Thursday, October 19
7 PM
Michigan State University
1-0-0
6
vs
3
Canisius
0-1-0
1
2
3
F
Canisius
0
1
2
3
Michigan St.
2
3
1
6
Russell's Hat Trick Propels MSU to 6-3 Win
10/19/2023 10:50:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
East Lansing, Mich. – Sophomore Daniel Russell scored a hat trick – MSU's second in as many games – and goaltender Trey Augustine had 42 saves as No. 8/9 Michigan State (4-1-0) downed visiting Canisius on Thursday at Mason Rink.
MSU had four players with multiple-point games and got outstanding crease play from Augustine, who established a career best in saves. Freshman Maxim Štrbák picked up his first career point with his first collegiate goal in the second period, and Joey Larson and Artyom Levshunov had the other two Spartan tallies.
The Spartans skated out to a 2-0 lead in the opening frame and needed just over a minute into the second to make it a 3-0 game. Canisius goaltender David Fessenden (14 saves) was keeping his team in the game but was replaced after Štrbák made it a 4-0 game at the 5:07 mark of the period. Ethan Robertson came on in relief and made 16 saves over the balance of the contest.
Canisius got on the scoreboard two minutes after the goalie change, with Max Kouznetsov scoring his second of the season at 7:07. Russell answered under three minutes later to complete his hat trick, giving the Spartans a 5-1 advantage headed into the final frame. The Griffins got two back u the third – both from the stick of Randy Hernandez – to cut the lead down to 5-3, but Levshunov iced the game with an empty-netter. He launched the puck from below the dot in the left circle in his own defensive zone, and the puck likely traveled 90 feet and into the empty net for the 6-3 final margin.
The teams will be back in action on Friday at 7 pm to complete the series.
STATISTICS OF NOTE
First Period: The Spartans jumped on the board just over three and a half minutes into the game. Skating on the power play, Dorwart collected the loose puck in the left circle and fired it on net. The rebound popped up high in front of the crease, where Russell grabbed it out of midair, gloved it to the ground and popped it over the stick hand of goalie David Fessenden for a 1-0 Spartan lead. MSU doubled the lead at 16:42 on a goal by Joey Larson, popping home his fourth goal in two games after linemates O'Connell and Savage controlled the puck along the back wall and got it out to Larson at the right post. Canisius goalie David Fessenden made several point-blank stops among his 15 saves to keep the Spartans from building on their lead, and Trey Augustine made 11 saves in his end.
Second Period: Russell added a pair of goals in the second, both before the period was half over, sandwiched around the first career goal by freshman Maxim Štrbák. Russell scored his all from the low slot, while Strbak's came through traffic from the right circle. The Griffins made a change in net, going to Ethan Robertson, as Fessenden exited the game with 14 saves. His teammates got on the board just two minutes later, with Max Kouznetsov scoring a power-play goal at 7:07. Russell got the goal right back about two and a half minutes later, scoring his third – and all three were at the top of the goalmouth – to send MSU into the locker room with a 5-1 lead after 40 minutes of play.
Third Period: Canisius was aggressive in the third period, generating some odd-man rushes and putting 17 shots on net. Senior Randy Hernandez picked up a pair of goals – at 4:57 and again at 13:39 – to cut into the Spartan lead. Augustine was in top form, however – he turned away 15 shots in the period as the Griffins pushed for goals that would pull them even. MSU also killed off 90 seconds of a five-on three, after taking slashing penalties 33 seconds apart at the midpoint of the frame. With Robertson on the bench in favor of an extra skater with three minutes to play, the Spartans gained control of the puck and Levshunov launched the puck from the bottom of the left circle more than 90 feet to record his second goal of the season into an empty net.
MSU had four players with multiple-point games and got outstanding crease play from Augustine, who established a career best in saves. Freshman Maxim Štrbák picked up his first career point with his first collegiate goal in the second period, and Joey Larson and Artyom Levshunov had the other two Spartan tallies.
The Spartans skated out to a 2-0 lead in the opening frame and needed just over a minute into the second to make it a 3-0 game. Canisius goaltender David Fessenden (14 saves) was keeping his team in the game but was replaced after Štrbák made it a 4-0 game at the 5:07 mark of the period. Ethan Robertson came on in relief and made 16 saves over the balance of the contest.
Canisius got on the scoreboard two minutes after the goalie change, with Max Kouznetsov scoring his second of the season at 7:07. Russell answered under three minutes later to complete his hat trick, giving the Spartans a 5-1 advantage headed into the final frame. The Griffins got two back u the third – both from the stick of Randy Hernandez – to cut the lead down to 5-3, but Levshunov iced the game with an empty-netter. He launched the puck from below the dot in the left circle in his own defensive zone, and the puck likely traveled 90 feet and into the empty net for the 6-3 final margin.
The teams will be back in action on Friday at 7 pm to complete the series.
STATISTICS OF NOTE
- Daniel Russell had his first collegiate hat trick with three goals in the first 30 minutes of the game. He is tied for the team lead in goals (4) with Joey Larson. Each of the players have had a hat trick this season, with Larson earning his last Friday at Air Force.
- Isaac Howard had his first multiple-point game as a Spartan, posting a pair of assists. He has a point in each of the last three games.
- Larson had his fourth goal of the season, all of which have come in the last two games.
- Maxim Štrbák recorded his first collegiate goal in the second period. Classmate Artyom Levshunov also had a goal in the game.
- Junior Red Savage had two assists. With nine points on the season, he is more than halfway to his sophomore year point total of 14 at Miami (and his freshman-year total of 16). He also extended his point-scoring streak to five games, along with his linemate Larson. The duo has a point in every Spartan game so far.
- MSU was 6-of-7 on the penalty kill and is now 20-of-23 on the PK over the first five games. The Spartans were 1-of-2 on the power play, improving to a .357 success rate (5-of-14) on the year.
First Period: The Spartans jumped on the board just over three and a half minutes into the game. Skating on the power play, Dorwart collected the loose puck in the left circle and fired it on net. The rebound popped up high in front of the crease, where Russell grabbed it out of midair, gloved it to the ground and popped it over the stick hand of goalie David Fessenden for a 1-0 Spartan lead. MSU doubled the lead at 16:42 on a goal by Joey Larson, popping home his fourth goal in two games after linemates O'Connell and Savage controlled the puck along the back wall and got it out to Larson at the right post. Canisius goalie David Fessenden made several point-blank stops among his 15 saves to keep the Spartans from building on their lead, and Trey Augustine made 11 saves in his end.
Second Period: Russell added a pair of goals in the second, both before the period was half over, sandwiched around the first career goal by freshman Maxim Štrbák. Russell scored his all from the low slot, while Strbak's came through traffic from the right circle. The Griffins made a change in net, going to Ethan Robertson, as Fessenden exited the game with 14 saves. His teammates got on the board just two minutes later, with Max Kouznetsov scoring a power-play goal at 7:07. Russell got the goal right back about two and a half minutes later, scoring his third – and all three were at the top of the goalmouth – to send MSU into the locker room with a 5-1 lead after 40 minutes of play.
Third Period: Canisius was aggressive in the third period, generating some odd-man rushes and putting 17 shots on net. Senior Randy Hernandez picked up a pair of goals – at 4:57 and again at 13:39 – to cut into the Spartan lead. Augustine was in top form, however – he turned away 15 shots in the period as the Griffins pushed for goals that would pull them even. MSU also killed off 90 seconds of a five-on three, after taking slashing penalties 33 seconds apart at the midpoint of the frame. With Robertson on the bench in favor of an extra skater with three minutes to play, the Spartans gained control of the puck and Levshunov launched the puck from the bottom of the left circle more than 90 feet to record his second goal of the season into an empty net.
Team Stats
CAN
MSU
Shots
45
36
PPG
1
1
SHG
0
0
Penalties
3
7
Penalty Mins
9
14
Faceoffs Won
30
36
Game Leaders
Skaters
+/-
1
Goals
3
Sh
6
A
0
+/-
0
Goals
0
Sh
5
A
2
+/-
1
Goals
0
Sh
2
A
2
+/-
2
Goals
0
Sh
1
A
2
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Ice HockeyF
/ Men's Ice Hockey
F
/ Men's Ice Hockey
D
/ Men's Ice HockeyF
/ Men's Ice HockeyF
/ Men's Ice HockeyIsaac Howard Wins The Hobey | Spartans All-Access
Monday, April 21
Adam Nightingale | Hockey Press Conference | April 17, 2025
Thursday, April 17
Adam Nightingale, Daniel Russell, Tiernan Shoudy Post Game Comments | Cornell
Thursday, March 27
Adam Nightingale, Tiernan Shoudy, Matt Basgall, and Tanner Kelly | NCAA Regional
Wednesday, March 26