Michigan State lost its fourth and fifth consecutive games this weekend and has now dropped in USCHO Poll for the second week in a row.
The Spartans fought hard Friday night at Ohio State, but could only muster one goal in a 3-1 loss. Then the next night, MSU was run off the ice in a 6-0 beatdown that saw graduate student transfer goaltender Dylan St. Cyr get pulled after the first period in favor of junior guard Pierce Charleson.
Special teams has been a concern for Michigan State during the losing streak, with the penalty kill allowing a goal in five consecutive games. The power play has lost its lust too, scoring just once since the Thanksgiving series versus Miami (OH). Concurrently, Michigan State’s offense hasn’t scored more than two goals in a game in over a month.
There was some shaking at the top of the poll after Denver split a home series with Alaska Fairbanks over the weekend. Quinnipiac has taken over the No. 1 spot, followed by Minnesota, St. Cloud State and Denver.
Elsewhere in the Big Ten, Penn State, MSU’s opponent this weekend, stayed put at No. 5 after an idle weekend. Michigan moved up one spot to No. 6, Ohio State rose from No. 12 to No. 8 and Notre Dame fell out of the rankings after a split with Wisconsin.
Here’s how the rest of the poll shakes out:
Quinnipiac
Minnesota
St. Cloud State
Denver
Penn State
Michigan
Boston University
Ohio State
Harvard
Merrimack
Connecticut
Western Michigan
Michigan Tech
Providence
Cornell
UMass Lowell
Michigan State
Minnesota State
Massachusetts
Boston College
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