The No. 1 Spartans have one thing on their mind heading into their CCHA semifinal game today - beating Cinderella over the head with her own glass slipper.
MSU (30-4-4) takes on No. 9-seed Bowling Green - which is two upsets away from completing its fairy tale run through the CCHA Tournament - at 5 p.m. today at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.
Just a couple of weeks ago, the Falcons (16-18-5) were still trying to claw their way into the top 10 in the league, thereby securing a spot in the CCHA playoffs. They needed a win on the very last night of the season against Ferris State, coupled with a Notre Dame tie or loss to Western Michigan, just to continue their season.
They got what they needed and now join MSU, No. 3-seed Michigan and No. 4-seed Nebraska-Omaha as the last four teams in the CCHA playoffs.
The Falcons have already swept a first-round series from No. 2-seed Miami and disposed of No. 5-seed Northern Michigan in a play-in game.
“(Bowling Green) is a big, tough team that excels at keeping the puck in the zone,” MSU sophomore goaltender Ryan Miller said. “We’re going to take them very seriously because we’re defending a title and want to prove we’re the No. 1 team in the nation going into the (NCAA) tournament.”
Bowling Green has more riding on this weekend’s games than the other three schools. If the Falcons don’t earn the automatic NCAA bid by winning the tournament, their season is over.
MSU and U-M are virtual locks for the tourney and Nebraska-Omaha is squarely on the bubble, but Bowling Green needs the automatic bid to keep playing hockey.
And that worries senior right wing John Nail.
“We know that every team we play from here on is there for a reason,” Nail said. “No one wants to lose at this point and have it end their season, especially after the teams (Bowling Green) has beaten.
“They’re not going to stop now.”
The Spartans have not played Bowling Green since early December at the BGSU Ice Arena, when MSU took three points out of northern Ohio. The teams skated to a 3-3 tie Dec. 1 before MSU was victorious 3-1 the next day.
Forwards Greg Day and Ryan Murphy have accounted for more than 40 percent of the Falcons’ goals this season. Day leads the squad with 47 points (20 goals, 27 assists), while Murphy leads with 38 points (23 goals, 15 assists).
No other Falcon has a double-digit goal total.
Goaltender Tyler Masters is the man in net for Bowling Green with a 2.54 goals against average and .920 saves percentage.
“We’re in for a tough battle,” MSU senior right wing Rustyn Dolyny said. “You never know what’s going to happen in this tournament - we just have to focus on what we do and put our best foot forward at Joe Louis.”
MSU is the tournament’s defending champion and is playing for the Mason Cup, named for Spartan head coach Ron Mason. The tournament trophy was renamed in Mason’s honor in the fall.
U-M and Nebraska-Omaha play in the second game today - slated to start about 8:30 p.m. The championship game is at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. All three games will be televised on Fox Sports Detroit.
Hobey Watch: Miller was named as one of 10 finalists for the Hobey Baker Award on Thursday.
Miller is widely considered a favorite for the award, along with Boston College forward Brian Gionta and North Dakota forwards Jeff Panzer and Bryan Lundbohm.
The winner of college hockey’s most prestigious individual trophy will be announced April 6 at the Frozen Four in Albany, N.Y.
Tickets are available by calling 355-1610, (800) GO-STATE, or (313) 396-7575 and range from $9 to $25. Student tickets are available with a valid student ID for $7.50.
