New-Look GLI Still A Good Challenge for MSU

By Neil Koepke, MSUSpartans.com staff writer

EAST LANSING – For 55 years, the Great Lakes Invitational was played in Detroit at four locations – Olympia Stadium, Joe Louis Arena, Comerica Park and Little Caesars Arena.

One year after the 2020 tournament was canceled because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the 56^th GLI has a new look with an altered format and new venues.

Michigan State's Munn Arena in East Lansing and Michigan's Yost Arena in Ann Arbor were supposed to host two games – one each against Michigan Tech and Western Michigan, on Wednesday and Thursday.

But that plan changed Monday when Michigan announced its game against Western Michigan on Thursday has been canceled "due to health and welfare protocols within the Wolverines' program." But Michigan's first game of the GLI on Wednesday against Michigan Tech will go on as scheduled.

The Wolverines are missing five players who are away playing in the World Junior Championships in Alberta – three for the United States team and two for Canada. No explanation was given as to why U-M is OK to play Wednesday but not Thursday.

For at least this year, there will be no champion crowned and the three games will be known as the Great Lakes Invitational Showcase. It's basically two non-conference games for MSU and Michigan Tech and one each for U-M and WMU.

The Spartans (10-7-2 overall, 5-5-0 Big Ten) and No. 4-ranked Western Michigan (13-5-0, 6-4-0NCHC) meet at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, and MSU plays No. 18 Michigan Tech (10-7-0, 7-5-0 CCHA) at 5 p.m. on Thursday.

No. 3 Michigan (14-6-0, 7-5-0-0-2-0) plays Michigan Tech at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.

GLI officials and Little Caesars Arena could not find suitable back-to-back dates to hold the tournament in Detroit because of the busy arena hosting one Red Wings game, one Pistons contest and concerts.

The last two GLIs – in 2018 and 2019 – have been held on Dec. 30-31, sharing New Year's Eve with the Red Wings. In 2017, the GLI was played on Jan. 1-2.

"It was a process that evolved over weeks and months. We kept trying to make it work,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "It was kind of crunch time where we had to move forward for our fans, our players and our schedules. We just ran out of time and this was the best option left.''

Cole played four in GLI tournaments at Joe Louis Arena from 1985-88, winning the title as a freshman in 1985 with an 8-3 victory over Rensselaer. MSU lost in the first round but won the consolation game his next two years, and as senior, the Spartans were edged by Wisconsin, 4-3, in the championship game. His record in the GLI as a player is 5-3.

"I like the tournament for a lot of different reasons,'' he said. "It's always been a lot of fun with the history of it and with the crowds down there.''

Without matching first game winners and not having a champion, it'll will give the GLI a different feel this year.

"If we win two games, we'll declare ourselves the winner of the GLI,'' Cole said with a laugh. "We want to come out jumping and start the second half fast. We love having games right now.

"Our guys are healthy and they've done a good job (with Covid-19 issues) and we're hopeful that'll last through the second half.''

MSU players returned from their holiday break on Sunday and practiced late in the afternoon, and again on Monday. They'll practice again Tuesday and be ready for two challenging games against ranked opponents.

"It's nice to have home ice for the two games. Obviously, it's cool to play at Little Caesars Arena,'' MSU senior defenseman and captain Dennis Cesana said. "I enjoyed playing there with all the fans. I personally had success down there so I've liked playing there.

"But it's nice to play two teams we don't often play against. We haven't played Western Michigan since I've been here, and we've played Tech at the GLI in past years. It's good to have the home ice advantage and we'll see how it goes.''

The No. 4 Broncos are the second-highest ranked team in the showcase, one spot behind No. 3 Michigan in both major polls.

"They're a high impact team. They're highly skilled and they play hard,'' Cesana said. "We know we can play with any team in the country and this will be a good matchup for us.''

Mitchell Lewandowski has played in three GLI tournaments – all at Little Caesars Arena. The fifth-year senior is disappointed not to be playing in Detroit, but he's happy to be able to play two games in the GLI, and especially at Munn Arena.

"After last year with Covid and no tournament, I'm just happy we're playing and that we get the games at home,'' said Lewandowski, MSU's leading scorer with seven goals, 11 assists for 18 points.

"It does stink that we're not going downtown and playing, but that's how it is for the other teams, too. We have something to prove. We have two good teams coming in. These games are huge for us.''

After posting their second sweep of the season in mid-November against Wisconsin, the Spartans went on the road and split two series at Penn State and Notre Dame leading into the Christmas break. Each time, MSU lost the first game and won the second.

In its last outing, Michigan State pulled out a 1-0 victory over Notre Dame in overtime on a highlight-reel goal by Lewandowski.

In the first half of the season, the Spartans showed they're a resilient group and capable of coming from behind and winning games in the third period.

"Our third period in every game and every weekend has been our strongest suit to our game,'' Lewandowski said. "We've tied games and won games in the third period. We've found ways to score and ways to win.''

Cole says one trait that's made a difference thus far this season is offensive depth, and it's led to an increase in scoring and paid off late in games.

"We've been able to win in different ways. We've had some games where we had to score a few goals and then there's the last one where it was a 1-0 game,'' Cole said. "Our depth has helped a lot. We've had different guys join in.

"And what's really helped is our defensemen have done a nice job in terms of breaking pucks out, getting it up ice and joining the offense. That's made a huge difference.

"Overall, I've liked the progress the team has made. We continue to play faster and we continue to understand how much you have to sacrifice to win a hockey game. We're playing more mature as time goes on.''

THE RIVARLIES: Michigan State leads the series with Western Michigan, 65-34-9. In the last 10 meetings, the Broncos are 5-4-1 against the Spartans. The last time the teams met was Oct. 20-21, 2017, with MSU winning 6-4 at Munn Arena and WMU earning a 3-1 victory at Lawson Arena in Kalamazoo. The Spartans and Broncos have met three times in the GLI – 1986, 2012 and 2016 - with WMU holding a 2-0-1 edge.

In the MSU-Michigan Tech rivalry, the Huskies lead 85-76-4. From March 3, 1982, to Dec. 29, 2011, the Spartans dominated Michigan Tech, 31-6-0. But in the last 10 meetings, the Huskies hold a 7-1-2 edge over MSU, including winning the last three contests. Michigan State's last victory vs. the Huskies was a 3-2 win at Munn Arena on Nov. 4, 2016.

SCOUTING THE BRONCOS: WMU has won seven of its last eight games and is ranked No. 4 in the nation in both the U.S. College Hockey Online and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine polls.

The Broncos started the season 6-1-0, then lost three straight, but rebounded by winning seven games in a row. They own victories over several top-rated teams – Michigan (1), Minnesota Duluth (1) and St. Cloud (2). Western Michigan's only "lost" weekend was Nov. 12-13 when it was swept at Denver, 5-3, 5-2.

WMU is 13-5-0 overall and in second place in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHA) with a 6-4-0 record. The Broncos are the sixth-highest scoring team in the NCAA, averaging 3.89 goals per game, which is No. 2 in the NCHC.

"They're legitimate. They're a good hockey team,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "They're a mature team that plays hard, defends well and they can score. They have lots of seniors.

"I've seen them play physical and win and I've seen them play fast and skilled and win. It'll be a great challenge for us. They deserve to be where they're at.''

Ethen Frank, a fifth-year senior, leads the nation in goals with 17, and with seven assists for 24 points, he's fifth in the country in scoring.

Senior Drew Worrad is the Broncos' top scorer with five goals and 22 assists for 27 points, which is second in the NCAA. The country's leading scorer is Northern Michigan's Hank Crone with 29 points (7-22).

Western Michigan has two defensemen with 18 points apiece – junior Ronnie Attard (5-13) and senior Michael Joyaux (4-14). Attard last season made the NCAA West All-America team and was named NCHC's Best Offensive Defenseman.

Other key forwards include senior Cole Gallant (6-9-15), junior Jason Polin (6-8-14) and graduate student senior Paul Washe (8-5-13).

The Bronco power play is converting at 24.7%, 10^th nationally. Frank has seven power-play goals while Gallant has four.

Defensively, WMU is averaging 2.44 goals against (16^th), while its penalty killers are skating off 86.1% of opponents' power plays (15^th).

In goal, junior Brandon Bussi is off to a solid start with a 13-5-0 record, a 2.47 goals-against average and a .913 saves percentage.

Pat Ferschweiler, a 1993 WMU graduate, is in his first season as the Broncos' head coach. He replaced veteran coach Andy Murray, who retired last summer. Ferschweiler spent the last two seasons as associate head coach at Western Michigan.

His career as an assistant coach includes four previous years with WMU (2010-2014), one season with the Grand Rapids Griffins (2014-15) and four years with the Detroit Red Wings (2015-2019). Ferschweiler, a native of Rochester, Minnesota, played three years as Western Michigan as a forward from 1990-93.

He played pro hockey for eight years in the minor leagues in North America and spent his last pro season in England.

SCOUTING THE HUSKIES: Michigan Tech is 10-7-0 overall and 7-5-0 in the new CCHA and currently stands in third place. The Huskies, ranked No 18 in the USCHO poll, started the season with a series sweep at Wisconsin and a 2-1 home loss to Notre Dame. Tech then split four straight series with Clarkson, Lake Superior State, Northern Michigan and Bemidji State. The Huskies followed with a sweep of Ferris State and lost two games at then-No. 2 Minnesota State. They closed out the first half of the season with a sweep at St. Thomas, 6-1 and 4-3 in overtime.

The Huskies have played in five overtime games. They're 1-3 in OT in league games and 0-1 in non-conference play.

Michigan Tech is the third-highest scoring team in the CCHA, averaging 3.35 goals per game, and is second in goals-against with a 2.12 average, which is 6^th in the nation.

"They play hard, defend well and take advantage of you offensively,'' MSU coach Danton Cole said. "They play a good brand of hockey. They're a little different in style (compared to WMU).

"It's good to play two different teams. We're a team that I want us to do well in the playoffs and be in the NCAA Tournament, and you have to be able to play a couple of different teams. It's a good learning process that helps you, instead of playing the same team back-to-back like we do in the regular season.''

The Huskies are an experienced team with four seniors, one graduate student and two juniors among their top seven scorers. The offense is led by seniors Brian Halonen (11-11-22) and Trenton Bliss (6-8-14), junior Logan Pietila (7-6-13), senior defenseman Colin Swoyer (3-9-12), graduate student Justin Misiak (3-8-11), junior Tristian Ashbrook (8-2-10) and senior Tommy Parrottino (3-6-9).

The defense includes Swoyer and fellow seniors Tyrell Buckley (0-5-5) and Eric Gotz (0-4-4), grad transfer Michael Karow (1-2-3) from Boston College and sophomore Brett Thome (3-6-9).

Junior goaltender Blake Pietila, the brother of Logan, has started all 17 games. He has a 10-7-0 record with a 2.06 goals-against average and a .910 saves percentage.

Tech's power play is at a CCHA-leading 27.1%, which ranks No. 6 nationally. The Huskies' penalty killing is also No. 1 in the conference at 90.2% and is 4^th best in the nation.

Coach Joe Shawhan is in his fifth season at Michigan Tech and has a record of 84-71-13. Shawhan, 58, was an assistant coach at Tech for three years with Mel Pearson. He was named head coach when Pearson left for Michigan in 2017.

Shawhan was a goalie at Lake Superior State from 1982-87, but earned a degree from Northern Michigan. He's coached as an assistant at all three Upper Peninsula Division I hockey schools – LSSU, NMU and Michigan Tech.

GLI HISTORY: Michigan State is making its 47^th appearance in the GLI, and the Spartans have a record of 49-39-4 and have won 12 championships, the last coming in 2009. The Spartans have been runner-up 14 times. Michigan has a 59-38-3 record and has won 17 titles in its 50 years in the tournament. The Wolverines last won it in 2015.

Michigan Tech, which started the GLI in 1985 when John MacInnes was coaching the Huskies, has been a participant every year. The Huskies have a record of 48-60-2 and won 11 titles.

Western Michigan is 6-3-1 with three championships during its five appearances. In fact, the Broncos' three titles are the most of any team other than MSU, U-M and MTU.

The last four GLI champions have been Western Michigan (2016), Bowling Green (2017), Lake Superior State (2018) and Michigan Tech (2019).

The only team with a perfect record in the GLI is the University of Toronto, which won the inaugural tournament in 1965 and never played in it again. The Varsity Blues defeated Colorado College, 6-2, in the semifinals and Michigan Tech, 6-2, in the championship game.

STATE-OF-THE-ART WEIGHT ROOM: No longer do Michigan State hockey players have to trek over to the Duffy Daugherty Football Building to work out in the weight room. Hockey now has its own weight room and the players are thrilled.

The weight room, as part of the Munn Arena renovation and expansion project, opened to the players earlier this month to rave reviews. It's on the south side of Munn Arena, overlooking Munn Field.

"It's great. It's amazing to have our own facility now,'' Cesana said Monday, when the weight room was unveiled to the local media. "Not that it was bad at all at Duffy. That's an incredible facility, too. But it's nice to have our own space with our own group.''

The weight room is the first part of the renovation project that's finished. Work continues on a video room, a shooting room, a lounge area, locker rooms, conference rooms, a hydro therapy room, coaches' offices and an expanded lobby area which will include a Hall of History. The project is expected to be completed this summer.

"A few of us have walked downstairs to see how it's all coming together and it's going to be pretty awesome to see," Cesana said. "I'm jealous because I want be able to use it, but I'll be back to take full advantage of it after I graduate.''

MSU coach Danton Cole said the project will make a difference in recruiting high-quality athletes and building the program back to a championship level.

"We had certain goals when we came back and all of them lined up but the thing that tied it together was to get the Munn renovation and addition done and this weight room is part of it,'' he said. "With all the things we'll have here, this is going to be like an NHL facility for the guys.

"That ties into recruiting, that ties into us doing better as a team and attracting the kind of athletes we want. That leads to winning and crowds. We've hit a lot of things we want to do and getting this done is a huge part of it.

"The guys that are here right now are exited about it, and for recruits coming in, in the future, it'll be outstanding to show them, and if they want to be an NHL player, this is the place to come.''

IN THE BIG TEN: In addition to Michigan State and Michigan, the other five teams are in action over the next seven days.

Wisconsin plays host to the Holiday Faceoff tournament in Milwaukee at the Fiserv Forum, the home of the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks, on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Badgers face Yale in the second semifinal on Tuesday, after Providence and Bowling Green meet in the first game. The third-place and championship games are set for Wednesday. These are the first hockey games played in the Fiserv Forum, which opened in August, 2018.

In Friday-Saturday non-conference series, Long Island University is at Ohio State and Penn State plays host to Maine. In a Saturday-Sunday series, Niagara is at Notre Dame.

Minnesota, which has been off since Dec. 4, plays the U.S. Under-18 team on Monday at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis.

Big Ten play resumes Jan. 7-8 with Minnesota at Michigan State, Ohio State at Wisconsin and Notre Dame at Penn State. Michigan plays a non-conference series against Massachusetts at home, Jan. 8-9.

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