EAST LANSING – Michigan State hockey has the most important matchup of the year in front of them: a two-game series against the Michigan Wolverines. With a series sweep, Michigan State will take sole lead of the Big Ten and sit atop the collegiate hockey world.
Going into this series, Michigan sits at No. 1/1 in the nation, with Michigan State right behind at No. 2/2 in the polls. Both teams have played the same number of conference games, but Michigan holds a one-point lead in the Big Ten race.
The “Duel in the D” will take place on Saturday, with a battle of in-state rivals at Little Caesars Arena, home of the Detroit Pistons and Red Wings. The two programs alternate, counting this contest as a home game, and this year is Michigan State’s turn to host the matchup in Detroit. This will be the 38th annual meeting between these two teams in Detroit, with the Wolverines having a 19-13-5 record advantage over the Spartans.
Before they put on a show for the Motor City, the two teams will meet in Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor on Friday night. This will be the second time Michigan has hosted Michigan State on home ice this season, with the first matchup resulting in a 3-1 upset victory for the Spartans.
The Spartans are coming off a monumental road sweep over the No. 5/5 Penn State Nittany Lions, picking up two key regulation wins that earned six points for the Big Ten standings.
The top line for Michigan State has played excellently as of late, with three skaters producing at least 30 points so far this season. Senior forward Daniel Russell creates an offensive spark for the Spartans, with a team-high 20 assists in 26 games played.
Spartans’ freshman forward Porter Martone has been consistently dominant all year, with a team-best 1.42 points per game. Standing out against the rest has been center Charlie Stramel, with a team-high 35 points and 16 goals in his senior campaign. Stramel played a key role in Michigan State’s success last weekend, recording a five-point series and the first hat-trick for the Spartans in over a calendar year.
Junior goaltender Trey Augustine ranks fourth nationally in shutouts (No. 3) and goals-against average (1.87), and third in save percentage (.934). Augustine sits alone at the top in career victories, with 61 recorded in his time at Michigan State.
Michigan’s “Triple H” has been the most dominant trio in collegiate hockey this season, combining for 105 points in 26 games played. The trio includes senior forward T.J. Hughes, sophomore forward Michael Hage, and sophomore forward William Horcoff. All three have accounted for double-digit goals and assists at this point in the season.
A key difference in this matchup will be in net for the Wolverines, with freshman Jack Ivankovic suffering a lower-body injury that will have him out of commission for the remainder of the year. Taking over is freshman goaltender Stephen Peck, who has recorded a .911 save percentage, 2.56 goals against average, and five wins in five starts this season.
In the oldest rivalry in collegiate hockey, Michigan leads the series 72-53-18 with a home record of 29-12-4.
Puck drop is set for 7:00 at Yost Ice Arena on Friday and 6:30 at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday.
