Freshman left wing David Booth did his best to shake the rust out of the Spartans on Friday night, but 13th-ranked MSU still succumbed to heavy underdog Niagara, 2-1, at Munn Ice Arena.
Booth scored 41 seconds into Friday’s game, but that was all MSU (4-3-0 overall, 3-1-0 CCHA) could muster for the entire night. Niagara (4-7-0) scored once late in the second and again late in the third to seal the victory.
Purple Eagle goaltender Rob Bonk stopped 25 shots in the win. His counterpart, Spartan sophomore goalie Matt Migliaccio, made 24 saves.
Friday’s game was MSU’s first action since beating Lake Superior State on Oct. 25. The Spartans and Purple Eagles will have a rematch at 7:05 p.m. Saturday at Munn.
Niagara center Barret Ehgoetz notched the game-winner with 5:29 to play after a defensive-zone turnover by sophomore defenseman Duncan Keith.
Purple Eagle star right wing Joe Tallari took the puck from Keith and fed Ehgoetz, who streaked unabated to the net.
Ehgoetz silenced the Munn crowd of 6,496 by beating Migliaccio over his left shoulder to give the Purple Eagles a 2-1 lead they didn’t relinquish.
Niagara seemed to gain confidence as the game went on and, by the end, the Purple Eagles were thoroughly outplaying the Spartans.
On MSU’s only goal, senior defenseman John-Michael Liles started the play with a sharp slap shot from the top of the left circle that Bonk couldn’t handle cleanly. The rebound plopped down in front of the crease, where Booth easily batted it into the open net for his second collegiate goal.
His first tally was an empty-netter at Northern Michigan on Oct. 19.
After the gaining the quick lead, the Spartans continued to carry the pace of play through the first period, but they couldn’t register another goal.
Sophomore forward Ash Goldie set an unofficial record for misfiring on scoring opportunities, missing the net at least twice and being robbed by Bonk two other times.
Senior defenseman Brad Fast also had a chance to score when Bonk was out of position following a collision. But Fast’s shot from the boards hit the far post and trickled away. The second period featured even more missed chances by MSU and Niagara’s first goal.
Fast almost scored 6:30 into the middle frame, but after he faked Bonk to his knees and went around him, Purple Eagle defenseman Shayne Baylis was in the crease behind Bonk to keep out Fast’s shot.
Niagara finally knotted the game when Tallari wristed a shot past Migliaccio’s glove on a power play at 16:17 of the second. The goal was Tallari’s 12th of the season.
The Spartans went 0-for-6 on the power play Friday
