lewandowski let go with a shot from the slot that went wide left, caromed off the boards and landed out front near the right post. Khodorenko was there and backhanded it past Mann at 19:02.
"I knew Lewie was going to shoot so I crashed the net, tracked it and it ended up popping out far enough that I could get a good angle,'' Khodorenko said. "The goalie kind of left a hole under his elbow and I kind of got off a backhand slapper.''
MSU almost tied it before the period ended when Lewandowski's shot from the slot with nine seconds left hit the crossbar and bounced over the net.
The late surge gave the Spartans a big boost going into the third period, now down by one goal.
Khodorenko tied it less than four minutes into the final period with an unassisted goal, after intercepting a pass from a U-M defenseman, who was along the boards to Khodorenko's right.
"I saw his eyes come toward the middle so I jumped over a little and he kind of flubbed (the pass) and I was fortunate to get that puck,'' Khodorenko said. "I tried to go five-hole and missed but I got it back again. A nice rebound. That was huge.''
A few minutes later, MSU's No. 1 power – Khodorenko, Lewandowski, Nico Muller, Dennis Cesana and Rosburg - came close to scoring, but when they left the ice, Lambdin, Nodler Saliba, Miller and Christian Krygier came over the boards and delivered the winning goal.
Nodler, a freshman playing his first game against Michigan and at Yost, got the puck from Lambdin, drove down the right wing, went behind the net and sent a perfect pass to Lambdin, who didn't miss from the slot and MSU had its first lead of the night.
"A lot of teams come through here and it doesn't happen very often,'' Cole said of come-from-behind victories against Michigan at Yost Arena. "After the second period, I said 'this is how we came in after the first' and we just need a good third period.
"I just thought the guys played hard and Johnny (Lethemon) came up big in the third and gave us a chance to win.''
Lethemon made 38 saves, including 14 in the first period and 15 in the second. Mann stopped 30 shots, 13 in the second period and 10 in the third.
MSU was 1-for-2 on the power play with eight shots on goal, while Michigan failed to convert on three power plays with two shots on net.
KHODORENKO RED HOT: When Patrick Khodorenko started the season with one assist in his first three games, Coach Danton Cole said he wasn't concerned and Khodorenko would eventually break loose.
And that's what the 6-foot, 198-pound, senior center from Walnut Creek, Calif., has done. In a big way.
He has at least one point in six straight games and has scored five goals in his last three games and back-to-back two-goal outings.
Khodorenko scored the game-winner in last Friday's 2-0 win at Penn State and had two goals in MSU's 6-4 loss on Saturday.
On Thursday, Khodorenko scored two crucial goals to help the Spartans to a 4-3 victory at Yost Arena.
With the two points, he's now tied for second in Big Ten overall scoring with six goals and seven assists for 13 points in nine games. Cal Burke of Notre Dame has 13 points (4-9) in eight contests.
Mitchell Lewandowski, who was back on Khodorenko's line Thursday, with Brody Stevens, has points in three straight games after starting the season with three points (1-2) in his first six games. He had one goal and three assists in two games with Penn State and one assist vs. Michigan.
SUCCESS AT YOST: Unless Michigan State plays at Michigan in the Big Ten playoffs, the Spartans seniors have played their last game at Yost Arena, considered one of the toughest places to play in college hockey. The fans, led by a raucous, large student section, make for a noisy building and it can rattle some teams.
But MSU seniors have had good success at Yost, posting a 3-2-1 record in four years. The Spartan seniors won their first two games as freshmen in 2016-17. As sophomores, MSU went 0-1 at Yost and as juniors last season went 0-1-1. The seniors are 2-0-2 against the Wolverines at Munn Arena, with two games home games left – Saturday and Feb. 14.
HIGH PRAISE: MSU received strong games Thursday from several players, including pair of seniors who don't often find their way into the spotlight - left wing Logan Lambdin and defenseman Butrus Ghafari. Lambdin scored the game-winning goal at 8:51 of the third period and Ghafari scored MSU's first goal at 7:24 of the second period, but their overall play also drew praise from Coach Danton Cole.
"I thought (Ghafari) had a great game. He's a warrior,'' Cole said. "I tell him – and it's nothing I haven said to him – that sometimes it isn't pretty with Bootsy, but he's not going to cheat you.
"He'll get pucks out, block shots and take bodies and kill penalties. You need guys like that. He earns it every night.''
Of course, Lambdin finishing off a nice passing play to put MSU up 4-3 made Cole smile, especially after the play was reviewed and there was no offside.
"It was a great play and thank God it was onside. I wasn't sure at first,'' he said. "Logan has given us some good minutes this year. One thing I want with our seniors is to keep getting better – and our guys have done this the last couple years – and not say 'this is my senior year and I'll play it out and see what happens.'
"Logan had a great summer. He's one of our fittest guys. He can skate shoot and he can do more than he has in the past.''
ROAD SUCCESS: Michigan State has already played seven road games and only two home games. The Spartans are 4-3 on the road with series splits at Northern Michigan, Colorado College and Penn State and one win at Michigan.
At home, MSU is 0-2 after getting swept by now-No. 3/4 Cornell two weeks ago.
Last season, the Spartans were 5-12-2 on the road.
Michigan State is home for seven of its next nine games. The only road series until mid-January is a visit to Ohio State over Thanksgiving weekend, Nov. 30-Dec. 1.
MILESTONE FOR COLE: Thursday's MSU victory was the 500th of Danton Cole's 19-year coaching career – pro and college combined.
Cole, in his third year at MSU, has 244 wins in six seasons in pro hockey in the American Hockey League (Grand Rapids) and United Hockey League (Muskegon, Motor City), 205 during seven seasons coaching the U.S. National Team Development Program's U-17 and U-18 teams and 51 in five-plus years as college coach at Alabama-Huntsville and MSU.
IN THE BIG TEN: In Friday and Saturday series, No. 4 (USCHO)/No. 3 (USA Hockey) Notre Dame (7-0-1 overall, 3-0-1-0) is at No. 15/15 Wisconsin (5-5, 0-2-0-0) and Minnesota (4-4-2, 1-1-2-2) plays host to No. 8/8 Penn State (7-2, 3-1-0-0).
The Fighting Irish are one of three undefeated team in college hockey. The only blemish on Notre Dame's record is a 2-2 tie at Minnesota two weeks ago.
Cornell (4-0) and Harvard (3-0) are the other two teams without a loss. Both started their seasons two weeks ago.
Penn State is playing its first road games of the season, after having nine straight home games and building a 7-2 overall record.
MSUSpartans.com staff writer
ANN ARBOR – It was the quintessential come-from-behind victory.
Trailing 3-1 late in the second period, things didn't look for good for Michigan and looked fairly positive for Michigan here Thursday night.
But the Spartans, who were down 2-0 early in the second period, showed they're a resilient bunch and, led by several seniors, kept working and kept battling on the road.
And just like that, the game turned around, ignited by senior center Patrick Khodorenko's goal with 58 seconds left in the middle period.
After scoring just one goal in the first 29 minutes, MSU broke loose for three straight goals – Khodorenko's at 19:02 of the second period and two in the first nine minutes of the third – by Khodorenko at 3:44 and by senior left wing Logan Lambdin on a power play at 8:51.
The Spartans played solid defense the rest of the way, killed a late U-M power play and goalie John Lethemon, another senior, made a few clutch saves and MSU emerged with a rewarding 4-3 Big Ten victory in front of 5,233 fans at Yost Arena.
"I thought we kept with our systems and got our legs moving more in the second and third periods and that definitely helped,'' Khodorenko said. "We started a little slow in the first period but we battled the whole time.
"Overall, I thought we played a good 60 minutes. We've been down by more and just kept playing. Last week at Penn State, we were down 5-1 and came back and made it a one-goal game at the end. You just have to keep playing hard.''
For seniors Khodorenko, Lambdin, Lethemon, Sam Saliba, Jerad Rosburg and Butrus Ghafari, Thursday's victory at Yost Arena was their third in four seasons. As freshmen, MSU won both games at U-M.
"I know a lot of guys on the other team that are seniors so it means a lot to come in here as a senior and get a win,'' said Khodorenko, who has scored five goals in his last three games and has points in six straight contests.
Lambdin, who had an empty-net goal and assist last weekend at Penn State, was in the right spot at the right time to break the 3-3 tie 5 minutes and 7 seconds after Khodorenko's unassisted goal at 3:44 tied it.
"It was a good break out. (Tommy) Miller gave it to me and I went cross-ice (at the U-M blue line) to (Josh) Nodler and he drove low and found me open in a nice open area in the slot,'' said Lambdin, a 5-foot-8, 173-pounder from Newport, Mich.. "I just tucked it over the goalie's shoulder.
"When you score the game-winner at Yost, it's always a special feeling. It's up there,'' he said of the memorable goals of his career.
Michigan challenged the play for offside, but the officials' review showed Saliba's left skate in the U-M zone but his back skate was touching the ice outside the blue line. So, the call on the ice of a goal was confirmed.
"Give (Saliba) full credit. It's not an easy thing to do, to hold up, slow down and drag your skate like that,'' Lambdin said.
The Spartans (4-5 overall, 2-1 Big Ten) will go for their first sweep of the season when they face Michigan (3-6-2, 0-4-1-0) in the series finale at 7 p.m. Saturday at Munn Arena.
"They're going to come out fast. They're going to be angry. I would be if I lost at home,'' said Khodorenko, MSU's top scorer with six goals and seven assists for 13 points in nine games.
"They're going to be playing hard. We definitely have some more confidence going into our barn, and hopefully, our fans will get hopped up for our home game against them.''
MSU coach Danton Cole said his team didn't have its skating legs in the first period but started to get in sync in the second, and, of course, he liked the Spartans' resiliency when they trailed 2-0 and 3-1.
"You have guys going to class, you bus over and you have to get through the first period with (Michigan) flying,'' he said. "We did a good job but unfortunately we couldn't get out of the period with a 0-0 tie and they got one late.''
The Wolverines took a 1-0 lead with 27 seconds left in the opening period when they stole the puck just inside the blue line in their own zone, raced down the ice on a 2-on-2 rush that ended up with sophomore defenseman Nick Blankenburg firing the puck past Lethemon from between the faceoff circles.
"In the second period, we were OK but I didn't think we started moving our feet and playing the way we want to play until the end of the second,'' Cole said. "Patty's line got us going. And then in the third period, we were skating and making plays.
"The game is easier that way. And defensively, it's easier, too.
We gave up too much in the first two periods and a lot of it was where we were and our reads.
"We were chasing rushes, which is not a good way to play against these guys.''
After killing an MSU power play, in which the Spartans had some quality chances, U-M went up 2-0 at 6:48 of the second period on Garrett Van Wyhe's tap-in goal while standing in the crease behind Lethemon.
But 36 seconds later, Michigan State cut its deficit to 2-1 when Ghafari's shot from the left point beat U-M goalie Strauss Mann.
Less than three minutes later, Michigan got a break when freshman Johnny Beecher's shot from along the goal line below the left circle zipped over the right shoulder of Lethemon and the Wolverines were in good shape with a 3-1 league.
U-M nursed its two goal-lead for the next eight minutes before the Spartans launched their comeback.
Mitchell Lewandowski let go with a shot from the slot that went wide left, caromed off the boards and landed out front near the right post. Khodorenko was there and backhanded it past Mann at 19:02.
"I knew Lewie was going to shoot so I crashed the net, tracked it and it ended up popping out far enough that I could get a good angle,'' Khodorenko said. "The goalie kind of left a hole under his elbow and I kind of got off a backhand slapper.''
MSU almost tied it before the period ended when Lewandowski's shot from the slot with nine seconds left hit the crossbar and bounced over the net.
The late surge gave the Spartans a big boost going into the third period, now down by one goal.
Khodorenko tied it less than four minutes into the final period with an unassisted goal, after intercepting a pass from a U-M defenseman, who was along the boards to Khodorenko's right.
"I saw his eyes come toward the middle so I jumped over a little and he kind of flubbed (the pass) and I was fortunate to get that puck,'' Khodorenko said. "I tried to go five-hole and missed but I got it back again. A nice rebound. That was huge.''
A few minutes later, MSU's No. 1 power – Khodorenko, Lewandowski, Nico Muller, Dennis Cesana and Rosburg - came close to scoring, but when they left the ice, Lambdin, Nodler Saliba, Miller and Christian Krygier came over the boards and delivered the winning goal.
Nodler, a freshman playing his first game against Michigan and at Yost, got the puck from Lambdin, drove down the right wing, went behind the net and sent a perfect pass to Lambdin, who didn't miss from the slot and MSU had its first lead of the night.
"A lot of teams come through here and it doesn't happen very often,'' Cole said of come-from-behind victories against Michigan at Yost Arena. "After the second period, I said 'this is how we came in after the first' and we just need a good third period.
"I just thought the guys played hard and Johnny (Lethemon) came up big in the third and gave us a chance to win.''
Lethemon made 38 saves, including 14 in the first period and 15 in the second. Mann stopped 30 shots, 13 in the second period and 10 in the third.
MSU was 1-for-2 on the power play with eight shots on goal, while Michigan failed to convert on three power plays with two shots on net.
KHODORENKO RED HOT: When Patrick Khodorenko started the season with one assist in his first three games, Coach Danton Cole said he wasn't concerned and Khodorenko would eventually break loose.
And that's what the 6-foot, 198-pound, senior center from Walnut Creek, Calif., has done. In a big way.
He has at least one point in six straight games and has scored five goals in his last three games and back-to-back two-goal outings.
Khodorenko scored the game-winner in last Friday's 2-0 win at Penn State and had two goals in MSU's 6-4 loss on Saturday.
On Thursday, Khodorenko scored two crucial goals to help the Spartans to a 4-3 victory at Yost Arena.
With the two points, he's now tied for second in Big Ten overall scoring with six goals and seven assists for 13 points in nine games. Cal Burke of Notre Dame has 13 points (4-9) in eight contests.
Mitchell Lewandowski, who was back on Khodorenko's line Thursday, with Brody Stevens, has points in three straight games after starting the season with three points (1-2) in his first six games. He had one goal and three assists in two games with Penn State and one assist vs. Michigan.
SUCCESS AT YOST: Unless Michigan State plays at Michigan in the Big Ten playoffs, the Spartans seniors have played their last game at Yost Arena, considered one of the toughest places to play in college hockey. The fans, led by a raucous, large student section, make for a noisy building and it can rattle some teams.
But MSU seniors have had good success at Yost, posting a 3-2-1 record in four years. The Spartan seniors won their first two games as freshmen in 2016-17. As sophomores, MSU went 0-1 at Yost and as juniors last season went 0-1-1. The seniors are 2-0-2 against the Wolverines at Munn Arena, with two games home games left – Saturday and Feb. 14.
HIGH PRAISE: MSU received strong games Thursday from several players, including pair of seniors who don't often find their way into the spotlight - left wing Logan Lambdin and defenseman Butrus Ghafari. Lambdin scored the game-winning goal at 8:51 of the third period and Ghafari scored MSU's first goal at 7:24 of the second period, but their overall play also drew praise from Coach Danton Cole.
"I thought (Ghafari) had a great game. He's a warrior,'' Cole said. "I tell him – and it's nothing I haven said to him – that sometimes it isn't pretty with Bootsy, but he's not going to cheat you.
"He'll get pucks out, block shots and take bodies and kill penalties. You need guys like that. He earns it every night.''
Of course, Lambdin finishing off a nice passing play to put MSU up 4-3 made Cole smile, especially after the play was reviewed and there was no offside.
"It was a great play and thank God it was onside. I wasn't sure at first,'' he said. "Logan has given us some good minutes this year. One thing I want with our seniors is to keep getting better – and our guys have done this the last couple years – and not say 'this is my senior year and I'll play it out and see what happens.'
"Logan had a great summer. He's one of our fittest guys. He can skate shoot and he can do more than he has in the past.''
ROAD SUCCESS: Michigan State has already played seven road games and only two home games. The Spartans are 4-3 on the road with series splits at Northern Michigan, Colorado College and Penn State and one win at Michigan.
At home, MSU is 0-2 after getting swept by now-No. 3/4 Cornell two weeks ago.
Last season, the Spartans were 5-12-2 on the road.
Michigan State is home for seven of its next nine games. The only road series until mid-January is a visit to Ohio State over Thanksgiving weekend, Nov. 30-Dec. 1.
MILESTONE FOR COLE: Thursday's MSU victory was the 500th of Danton Cole's 19-year coaching career – pro and college combined.
Cole, in his third year at MSU, has 244 wins in six seasons in pro hockey in the American Hockey League (Grand Rapids) and United Hockey League (Muskegon, Motor City), 205 during seven seasons coaching the U.S. National Team Development Program's U-17 and U-18 teams and 51 in five-plus years as college coach at Alabama-Huntsville and MSU.
IN THE BIG TEN: In Friday and Saturday series, No. 4 (USCHO)/No. 3 (USA Hockey) Notre Dame (7-0-1 overall, 3-0-1-0) is at No. 15/15 Wisconsin (5-5, 0-2-0-0) and Minnesota (4-4-2, 1-1-2-2) plays host to No. 8/8 Penn State (7-2, 3-1-0-0).
The Fighting Irish are one of three undefeated team in college hockey. The only blemish on Notre Dame's record is a 2-2 tie at Minnesota two weeks ago.
Cornell (4-0) and Harvard (3-0) are the other two teams without a loss. Both started their seasons two weeks ago.
Penn State is playing its first road games of the season, after having nine straight home games and building a 7-2 overall record.
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