The MSU hockey team received its Halloween treats early this year with an undefeated October. Now MSU (2-0-1 overall, 0-0-1 CCHA) is looking for an even bigger treat when the team plays No. 2 Cornell in a two-game series this weekend.
Cornell (0-0-0) captured both the Ivy League and ECAC Hockey League titles last season.
Even though Cornell has a highly regarded team and has one of the best goaltenders in the country, the team hasn't played a game yet this season because of midterms.
The Spartans swept Cornell last year in a two-game series.
Junior forward Drew Miller said having a couple of games under their belt helps.
"I think it's an advantage for us," Miller said. "We had a chance to look at other teams and kind of get the feel for our team as a whole.
"But we can't look at them like we're just going to beat them this weekend because of that. They're a good team."
Last weekend, the Spartans ended a strong game against No. 1 Michigan in a tie. The Spartans are now ranked No. 10 in the country.
Each game, however, it appears the Spartans bench is shrinking. Five players are currently on the injured list, including freshman forward Tim Kennedy, who broke his right hand during Tuesday's exhibition game.
This was what MSU head coach Rick Comley said he feared most.
"We've got some keys players that are hurt," Comley said. "We all want to see Brandon Gentile, who you haven't seen play. (Nick) Sucharski has a very bright future and David Booth is critical to us.
"Now Kennedy, wow."
Another concern is the team power play. Miller said the power play is what the team has been working on in practice and will be focusing more on in upcoming games.
"We need our power play to get going and we got a couple goals" against the U.S. Under-18 Team on Tuesday, Miller said.
"That's a positive we're going to take into Cornell."
Leading Cornell is goaltender David McKee, who last year had an impressive .947 save percentage and was also a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award. Comley is very familiar with McKee's style of play.
"They're a pretty good defensive team and probably the best goalie we will see all year. So we've got to play well," he said. "It will be a real good test for us."
Going into Lynah Rink this weekend, Comley said he is not concerned about his team being up to the challenge.
"We're going into a really tough weekend and playing against a big strong team," he said. "We will handle the atmosphere, I'm not worried about that."
