Friday, January 24
7 PM
Michigan State University
20-3-2, 11-2-2
9
vs
3
Minnesota
19-6-2, 10-4-1
1
2
3
F
Minnesota
0
3
0
3
Michigan State
1
4
4
9
Spartans Stun Gophers in Battle of Top B1G Squads
1/25/2025 1:05:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
East Lansing, Mich. . – No. 2/2 Michigan State scored four goals in both the second and third periods to post a 9-3 victory over No. 4/3 Minnesota in a battle of the Big Ten's top teams.
MSU (20-3-2, 11-2-2) had eight players with multiple-point nights, including two-goal scorers Isaac Howard and David Gucciardi. Maxim Štrbák contributed a career-best four assists to lead all players in points. The Spartans are the first team to 20 victories in college hockey this season.
Trey Augustine made 27 saves for Michigan State, including double-digit saves in the first and second periods. Minnesota twice scored goals to tie the game at 1-1 and 2-2 – but MSU quickly answered with scores within 90 seconds to regain the lead. The Spartans had a 42-30 edge in shots on net and a commanding 44-of-64 success rate in the faceoff circle.
Minnesota starter Nathan Airey made 22 saves in 33:21, but was chased after allowing three MSU goals in a four-minute span in the second period. Grad transfer Liam Souliere.
The Spartans entered the game with a one-point lead in the Big Ten standings, and extended their total to 35 points, four ahead of Minnesota and 11 ahead of third-place Ohio State.
MSU and the Gophers conclude their season series on Saturday at Munn Arena. The puck drops at 6 pm and will air live on Big Ten Network.
STATISTICS OF NOTE
PERIOD RECAPS
First Period: Tanner Kelly put MSU on the board in the early minutes of the first period. After the Kelly won the faceoff in the right circle, Maxim Štrbák kept it in the zone at the right point. Tommi Männistö tapped it below the dot along the wall to Kelly, who walked in and put it through the legs of Airey at 6:32. MSU spent long stretches in the offensive zone through the opening 20, as the Spartans were outshooting their visitors 11-3 through the opening ten minutes. Minnesota started to pick up some momentum in the final five minutes, aided by a second power play attempt – but the period ended with MSU holding a 14-10 edge in shots and a 1-0 lead on the scoreboard.
Second Period: The teams combined for seven goals in the period – four for MSU and three for the Gophers – which allowed MSU to take a 5-3 lead into the locker room after 40 minutes. The teams traded goals in the opening two minutes of the frame - Minnesota came out of the locker room with a head full of steam and got on the scoreboard 26 seconds in, off a goal from Oliver Moore.MSU answered just over a minute later. Vladislav Lukashevich's shot from the left point was saved by Airey, but a crashing Männistö corralled it in front and had a wide-open left side for his second goal of the season. The Gophers tied the game again at 8:19 when Jimmy Snuggerud fed Brodie Ziemer, who fired an absolute rocket from the right circle. MSU once again served up an quick answer to a tie game. Just 43 seconds after the Ziemer snipe, David Gucciardi's cannon from the top of the slot found its way past Airey for a 3-2 lead, and on its first power play chance at 11:04, Dorwart made a nifty move around a pair of defenders. His shot was blocked, but was there on the doorstep for Daniel Russell. Gucciardi scored his second of the period at 13:21, putting away a goalmouth scramble. That was MSU's third goal in just over four minutes, and spelled the end of the night for goalie Nathan Airey, who was replaced by Liam Souliere. With 4:21 remaining, a shot by Jimmy Snuggerud ricocheted off a defender to put an end to the MSU run and bring the Gophers within 5-3. The Spartans had a slim 15-14 edge in shots on goal in the frame.
Third Period: The third period was all MSU, as it outshot Minnesota 13-6 and tacked on four goals to earn the largest margin of victory in the rivalry. The teams were scoreless in the frame until 8:22 when MSU's top line got some space and took over the scoresheet for the remainder of the period. Isaac Howard got his first of the night to start the rally, as he finished off a Daniel Russell attempt from the left post and popped it over the line. Howard then fed Stramel on an odd-man rush giving the centerman a perfect pass for a beautiful goal at 10:59. Howard scored again at 14:35 to reach the 20-goal mark on the season. Patrick Geary scored his first goal of the season at 18:38 to close out the scoring.
MSU (20-3-2, 11-2-2) had eight players with multiple-point nights, including two-goal scorers Isaac Howard and David Gucciardi. Maxim Štrbák contributed a career-best four assists to lead all players in points. The Spartans are the first team to 20 victories in college hockey this season.
Trey Augustine made 27 saves for Michigan State, including double-digit saves in the first and second periods. Minnesota twice scored goals to tie the game at 1-1 and 2-2 – but MSU quickly answered with scores within 90 seconds to regain the lead. The Spartans had a 42-30 edge in shots on net and a commanding 44-of-64 success rate in the faceoff circle.
Minnesota starter Nathan Airey made 22 saves in 33:21, but was chased after allowing three MSU goals in a four-minute span in the second period. Grad transfer Liam Souliere.
The Spartans entered the game with a one-point lead in the Big Ten standings, and extended their total to 35 points, four ahead of Minnesota and 11 ahead of third-place Ohio State.
MSU and the Gophers conclude their season series on Saturday at Munn Arena. The puck drops at 6 pm and will air live on Big Ten Network.
STATISTICS OF NOTE
- The Spartans become the first team in college hockey this season to 20 victories.
- MSU scored its most goals this season, surpassing the eight it scored against Notre Dame on Nov. 15.
- The Spartans scored its most goals against the Gophers in the history of the rivalry, dating back to the first games between the schools in 1926. It was also the largest margin of victory over Minnesota (six goals) – the previous high was five-goal margins (twice), most recently a 5-0 win on March 5, 2016.
- The Spartans were dominant in the faceoff circle, winning 44 of 64 draws. (68.8%)
- MSU will win the season series with the Gophers for the first time since the 2018-19 season. MSU has a pair of wins and a tie (shootout win) in the first three games this year.
- A total of 14 of MSU's 18 skaters had at least one point in the game.
- MSU was 1-for-2 on the power play and shut down Minnesota in three chances against
- Isaac Howard had two goals and an assist, pushing him to 20 goals and 39 points on the season – both national bests. His 19 assists ranks in a tie for seventh nationally.
- Howard is MSU's first 20-goal scorer since Corey Tropp in 2019-20. All three of his points came in the third period.
- Howard's 39 points is the most for a Spartan since Taro Hirose's 50 points in 2018-19 when he was a Hobey Baker top 10 finalist with 50 points in 36 games. Howard has 39 points in 25 games, leading the nation with 1.56 points per contest.
- David Gucciardi had a two-goal second period, his third and fourth goals of the season. It was his first two-goal game since December 29, 2021, when he had two goals in a GLI game vs. Michigan Tech. He also had a pair of blocked shots.
- Maxim Štrbák had a career-best four assists, which is also his career best for points in a game, He now has more points this season (14) than he did as a freshman (9).
- Daniel Russell had a goal and two assists, his 11th score of the season. He is now four points shy of his sophomore season total of 25.
- Russell's goal was his national-leading seventh game-winner of the season.
- Charlie Stramel had a goal and an assist and went 21-4 in the faceoff circle. He and Matt Basgall are tied for second on the team with 14 assists each.
- Basgall had a pair of assists on the night and now has surpassed his career best with 18 points on the season. He has had double-digit points in each of his three varsity seasons. He is one assist shy of his career best of 15 a year ago.
- Tommi Männistö had his first multiple-point game of the season with his goal and assist. It was the second two-point game of his career.
- Mikey DeAngelo had a two-assist night, his second of the season. The first came on Nov. 15 vs. Notre Dame.
- Griffin Jurecki earned his first point of the season on David Gucciardi's second goal. The sophomore had a goal and an assist last season in seven games, and he has earned more playing time as a sophomore.
- Patrick Geary scored his first goal of the season in the waning moments of the third period.
PERIOD RECAPS
First Period: Tanner Kelly put MSU on the board in the early minutes of the first period. After the Kelly won the faceoff in the right circle, Maxim Štrbák kept it in the zone at the right point. Tommi Männistö tapped it below the dot along the wall to Kelly, who walked in and put it through the legs of Airey at 6:32. MSU spent long stretches in the offensive zone through the opening 20, as the Spartans were outshooting their visitors 11-3 through the opening ten minutes. Minnesota started to pick up some momentum in the final five minutes, aided by a second power play attempt – but the period ended with MSU holding a 14-10 edge in shots and a 1-0 lead on the scoreboard.
Second Period: The teams combined for seven goals in the period – four for MSU and three for the Gophers – which allowed MSU to take a 5-3 lead into the locker room after 40 minutes. The teams traded goals in the opening two minutes of the frame - Minnesota came out of the locker room with a head full of steam and got on the scoreboard 26 seconds in, off a goal from Oliver Moore.MSU answered just over a minute later. Vladislav Lukashevich's shot from the left point was saved by Airey, but a crashing Männistö corralled it in front and had a wide-open left side for his second goal of the season. The Gophers tied the game again at 8:19 when Jimmy Snuggerud fed Brodie Ziemer, who fired an absolute rocket from the right circle. MSU once again served up an quick answer to a tie game. Just 43 seconds after the Ziemer snipe, David Gucciardi's cannon from the top of the slot found its way past Airey for a 3-2 lead, and on its first power play chance at 11:04, Dorwart made a nifty move around a pair of defenders. His shot was blocked, but was there on the doorstep for Daniel Russell. Gucciardi scored his second of the period at 13:21, putting away a goalmouth scramble. That was MSU's third goal in just over four minutes, and spelled the end of the night for goalie Nathan Airey, who was replaced by Liam Souliere. With 4:21 remaining, a shot by Jimmy Snuggerud ricocheted off a defender to put an end to the MSU run and bring the Gophers within 5-3. The Spartans had a slim 15-14 edge in shots on goal in the frame.
Third Period: The third period was all MSU, as it outshot Minnesota 13-6 and tacked on four goals to earn the largest margin of victory in the rivalry. The teams were scoreless in the frame until 8:22 when MSU's top line got some space and took over the scoresheet for the remainder of the period. Isaac Howard got his first of the night to start the rally, as he finished off a Daniel Russell attempt from the left post and popped it over the line. Howard then fed Stramel on an odd-man rush giving the centerman a perfect pass for a beautiful goal at 10:59. Howard scored again at 14:35 to reach the 20-goal mark on the season. Patrick Geary scored his first goal of the season at 18:38 to close out the scoring.
Team Stats
MIN
MSU
Shots
30
42
PPG
0
1
SHG
0
0
Penalties
2
3
Penalty Mins
4
6
Faceoffs Won
20
44
Game Leaders
Skaters
+/-
3
Goals
0
Sh
1
A
4
+/-
3
Goals
2
Sh
6
A
1
+/-
3
Goals
1
Sh
4
A
2
+/-
1
Goals
2
Sh
5
A
0
Players Mentioned
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