Lighting the Lamp
By Alyssa Girardi
Last updated: 11/20/12 3:16pm
With Thanksgiving only a few days away, the MSU hockey program has received a bye week before resuming play next week against Ohio State.
As now is a time for everyone to reflect on what they’re thankful for, here’s a few things Tom Anastos should be thankful for 12 games into the season:
1. Matt Berry: It goes without saying this sophomore forward has emerged as a powerhouse not only within the Spartan hockey program, but the CCHA. Berry leads the team with 35 shots on goal and seven goals. He also sits tied for third in the CCHA in point scoring, second in goal scoring, first in power play points, tied for first in power play goals and tied for first in game-winning goals. With three goals in a game against Michigan, the only thing Anastos should be upset about is that he doesn’t have five Matt Berrys on his roster.
2. November 10, 2012: After losing 5-2 to Michigan in Ann Arbor the night before, November 10 was a strong point in MSU’s wins thus far. The Spartans returned to East Lansing to fight the Wolverines to a 7-2 win in front of a record-breaking crowd at Munn Ice Arena. Things visibly clicked for MSU that night, proving that unlimited amounts of potential lie within this year’s squad.
3. Jake Hildebrand and Will Yanakeff: These two goaltenders have proven interchangeable for Anastos and the coaching staff. Earlier in the season, freshman Hildebrand said he came in with the intention to compete with Yanakeff, a junior, for playing time. To this point in the season, Yanakeff has played in seven games and Hildebrand has played in six. Hildebrand has a .941 save percentage compared to Yanakeff’s .879. Both netminders have proven valuable to the program, and Anastos is lucky to have these two great options.
4. Solid recruiting: With 12 new players on this year’s roster, a few have taken no time to start standing out. Forward Matt DeBlouw will continue to be a force to be reckoned with in his years to come at MSU, as he already has 11 points and has made a big impact in key games this year. John Draeger has been a consistent rock for the defense, and forward Michael Ferrantino has shown immense talent and untapped potential.
By Alyssa Girardi
Last updated: 11/15/12 1:40pm
A total of three incoming fall 2013 MSU hockey players have been announced following a release from the MSU Athletic Department.
Joe Cox of Chelsea, Mich., and JT Stenglein of Greece, NY will join Mackenzie MacEachern of Troy, Mich., to join the icers next season.
All three players currently play in the USHL, Cox with the Muskegon Lumberjacks — MacEachern with the Chicago Steel and Stenglein with the Youngstown Phantoms.
Cox is a five-foot-eleven forward with a 3-8-11 scoring line through 15 games with Muskegon. He played with Team USA in the summers of 2010 and 2011, and captained the team at the Ivan Hlinka Tournament.
MacEachern is a six-foot-two forward who was drafted in the third round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by the St. Louis Blues. Through nine games in Chicago, MacEachern is 3 with three goals and six assists. He has a Division 2 State Championship with Brother Rice High School.
Stenglein, a six-foot forward, nabbed a goal medal with the U.S. Junior Select Team on Nov. 10., at the World Junior A Challenge.
By Alyssa Girardi
Last updated: 11/14/12 9:14pm
Now that the MSU hockey team is 10 games into the regular season, here’s a look at some facts and figures from where the team was at this point last year, which was head coach Tom Anastos’ first season, compared to this point during his sophomore campaign:
Record:
2012-13: 4-5-1
2011-12: 6-4-0
Goals scored:
2012-13: 28
2011-12: 34
Goals against:
2012-13: 31
2011-12: 25
Assists:
2012-13: 51
2011-12: 60
Shots on goal:
2012-13: 282
2011-12: 278
Plus-minus rating:
2012-13: -7
2011-12: 38
Lake Superior State series:
2012-13: 1-1
2011-12: 0-2
By Alyssa Girardi
Last updated: 10/25/12 7:01pm
As the MSU men’s hockey team heads up north this weekend for a series against Lake Superior State, it has more on its schedule than just hockey games.
Head coach Tom Anastos and the Spartans hosted a “Meet the Spartans” event in the Ralph G. Cantile Arena in Cheboygan, Mich., Thursday night for its fans in the area.
Fans were able to watch the team practice for LSSU, then meet the coaching staff, players and Sparty for autographs and pictures on the ice.
MSU also held a “Meet the Spartans” event at Munn Ice Arena earlier in the year, which acts as a community outreach event for students and area fans.
By Alyssa Girardi
Last updated: 10/24/12 11:12pm
Senior forward Kevin Walrod missed last weekend’s second game against Niagara with an illness, and head coach Tom Anastos said on Tuesday he’s unsure if Walrod will travel with the team to Lake Superior State this weekend.
Anastos said at his press conference Tuesday that Walrod has a flu bug or “something like that,” and he was feeling better Tuesday than he was Monday.
He also added that Walrod tried to play sick on Friday night’s game.
He said they’re taking the roster day by day, and he will make his roster decision either Wednesday night or Thursday morning.
Anastos said Walrod being out Saturday made his lineups a little more challenging — a dynamic the coaches have been working with all season.
MSU will head to Lake Superior State for a two-game series on Friday
and Saturday
By Alyssa Girardi
Last updated: 10/07/12 8:43pm
With the start of the MSU hockey season comes multiple CCHA rule changes. The changes were made by the CCHA committee during the summer months, and here is a list of some of the most prominent changes with large effects on the college game.
1. The referee is able to award a goal if a goal post is displaced, either on purpose or by accident, by the defending team prior to the puck crossing the goal line. The puck must be shot prior to the net dislodgement. A net is considered dislodged if either or both goal pegs are removed from their holes in the ice.
According to the 2012 NCAA Ice Hockey Rules Committee 2012 annual meeting report: “The committee believes the current rule is too stringent in this area and that there are numerous examples where goals are disallowed by rule that the committee believes should count. This will eliminate a significant advantage being gained by the defensive team.”
2. Four-on-four play is allowed in the five-minute overtime. A shootout also can be used by conference rule or if both teams agree. If the two parties can’t come to an agreement, five-on-five is the default play.
Rationale, according to the 2012 NCAA Ice Hockey Rules Committee 2012 annual meeting report: “Consensus was not reached with regard to mandating four-on-four play during the overtime period, but there was support for making this style of play, which is currently used in the National Hockey League, as a legal option.”
3. It is no longer legal to make a hand pass in any zone. If a hand pass is made in the defensive zone, a change of players on the ice isn’t allowed by the offensive team.
According to the 2012 NCAA Ice Hockey Rules Committee 2012 annual meeting report: “Similar to other rules that provide the defense with a potential advantage, the committee believes curbing such action by not allowing a change of players will have a position impact.”
4. A puck that deflects off an offensive player’s skate is considered a goal as long as there is no evident kicking motion. If a player kicks a puck that is deflected off another player into the net, it will not be allowed. If a puck is kicked and deflects off a stick, excluding the goaltender’s, it is a goal.
Rationale, according to the 2012 NCAA Ice Hockey Rules Committee 2012 annual meeting report: “This rules change brings the college game in line with the NHL rules in this area and makes this rule much easier for players, coaches and officials to understand and administer.”
By Alyssa Girardi
Last updated: 10/01/12 6:14pm
The Central Collegiate Hockey Association, or CCHA, announced 50 CCHA games and five postseason games will be broadcasted. MSU men’s hockey is set to appear on television 25 times during its 2012-13 season.
Fourteen of MSU’s regular-season home games, plus two exhibition games, will be televised.
Games will appear on five different networks: Comcast Television, FOX Sports Detroit, CBS Sports Network, Big Ten Network and NBC Sports.
The MSU hockey program also finalized game times for home contests, and they can be viewed at msuspartans.com
By Alyssa Girardi
Last updated: 09/26/12 4:51pm
MSU hockey’s student section has been renamed from Slapshots to “The A-Team.”
The new name was chosen after submissions were made to the MSU athletic department, MSU head coach Tom Anastos and the Student Alumni Foundation, or SAF.
Students who purchase season tickets receive entry to home games and an A-Team t-shirt, which students will receive from MSU hockey players at a member only event, among other exclusive events.
The 2012-13 hockey season will kickoff Oct. 8 in a home exhibition game against Windsor at 7 p.m.
By Alyssa Girardi
Last updated: 09/16/12 9:56pm
For the fourth time since 1992, the National Hockey League has gone into a lockout.
The dispute between NHL owners and the players union, or NHLPA, rests solely on money disagreements. Under the former league labor contract, which lasted seven years, players received 57 percent of hockey-related revenue. Owners are trying to bring that number as low as 47 percent.
The two parties were unable to reach an agreement before the contract expired on midnight Saturday.
Preseason games and training camps cancellation is likely set to occur, and multiple players already have announced their transfers to European teams, especially Russia’s KHL. KHL teams can sign up to three NHL players about their team’s 25-player limit, according to a Yahoo! Sports report.
Some NHL teams have sent some younger players down to their AHL programs as well.
There has been no talk to resume negotiations between owners and the NHLPA, and there is no saying how long the lockout will last.
The league was locked out for the entire season in 2004-05; there’s no knowing whether or not this season will be a repeat of awful time for hockey fans.
Former MSU hockey players and current NHL’ers include Justin Abdelkader, David Booth, Adam Hall, Shawn Horcoff, Duncan Keith, Torey Krug, John-Michael Liles, Drew Miller, Ryan Miller, Jeff Petry, Corey Potter, Jim Slater, Corey Tropp and Mike Weaver.
By Alyssa Girardi
Last updated: 09/11/12 5:57pm
The MSU hockey team took the ice Tuesday at Munn Ice Arena for a friendly scrimmage as part of captain’s practices. Members of the hockey team were calling it “Michigan vs. the World” on Twitter, as players jokingly bantered back and forth about the scrimmage.
Sophomore forward Brent Darnell tweeted “Michigan v.s. World today at 3 pm at Munn. Take no prisoners. Look out KevinWalrod” and senior forward Kevin Walrod promptly responded with “Brent_Darnell You clearly don’t listen to team meetings. No tweeting about the opponent.”
The scrimmage was open for spectator viewing. The season will begin Oct. 8 with a home game against Windsor.
