Last weekend saw the Michigan State hockey team play two games as the top-ranked team in the country for the first time in decades, and as the squad heads into its second weekend as No. 1, it has yet to concede a goal.
The Spartans dispatched Lindenwood last weekend at home 4-0, 2-0 with goaltending starts split between Trey Augustine and Luca Di Pasquo. It was a perfect weekend, save for concerns of a possible injury to senior captain Red Savage in the Sunday afternoon game. He left the ice holding his arm during the first period and did not return to play.
Savage's status will be something to monitor this evening when the line charts are released for tonight's game. The Spartans hit the road for a Big Ten series against the runner-up to them in the league standings in 2024, the Wisconsin Badgers.
It has been a disappointing season for the Badgers so far in 2024-2025. After beginning the year as a preseason top-10 team, UW has stumbled out of the blocks, sitting currently with a 5-8-1 record and one point behind MSU in the league standings with four more games played.
The Badgers began their struggles in the second game of the season, losing 4-2 to the Spartans' opponent from last week, the Lindenwood Lions, before needing a comeback to win 3-2 in overtime the following night. Wisconsin then lost five games in a row to Ohio State (MSU swept the Buckeyes), Denver, and Notre Dame (Spartans also swept the Fighting Irish). Since that losing streak, the Badgers have beaten Notre Dame, were swept by Minnesota, swept Penn State, and last weekend notched a win and tie respectively with Alaska-Anchorage.
The Badgers are certainly trending better than they were a month ago, but the level of opponent is also worth a pause. Wisconsin is led offensively by Sophomore Quinn Finley (9G, 9A, in 14 games) who stands one goal behind his total of 10 from last season. Finley is a New York Islanders draft pick from 2022 and has a quick release on his shot that he can hit the net with from different angles and launch points. I assume he will be marked as much as possible all weekend by Maxim Strbak and Patrick Geary, the Spartans' top defensive pair.
Surprising to the Badgers slow start is they are third in the country in shots for percentage (60%) while the Spartans lead the country (62.6%). Something has to give this weekend on who can control play more and limit shooting opportunities for their opponent. The biggest tipping point in favor of the Spartans is they have not been losing games while controlling play due to Augustine staying steady, while the Badgers have not been getting near the same performance from their goaltending.
Weekend Keys
Discipline- The Badgers score nearly one third of their goals this season on the power play. Finley himself has four of his nine goals on the power play. Being the road team and ranked No. 1, it is important to keep the Kohl Center crowd out of it this weekend and avoid giving away prime opportunities with unneeded penalties as keys for the Spartans. MSU has been much better in this department this season as compared to last year, but you have to see this continue in league play.
First Goal- Jump all over your opponents when they are down and don't give the Badgers any hope they can pull an upset to get their season going. I would love to see the Spartans spend the entire weekend playing from ahead.
Avoid a look ahead- A large series at Minnesota looms next weekend. This is where a team that wants to achieve what this squad wants needs to avoid any looking ahead and take care of business this weekend against an opponent that should be a road team come Big Ten Tournament time.
Details/How to Watch
Time: 8 p.m. Eastern Time Friday Dec. 6 and Saturday Dec. 7
Location: Kohl Center in Madison, WI
Television: Big Ten Network on Saturday
Streaming: B1G+ Friday, Fox Sports App Saturday
