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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
MICHIGAN STATE
Falcons Close Regular Season With 2-1 Win at #13 Michigan State
February 25, 2007 | Ice Hockey
Feb. 24, 2007
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Bowling Green State University hockey team finished the 2006-07 regular season with a bang, downing the Michigan State Spartans 2-1 in East Lansing, Michigan, on Saturday night. It was the Falcons first win inside Munn Ice Arena since Dec. 3, 2004
Jimmy Spratt made 28 saves, while Derek Whitmore and Jonathan Matsumoto added goals in the win. The Falcons also matched a season-high with 20 blocked shots in the victory.
"Obviously this was a real big win for us," said BGSU head coach Scott Paluch. "This is the situation we have been in our last nine games. We just haven't been able to make the key play. Tonight we did."
The two teams felt each other out in the first period, with the best scoring chance of the opening 20 minutes coming off the blade of Kai Kantola. While on the power play, Brandon Svendsen took a shot from the right circle and the rebound found Kantola. The freshman went high, but fired the wrister off the crossbar 12 minutes into the contest.
"From our team's standpoint I thought we did a lot of similar things like last night," said Paluch. "We were more consistent on the fore-check and much more solid in our own zone."
MSU gained a 1-0 lead early in the second period, with a great play off the face off. It was Jeff Dunne's first career goal.
BGSU knotted up the score on an outstanding individual play by Whitmore. The junior grabbed a rebound in front of his own crease, skated end-to-end and splitting two defenders. He then placed the puck through the legs of a Spartan defender, walking around him, beating Jeff Lerg glove-side for his 17th goal of the season.
BGSU and Michigan State entered the third period tied. It was the ninth consecutive game that the Falcons have played in where they were either tied or trailing by one goal entering the final period. The Falcons were 1-6-1 in those games prior to tonight.
Jonathan Matsumoto scored at 11:13 of the third period to put the Falcons up for good.
Matsumoto, along with Tomas Petruska and Whitmore had a 3-on-1 breakaway and connected on a tic-tac-toe play that resulted in a near empty-net goal for the Orleans, Ont. native.
Jimmy Spratt did the rest. The sophomore was outstanding all night, allowing just the one goal on 29 shots, but his most important save of the night came with just over five minutes to go in the contest. Bryan Lerg along with Jim McKenzie moved in on the netminder on a 2-on-1 breakaway. McKenzie fired high, but Spratt stood tall, making the save with his left shoulder.
"No question he [Jimmy Spratt] was outstanding," said Paluch. I thought both goalies were outstanding tonight. Jimmy made some key saves and found pucks in traffic. He was in some tough situations and he was excellent in those."
Michigan State had a flurry of shots in the final two minutes with the help of a power-play attempt and with Lerg on the bench for the final minute in favor of an extra attacker. The Orange and Brown blocked four shots in the last 90 seconds to help Spratt protect the Falcon cage.
On the night MSU held a 29-22 shot advantage. The Spartans were 0-for-6 on the power play while the Falcons went scoreless on four attempts.
The next Falcon opponent is still up in the air at this moment. BGSU will either play at Western Michigan or at Nebraska-Omaha for the opening round of the CCHA playoffs. If UNO wins, the Falcons head west to Nebraska. A loss or tie by the Mavericks sends BGSU to Kalamazoo, Michigan.
