Traditionally, the Michigan hockey team is comprised of fast, skilled players, while the Spartans have a bunch of big, tough grinders.
For the most part, that's true. But in MSU's 5-3 win over the archrival Wolverines on Saturday, the Spartans proved they have a couple of talented players as well.
Senior defenseman John-Michael Liles broke a scoreless stalemate with a pair of goals early in the second period, and then he assisted on sophomore center Jim Slater's tally 2:20 into the third.
That goal was Slater's second of the weekend, as he also scored in MSU's 3-1 loss to U-M on Friday night in Ann Arbor.
The two of them provided just enough speed and play-making for the Spartans to hang with U-M and salvage a series split.
"They stepped up for us, and we needed that," senior left wing Brian Maloney said. "The big players have to play that style of game.
"We've got guys who can put the puck in the net, too, and I think they showed that this weekend."
Not only does Liles lead MSU with 35 points, he is also the second-highest-scoring defenseman in the nation. Only Colorado College's Tom Preissing, who has 38 points, is ahead of him.
Liles has at least one point in 10 of his last 11 games, amassing eight goals and 11 assists during that time.
He made a few mental mistakes both offensively and defensively Friday, but he atoned for them in Saturday's win.
He netted his second goal of the game - and 13th of the season - as he was being dragged to the ice by a Wolverine defenseman. While falling, he chipped the puck under U-M goaltender Al Montoya's glove and into the far side of the net.
"I saw the puck kind of bouncing in some skates there," Liles said. "Somebody got my stick and I'm sitting there looking at the puck and trying to get my stick out from this guy. I got barely enough on it to get it past Montoya."
Liles was also a workhorse defensively Saturday. MSU statisticians don't keep track of ice time, but he and defensive partner Brad Fast seemed to log at least 35 minutes, including during the most important situations.
"I was trying to keep it a little simpler tonight," Liles said. "And maybe join the rush a little more because they were taking me away on the power play and I wasn't getting quite as many scoring chances."
Slater has 34 points this season, leaving him one behind Liles on the MSU leader board. He has 18 points in the last 12 games, and has scored a goal in three straight.
On Friday in Ann Arbor, Fast's long lead pass sprung Slater for a breakaway, and the Lapeer native slipped a shot under Montoya to tie the game 1-1. The power-play goal also served as a psychological victory for Slater, who has converted only about 50 percent of his breakaways the past month.
Slater, arguably MSU's most talented forward, was heavily recruited by U-M, and his mix of speed and puck-handling fits the profile of a dangerous Wolverine forward. But Slater was glad to be lending his services to MSU this weekend.
"I definitely hate Michigan," Slater said. "I came here for a reason, and to beat those guys was part of it. I was just getting open, and my defensemen made some great plays and my wingers made some great plays.
"I was real jacked up, but I try to get myself pumped up for every game."
