COLUMBUS, Ohio - If you ask MSU head coach Ron Mason what the key factors have been to his top-ranked Spartans’ success this year, he’ll tell you it’s rock-solid defense and phenomenal goaltending.
But it was MSU’s unappreciated offense that skated circles around the baffled Ohio State Buckeyes this weekend in Columbus.
The Spartans tallied 12 goals in the two-game series - a total the team probably would be happy with during a normal four-game stretch.
“There’s been different ways we’ve scored all year,” Mason said Saturday. “It’s been scoring by committee and it hasn’t changed for us. We get different guys scoring goals every game.
“Obviously we scored more tonight than we usually do, but we developed some pretty good chances. If you get goals, it makes the mood a lot happier because different people are having success.”
Not only did MSU score often this weekend, but it received contributions from just about everybody, as 14 out of the 18 Spartan skaters tallied at least one point against Ohio State
The balanced attack against Ohio State was a microcosm of MSU’s season.
This year’s Spartans don’t have any star players like Mike York or Shawn Horcoff, former MSU centers who could single-handedly create scoring opportunities.
York led MSU with 22 goals and 32 assists during his senior campaign in 1998-99 and Horcoff scored 14 goals and had 51 assists as a senior last season. Both are now playing in the NHL.
“Sometimes it’s nice to have a Mike Yorkor a Shawn Horcoff, so when you really need something, you can count on that guy to get it going,” senior left wing Damon Whittensaid. “It hasn’t been like that this year - we’ve had a lot of different guys step up and it’s worked for us so far.”
MSU’s leading goal-scorer this year is senior right wing John Nail, whose previous career-high goal total was five last season. After tallying in each game this weekend, Nail has 18 goals this season.
Nail is one of five Spartans who have double-digit goal totals this season, along with junior right wing Adam Hall(16), Whitten (12), senior right wing Rustyn Dolyny(11) and sophomore left wing Brian Maloney (11).
But only Nail, who’s in a three-way tie for ninth, is among top-10 goal scorers in the conference.
“When you have one or two guys score all the goals, they get a lot of pressure put on them,” Nail said. “When you have other people contributing, it takes the pressure off, which is good.”
Hall said the balanced Spartan attack makes it tough for other teams to stop MSU.
“Our offense is so balanced that other teams can’t just focus on one or two guys,” Hall said. “They have to focus on 12 different guys - four different lines - which makes us a much more potent offense.”
Hall and his linemate Maloney, two of MSU’s most dangerous snipers, seem to be regaining their scoring touch lately, which is a good sign for the Spartans heading into the playoffs.
Combined, the duo has notched six goals in the last three games, after combining for only four goals in the previous 15 games. Maloney didn’t score at all from Dec. 9 to Feb. 17. Last year, the two combined for 38 goals.
The Spartans have only been shut out once this season, a 0-0 tie with Ferris State on Dec. 8. And while they rank fourth offensively in the CCHA, averaging 3.26 goals per game overall and 3.07 in league play, they’ve won five games this season with two goals or fewer.
Of course, it helps to have the nation’s top defense, which only surrenders 1.37 goals per game.
And Mason realizes offense is not what will bring a national championship to East Lansing.
“Consistency is in defense. Consistency is in penalty killing,” Mason said. “We have to stick with what wins games for us, which is good, solid positional play.”
