MSU Hockey Beats Michigan, 5-1, Setting Up Series Finale In Detroit
With six games remaining and in pursuit of its first Big Ten regular season championship in over two decades, No. 9 Michigan State hockey traveled to Ann Arbor on Friday in the first of a two-game series against rival No. 11 Michigan.
After MSU came back from three goals down for a 7-5 win the last time these two rivals met on the Wolverines’ home ice, the Spartans came from behind again in a 5-1 victory Friday night.
After a first period filled with plenty of opportunities to open the scoring, neither team was able to do so. In the second period, Michigan forward Gavin Brindley tallied the first goal of the game, making a move past a diving Nash Nienhuis to open a clear path to the net and beating Spartan goalie Trey Augustine over the blocker pad. Michigan State responded less than a minute later, when forward Tanner Kelly picked up a loose puck, worked his way to the net, made a move and slid a shot past Michigan goalie Jake Barczewski.
In the third period, MSU forward Daniel Russell gave the Spartans their first lead of the game when he received a pass from below the net and ripped the puck past Barczewski’s shoulder into the net. Four minutes later, Michigan State extended its lead when defenseman Maxim Strbak cut to the net and received a cross ice pass from Isaac Howard. Strbak then tossed a bouncing puck at the net over Barczewski’s leg pad to make it 3-1.
After the Wolverines pulled their goalie late in the third, Michigan State forward Red Savage added to the Spartans’ lead, taking the puck from the face-off and shooting it the full length of the ice into the empty net. Michigan State forward Jeremy Davidson scored a second empty-net goal for the final tally of the night.
The Spartans win on Friday night gives them a season sweep at Yost and the first time since 2017 Michigan State has won back-to-back games in Ann Arbor. The Spartans and Wolverines face off again tonight (8:30 p.m. on BTN) in the “Duel in the D” at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, concluding the regular season series between the two instate rivals.
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