After scoring a team-leading 22 goals in the 2003-04 season, forward Mike Lalonde was expected to pick up where he left off to start his senior year at MSU.
After a slow start, Lalonde suffered a knee injury that kept him out of the lineup for the majority of December, only posting one goal at the time of his injury.
Lalonde's return to the lineup for the first game of the Great Lakes Invitational tournament against New Hampshire was well received when he scored a goal in MSU's 4-3 overtime win - and he didn't stop there.
In the six games that Lalonde has played since returning from injury, he has scored in three of them, including a huge game-winning tally last Saturday over Western Michigan.
"I definitely feel like the injury is healed," Lalonde said following Saturday's 3-1 win. "I feel very good, I feel very strong. (My knee has) gotten stronger and stronger and my attitude above it is just to continue.
"(I have to) not try to force things but just do the job I'm supposed to do and let things sort of happen from there and it's working out great. It's how I played last year and it's how I've come back in the second half."
Lalonde said he is now comfortable and confident and MSU head coach Rick Comley said he hopes Lalonde's play will become consistent as the team battles for CCHA standings down the road.
"He's starting to come alive a little bit," Comley said. "He's starting to get some luck around the net.
"(He) had seven shots on Friday, a big game-winning goal on Saturday and hopefully that's going to become consistent now."
Scouting report
Freshman forwards Bryan Lerg and Chris Mueller were listed among the top 30 college hockey players eligible for the 2005 NHL Entry Draft according to the NHL Central Scouting Report released earlier this season.
But there might not be a 2005 draft if there is no NHL season, which looks almost certain at this point in the year because of the current lockout.
Three other players who have committed to play for MSU in future years also are among the list. Forwards Justin Abdelkader and Tim Crowder are among the future Spartans on the list along with defenseman Brandon Gentile. Abdelkader checks in at No. 29, while Crowder comes in at No. 143, and Gentile at No. 197.
Career milestone
Comley said he doesn't want to think about where his teamwould be without senior captain Jim Slater.
"I appreciate so much his sacrifice in coming back and what he means to this team," Comley said of the senior, who, with an empty-net goal Saturday against Western Michigan was able to hit 150 career points as a Spartan.
The Lapeer, Mich., native has appeared in 140 games with MSU and boasts 58 goals and 92 assists, with 10 goals and 16 assists coming this season.
Although it hasn't been the numbers everyone hoped for from the Hobey Baker candidate so far this season, Comley said Slater's presence is invaluable. He was one of 10 finalists for college hockey's top honor last year.
"I think he's been impacted by our inability to surround him with guys who have been productive," Comley said. "But he's been great."
Slater needs only eight more points to break into the top 30 on MSU's all-time scoring list.
Looking ahead
Comley said the goal for the Spartans (12-11-1 overall, 7-9-0 CCHA) is to win three out of every four games the remainder of the season.
After splitting with Western Michigan last weekend, MSU is faced with two must-win games this weekend when the Spartans welcome Lake Superior (7-12-3, 6-6-2) for a two-game series at Munn Ice Arena.
Comley will coach against one of his former teams this weekend.
His coaching career began as an assistant coach at Lake Superior, and he also was a four-year letter winner from 1967-71 at the university when he was a pupil of current MSU athletics director Ron Mason.
MSU is currently tied with the Lakers in the CCHA standings at 14 points and will be battling for all-important CCHA implications this weekend.
Clutch
Junior forward Colton Fretter leads the CCHA in game-winning goals with four. He also leads the team in scoring with 28 points (14 goals, 14 assists), which is fifth-best in the conference. Fretter has 13 points in the past nine games.
