“It’s a very good group,” Comley said. “Our balance and depth, top to bottom, is pretty good.”

The class of 2012 features 11 fresh faces ready to don the Green and White for the first time. The incoming class is comprised of seven forwards, three defensemen and one goalie.

The coaches are trying not to look too far ahead by assessing their expectations for the freshmen before they even arrive to campus. But they’re certain that many of them will see plenty of ice time this season.

“We like our talent,” Comley said. “But you can’t ever measure how a kid will do when they first step on campus. There are so many question marks with this team and we just have to see how they grow.”

In order to ease the transition, Comley will rely heavily on the leadership of the upperclassmen, especially senior goaltender and captain Jeff Lerg.

“We are putting a lot on him,” Comley said of Lerg. “But he’s a very special athlete and if anybody can do it, he can. He’ll see a great challenge to lead this team the right way, and he’ll do it.”

Comley said he’ll also tap the leadership skills of forwards Tim Crowder, Matt Schepke and Nick Sucharski, who will also be called upon to step up offensively for a Spartans squad that lost its top three goal scorers from a year ago.

“I need to see continued growth (from our veterans),” Comley said. “The guys who have done it before need to do it, and do it even more.”

A tough road

Last week the Spartans released their schedule for the upcoming season. Comley acknowledges that the schedule, which features early-season games against powerhouses Massachusetts and Boston in the Ice Breaker Tournament, is going to be challenging, but said it’ll be a good chance for the newcomers to get a taste of what college hockey is all about.

“We play a lot of potential teams we could play in the NCAA tournament,” Comley said. “We have to show the young kids what it’s all about and (it will help) to throw them into the fire a little.

“We are a team that’s just going to have to get better as the year goes on.”

After the Ice Breaker Tournament, which will be held in Boston, the Spartans will return home to play five straight games at Munn Ice Arena, starting Oct. 16. The conference schedule begins Oct. 24 with a two-game series at home against Northern Michigan.

Things will get tougher again in November when the Spartans take on a schedule that features five straight road games and only two home games all month.

“These will be the dog-days of the schedule,” Renfrew said. “But it will really let the young kids get their feet wet.”

MSU will play Michigan four times this year. One of those games will be played on neutral ice at Joe Louis Arena, two will be played at Yost Ice Arena, while the other will be played Dec. 6 at Munn.

Despite being young and having a tough path, both coaches predict the Spartans will have a winning season.

“This is going to be a really good team and a competitive team,” Comley said. “(We will be) in the hunt before it’s all said and done.

“But there might be some growing pains with it, so we will just have to let those happen.”