After splitting a road series against Nebraska-Omaha last weekend, the No. 16 Spartans are back on home ice tonight against another run-and-gun, up-tempo team in Ferris State.
"They skate very well. They're a very underrated team," MSU head coach Rick Comley said. "Ferris really gets up and down — they have an excellent transition game. They're just a lot better than people want to give them credit for."
Both the Spartans (14-9-5 overall, 8-6-4 CCHA) and Bulldogs are in a condensed stretch where they play six games in 12 days. Ferris State and MSU skated to a 2-2 tie earlier this season when the Spartans were in a similar schedule stretch.
"We had the exact same stretch earlier in the year, and we didn't do very well in it," senior forward Colton Fretter said. "This year, I think we're, I guess, used to playing three games a week because we've done it before, and people are just aware of taking care of themselves better."
On top of that, the CCHA third-place Spartans, with the exception of sophomore defenseman Jeff Dunne (shoulder), are completely healthy.
In the Nov. 8 draw, MSU was without senior forward David Booth, sophomore forward Chris Mueller and freshman forwards Nick Sucharski and Tim Kennedy because of injuries and illness.
"Not only have we been through it mentally, but we're much better off physically because we have almost everyone," Comley said. "It's grueling for sure, but it is what it is and you have to find a way to deal with it. We're playing well, and I think we've taken a big step as a team."
Even with a healthy lineup, the Spartans won't have an easy task Tuesday. Ferris State (11-8-6, 6-6-5) forwards Greg Rallo, Mark Bomersback and Dan Riedel are the top three points leaders for the Bulldogs.
"They definitely pressured the defense pretty hard; they forechecked pretty hard," sophomore defenseman Daniel Vukovic said. "I just remember that they were going. It wasn't really a sit back game — there were chances on both ends."
Between the pipes for the Bulldogs, Mitch O'Keefe has won eight games while posting a 2.65 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage.
The Spartans will face off against Ferris State at 7:05 p.m.
Goalie of the Week
Freshman goaltender Jeff Lerg picked up CCHA Goaltender of the Week honors this past weekend for his 41-save performance in Friday's 4-3 overtime win at Nebraska-Omaha and his 31 saves in a 3-2 loss Saturday to the Mavericks.
On top of that, Lerg recorded his second career collegiate shutout Tuesday in a 2-0 win over Michigan. In the three game week, Lerg kicked aside 103 of 109 shots.
