If junior goaltender Ryan Miller leaves school early - and that’s still an “if” at this point - Spartan fans probably will be a little worried about MSU’s last line of defense next season.
After all, Miller has been the epitome of excellence and durability in his three-year MSU career. He is the current holder of the Hobey Baker Award and he’s expected to earn his second-straight All-America honor later this week.
He’s simply been the best goalie in the nation the past two seasons - and he’s only sat out of three games during that stretch, so his backups are pretty unknown.
Meet Matt Migliaccio, the 6-foot-1, 203-pounder who just wrapped up his freshman campaign and could be Miller’s heir apparent.
Miller’s monopoly of the goaltender position relegated Migliaccio to spot duty this season. When he played, Migliaccio faced 20 shots and stopped 18 of them. But Spartan fans want more evidence to answer the most important question: Can Migliaccio step in if he has to?
“I’m very confident in his capability,” said Joe Blackburn, MSU’s volunteer goalie coach. “I think he’ll do fine.”
Migliaccio, a Wyandotte native, only got to start one game this season, and that was against small-time Quinnipiac on Jan. 5. He helped MSU win the game, 3-1, by stopping 11 Quinnipiac shots after allowing a nerve-induced goal early in the contest.
Migliaccio also saw action in the third period of a loss to Nebraska-Omaha on Oct. 27 and the third period of a win over UMass-Amherst on Nov. 9 - both times in relief of Miller.
“I would have liked to get more game experience, but that was coach’s decision,” Migliaccio said last month. “I think practice has gotten me ready for next year and hopefully I can work on some things this summer with Ryan and get prepared for next year.”
Miller sympathizes with Migliaccio because he knows the difficulties limited playing time can pose to a goalie.
“You can’t substitute game experience,” Miller said. “It (was) kind of a tough situation because, as his friend, I want him to play. But as the starting goalie here, it’s my job and I feel better if I’m playing every night, every weekend.
“This year, he’s been working hard and, no offense to him or anything, but it’s my job and that’s how it works. Next year, he’ll improve even more - he’ll probably get some game experience next year.”
Like Miller, Migliaccio has good size for a goalie. He isn’t as positionally sound or consistent as Miller - few collegiate netminders are - but Blackburn said Migliaccio could bring a different facet to MSU’s game plan.
“He can shoot the puck a little better, and he might add a dimension to our game as far as shooting the puck out on the penalty kill,” said Blackburn, who was an All-American goalie for MSU in 1999. “He doesn’t play like Ryan Miller, he’s going to give up a few more rebounds, but he’s a little stronger than Ryan.
“When he got here in the fall, I think he was a little out of control at times but he’s toned that down and he’s staying a lot more compact. By the time next fall rolls around, he should be pretty well acclimated to the college game.”
A spokesman for the Buffalo Sabres, who own Miller’s draft rights, said earlier this month the organization won’t consider signing Miller until its season ends. Still, even if Miller leaves, Migliaccio isn’t a shoo-in for the starting job next season. He will be the only returning goalie on the roster, but the Spartans are excited about the abilities of incoming recruit Justin Tobe.
The brewing battle between Migliaccio and Tobe is tough to gauge at this point because MSU coaches can’t comment on Tobe until he signs a National Letter of Intent with MSU. But Migliaccio seems to have the advantage because of the year spent observing and learning from Miller.
“His improvement’s been dramatic,” retiring MSU head coach Ron Mason said. “He’s had some major league practices here - really unbelievable. Had he been at the start of the year how he is now, I would have played him in more games probably.”
The key word for Migliaccio all season has been “improvement.” He was a raw talent coming out of juniors and he just recently has started to polish his skills to the point of being a capable replacement if Miller leaves early.
But if Miller comes back, next year might be another long season of watching from the bench.
“It’s been unreal with so much I’ve learned this year,” said Migliaccio, who played for the Bozeman Icedogs of the America West Hockey League before coming to MSU. “If I stayed in Bozeman for another year, I would have played all the games, but I wouldn’t have learned even close to as much as I learned here.
“I’ve learned a ton, from controlling rebounds to moving laterally across the net. I’m going to have some big shoes to fill, but I’m going to be Matt Migliaccio and not try to be Ryan Miller and just play my game.”
