Well, things didn’t work out.

The Spartans looked like they might do it. They looked like they might be able to win MSU’s first national championship since 1986.

But then it came to a crashing halt in Albany, N.Y., with a 2-0 loss to North Dakota.

And Spartan fans have another long summer in front of them waiting for next fall’s Green and White game, which officially gets the hockey season under way.

Before you close the book on this year’s team, here’s a look back at the highlights and lowlights of 2000-01, the year that almost was.

Best moment

Clearly have to give it to standout sophomore goaltender Ryan Miller for breaking the 70-year-old NCAA career shutouts record Feb. 10.

Miller withstood enormous media attention and fan pressure to record his 17th career shutout against Fairbanks, and he did all of this in only a year and a half.

Biggest win

A 4-2 drilling of U-M at Joe Louis Arena on Feb. 17.

Having gone 3-3-0 in its past six games, MSU clung to a slim three-point lead over the Wolverines in the league race. A loss would’ve sliced their league lead to one point, but MSU’s win expanded the margin to five points with three games to go, all but wrapping up the CCHA regular-season title.

Most embarrassing loss

I know it was exhibition, but how about the 6-4 loss to the under-18 U.S. National Development Team on Oct. 3?

The rusty Spartans lost to a bunch of game-ready 17-year-olds and didn’t look very good doing it.

Biggest distraction

The Jeremy Jackson fiasco in mid-January and early February.

The freshman center eventually was dismissed from the team for missing team functions after a month’s worth of suspensions from MSU head coach Ron Mason.

Prettiest goal

Senior right wing John Nail’s overtime game-winner in the GLI championship game against Michigan Tech on Dec. 30.

Nail picked up a turnover at the Huskie blue line, chipped the puck over defenseman Greg Amadio’s stick, beat the defenseman outside and slid a shot past sprawling goaltender Brian Rogers, giving MSU its fourth-straight GLI crown.

Best check

Sophomore right wing Kris Koski on Mike Beether in the Green and White game Sept. 30.

Koski sent Beether airborne with a crushing hit behind the net during the supposedly friendly intrasquad game.

I’m not actually sure it was the best check, but it was interesting.

Prettiest save

This isn’t fair. How can you pick one save when Miller has been brilliant all season? Not to mention he has made so many would-be tough saves look easy.

But the one that stands out was against Lake Superior State on Jan. 23 when he made a diving save with the inside of his paddle on Laker center Myles Kuharski alone in the slot.

Nicest pass

Sophomore defenseman Brad Fast to sophomore left wing Brian Maloney on March 10.

Fast fired a tape-to-tape strike from the middle of his own defensive zone all the way to Maloney streaking through Fairbanks’ blue line.

And what’s better is that Maloney scored on the play.

Best comeback

Against Lake Superior State on Jan. 14. Down 1-0, MSU scored with five seconds left to tie the game and then scored with 20 seconds left in overtime for the win.

James Jahnke, State News hockey reporter, thinks he wrote the best story of the hockey season. Bring him back down to earth at jahnkeja@msu.edu.