CCHA arenas don’t get much farther away from MSU than Nebraska-Omaha’s Civic Auditorium.
But they don’t get much closer to home for Spartan hockey players Tim Hearon and Chad Hontvet.
Hearon, a junior center, and Hontvet, a freshman right wing, both played their junior hockey in the Cornhusker State. Hearon starred for the Omaha Lancers of the United States Hockey League for two seasons before signing with the Spartans.
Hontvet played three years with the USHL’s Lincoln Stars, just an hour down the road from Omaha.
Now in East Lansing, neither player had been in MSU’s lineup since the Green and White intrasquad scrimmage on Oct. 4. They were both healthy scratches from the two exhibition games and the Spartans’ season opener against Denver on Friday.
But after the Spartans sleepwalked through the Denver game - a 5-0 loss - MSU head coach Rick Comley vowed to put more speed in the lineup.
Enter the Nebraska boys.
Hearon and Hontvet played regular shifts for MSU in Saturday’s contest with Colgate.
And though neither of them got on the score sheet, just getting some ice time was a sweet homecoming.
“I thought it would be a bigger change between juniors and college, but I felt pretty good today,” Hontvet said.
“Hopefully, the coaches liked it and I can get in there more now.
“I called the people in Lincoln this afternoon to let them know, but nobody would answer. They missed out, it was just my family here tonight.”
The 20-year-old freshman is originally from Warroad, Minn., but Hontvet considers Lincoln to be his second home.
“The fans down there don’t really know much about hockey, but they like to have a good time at the games - they’re loud, good fans,” he said.
“(Hockey) is getting big there. I go to Lincoln a few times each summer just to hang out with my friends.”
Hontvet, a 6-foot-3, 219-pound invited walk-on, was the last addition to MSU’s 2002 recruiting class. Comley originally tried to lure him to Northern Michigan, but when the coach left Marquette for East Lansing, Hontvet followed suit.
Hontvet said he’s been told he can earn a hockey scholarship if he performs well this season.
Hearon, on the other hand, already has his scholarship. In fact, the 5-foot-9, 167-pounder comprises half of the team’s tiny junior class.
Hearon played 38 games as a freshman and 26 last year, with a total of nine assists and no goals. His playing time looked to be on the downturn again this season as he watched MSU’s first three games from the stands.
But on Saturday, it was his girlfriend and former host family watching him play from the Omaha crowd.
“It was fun to be part of our first win,” Hearon said. “I was a little nervous, and I started out a little slow, but once I settled down, I thought I played pretty well.”
Hearon is a Southgate, Mich., native, but he adopted Omaha as his hometown after playing for the Lancers.
His girlfriend goes to Nebraska-Omaha, and he lives and trains in the city during MSU’s offseason. His cell phone number even starts with Omaha’s 402 area code.
“It’s a big town with more of a small-town atmosphere,” Hearon said. “The people there are pretty friendly and it’s kind of a slower-paced lifestyle. It seems like everyone knows someone you know.
“A lot of my best friends play on UNO and they stay out there during the summer, so it’s a lot of fun. It’s nice to get away from here for a couple months.”
As for playing time in the future, Hearon and Hontvet are still on the bubble.
Sophomore left wing Brock Radunske (hip), freshman right wing Colton Fretter (mono) and senior right wing Kris Koski (shoulder) all missed the Colgate game. When they come back, it will make it that much harder for MSU forwards to crack the dress list.
