For the second weekend in a row, MSU hockey (10-11-2 overall, 4-3-2-2 Big Ten) will face No. 14 U-M (15-8 overall, 7-2 Big Ten) in a historic venue. After last weekend’s 2-1 win over U-M last weekend, the Spartans will face the Wolverines for an outdoor game at Soldier Field in Chicago on Saturday night as part of the Hockey City Classic. The Spartans are currently tied with Penn State for second place in the Big Ten with 16 points, while U-M leads the conference with 21 points.
“Now, we prepare for a game outdoors which is a fun experience,” head coach Tom Anastos said. “But it’s an important game. It’s an important three points. And I guess you can prepare to the extent that you can, and what the elements bring you just deal with when the time comes.”
The in-state rivals are no strangers to outdoor venues, having played three previous games in the blistering winters of Michigan. However, this weekend will mark only the second time the Spartans and Wolverines have played outside the state of Michigan — the other taking place in Milwaukee in 1968.
“We don’t want to do any one that passes by, we want to make sure they’re special,” Anastos said of playing in outdoor games. “What made this attractive was the city – it’s in Chicago, a great hockey city. It’s in an iconic building — in Soldier Field. Michigan State has a huge alumni base in the Chicago-land area.
“It’s not something that we would probably do every year, but it’d be nice if we had the opportunity to do it at least through the cycle for each player that comes through here.”
Several Spartan players had the opportunity to experience playing at Comerica Park last year. Junior goaltender Jake Hildebrand remembers the experience well. Even though Hildebrand registered a shutout in one of the games, he knows how unpredictable playing in those conditions can be.
“You don’t know what kind of bounces you’re going to get, so as a goaltender you’ve got to play things cautiously,” Hildebrand said.
For MSU’s freshmen, Saturday will be a new experience that they will remember for the rest of their lives. Having played two games against the Wolverines this season, freshman defenseman Josh Jacobs understands the passion and history that will be showcased in Chicago this weekend.
“I actually have never played in an outdoors game,” Jacobs said. “It’s definitely going to be one of the most exciting (games I’ve played in). We’re playing against Michigan — probably the best college hockey rivalry in the game for so long . ... Coming here and seeing the rivalry between us and Michigan, it’s definitely a hard fought battle. We hate each other.”
A similar sentiment is sure to be brewing in the parking lots of Soldier Field leading up to the rivalry game. Nevertheless, MSU knows it can’t afford to let the emotions of the rivalry or the hysteria of the event to get in the way of its goal.
“The game, the game, the game. That’s our focus,” Anastos said. “I want guys to enjoy the experience, but I want them to also recognize the real reason we’re going there isn’t to play a hockey game outside, it’s to play a conference game worth three points.”
