Icers, Wolverines to renew hotly contested rivalry this weekend

The MSU hockey team fared well against top-ranked Michigan the last time the two teams battled, robbing the No. 1 Wolverines of three points. The squads meet again today after playing twice earlier in the season, which included a Spartans shutout in Ann Arbor and a tie at Munn Ice Arena.

On Saturday, the No. 6 Spartans are heading to Hockeytown — home of the Detroit Red Wings — as Joe Louis Arena will host the state’s most recognized college rivalry. The last time MSU skated on the Red Wings’ ice sheet, the Spartans finished fourth in the Great Lakes Invitational.

Although the last visit might have left a bad taste in the mouths of the defending national champions, it doesn’t affect this series, MSU head coach Rick Comley said.

“It’s always fun to play there,” Comley said. “The more times we play there the better. It’s a very positive game. The only thing I don’t like about what we do is one team gets an odd number of home games.

“Whatever’s good for the league and for college hockey is the right thing to do.”

This year, the Spartans play two home games against U-M while the Wolverines have already blown their one and only home game against MSU.

Junior goaltender Jeff Lerg enjoys playing in Detroit because of the building’s energy.

“But first thing is playing Friday night at home in front of our home crowd,” Lerg said. “We haven’t won here yet, and we’ve got to take care of business. We’ve got to control this weekend. They’re going to be more prepared than they were last time against us.”

But as U-M’s Chad Kolarik sits out with a hamstring injury, the Wolverines’ offense could be damaged, although Comley said it should not affect the series too much. Kolarik is the team’s second leading scorer with 24 goals on the season and could be out for four to five weeks.

“It’s always going to come down to (goaltending), especially with them and the offense they bring,” Lerg said. “I know that didn’t show on the score sheet last time, but they’re a dangerous team. Give them a little bit of a chance … and they can be real dangerous. We’ve got to find more pucks in the net.

Friday’s game also serves as U-M head coach Red Berenson’s 1,000th game behind the bench.

“If you can be around for a thousand in this day and age, you stand the test of time,” Comley said.

The puck drops on Friday at 8:05 p.m. while Saturday’s game will begin at 7:05 p.m.

Published on Thursday, February 21, 2008