Weekends generally aren’t very relaxing for the fourth-ranked Spartans, who usually face a challenging two-game weekend series.
But MSU (6-2-1 overall, 5-2-1 CCHA) eased to a 6-1 win over UMass-Amherst on Friday at Munn Ice Arena and kept things light for the rest of the weekend.
The Spartans held a moderate practice Saturday after defeating their first nonconference foe of the season and then observed their traditional off-day Sunday.
“I like it,” senior left wing Joe Goodenow said. “It’s nice to have kind of a break and not to get pounded on so much.”
The Minutemen (3-4) and their lackadaisical defense posed little threat to the Spartans, who were paced by a hat trick from senior right wing Adam Hall on Friday.
Hall tallied two power play goals less than eight minutes into the game and junior goaltender Ryan Miller and freshman netminder Matt Migliaccio combined to stop 28 of 29 UMass shots as MSU extended its home unbeaten streak to 23 games (21-0-2).
“I thought we played pretty darn well,” MSU head coach Ron Mason said. “The first period, we controlled the whole tempo of the game, our power play was clicking, we had great opportunities to score and (we) put up some numbers.
“We got the puck in deep, we took some hits, made some plays along the wall, got the puck to the front of the net and, on their mistakes, we scored.”
The mistakes Mason was referring to were mostly made by the UMass defense. The Minutemen were suspect in their own zone most of the game, which helped MSU post six goals for the third time this season.
On an MSU power play 7:28 into the game, Hall was so alone in front of the UMass net that he had time to corral a pass from junior left wing Brian Maloney, drag the puck back and forth several times and pick an opening between UMass goaltender Mike Johnson’s legs for his second goal of the game.
“I really don’t know (how we got so open),” junior defenseman John-Michael Liles said. “We were pressuring them down low, and I think that was causing a little havoc on their part for their defenseman as well as their forwards. Our forwards did a good job of cycling the puck.”
About seven minutes after Hall’s second goal, junior defenseman Brad Fast gathered the puck at the offensive blue line and skated unimpeded to the front of the UMass crease where he, too, had enough time to decide where he wanted to beat Johnson. His third goal of the season made it 3-0.
Freshman left wing Brock Radunske and Liles also scored for MSU.
“We got possession below the goal line and, for one reason or another, they got caught out of position and we made them pay for it,” Mason said. “They had a lack of coverage down low.
“It makes you appreciate how good we are in our zone - that doesn’t happen very often to us.”
Aside from a first-period UMass power play during which MSU never cleared the zone, the Spartans kept UMass’ league-worst offense from generating many quality scoring chances.
Miller was closing in on his 22nd career shutout, but with 10:41 to play, a collision behind the MSU net slowed him as he tried to get back to his crease. Minuteman center Thomas P
