ICE HOCKEY
Munn's streak extends to 300
By six days, "The Simpsons" beat Munn Ice Arena to No. 300. Fox's famous animated sitcom aired its 300th episode Sunday.
ICE HOCKEY
Hockey team wins against Northern
The MSU hockey team was good, bad and then good again Friday night at Munn Ice Arena. In the end, it added up to a 7-4 win over Northern Michigan.
ICE HOCKEY
Migliaccio maturing between the pipes
As the MSU hockey team traipses toward the postseason, sophomore goaltender Matt Migliaccio is showing signs of resiliency that were missing at times earlier this year. Twice during this weekend's series with archrival Michigan, Migliaccio found himself in trying situations.
ICE HOCKEY
Players keep eyes on competition, Pairwise
Near the end of any sport's season, fans and analysts usually look at where teams would be in the playoffs "if the season ended today."Well, if that were the case, the MSU hockey team would be fine in the CCHA Tournament.
ICE HOCKEY
Stalemate: Rivals defend home arenas
Corey Potter's first goal since Oct. 24 had all the makings of an insurance tally. The freshman defenseman's slap shot from the right point gave MSU a 4-1 lead over archrival Michigan with 11:33 to play Saturday night at Munn Ice Arena.
ICE HOCKEY
Liles, Slater prove worth in Saturday victory
Traditionally, the Michigan hockey team is comprised of fast, skilled players, while the Spartans have a bunch of big, tough grinders. For the most part, that's true.
ICE HOCKEY
Spartans topple Wolverines at Munn
Better luck, an edge in puck possession and a lively home crowd buoyed the MSU hockey team to a 5-3 victory over archrival No.
ICE HOCKEY
Chilled Contention
If Nenad Gajic scores against Michigan tonight, his parents, Lazo and Helen Gajic, are going to stick out like sore thumbs at Yost Ice Arena. After all, Nenad is an MSU hockey player, and the Spartans and their parents are considered enemies in Ann Arbor.
ICE HOCKEY
Hockey team falls to U-M, 3-1
Ann Arbor - Coming into Friday night's rivalry matchup with No. 8 Michigan, the MSU hockey team stressed the importance of playing well in the first 10 minutes of the game. Unfortunately for the Spartans, they couldn't even finish their first shift before they were trailing 1-0.
ICE HOCKEY
Weekend games key to conference positioning
There's plenty of hatred surrounding this weekend's MSU-Michigan hockey games, but it seems most of the loathing will be confined to the fans in the stands. The teams are still archrivals - just ask any student or alumnus from the schools.
ICE HOCKEY
Yost spirit out-shines Munn fans
Ann Arbor - Imagine you are Northern Michigan goalie Craig Kowalski. You have done everything but stand on your head to keep your Wildcats within a goal of perennial CCHA powerhouse Michigan. But late in the third period, a rogue Michigan blast slips by you for a 3-1 Wolverine lead - and the game is now out of reach. Hanging your head in despair, you stare at the ice and realize where you are: the University of Michigan's Yost Ice Arena. For an opposing goalie, just call it hell frozen over. And the fans gleefully start their ritualistic torment.
ICE HOCKEY
Estrada shoots first, asks questions later
In the fall, Kevin Estrada could hardly bring himself to discuss his role with the MSU hockey team. The highly skilled sophomore's confidence had been free-falling since the beginning of his unconvincing rookie campaign and it finally bottomed out. New head coach Rick Comley's more open offensive style was supposed to be the boost Estrada needed to be a goal-scoring force in the CCHA this year, but the first two months of the season netted him no goals, one assist and four healthy scratches. Estrada, a left wing, was already miffed about not being able to score in college.
ICE HOCKEY
Spartans approach rivalry-laced matchups
There is no shortage of intriguing matches as the Spartan hockey team readies for its last eight regular-season games of the year. Fourth-place MSU plays archrival Michigan four times in the next three weeks, starting with this weekend's home-and-home series. Sandwiched between those rivalry tussles is a series against Northern Michigan at Munn Ice Arena on Feb.
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Spartans get key victory
Bowling Green, Ohio - MSU head coach Rick Comley had a feeling Bowling Green's power-play scheme would crumble under constant stress. So on Saturday, Comley threw everything in his penalty-killing arsenal at the Falcons. The Spartans forechecked aggressively, pressed the Falcons through the neutral zone and harassed the Bowling Green power-play unit around the offensive zone en route to a 6-3 win at BGSU Ice Arena. "We felt they were vulnerable to pressure," Comley said.
ICE HOCKEY
Early lead helps Spartans top Bowling Green
Bowling Green, Ohio - The MSU hockey team used two offensive bursts - one early in the first period and one late in the second - to distance itself from 11th-place Bowling Green on Saturday night at BGSU Ice Arena.Five different Spartans had at least two points in the 6-3 win.The contest was the Spartans' only action of the weekend, but the two points they earned were enough to stay in fourth place in the CCHA.
ICE HOCKEY
Early lead helps Spartans top Bowling Green
Bowling Green, Ohio - The MSU hockey team used two offensive bursts - one early in the first period and one late in the second - to distance itself from 11th-place Bowling Green on Saturday night at BGSU Ice Arena.Five different Spartans had at least two points in the 6-3 win.The contest was the Spartans' only action of the weekend, but the two points they earned were enough to stay in fourth place in the CCHA.
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Power play a key in recent success
It's analogy time! For question No. 1, fill in the blank with the most appropriate answer. 1.
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Spartans stuck at '16'
For the first time in about a month, MSU head coach Rick Comley bemoaned his team's effort after Friday's 5-3 loss to Miami (Ohio)."We had a lot of players that didn't work hard enough," Comley said.
ICE HOCKEY
Maloney playing 'possessed'
Nobody on the MSU hockey team has played with more intensity since the semester break than senior left wing Brian Maloney. Overall, the 6-foot-1, 207-pounder has skated faster, hit harder and forechecked more fiercely and consistently than any of his counterparts.
ICE HOCKEY
Spartans split series, move up in conference
The MSU hockey team fell flat on its face Friday night. But, to the Spartans' credit, they stood up, dusted themselves off and actually took a baby step forward in the CCHA standings this weekend. With a series split against Miami (Ohio), the Spartans rose from fifth to fourth place in the league.