“I’m encouraged by a lot of things but frustrated by losing,” Comley said. “I thought our young kids responded very well. They are tough lessons right now but we just have to stay with them.”

Saturday, the Spartans (7-18-3 overall, 4-13-2-2 CCHA) had a 2-0 lead with 52 seconds remaining in the first period, but saw the lead dwindle in the second and third frames.

“We were feeling so good,” freshman forward Ben Warda said.

“Then, I’m not sure what happened. We had a two-goal lead and everyone was excited. But they just seemed to have so many lucky bounces on their goals.”

Freshman defenseman Matt Crandell was out of the lineup after reinjuring his shoulder on Friday night, and freshman forward Trevor Nill headed to the locker room early after tweaking his knee.

To make the Spartans lineup even thinner, senior forward Matt Schepke was assessed a game misconduct for checking from behind at 4:05 in the third period.

Senior defenseman Kurt Kivisto said he was impressed with the underclassmen’s performance, as they are getting more and more ice time with every passing week.

“I think it’s good and it’s one of the big things,” Kivisto said. “We just have to get them to compete hard and I think they did a pretty good job of it tonight.”

More opportunities

With the Spartans’ starting lineup seemingly losing at least a player every week, the door has been opened for anyone and everyone to earn more ice time.

Freshman forward Brett Perlini took advantage of the extra ice time on Saturday night and went 15-for-17 from the faceoff dot in his 15th game in the starting lineup.

Perlini said it was his best game to date and Comley agreed — saying Perlini’s faceoff performance “cements him a spot in that lineup at critical times.”

“It’s an important skill and it leads to a lot of possession,” Perlini said. “I try to work at it every day and tonight it was going well.”

Being from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Perlini said playing in front of a home crowd of about 30 family members and close friends helped springboard his performance.

“It’s not often they get to come down and see a game,” Perlini said. “It’s always nice to play at home and have your family and friends watching you. You get that extra little boost there.”

Senior Shaun Fulton dressed for the first time Saturday. Comley picked up Fulton from the club team earlier this season to practice with the Spartans.

While he didn’t get on the ice, Comley said his presence and work ethic in practice is a valuable asset to the team.

“I wanted to get him on the ice,” Comley said. “I think he was thrilled to put the jersey on. It was a big moment for him.”