Minutes after the MSU hockey team completed its most dominating weekend of the season, some Spartans said they felt like they had turned the corner on their turbulent season.
In beating Alaska-Fairbanks 5-2 on Friday and 6-2 on Saturday, MSU claimed its first series sweep since taking out Lake Superior State on Oct. 24-25.
The four points earned also vaulted the Spartans (11-9-1 overall, 7-6-0 CCHA) into a tie with Western Michigan for seventh place in the CCHA race. MSU is one point behind sixth-place Notre Dame, two points behind fifth-place Northern Michigan and nine points behind first-place Ferris State.
Coincidentally, the last time MSU declared it "turned a corner" was after a game against Ferris. Following a tie against Minnesota and a win over Wisconsin on the road, the Spartans pounded the league-leading Bulldogs 6-2 in Big Rapids on Dec. 6, boosting the team's morale to a new high.
But MSU quickly reverted to its old ways, losing to Ferris the next night and then getting blown out by Boston University in the first game after a three-week vacation.
Based on such recent history, senior defenseman John-Michael Liles said the Spartans must remain focused when Nebraska-Omaha comes to town this weekend.
"Who can actually say if we've really turned the corner, you know?" said Liles, who tallied two goals and three assists against Fairbanks (8-9-3, 5-8-3). "But I think we looked very good for both games and the guys are feeling pretty good right now. We're going to have to battle for the rest of the season."
Regardless of what the future holds, this weekend's sweep rekindled fond memories of the recent past at Munn Ice Arena.
The Spartans were solid across the board - scoring the most combined goals of any series this year, getting solid goaltending from sophomore Matt Migliaccio and playing well enough defensively to hold on to leads.
"It was exactly what we needed," MSU head coach Rick Comley said. "We got a very solid effort from goaltender on out. We had a lot of guys chip in over the course of the weekend, and we need that - we need balance.
"But I still don't think we've played our best. Getting a streak going is big. We're treating every game right now like it's a playoff game. If we want to move up in the standings, we have to play with desperation."
Before Friday night's win, the Spartans were 2-6-1 in the first game of a series this season. But freshman left wing David Booth helped MSU take a step toward breaking that jinx with his first-career hat trick Friday.
Booth tallied unassisted goals in the second and third periods and then added an empty-netter to push his team-leading goal total to 12.
"It's a great feeling - unbelievable," Booth said. "Again, I think it's my linemates doing all the work. We competed hard."
Sophomore right wing Mike Lalonde scored two goals Saturday, giving him four in MSU's last three games. Sophomore forward Ash Goldie also continued a hot streak, getting a goal each night and two assists Saturday. He has at least one point in five straight contests.
"Individual success comes with team play, and our team did a good job of that this weekend," Lalonde said. "We've always felt like we were (in the league race). We were just waiting for a weekend like this to get our feet under us."
Fairbanks was 5-0-1 in its last six games and 7-1-2 in its last 10 before coming to Munn. The Nanooks haven't scored more than two goals against MSU since Jan. 2, 1998 - a span of 17 games.
"This is going to be the first time we're going to come back on a Monday in a long time with something positive to build on," Comley said.
Comley has still never lost to Fairbanks in his lifetime. He was 12-0-2 against the Nanooks while coaching Northern.
