EAST LANSING, Mich — Welcoming in the No. 1 ranked Michigan Wolverines for the first rivalry matchup of the season, the No. 3 Michigan State Spartan hockey team suffered a 3-0 loss, falling to 7-8-0 against their in-state foes under the reign of head coach Adam Nightingale. 

“Tough game for us, give (Michigan) credit, I thought they checked really well,” Nightingale said. “I loved our start. I thought we were on our toes and playing how we need to play to be a good hockey team. I thought we took two offensive zone penalties and that killed a little bit of momentum.”

The Spartans grabbed a huge opportunity just 28 seconds into the opening frame when junior defenseman Patrick Geary let a shot rip toward the net, but the shot was blocked by defenseman, and brother of former MSU netminder Dylan St-Cyr, Dakoda Rheaume-Mullen. 

The Wolverines were ultimately the first to light the lamp, after forward Malcom Spence sent a wrister past MSU junior netminder Trey Augustine from the right circle at 5:17. MSU’s best opportunity of the opening frame came when freshman forward Cayden Lindstrom broke out of the penalty box and picked up the puck on a breakaway, but goaltender Jack Ivankovic made the pad save.

The first part of the second period consisted of back-and-forth play, with neither team able to create momentum. The Wolverines nearly increased the score 9:56 into the frame when forward Will Horcoff sent a rocket toward the net and forward Michael Hage tipped it in, but after review the goal was called back for a high stick.

With 9:23 to go in the slate, MSU received a great opportunity when freshman forward Porter Martone dished a pass to sophomore defenseman Colin Ralph, and he ripped it from the top of the left circle, but Ivankovic stopped the opportunity. 

The Wolverines nearly grabbed a two-goal lead in the waning minutes when defenseman Luca Fantilli sent a one-timer toward the net, and then just 21 seconds later the Wolverines grabbed a 2-on-1, but both chances were halted by Augustine. The Spartans were outshot in the middle frame 10-4.

Michigan’s defense stood tall throughout the game, blocking 17 total shots, and Ivankovic stood tall between the pipes, preventing the Spartans from generating offense. MSU’s best opportunity of the final period came when junior forward Tommi Männistö danced around a Michigan defender and fired a shot toward Ivankovic, who swallowed it up.

“They’re crowding the middle a lot. As defenseman, we got to get pucks through a lot faster,” senior defenseman and captain Matt Basgall said. “I think if we watch the game back we’ll see their D-Zone is very tight. They stick to the middle very well, very hard to get pucks through. We’ve got to make faster plays.”

With 9:51 remaining in the game, Michigan forward Aidan Park made it 2-0 when he sent a wrister to the net from the right hashmarks, and the away team put the cherry on top when forward Jayden Perron sent a puck lying from the top of the zone on the power play with 3:30 remaining, sealing the shutout over the Spartans.

“It’s getting a bit repetitive, it’s not even to do with this rivalry as of right now, like I just don’t think our team’s reached our potential. I don’t think we’ve played a full 60 in the entire first half yet. You know, it’s a rivalry, there’s a lot of ups and downs, especially throughout the game and we’re taking penalties at very crucial times,” Basgall said. “We can’t be taking, go down with nothing. I thought we responded well, our first was pretty good, but it’s just got to continue.”

MSU and Michigan will finish its home-and-home weekend on Saturday, Dec. 6 at Yost Ice Arena at 7 p.m., as the Spartans look to play a full 60-minute contest and split the rivalry weekend.