On Oct. 26 and Oct. 27, 2023 the Michigan State hockey team, which was in an early resurgence in year two under head coach Adam Nightingale, traveled to Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts for a series at Boston College.

The Spartans flew into the top-10 of the national rankings, for the first time in a long time based off freshman promise in net with goaltender Trey Augustine, transfer portal additions and an early 5-1 record.

This series last year was a chance for the Spartans to measure themselves against a top-three opponent in BC on the road. The Eagles also were riding a freshman goaltender, and freshman class built off players from the United States National Development Program where Nightingale had a hand in selecting each of them.

The weekend unfolded with the Spartans leaving feeling not quite ready for "prime time." The Eagles won game one, 6-4 — a back-and-forth affair that the Spartans actually led in the second period (albeit that lead only lasting 58 seconds), and a game that saw the Spartans struggle with discipline as they took three third period penalties. The next night was not nearly as close, as the Eagles won 5-1, but the game was just 2-0 entering the third period.

The Eagles in back-to-back nights wore down the Spartans with waves of depth and high end talent and discipline, and rode a home crowd to an early season sweep. That series was a large part of the surprise run to a dual Big Ten Championship season for the Spartans in 2023-2024, as it showed them where they wanted to be, and how large the gap was, with the staff and players getting to work in season to close that gap.

Fast forward to present day and the Spartans have had a motivating offseason with some roster changes, and they are presented another chance to measure themselves against the Eagles.

Michigan State and Boston College will play a two-game series against Boston College on Friday and Saturday in East Lansing. Both games are scheduled for 6 p.m. Eastern Time.

Boston College lost in the national championship game last season, while Michigan State was bounced in a regional final.

The Spartans lost the second overall NHL Draft pick, Artyom Levshunov, to the pros. Meanwhile the Eagles are dressing freshman James Hagens, the expected top pick for the 2025 NHL Draft. Trey Augustine and Jacob Fowler are both sophomores in their respective nets, with the Detroit Red Wings (Augustine) and Montreal Canadiens (Fowler) likely each at Munn this weekend to check in on their American goaltending prospects.

The Eagles are the better roster still, but have the Spartans closed the gap enough to ride the home crowd to a win? Have the Spartans got the mental fortitude now with success last season to not be overwhelmed by the Eagles? We will see where the dust settles after two more games, but one thing is for sure, this series will be talked about all season for setting the narrative for each teams national championship outlook.

I am not kidding when I could list off the entire Boston College roster here and say the Eagles all are worth watching. This group is incredibly talented, with 12 players already drafted to the NHL, five of them being in the first two rounds of the draft. And that leaves out the aforementioned Hagens, the expected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, and other talented freshman in Teddy Stiga and Will Skahan — all three products of the USA NTDP.

So to begin breaking it up let's discuss forwards first. The Eagles' leading returning scorer from last season is Ryan Leonard (2023 eighth overall pick to the Washington Capitals). Leonard is the total package, has great hands and vision to make plays for his teammates, a deceptive shot that gets where he wants it to go, and gets there fast.

Leonard will line up at Center on the Eagles' top line, and on his right wing, I would expect to see Gabe Perreault (2023 23rd overall pick to the New York Rangers) — a player who is an elite playmaker, racking up 41 assists last season and was a painful recruiting loss, reportedly with the Spartans being runner-up for his services.

Finally, there is Hagens, who had 187 points in 118 games played with the NTDP. It will be interesting to see if Hagens slots into the Eagles' second line, or do they use his left hand shot on the left wing with Perreault and Leonard? That line would be a non-stop wave of pressure, but also you would love to spread some of that around. I am sure Eagles' head coach Greg Brown is fine with having to make this hard decision.

On the blue line, the Eagles have eight defensemen, five of them products of the USA NTDP, and the other three all from the Chicago Steel of the USHL. That continuity and chemistry is incredible, keeping guys together for multiple levels and years of their career. Their veteran leader is Eamon Powell (2020 NHL Draft, fourth rounder to the Tampa Bay Lightning) — a player who will now be a NHL free agent, playing a grad year at Boston College looking to earn his best NHL deal possible, after posting 38 points in 40 games last season. On the younger side there is Will Skahan (2024 second round pick to the Utah Hockey Club). He has a huge frame that can deliver crushing hits to opponents.

1. Return of Karsen Dorwart- This is not a knock against Charlie Stramel, the sophomore transfer center who filled in on the top line last weekend with Isaac Howard and Daniel Russell. That line drove play and I thought Stramel looked solid in his Spartans debut. However, Dorwart notched three points last season against the Eagles, and in a best-on-best matchup, you would love to have the first line back together intact. Dorwart was out with a minor injury last weekend, but I would expect him in that No. 1 center slot this weekend.

2. Augustine to Keep BC to three goals or under- Both teams usually go into every series confident they have the best goalie on the ice. This one weekend is when they will see a goalie that can legitimately stake claim that they may be the superior goalie. I wouldn't want the Spartans to get into a track meet with the Eagles, as scoring more than four goals on Fowler is so rare, so for the Spartans to take a win, they will need Augustine to stand on his head and keep the Eagles much below their usual offensive output.

3. Discipline- Simply put, the Spartans cannot be in the penalty box more than the Eagles. Handing an offense like this more ice to move around in with a man advantage is asking for trouble. Michigan State struggled to stay out of the box on Friday last week against Lake Superior State, spending nine of 20 minutes in the box in the second period, and that simply cannot happen this weekend. Not only do you open yourself to goals against, but penalty kills ruin line rotation, kill your legs, and wipe out offensive chances for that time. It simply cannot happen this weekend, while the crowd will be juiced and that can make you want to run a guy through the wall, the Spartans need to contain their energy and pay within themselves to push for a win.

Time: 6 p.m. Eastern Time Friday, Oct. 12 and 6 p.m. Eastern Time Saturday, Oct. 13

Location: Munn Ice Arena, East Lansing, Michigan

TV: Big Ten Network Friday only

Streaming: Fox Sports App (Friday), Big Ten Plus (Saturday)

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