Lakers are off to Michigan’s capital

SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. – Lake Superior State, which is 6-4-3 on the road and has split or taken at least two points during its last four series, plays its last road series in January this weekend at Michigan State. The Lakers sit in fourth place in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association with 28 points after last weekend’s home split against Miami.

The Lakers (13-10-3 overall, 8-8-2-2 in the CCHA) and MSU (12-9-3 overall, 7-7-2-2 CCHA) previously met Oct. 14-15 in Sault Ste. Marie, and the Lakers swept the Spartans, 5-4 and 3-2. The Spartans, are are 1-2-1-1 since the holiday Great Lakes Invitational, are currently tied with Northern Michigan for eighth place in the CCHA with 25 points.

LSSU’s sophomore class tallied 13 out of the 23 points for the Lakers during the MSU sweep. Forward Kyle Jean (10-7—17) srecorded a hat trick and one assist, Colin Campbell (5-12—17) scored two goals, a,d Kellan Lain (5-3—8) notched one assist. Sophomore defenders Zach Sternberg (0-2—2) and Andrew Perrault (0-6—6) notched two assists, and Matt Bruneteau (0-4—4) had one.

Michigan State leads the all-time record 67-33-13 overall. In East Lansing, Michigan State leads 35-11-5 against the Lakers. The Lakers are 0-17-3 on the road against Michigan State since Dec. 9, 1995.

The Lakers and Spartans are tied for third nationally in penalty killing (89.0). LSSU and MSU have given up only three power-play goals during their last 10 regular-season games. The Lakers have scored six power-play goals during their last 10 games with MSU scoring five.

Against CCHA opponents, LSSU is ranked second on the power-play at .197, while the Spartans are seventh at .141. Michigan State leads the conference in penalty killing at .911, while the Lakers are fourth at .882.

In January, the Lakers games have been decided by an average margin of 1.0 goals and they are 1-2-1-1 during that stretch. This season, LSSU is 7-5 in games decided by one goal.

Junior forward Domenic Monardo (8-12—20) leads the Lakers in overall points. Monardo, with 7-7—14, and Jean, who has 8-6—14, are tied for seventh in league scoring. MSU’s Lee Reimer heads the Spartans with 8-16—24. Michigan State’s top goal scorer is Mike Merrifield with nine. Junior forward Nick McParland (12-7—19) leads LSSU in goals.

Friday night’s game will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Detroit Plus and 99.5 Yes FM. Saturday’s game will be televised live on Comcast local in East Lansing and broadcast on 99.5 Yes FM. Both games will start at 7:05 p.m. The LSSU Office of Alumni Relations is hosting a post-game social beginning at 9:30 p.m. Saturday at Trippers in East Lansing. The event is free to dues-paying alumni association members or $5 at the door. To RSVP, email alumnirelations@lssu.edu or call 906-635-6219.