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MSU hockey turnover: Kristof Papp exits, Zach Dubinsky enters

April 5, 2022
<p>Sophomore center Kristoff Papp (13) faces off against a University of Michigan player. MSU Hockey fell to the University of Michigan, 4-1, in the first game of the Big Ten Men&#x27;s Hockey Tournament at the Yost Ice Arena on March 04, 2022.</p>

Sophomore center Kristoff Papp (13) faces off against a University of Michigan player. MSU Hockey fell to the University of Michigan, 4-1, in the first game of the Big Ten Men's Hockey Tournament at the Yost Ice Arena on March 04, 2022.

In the latest roster shakeup for Michigan State, sophomore forward Kristof Papp entered the transfer portal and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute's Zach Dubinsky joined the team.

Papp recorded 16 points in his career with Michigan State. Last season, he scored a pair of goals and 10 assists in 34 games played. While he wasn't an offensive threat for the team, Papp certainly carved out a role for himself. Consistently deployed in the bottom-six, Papp was a depth-center with a knack for faceoffs, deployed in key situations to retain possession. He finished with a .594 winning percentage on faceoffs, the highest on the team among forwards with more than one attempt.

Entering his senior year, Dubinsky has experience in both juniors and the NCAA under his belt. His two years at RPI sandwich a spell in the United States Hockey League, or USHL, with the Omaha Lancers where he tallied 14 goals and 20 assists in just 32 games. Last year with RPI, Dubinsky scored 10 goals and 10 assists in 44 games. In Dubinsky, Michigan State adds an experienced forward that has some offensive upside.

Michigan State Head Coach Danton Cole promised change in the offseason, and so far, there's been plenty. Papp joins junior forward Josh Nodler and sophomore defenseman Aiden Gallacher in the transfer portal, not to mention the three graduated seniors also exploring their options in the portal.

So far, the Spartans have added just two players from the portal — the aforementioned Dubinsky and Brown's leading scorer, grad transfer Justin Jallen. A handful of freshman will also occupy some of the open spots on the roster next season.

Michigan State is no stranger to players with recent experience in juniors. Sophomore forward Jeremy Davidson and junior forward Erik Middendorf played in the USHL, and in their return to Michigan State, they finished second and third respectively in team scoring. The latest additions to the team, Dubinsky and Jallen, both have a history of offensive effectiveness. Like Middendorf and Davidson before them, with there's a good chance the two new transfers will make an immediate impact on Michigan State's presence in the offensive zone.

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