Pre-Holiday Action Wraps At Notre Dame


Michigan State (9-6-1, 4-4-0 B1G) at [8/8] Notre Dame (11-4-0, 5-3-0 B1G)
Dates/Times	Friday, Dec. 10, 7:30 pm \| Saturday, Dec. 11, 7 pm
Location	Compton Ice Arena, South Bend, Ind. \| ND Bag Policy
Tickets	Notre Dame Ticket Office
Radio	Spartan Media Network *Games air live on WJIM 1240 AM* Scott Moore (pxp) and Rob Woodward (Analysis) Broadcast on the Web: Friday \| Saturday
Television	NBC Sports Network
Webstreams	NBC Sports App \| Download the App
Live Statistics	Friday \| Saturday
Game Notes	Michigan State \| Notre Dame
Press Conference	Watch Danton Cole's Weekly Press Conference
Social Media	Facebook Twitter Instagram

WEEKEND PARTICULARS

• Michigan State completes its pre-holiday action with a series on the road at Notre Dame.

• Both games in South Bend will air on the NBC Sports Network and be streamed via the NBCSports app.

• Scott Moore and Rob Woodward will call the action on the Spartan Media Network. The games this week will air live on WJIM 1240 AM in the Lansing area, as well as on the web via MSUSpartans.com.

THE MSU-NOTRE DAME SERIES
• The Spartans lead Notre Dame in the all-time meetings of the teams by a 65-53-15 margin, but the Irish hold a slight 30-25-5 mark in games played in South Bend.

• MSU was 1-2-1 against Notre Dame last season earning a win and a tie on the road in the Compton Family Ice Arena last December before suffering a pair of 2-0 losses when the Irish came to Munn Arena in February. Over the last 10 games, the record between the teams is 4-3-3 in favor of Notre Dame.

• Mitchell Lewandowski is MSU'S leading scorer against the Irish, with a 3-4--7 scoring line in 18 games. Dennis Cesana is 1-5--6 in 14 games, while Josh Nodler has 1-4--5 in eight contests and is a +6. Drew DeRidder has played five games against the Irish all-time, with a .951 save percentage and 1.75 GAA.

• Jeff Jackson is in his 17th season at Notre Dame, after six years as a head coach at Lake Superior State (1990-96). He won a pair of National Championships at LSSU (1992, 1994), and had the Irish in the NCAA title game in 2008 and 2018.

• Notre Dame split with Ohio State at home last weekend - OSU took game one 4-2 before the Irish rebounded with a 5-1 Saturday victory.

TEAM NOTES
• MSU has been among the teams receiving votes in the last three USCHO.com polls. This week, six of the seven Big Ten teams are ranked (Michigan, Notre Dame, Minnesota, Ohio State) or receiving votes (MSU, Penn State). In the USA Hockey poll, Ohio State is receiving votes, but MSU and PSU are not.

• Michigan State has won five of its last six games entering the series with the Irish. This will be MSU's last Big Ten Conference games in 2021.

• The Spartans sit at 4-4-0 in the Big Ten, which is fifth (11 points). Ohio State and Notre Dame each have 15 points (tied for third) with a 5-3-0 record; Minnesota (and Michigan are tied for first with 6-4-0 B1G records, and have played two more games than everyone else in the conference.

• Three out of MSU's first five Big Ten series are on the road this season, and MSU earned splits at Ohio State and Penn State. The Spartans dropped both games of the home-and-home with Michigan, but swept Wisconsin in its only home series.

• MSU last played at home on Nov. 19-20 and will go six weeks between home games, as it next plays at Munn Ice Arena in the Great Lakes Invitational Showcase Dec. 29-30.

• MSU won eight games before Thanksgiving, surpassing the seven total it had in the Covid-19 season of 2020-21. MSU had increased its winning percentage in each of Danton Cole's first three seasons behind the bench before the Covid-19 season.

• MSU's eighth win this season came on Nov. 20, the earliest the Spartans have reached eight victories since the 2009-10 campaign, when its eighth win came on Nov. 13 at Michigan (3-2). That team finished 19-13-6, a win total reached by the Spartans only once since (19, 2011-12).

• Cole won his 50th game as the Spartan head coach at Ohio State (Oct. 29). He has won more than 500 games in his 21 seasons as a head coach (522-451-60).

• Half of MSU's goal production came from defensemen in the Penn State series - Dennis Cesana, Cole Krygier and Christian Krygier all had goals, while Cesana, Christian Krygier and Nash Nienhuis all had assists.

• MSU ranks seventh nationally in both average and overall attendance, welcoming 42,848 fans over eight home dates (5,356).

• MSU's power play is at .240, converting on 12 of 50 chances to rank 16th nationally and third in the Big Ten. The penalty kill (.817, 49-of-60) is also third in the B1G.

• MSU's scoring defense, allowing 2.62 goals per game, is fourth in the Big Ten and 22nd nationally.

• With an average of 12.62 penalty minutes per game, the Spartans rank second in the Big Ten. Only seven times in 16 games has MSU had more penalty minutes than its opponent.

• In seven of MSU's nine wins, the game-winner has come in the third period. In five of the six, the goal has been scored in the final seven minutes, and four with four minutes or less remaining. The latest? A 19:40 goal that capped a three-goal third period at Ferris State.

• MSU has scored 21 third -period goals overall, one more than in the first (12) and second (8) periods combined. MSU has surrendered its fewest goals in the third period, however - allowing 12 compared to 14 in the first and 15 in the second (and one in OT).

PLAYER NOTES - FORWARDS
• Fifth-year senior and active career leading scorer Mitchell Lewandowski returned to the lineup against Ferris State (Dec. 11-13) after missing the previous five games, snapping a streak of 140 consecutive career games played. He ranks fourth among active Division I players in career points (119), and sixth in goals (55), game-winners (11), and power play goals (20).

• Lewandowski sits atop the Spartan leaderboard in points (17) and assists (11), and is a squad-best +12. He is ninth in the Big Ten in points and assists, and leads the B1G with 1.55 points per game. He has surpassed his 2020-21 totals of six goals and eight assists.

• Lewandowski has 10 points (3-7--10) in the six games since his return, which includes four points (1-3--4) in the Penn State series last weekend.

• Jeremy Davidson leads the Spartans in goals (8), which ranks seventh in the Big Ten. He had a goal and an assist in the Penn State series.

• Davidson's season scoring line of 8-5--13 is his career best all categories, and he also shares the team lead in power play goals with three (fourth, B1G) and has a pair of game-winners to his credit (sixth, B1G).

• Freshman Jesse Tucker has centered the line with Lewandowski and Davidson over the last six games, and has a goal and five assists in that stretch. He scored his first collegiate goal in the second game vs. Wisconsin (Nov. 20), and also had his first career multiple-point effort in the same contest (1-2--3).

• Tucker is the team's top-scoring freshman with a goal and seven assists. He tied for second on the team in helpers, tied with Josh Nodler and Kristof Papp.

• Josh Nodler is third on the team in points (11), and is tied for second in assists (7). He has won 51.8% of his faceoffs (147-137).

• Nodler has established a new career best with four goals and tied his career-best output with 11 assists.

• Erik Middendorf is third among Spartans in goals (5) and fourth in points (9). He scored the game-winner in the first game against Wisconsin (Nov. 19) which was his first career two-goal effort. He shares the national lead in game-winning goals - four of his five scores on the year have sealed a Spartan victory.

• Griffin Loughran owns a 3-6--9 scoring line, with a pair of power-play markers. He is tied for second on the team in penalties (10) and shares the team lead in penalty minutes (28). Loughran skated in his 100th career game vs. Wisconsin.

• Kristof Papp has already doubled his freshman season offensive output (0-4--4) with a 1-7--8 scoring line. He scored his first collegiate goal in the Saturday game at Penn State and also had an assist on Cole Krygier's Friday marker .

• Papp is 122-85 in the faceoff circle and owns a team-best .589 success rate.

• Nicolas Muller scored his first goal of the season in the home game against Michigan (11/6) and has a 1-4--5 scoring line on the year. He has 16 blocked shots this season (four in the PSU series), which is first among forwards on the team.

• AJ Hodges had his third assist of the season on Saturday, credited with the primary on Papp's game-winning goal in the third period. Hodges has surpassed his freshman season total (2).

• Adam Goodsir also had an assist on the Papp goal in the third period of Saturday's game. The senior has skated in all 16 games of the season and has blocked nine shots, a total which ranks third among forwards.

PLAYER NOTES - DEFENSEMEN
• Dennis Cesana leads the Big Ten in blocked shots (29), seven short of his career best. He scored his fourth goal of the season in the Saturday game vs. Penn State and had an assist in the Friday tilt to bump his scoring line to 4-4--8, and leads all Spartan defensemen in scoring.

• Cesana has been one of the Big Ten's top-producing defensemen over the last three seasons. The two-time All-Big Ten selection has 65 points (16g, 49a) in 115 career games for the Green and White. He earned Preseason Honorable Mention All-Big Ten honors this fall.

• Cole Krygier had his four-game point-scoring streak snapped on Saturday at Penn State, but has matched his career best with a 3-3--6 scoring line. He is a +4, with 27 penalty minutes and 20 blocks.

• Christian Krygier had a goal and an assist in the Penn State series. He now has career bests in goals (1), assists (5) and points (6). He leads MSU in penalties (11) and is fourth among defensemen in blocks (18).

• Both Krygier twins scored in the Friday game at Penn State, the first time in their Spartan careers that they have lit the lamp in the same game.

• First-year blueliner David Gucciardi owns a 1-4--5 scoring line, and ranks third among B1G defensemen with 24 blocked shots.

• Nash Nienhuis had the primary assist on Lewandowski's Saturday goal at Penn State, and has surpassed his freshman year point total (0-6--6). He has a pair of two-assist games this season to tie his career best.

• Powell Connor is tied for third among Spartan blueliners with 20 blocked shots. He has played in 10 of 16 games this season.

PLAYER NOTES - GOALTENDERS
• MSU has split its goaltending duties in five of eight weekends this season, including last weekend at Penn State.

• Sophomore Pierce Charleson stopped a career-best 50 pucks and earned the 4-3 victory at Penn State last Saturday. His 50-save effort is the most by a netminder in a Division I game this season: Gabe Carriere (Vermont) had 50 saves against Maine on the same day Charleson accomplished his. He earned Big Ten Third Star of the Week honors on Wednesday for his performance. .

• In five starts this season, Charleson owns a 3.21 GAA, .910 save percentage, and 3-2 record.

• Charleson made three starts and appeared in seven games for Michigan State in the crease last season. He compiled a 2.57 GAA and .938 save percentage in those contests, making 210 saves in 326:49.

• DeRidder made 35 saves and allowed three goals in the Friday game at Penn State. He currently leads the B1G and ranks 16th in Division I with a 2.14 GAA, while his .941 save percentage tops the Big Ten and is sixth nationally. He also leads the B1G in saves per game (34.55).

• DeRidder had a pair of 40-save performances against Wisconsin, posting 40 and 48 saves on Friday and Saturday, respectively. He now has three 40+ save performances on the season.

• DeRidder owns six of the top 10 single-game save performances in the Big Ten this season, and each of the top three. He had 48 and 40 in games vs. Wisconsin (Nov. 19-20), 41 vs. Ohio State (Oct. 29), 37 at Lowell (Oct. 22), 36 vs. Air Force in the season opener (Oct. 8) and 35 stops against Miami (Oct. 16).

• DeRidder's 48-save game ranks fourth nationally this season in single-game goaltender performances, while his 41 at Ohio State ranks 20th.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Dennis Cesana

Pierce Charleson

Powell Connor

Jeremy Davidson

Drew DeRidder

Adam Goodsir

David Gucciardi

Christian Krygier

Cole Krygier

Mitchell Lewandowski

Griffin Loughran

Erik Middendorf

Nash Nienhuis

Josh Nodler

Kristof Papp

Jesse Tucker