MSU hockey fell in a shootout on back-to-back nights against Ohio State during the two-game home conference series this past weekend. Both games ended in 2-2 ties, with Ohio State winning the first shootout 2-1 on Friday and 1-0 the following night.
The Spartans earned two points in the series, remaining in fifth place behind the Buckeyes.
MSU (8-13-6 overall, 2-5-5-3 Big Ten) blew third-period leads in both games. On Friday night, the Spartans surrendered two goals in the final 1:34, with the second Buckeye goal coming with 1.7 seconds left in regulation.
On Saturday, Ohio State (14-9-3, 4-5-3-2) took advantage of a Spartan turnover in the neutral zone to knot the game at 2-2 late in the third period.
In all four games against the Buckeyes this season, MSU led in the final period, but failed to hold onto the lead. Three of the four games in the season series went to a shootout, with MSU winning the first and losing the past two this weekend.
Despite earning two points in the Big Ten standings, sophomore forward Michael Ferrantino was disappointed with only coming away with a couple ties.
“We’re all competitive guys, you want to win,” Ferrantino said following Saturday’s game. “I get it that it’s a tie in the standings or … (rankings) or whatever, but you want to win. The game is on the line there, either way you got to win.”
Senior forward Greg Wolfe had one of his best weekends of the season, playing a part on all four Spartan goals. Wolfe finished with one goal and one assist on Friday, and scored two power play goals on Saturday. The goal on Friday night snapped a season-long four-game pointless streak for Wolfe.
The weekend goals were a confidence boost for the senior captain, Wolfe said.
Sophomore goaltender Jake Hildebrand also was impressive in the two games, holding the nation’s No. 5 offense to only two goals each night. Hildebrand finished with 88 saves in the series, matching a career-high on Saturday, with 48 saves.
Head coach Tom Anastos said he is noticing his team improving, with the final results not necessarily showing those strides.
“Results matter, we’re in a results business, and yet to ultimately get results, there’s a process you have to go through to gain experience and get better. I think we’re going through that,” Anastos said following Saturday’s game.
Anastos added that scoring is one of the areas that needs to improve, with two goals a night simply not enough.
MSU will hit the road for the remainder of the month, starting with a trip to Penn State this weekend. MSU swept the Nittany Lions in January, but Penn State is coming off its first Big Ten win against No. 10 Michigan on Saturday. MSU is winless on the road this year, with a record of 0-7-2.
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