Photo by: Rey Del Rio
Neil’s Notebook: Spartans Come Up Short in the Duel in the D
2/10/2019 8:52:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
By Neil Koepke
MSUSpartans.com staff writer
DETROIT – In four Big Ten series in January and one in February, Michigan State has managed to earn points each weekend.
The Spartans grabbed two points against Ohio State, three at Penn State, six in two games with Minnesota, one at Notre Dame and four vs. Wisconsin last weekend.
But the streak came to an end Saturday night when MSU came up empty against Michigan, losing 5-2 in front of an announced crowd of 15,185 in the annual Duel in the D at Little Caesars Arena.
The Spartans (10-15-5 overall, 6-10-4-2 Big Ten) started the weekend with a 5-3 loss to the Wolverines (12-11-6, 8-7-4-2) on Friday at Yost Arena in Ann Arbor.
On Saturday, MSU trailed 2-0 after the first period and fell behind 3-0 early in the third, but two late goals by sophomore right wing Mitchell Lewandowski made it 3-2 and set up an exciting finish.
But Michigan foiled the possible comeback by scoring two goals into an empty net – at 18:25 and 19:22 – to clinch the Wolverines' first series sweep over the Spartans since Jan. 8-9, 2016.
Michigan State had a strong second period, and actually outplayed U-M in terms of quality scoring chances, but the Spartans couldn't beat freshman goalie Strauss Mann (21 saves). Taro Hirose, Patrick Khodorenko, Tommy Apap and Cody Milan had good looks around the net but couldn't find the back of the net.
"The guys battled back in the second period and did a decent job and in the third period and we got it to 3-2,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "Overall, I thought the guys competed and battled hard, and there are some things we can do better.
"Give Michigan credit. They skated well and took away time and space. You tip your hat and move on and get ready to play Penn State.''
The Spartans, who fell to sixth place in the tight Big Ten race, play their final home series of the regular season next weekend against Penn State.
In the opening period, MSU had only four shots on goal and U-M managed just seven. But the Wolverines were opportunistic and scored two goals within three minutes – by Dakota Raabe, set up by standout defenseman Quinn Hughes, at 5:31 and by Will Lockwood on a power play at 8:31, with Hughes also assisting.
"I didn't think the first period was horrible. There weren't a lot of shots either way, we both were battling hard and it was pretty close-checking period,'' Cole said. "We let those two goals get away from us.
"They had a really good shift in our zone and we got lost in that, and Quinn (Hughes) is going to find a guy who's open in the slot. And on their power play, we got a little twisted off a draw and boom-boom – all of a sudden it's 2-0.''
After the scoreless second period, Michigan State was looking for a push back in the third, but freshman right wing Nolan Moyle of Michigan scored an unassisted breakaway goal at 2:36 to make it 3-0.
Just when it was looking like Strauss was going to earn his first career shutout, the Spartans got back in the game when Lewandowski tapped in a rebound in front after Strauss made a save on a hard shot from the right circle by Logan Lambdin at 13:03. The goal came near the end of an MSU power play.
Just 2 minutes and 22 seconds later, Lewandowski was back at it as he scored his 15th goal of the season, jamming in defenseman Jerad Rosburg's perfect centering pass. Suddenly, it was 3-1 and the Spartans had a chance.
But the Wolverines held on and ended any late drama with a pair of unassisted, empty-net goals by Luke Morgan and Moyle.
For the second straight game, Michigan did a solid job of containing MSU's KHL line of Patrick Khodorenko, Taro Hirose and Lewandowski. Lewandowski did have two goals but Hirose and Khodorenko were pointless, although both had good chances. The line combined for 10 shots, six by Hirose.
"They had some chances and it just didn't go in. Sometimes, it's just the math,'' Cole said. "It goes in, goes in and goes in and then you have a night where nothing goes in. You stick with the process.''
Each team was 1-for-3 on the power play. MSU held a 36-30 edge in faceoffs with Apap, one of the best faceoff men in the Big Ten, was 16-10.
Cole credited Michigan for its 20 blocked shots, which prevented the puck from getting through and into good scoring areas. He said that while MSU didn't make a lot of defensive mistakes, a few were costly.
"I don't think we moved the puck fast enough going through the neutral zone, and we looked for too many of the right plays instead of making some good plays and getting up (ice) and forechecking,'' he said. "When we started doing that, we got a little more done.
"The breakdowns in the defensive zone – we didn't have a lot of them – but they seemed to hurt us. We'll tighten that up. Penn state is a team that comes at you as well and we'll have to be ready for that.''
Cole liked his team's push back from its frustrating first period.
"The last two-thirds of the game, we spent a decent amount of time in the offensive zone,'' he said. "Our defense has been doing a good job at getting pucks through and finding sticks and making good reads at the blue line. I think we were average this weekend. They blocked some shots and did a good job.''
Despite trailing 2-0 to start the third period and 3-0 early in the final 20 minutes and things not going their way, Lewandowski said the Spartans kept working and pushing to get the next goal.
"Overall, we gave ourselves a chance to come back in the third period. We stuck with the process and every guy was going and there was no quit on the bench,'' he said. "They got in the lanes and had good sticks. When we started passing it around, they did a good job staying man on man and keeping us to the outside.
"It never gets frustrating for our line. We just try to find a way to get through it. We saw it unveil itself there in the third period.''
STREAK ENDS: Taro Hirose's point streak ended at nine games on Saturday, and it was only the sixth time 30 games this season that the junior left wing and highest scorer in the nation was held without a point.
Hirose had six goals and 10 assists in his last nine games. His last pointless game was against Ohio State on Jan. 5 when MSU was shut out, 6-0.
But Hirose had six shots on U-M goalie Strauss Mann and could have come away with a goal or two or an assist as linemates Patrick Khodorenko and Mitchell Lewandowski had good scoring chances but failed to convert in the second period.
Lewandowski scored two goals and Hirose was on the ice for both but didn't pick up an assist.
Even without a point, Hirose is still the top scorer in the nation with 15 goals and 31 assists for 46 points, seven more than Mercyhurst defenseman Joseph Duszak (14-25-39).
Penn State's Evan Barratt (15-22) and Blake Christensen (13-24) of American International College (AIC) of Atlantic Hockey are tied for third with 37 points.
UP NEXT: Michigan State is home against Penn State at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday in the final home series of the season. It's Senior Night on Saturday as senior defenseman Zach Osburn and senior forwards Brennan Sanford and Cody Milan will play their final regular season game at Munn Arena.
After a weekend off, Feb. 22-23, the Spartans close out the regular season at Ohio State, March 1-2.
THE WOLVERINES VIEW: Michigan coach Mel Pearson had a lot to say about his team's victory but here's what he said about MSU's Taro Hirose:
"He's a fun player to watch, except when you have to play against him.''
Pearson credited freshman goalie Strauss Mann and his checking line of Garrett Van Wyhe, Nolan Moyle and Dakota Raabe for playing well against MSU's KHL Line - Hirose, Patrick Khodorenko and Mitchell Lewandowski.
"Hirose still had two or three unbelievable looks tonight. He was in all alone with Strauss and Strauss played well,'' Pearson said. "I can't say enough about our goaltender. He stood tall. Maybe he didn't have that many saves but he had some saves on some of their top players. He was a real difference in the game.
"We scored on our opportunities but he kept the game close. I feel bad for him that we gave up a couple goals because he was strong.''
Pearson said he had the Van Whye-Raabe-Moyle line up against the KHL line on Friday when U-M had last change because it was the home team. MSU was the home team on Saturday and Pearson still tried to get his unit out against the Spartans top forwards any chance he got.
"They're not your offensive stars but they accept how they need to play,'' he said. "That's two freshmen and a sophomore and you don't have to be a hockey genius to watch that line and see how hard they work.
"We tried to play (the KHL line) in their end without the puck, and when they have the puck, you have to try to take time and space away from them. For the most part, we did a good job.''
Overall, Pearson said he was happy to play with the lead in both games of the series and to see the puck going in, unlike some recent games when Michigan struggled to score.
"We had to work for our goals all weekend. We were fortunate that got some good bounces,'' he said. "We got some breaks, like on our fourth goal (by Luke Morgan). That was a big part of the game with them coming back to make it 3-2.
"Pucks went in for us tonight. Some nights they don't. Two weeks ago, against Penn State, we had a good first period and hit four posts.''
Michigan's victory was only its second on a Saturday in the last nine games. The Wolverines came into the game 1-6-2 in their last nine Saturday outings, including losing their last three.
It was only U-M's second sweep of the season and first since back-to-back weekend wins over St. Lawrence, Oct. 26-27.
IN THE BIG TEN: For the first time this season, all three Big Ten series ended in sweeps.
First-place Ohio State swept Wisconsin, 2-1 in overtime and 4-1, Penn State topped Minnesota, 7-2, 6-2 and U-M won two against MSU, 5-3, 5-2.
In Madison, the Buckeyes on Saturday built a 3-0 lead after two periods and cruised to a 3-1 victory to maintain its 11-point lead over Michigan.
Penn State trailed Minnesota 2-1 midway through the second period but scored two late goals to go up 3-2 entering the third period, and added three more to defeat the Gophers for the sixth straight time at Pegula Arena since late last February.
THE BIG TEN RACE: First-place Ohio State (19-5-4 overall, 12-3-3-2, 41 point, Big Ten) skated into the weekend with an eight-point lead over Minnesota and came away 11 points ahead of Michigan (12-11-6, 8-7-7-4-2, 24) and 14 in front of the Gophers (11-14-4, 8-9-3, 27 points).
With six points on the weekend, Penn State (16-10-2, 8-9-1-1, 26 points) climbed out of seventh place and wound up in fourth, one point behind Minnesota and four in back of Michigan.
Notre Dame (14-10-3, 7-8-2-2, 25 points) had the weekend off, but fell to fifth place, two points behind Penn State and three in back of Michigan.
Michigan State (10-15-2, 6-10-4-2, 24 points) is in sixth place, one point away from Notre Dame, two behind Penn State and in back of Minnesota.
Wisconsin (9-14-5, 5-8-5-2, 22 points) is in last place – 7th – two points behind MSU, three in back of Notre Dame.
Ohio State still has six games remaining, four at home, two on the road. Michigan has five games left, three on the road and two at home.
Minnesota has four conference games still on the schedule, two at home, two on the road. Penn State has six left, two home and four road.
Notre Dame has the most favorable remaining schedule with seven games to play, five at home, two on the road. The Spartans have four games remaining, two on the road, two at home
Wisconsin has six left, two at home, four on the road.
Next weekend, in addition to the Spartans playing host to Penn State, Minnesota is at Ohio State and Wisconsin visits Notre Dame. Michigan plays at Notre Dame in a single game on Tuesday and then has next weekend off.
In the Big Ten playoffs, the first-place team gets a bye for the first round. The second-place team is home for a best-of-three series against the seventh-place team. Then, it's No. 3 hosting No. 6 and No. 4 home against No. 5.
The first round of the playoffs is March 8-10. The Big Ten semifinals are on campus sites on March 16 and the championship game is March 23.
MSUSpartans.com staff writer
DETROIT – In four Big Ten series in January and one in February, Michigan State has managed to earn points each weekend.
The Spartans grabbed two points against Ohio State, three at Penn State, six in two games with Minnesota, one at Notre Dame and four vs. Wisconsin last weekend.
But the streak came to an end Saturday night when MSU came up empty against Michigan, losing 5-2 in front of an announced crowd of 15,185 in the annual Duel in the D at Little Caesars Arena.
The Spartans (10-15-5 overall, 6-10-4-2 Big Ten) started the weekend with a 5-3 loss to the Wolverines (12-11-6, 8-7-4-2) on Friday at Yost Arena in Ann Arbor.
On Saturday, MSU trailed 2-0 after the first period and fell behind 3-0 early in the third, but two late goals by sophomore right wing Mitchell Lewandowski made it 3-2 and set up an exciting finish.
But Michigan foiled the possible comeback by scoring two goals into an empty net – at 18:25 and 19:22 – to clinch the Wolverines' first series sweep over the Spartans since Jan. 8-9, 2016.
Michigan State had a strong second period, and actually outplayed U-M in terms of quality scoring chances, but the Spartans couldn't beat freshman goalie Strauss Mann (21 saves). Taro Hirose, Patrick Khodorenko, Tommy Apap and Cody Milan had good looks around the net but couldn't find the back of the net.
"The guys battled back in the second period and did a decent job and in the third period and we got it to 3-2,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "Overall, I thought the guys competed and battled hard, and there are some things we can do better.
"Give Michigan credit. They skated well and took away time and space. You tip your hat and move on and get ready to play Penn State.''
The Spartans, who fell to sixth place in the tight Big Ten race, play their final home series of the regular season next weekend against Penn State.
In the opening period, MSU had only four shots on goal and U-M managed just seven. But the Wolverines were opportunistic and scored two goals within three minutes – by Dakota Raabe, set up by standout defenseman Quinn Hughes, at 5:31 and by Will Lockwood on a power play at 8:31, with Hughes also assisting.
"I didn't think the first period was horrible. There weren't a lot of shots either way, we both were battling hard and it was pretty close-checking period,'' Cole said. "We let those two goals get away from us.
"They had a really good shift in our zone and we got lost in that, and Quinn (Hughes) is going to find a guy who's open in the slot. And on their power play, we got a little twisted off a draw and boom-boom – all of a sudden it's 2-0.''
After the scoreless second period, Michigan State was looking for a push back in the third, but freshman right wing Nolan Moyle of Michigan scored an unassisted breakaway goal at 2:36 to make it 3-0.
Just when it was looking like Strauss was going to earn his first career shutout, the Spartans got back in the game when Lewandowski tapped in a rebound in front after Strauss made a save on a hard shot from the right circle by Logan Lambdin at 13:03. The goal came near the end of an MSU power play.
Just 2 minutes and 22 seconds later, Lewandowski was back at it as he scored his 15th goal of the season, jamming in defenseman Jerad Rosburg's perfect centering pass. Suddenly, it was 3-1 and the Spartans had a chance.
But the Wolverines held on and ended any late drama with a pair of unassisted, empty-net goals by Luke Morgan and Moyle.
For the second straight game, Michigan did a solid job of containing MSU's KHL line of Patrick Khodorenko, Taro Hirose and Lewandowski. Lewandowski did have two goals but Hirose and Khodorenko were pointless, although both had good chances. The line combined for 10 shots, six by Hirose.
"They had some chances and it just didn't go in. Sometimes, it's just the math,'' Cole said. "It goes in, goes in and goes in and then you have a night where nothing goes in. You stick with the process.''
Each team was 1-for-3 on the power play. MSU held a 36-30 edge in faceoffs with Apap, one of the best faceoff men in the Big Ten, was 16-10.
Cole credited Michigan for its 20 blocked shots, which prevented the puck from getting through and into good scoring areas. He said that while MSU didn't make a lot of defensive mistakes, a few were costly.
"I don't think we moved the puck fast enough going through the neutral zone, and we looked for too many of the right plays instead of making some good plays and getting up (ice) and forechecking,'' he said. "When we started doing that, we got a little more done.
"The breakdowns in the defensive zone – we didn't have a lot of them – but they seemed to hurt us. We'll tighten that up. Penn state is a team that comes at you as well and we'll have to be ready for that.''
Cole liked his team's push back from its frustrating first period.
"The last two-thirds of the game, we spent a decent amount of time in the offensive zone,'' he said. "Our defense has been doing a good job at getting pucks through and finding sticks and making good reads at the blue line. I think we were average this weekend. They blocked some shots and did a good job.''
Despite trailing 2-0 to start the third period and 3-0 early in the final 20 minutes and things not going their way, Lewandowski said the Spartans kept working and pushing to get the next goal.
"Overall, we gave ourselves a chance to come back in the third period. We stuck with the process and every guy was going and there was no quit on the bench,'' he said. "They got in the lanes and had good sticks. When we started passing it around, they did a good job staying man on man and keeping us to the outside.
"It never gets frustrating for our line. We just try to find a way to get through it. We saw it unveil itself there in the third period.''
STREAK ENDS: Taro Hirose's point streak ended at nine games on Saturday, and it was only the sixth time 30 games this season that the junior left wing and highest scorer in the nation was held without a point.
Hirose had six goals and 10 assists in his last nine games. His last pointless game was against Ohio State on Jan. 5 when MSU was shut out, 6-0.
But Hirose had six shots on U-M goalie Strauss Mann and could have come away with a goal or two or an assist as linemates Patrick Khodorenko and Mitchell Lewandowski had good scoring chances but failed to convert in the second period.
Lewandowski scored two goals and Hirose was on the ice for both but didn't pick up an assist.
Even without a point, Hirose is still the top scorer in the nation with 15 goals and 31 assists for 46 points, seven more than Mercyhurst defenseman Joseph Duszak (14-25-39).
Penn State's Evan Barratt (15-22) and Blake Christensen (13-24) of American International College (AIC) of Atlantic Hockey are tied for third with 37 points.
UP NEXT: Michigan State is home against Penn State at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday in the final home series of the season. It's Senior Night on Saturday as senior defenseman Zach Osburn and senior forwards Brennan Sanford and Cody Milan will play their final regular season game at Munn Arena.
After a weekend off, Feb. 22-23, the Spartans close out the regular season at Ohio State, March 1-2.
THE WOLVERINES VIEW: Michigan coach Mel Pearson had a lot to say about his team's victory but here's what he said about MSU's Taro Hirose:
"He's a fun player to watch, except when you have to play against him.''
Pearson credited freshman goalie Strauss Mann and his checking line of Garrett Van Wyhe, Nolan Moyle and Dakota Raabe for playing well against MSU's KHL Line - Hirose, Patrick Khodorenko and Mitchell Lewandowski.
"Hirose still had two or three unbelievable looks tonight. He was in all alone with Strauss and Strauss played well,'' Pearson said. "I can't say enough about our goaltender. He stood tall. Maybe he didn't have that many saves but he had some saves on some of their top players. He was a real difference in the game.
"We scored on our opportunities but he kept the game close. I feel bad for him that we gave up a couple goals because he was strong.''
Pearson said he had the Van Whye-Raabe-Moyle line up against the KHL line on Friday when U-M had last change because it was the home team. MSU was the home team on Saturday and Pearson still tried to get his unit out against the Spartans top forwards any chance he got.
"They're not your offensive stars but they accept how they need to play,'' he said. "That's two freshmen and a sophomore and you don't have to be a hockey genius to watch that line and see how hard they work.
"We tried to play (the KHL line) in their end without the puck, and when they have the puck, you have to try to take time and space away from them. For the most part, we did a good job.''
Overall, Pearson said he was happy to play with the lead in both games of the series and to see the puck going in, unlike some recent games when Michigan struggled to score.
"We had to work for our goals all weekend. We were fortunate that got some good bounces,'' he said. "We got some breaks, like on our fourth goal (by Luke Morgan). That was a big part of the game with them coming back to make it 3-2.
"Pucks went in for us tonight. Some nights they don't. Two weeks ago, against Penn State, we had a good first period and hit four posts.''
Michigan's victory was only its second on a Saturday in the last nine games. The Wolverines came into the game 1-6-2 in their last nine Saturday outings, including losing their last three.
It was only U-M's second sweep of the season and first since back-to-back weekend wins over St. Lawrence, Oct. 26-27.
IN THE BIG TEN: For the first time this season, all three Big Ten series ended in sweeps.
First-place Ohio State swept Wisconsin, 2-1 in overtime and 4-1, Penn State topped Minnesota, 7-2, 6-2 and U-M won two against MSU, 5-3, 5-2.
In Madison, the Buckeyes on Saturday built a 3-0 lead after two periods and cruised to a 3-1 victory to maintain its 11-point lead over Michigan.
Penn State trailed Minnesota 2-1 midway through the second period but scored two late goals to go up 3-2 entering the third period, and added three more to defeat the Gophers for the sixth straight time at Pegula Arena since late last February.
THE BIG TEN RACE: First-place Ohio State (19-5-4 overall, 12-3-3-2, 41 point, Big Ten) skated into the weekend with an eight-point lead over Minnesota and came away 11 points ahead of Michigan (12-11-6, 8-7-7-4-2, 24) and 14 in front of the Gophers (11-14-4, 8-9-3, 27 points).
With six points on the weekend, Penn State (16-10-2, 8-9-1-1, 26 points) climbed out of seventh place and wound up in fourth, one point behind Minnesota and four in back of Michigan.
Notre Dame (14-10-3, 7-8-2-2, 25 points) had the weekend off, but fell to fifth place, two points behind Penn State and three in back of Michigan.
Michigan State (10-15-2, 6-10-4-2, 24 points) is in sixth place, one point away from Notre Dame, two behind Penn State and in back of Minnesota.
Wisconsin (9-14-5, 5-8-5-2, 22 points) is in last place – 7th – two points behind MSU, three in back of Notre Dame.
Ohio State still has six games remaining, four at home, two on the road. Michigan has five games left, three on the road and two at home.
Minnesota has four conference games still on the schedule, two at home, two on the road. Penn State has six left, two home and four road.
Notre Dame has the most favorable remaining schedule with seven games to play, five at home, two on the road. The Spartans have four games remaining, two on the road, two at home
Wisconsin has six left, two at home, four on the road.
Next weekend, in addition to the Spartans playing host to Penn State, Minnesota is at Ohio State and Wisconsin visits Notre Dame. Michigan plays at Notre Dame in a single game on Tuesday and then has next weekend off.
In the Big Ten playoffs, the first-place team gets a bye for the first round. The second-place team is home for a best-of-three series against the seventh-place team. Then, it's No. 3 hosting No. 6 and No. 4 home against No. 5.
The first round of the playoffs is March 8-10. The Big Ten semifinals are on campus sites on March 16 and the championship game is March 23.
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
D
/ Men's Ice Hockey
D
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice HockeyAdam Nightingale Postgame Comments | Michigan | December 6, 2025
Saturday, December 06
Adam Nightingale Postgame Comments | Michigan | December 5, 2025
Friday, December 05
Adam Nightingale Postgame Comments | Colgate | November 26, 2025
Wednesday, November 26
Adam Nightingale Postgame Comments | Wisconsin | November 22, 2025
Saturday, November 22