Michigan State earns sweep of Notre Dame with 3-2 victory on Senior Night at Munn
East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State closed out one of its best weekends of the season with a 3-2 victory over Notre Dame at sold out Munn Ice Arena, Saturday afternoon.
Sophomore defenseman David Gucciardi scored the go-ahead goal four minutes into the third period on the power play when he one-timed a pass from Jeremy Davidson past Notre Dame goalie Chayse Primeau.
Michigan State goalie Dylan St. Cyr, a former Notre Dame player who was outstanding all weekend for the Spartans, stood strong for the final 16 minutes to close out the victory and a huge sweep for the Spartans
“Really big step for our program,” said first-year Michigan State head coach Adam Nightingale. “It was a big win. Notre Dame is a really good team. I thought the building was electric. I thought we started a little bit slow and we started to get better as the game went on.”
WHAT IT MEANS
The Spartans improved to 15-13-2 overall and 9-9-2 in the Big Ten. Notre Dame fell to 13-14-3 and 8-10-2.
The Spartans are in a four-way tie for second place in the Big Ten as Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State and Michigan State are vying for three remaining home ice slots in the Big Ten Tournament, behind first-place Minnesota.
With the victory, Michigan State climbed up to No. 14 in the Pairwise Rankings, which determine NCAA Tournament selections. A Top 12 or 13 ranking in the Pairwise would probably put Michigan State in good shape for the NCAA Tournament. But the Spartans might need to split with Michigan next week to inch closer to Tournament safety.
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SENIORS HONORED
Michigan State has one more home game next Friday against Michigan, but Spartan seniors were honored for Senior Night festivities prior to this game.
“For the 10 seniors, just super thankful for their effort, their attitude,” Nightingale said. “They’re all winners, they’re all great people. They represent the program the right way. I would take them on my team any day of the week and I’m excited about finishing the season with them.
“We are judging (players) on effort, judging them on attitude and judging them on being a great teammate, and those guys have done it every day for us.”
HOW ABOUT THOSE FRESHMEN?
Freshman Karsen Dorwart (6-1, 191, Sherwood, Ore.) senior Nicolas Müller (6-0, 188, Arisdorf, Switzerland) also scored for the Spartans.
Freshmen Matt Basgall and Daniel Russell assisted on Dorwart’s goal.
“Those guys continue to produce and continue to improve,” Nightingale said of the freshmen. “They are are playing their best hockey right now and it’s a great sign for our program. What I like about the whole freshman class is that they are team guys. They want to be coached. They don’t come to the rink with all the answers. They’re eager. They’ll be in here tomorrow on an off day, working. When you get a group of people like that that are motivated and self-driven, that’s a good sign for your program.”
Davidson (5-10, 177, Jr., Kalamazoo) had two assists on the afternoon.
