You don’t have to go to an Ivy League school to figure out you can’t win a hockey game without scoring a goal.
And that was one feat Yale couldn’t accomplish in its series against MSU at Munn Ice Arena this weekend.
MSU senior goaltender Joe Blackburn blanked the Bulldogs 5-0 on Friday night and sophomore goaltender Ryan Miller earned a 4-0 shutout Saturday as MSU extended its unbeaten streak to 18 (15-0-3).
Yale (6-8-0) outshot the top-ranked Spartans (16-1-4 overall, 9-1-3 CCHA) both games, but Blackburn made 31 saves and Miller turned away 36 shots to earn the wins. Miller’s 12th career shutout tied Chad Alban’s school record set in 1998.
Friday’s start was the first of the year for Blackburn, who earned the fifth shutout of his career.
“On paper, we made it look easy, but I don’t think the score was a good indication of either game,” MSU head coach Ron Mason said. “Joey made some great stops last night and Ryan made three or four stops at crucial times tonight that most goalies would’ve let up.
“But that’s how you get shutouts is good goaltending.”
Junior right wing Adam Hall scored his 10th goal of the year Friday and his 11th on Saturday, becoming the first Spartan with a double-digit goal total this season.
Both of Hall’s goals came with a man-advantage, as MSU torched the Bulldogs for five power play goals in 11 chances for the weekend.
In Saturday’s game, senior left wing Damon Whitten made a living in front of the Bulldog net, tipping two Brad Fast point shots past Yale goaltender Dan Lombard. He was listed as questionable for the game after suffering a thigh bruise in Friday’s contest.
“I was planning on going to the hospital and watching the game with my dad,” Whitten said. “After last night, (MSU trainer) Dave Carrier thought there was no way I could go (Saturday), but we treated it real aggressively and I felt I could give it a shot after the skate.”
The goals were Whitten’s eighth and ninth of the season, good for second place on the team.
Junior defenseman Andrew Hutchinson also kept up his torrid scoring pace, tallying a goal and an assist this weekend after scoring his first two goals of the season last week at the Great Lakes Invitational.
Hutchinson was one of four Spartans named to the All-GLI first team after MSU won its fourth straight GLI championship, beating Michigan Tech 3-2 in overtime.
MSU completes its first unbeaten non-conference season in three years with the weekend sweep of Yale. The Spartans took care of non-CCHA foes at a 7-0-1 clip, including wins over nationally-ranked Boston College, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
The only blemish was a 1-1 tie with Merrimack at the Johnson Nissan Classic on Oct. 14.
The Spartans, who lead Western Michigan by one point in league play, can now focus exclusively on winning their first CCHA regular season title since the 1998-99 season.
They travel to Saulte Ste. Marie this weekend for a two-game series against Lake Superior State.
“It’s really important for us to be league champs,” Miller said. “That’s first on our list right now. We don’t want to get too content and too happy with being in first place. I want it to be a close league race because that will keep us playing our best hockey.”
