Neil's Notebook: Rivalry Week Gets Emotions Going

By Neil Koepke, MSUSpartans.com staff writer

ALSO: MSU-Michigan Preview

There's nothing like a weekend series against Michigan to bring out the emotion and intensity for Michigan State players.

The buzz before practice, during practice and after practice just isn't the same for any other Big Ten series.

Five weeks into the season, it's finally the first rivalry week, and the Spartans are eager for the challenge of taking on the highly touted No. 2/3 Wolverines.

Other than a championship, nothing feels better than a victory over Michigan, and nothing feels worse than a defeat.

The Spartans (4-3-1 overall, 1-1 Big Ten) get their chance to feel great when they face the Wolverines (6-2, 1-1) at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Yost Arena in Ann Arbor and at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at Munn Arena in East Lansing.

Friday's game will be televised by the Big Ten Network.

"There definitely is a different vibe this week but we're trying to create our own vibe and create a Michigan State week,'' Spartan senior defenseman Christian Krygier said. "We're not too worried about them to start (this week). We have stuff to take care of here in East Lansing. When we go to Ann Arbor, then will be worried about them.''

Both teams are coming off disappointing losses and series splits last weekend. The Spartans won the first game at Ohio State, 2-1, but didn't play well in the second game, a 5-1 loss. The Wolverines dominated Wisconsin, 3-0, in their series opener but got outplayed in the second game, a 4-2 defeat.

"Obviously, this is a big rivalry week so there's a lot of emotions involved,'' Krygier said. "We're trying to get those out of here and stay focused and do what we do.''

Michigan State's seniors are 4-7-2 against the Wolverines. They're 3-1 at Munn Arena, 1-4-1 at Yost Arena and 0-2-1 at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.

"You're talking about one of the best rivalries in all sports and definitely college sports for sure for both programs, especially hockey,'' MSU senior defenseman and captain Dennis Cesana said. "It something we preach to the (younger players). But they know what's at stake and they'll be ready.

"It's Michigan, it's another Big Ten series and there's added pressure with the rivalry, but I wouldn't say I change anything about the way I go about my business.''

Michigan came into the 2021-22 season with all sorts of hype because it has seven first-round NHL draft picks on their roster, and one that was selected early in the second round. The Wolverines, with 12 drafted players on their roster, were picked to finish second to Minnesota in the Big Ten Coaches' Preseason Poll.

And two weeks ago, after two victories over Lake Superior State and one each against Minnesota Duluth and then-No. 1 Minnesota State, Michigan took over the No. 1 ranking in both major polls.

That lasted a week. The Wolverines, on Oct. 22-23, split a series with Western Michigan, including losing at home, and dropped out of the No. 1 ranking. Last week, U-M split a home series with Wisconsin.

Michigan has elite forwards, elite defensemen and solid a goaltender. Most of their top players are sophomores and freshmen but there are some veterans that also play key roles.

"We know they have some weapons but we can't give *too* much respect. At the end of the day, we're all playing on the same ice, draft pick or not a draft pick,'' Cesana said. "I'm the only kid from my town (in Rhode Island) that played hockey, and I'm going to be stepping on the same ice as them. They have talent, but we have talent and we work hard, too.''

MSU coach Danton Cole says he's eager to see how his team matches up with a highly skilled team that presents many challenges.

"As a team you look forward to challenges and playing Michigan is a special thing for a lot of reasons,'' he said. "For one, they're one of the best teams in the country. We have a chance to match up and see where we're at fairly early in the season.

You should look forward to that. We want guys that want to do that, that want to compete and go out and battle. It's also Big Ten season and you have to take care of business.''

When Cole was asked what makes him look forward to playing Michigan, the Spartans' fifth-year coach said it was all about challenges.

"I love hockey and as a coach you love practices. But everything we do is so you can play the game,'' he said. "They're a highly rated team and that's a challenge. It's a rivalry and that's a challenge. It's still early in the season so we're trying to figure things out.

"One thing I might like more than hockey is challenges. So, there's a lot of them every weekend.''

Last season, Michigan State and Michigan played only two games because of Covid-19 issues. The two games scheduled for late in the season were cancelled.

The two games played were quite bizarre. In the first meeting, at Yost Arena, everything Michigan shot seemed to go in the net in a 9-0 rout of the Spartans. The Wolverine scored three goals in the first period, two in the second and four in the third period.

The next night at Munn Arena, it was a defensive battle. The teams were deadlocked 1-1 late in the third period. But Michigan's Brendan Brisson scored with 4:39 left and it looked like the Wolverines were about to sweep the series.

But MSU defenseman Cole Krygier tied it 2-2 with 2:03 left, and the Spartans' Josh Nodler scored with 37 seconds left in the period to give Michigan State a stunning 3-2 victory. Spartan goalie Drew DeRidder made 38 saves.

This season, MSU has seven new players, including four transfers, and U-M has five freshmen and one new transfer on its roster.

In addition, the Wolverines' ten sophomores have never played in front of fans at Munn Arena, and the Spartans eight sophomores have never played with fans in the stands at Yost Arena. In a way, they're still newbies to the rivalry.

But that will change quickly this weekend with sellout crowds, including boisterous student sections, at both venues.

"When you come to Michigan State, you know it's a big rivalry against Michigan. I'm looking forward to the intense crowds home and away,'' said MSU right wing Griffin Loughran, who spent the last three seasons at Northern Michigan before transferring to MSU in July.

"It's a rivalry so everything is going to be more intense, more physical and everything has to be sharper. I think staying on an even keel and keeping a cool head is a key to success.

"It's the biggest college hockey rivalry that there is. You have the Bostons (Boston College and Boston University) out East, you have CC (Colorado College) and Denver, Minnesota and Wisconsin and Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan

"But this is the big one and I'm looking forward to having my first weekend (with the rivalry) and, hopefully, get two wins.''

Loughran, a 5-foot-6, 145-pounder from West Seneca, New York, said he enjoyed and felt the impact of the Northern Michigan-Michigan Tech rivalry.

"Fun is a good word for it,'' he said. "There were definitely ice packs used after those games, and it'll be the same this weekend.''

THE RIVALRY: Michigan holds a 170-138-24 edge in the series. Michigan State is 69-53-12 in East Lansing and 47-80-5 in Ann Arbor. Friday's game will be the 333^rd game in the series. The Spartans are 7-11-4 against the Wolverines over the last five seasons.

MSU has won at least one game against Michigan in each of the last 12 seasons. The last time one team has swept the season series was in 2008-09 when Michigan won all five games. The last Michigan State sweep was in 1997-98 when the Spartans went 4-0 against the Wolverines. MSU also didn't lose in 2005-0 with a 2-0-3 record vs. U-M.

SCOUTING THE WOLVERINES: Michigan came into the season with seven players drafted in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft. They include sophomore defenseman Owen Power (1^st overall, 2021, by Buffalo); sophomore forward Matty Beniers (2^nd, 2021, Seattle); freshman defenseman Luke Hughes (4^th, 2021, New Jersey); sophomore forward Kent Johnson (5^th, 2021, Columbus), freshman forward Mackie Samoskevich (29^th, 2021, Florida), and forward Johnny Beecher (30^th, Boston, 2019).

In addition, sophomore forward Thomas Bordeleau was selected in the second round of the 2020 Entry Draft, 38^th overall.

Brisson leads the team in scoring with 11 points, including a team-high six goals and five assists. Bordeleau (2-8) and Johnson (4-6) are tied for second with 10 points apiece. Power (2-6-8) is fourth, followed by Hughes (2-5-7), defenseman Jacob Truscott (1-5-6) and Beniers (2-3-5).

Michigan is averaging 3.87 goals per game (No. 2, Big Ten) and allowing 2.38 goals per game (5^th). The Wolverine power play is clicking at 30 percent (9-for-30, 1st) while their penalty killing is at 80.6 percent (29 for 36, 5th).

MSU is averaging 2.13 goals per game (6^th Big Ten) and has a goal-against average of 2.25 (4th). The Spartan power play is at 26.9 percent (2^nd), while penalty killing is at 88.5 percent (2^nd).

Michigan sophomore goalie Erik Portillo has played in every game, has a 6-2 record, a 2.25 goals-against average and a .920 saves percentage. Portillo, who is from Gothenburg, Sweden, is 6-foot-6 and 225 pounds.

Michigan won its first four games, including two victories in the College Hockey Showcase in Duluth against two top teams. The Wolverines beat then-No. 5 Minnesota Duluth, 5-1, on Oct. 15 and topped No. 1 ranked Minnesota State, 3-2, the next night in the CHS title game.

Michigan has split its last two series, including two games at home. Western Michigan upset the Wolverines, 5-2, on Oct. 15, but U-M won the second game of the non-conference series 3-2 in overtime, in Kalamazoo.

Last week, Michigan split with Wisconsin, winning the first game, 3-0, and losing 4-2, in the series finale.

It's been shown that the No. 3/4 Wolverines can be beaten, but a team has to play at a high level and be opportunistic to do it.

"Defensively, you have to be ready. They're going to come at you in different ways,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "You have to be prepared not to feed their transition and give them a bunch of pucks with turnovers. We didn't do a very good job with that last weekend (at Ohio State), and if we're loose with the puck this weekend, it'll cost us.

"You have to have puck maintenance whether you're carrying it, passing, chipping it to a teammate or getting by their defense. You have to be very deliberate with that. And do a good job and be as close to 100 percent as you can. You're never going to be there. That's just not the way hockey is played. It's a game of mistakes.''

Michigan has played all season without Beecher, who's been out with an undisclosed injury. But Beecher is expected to make his season debut against the Spartans.

The Wolverines still have several veterans playing key roles but have been overshadowed by the young draft picks. They include senior defenseman Nick Blankenburg, senior forwards Jimmy Lambert, Michael Pastujov, Garrett Van Wyhe, Nolan Moyle and Luke Morgan, a grad student who's in his fifth season of college hockey.

"We have to be prepared to do what we do. It's all the little stuff,'' MSU senior defenseman Christian Krygier said. "If you let that slip, they could have a huge hay day with us. It's playing in units of five. If we can go up and back with five guys and not worry about leaving their guys by themselves and not being outmanned by their team, we can have a successful weekend.''

NODLER THRIVING: Center Josh Nodler had three goals and 11 points in 27 games last season as a sophomore. This season, as a junior, he already has three goals and seven points in eight games, and it tied with Mitchell Lewandowski (3-4-7) for the team scoring lead.

Playing on a productive line with two transfers, Erik Middendorf and Griffin Loughran, Nodler was involved in all three goals scored by the Spartans last weekend in Columbus. He scored two power-play goals and assisted on Middendorf's game-winning goal in the first game of the series.

"Josh has done a good job. He came in as a true freshman and was pretty high on the depth chart right away as an 18-year-old center,'' Coach Danton Cole said. "That's tough to do. Last year, as a sophomore, it was just a weird year.

"He's battled and put some time in and he's getting rewarded with points now. They've been timely for us and it's helped our power play. And leadership comes from that. He's not a loud guy but it's about how he plays.''

Nodler, a 5-10, 195-pound right-hand shot center from Oak Park, Michigan, and a draft pick by the Calgary Flames, was selected as an assistant captain this season.

"He has some things that he needs to keep polishing, like everybody else,'' Cole said. "It's good to see him have success. He's made a big step so far this year but as I've told him, let's take another step before Christmas and another step after Christmas, and keep pushing forward.''

ALUMNI HELPING OUT: When Griffin Loughran considered transferring to Michigan State from Northern Michigan, he reached out to former Spartan Tim Kennedy, who like Loughran, lives in the Buffalo area.

Kennedy, who played for MSU from 2004-2008 and won the NCAA title with the Spartans in 2007, told Loughran all about the hockey program, the campus and academics.

In the end, Loughran said yes to MSU's offer to transfer.

"He definitely influenced my decision. He talked to me a bunch,'' Loughran said. "He's been great for me. I've skated with him in the summers. I know him pretty well.''

Loughran said a couple of alumni that live in Buffalo reached out to him this week and one was Kennedy.

"He wished me luck and said don't let the blue win,'' Loughran said.

In eight games, Loughran is tied for third in team scoring with two goals and four assists for six points.

IN THE BIG TEN: There's another rivalry series going in the conference this weekend. No. 5/5 Minnesota (5-3, 2-0 Big Ten) plays at Wisconsin (3-5, 1-1) on Friday and Saturday. The Gophers are coming off a Big Ten series sweep over Notre Dame, while the Badgers lost and won at Michigan.

No. 16 Penn State plays at Ohio State (4-2, 1-1), also on Friday and Saturday. The Nittany Lions (6-1, 0-0) defeated No. 8/10 North Dakota, 6-4, last Saturday in the annual Hall of Fame Game played in Nashville, Tenn. A crowd of 14,659, made up mostly of North Dakota fans, watched at Bridgestone Arena.

No. 17 Notre Dame (4-3-1, 0-2) is the odd team out of conference play, but the Irish are set to play a home, non-league series against Holy Cross (1-5-1) of Atlantic Hockey on Thursday and Friday.

Michigan State University Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Dennis Cesana

Drew DeRidder

Christian Krygier

Cole Krygier

Mitchell Lewandowski

Griffin Loughran

Erik Middendorf

Josh Nodler

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