Michigan State hockey lets sweep of Notre Dame slip away late
Michigan State hockey could not hold on to a late 2-0 lead in South Bend Saturday night, as the Fighting Irish defeat the Spartans in a shootout.
The Michigan State hockey team was looking to complete the series sweep of Notre Dame Saturday, but could not hold on as the Irish stormed back in the third period as they tied, 2-2. The teams went to a shootout to decide who would be awarded the extra point, and the Irish scored the winning goal.
The Spartans led 2-0 with about five minutes left late in the game, and it looked like the win was well in hand. The momentum shifted when Alex Steeves scored to shorten the deficit. Just under two minutes later, senior Cam Morrison tied it up, and the lead was gone. No one scored in the rest of regulation and it remained scoreless through two overtime periods.
Michigan State senior forward Patrick Khodorenko initially scored on the first shootout goal, but it was waved off after he went backwards into the attacking zone. Notre Dame senior Tory Bello scored on his first shot, and that was it.
No one scored in the first period, and MSU failed to get anything going offensively. Notre Dame was on the Spartans’ side of the ice for almost the whole 20 minutes. The Irish out-shot the Spartans, 15-7, but it looked like MSU was playing good defense throughout the period.
The second period went more in MSU’s favor after Logan Lambdin rebounded a Dennis Cesena miss and drilled it in to give them a 1-0 lead. The Spartans were much more aggressive this period, out shooting Notre Dame 11-4.
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Josh Nodler scored in the first three minutes of the third period, but the Irish onslaught came shortly after that, and MSU remains in sixth place in the Big Ten, now two points behind Notre Dame. It is still unknown who the Spartans will play in the tournament going forward.