Colgate Edged at Michigan State

Boxscore 

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State won the first period, 2-1, and the rest of its game against Colgate was a battle between two brilliant goaltenders as the Spartan men's hockey team (2-1-0) completed the weekend sweep of the Raiders (2-2-0) on Saturday, Oct. 20, at Munn Ice Arena.

MSU scored twice within the first 10 minutes of the game, but Colgate made the Spartans work hard for their second win in as many nights. After getting on the board late in the opening period, the Raiders had a chance to tie on a second-period penalty shot, but were never able to get the equalizer.

Spartan junior goalie Jeff Lerg earned the win after making 22 saves, while Colgate senior keeper Mark Dekanich (North Vancouver, B.C.) posted 25 saves, including stopping all 19 shots he faced over the final two periods.

Michigan State used its second power play of the night to get on the board at the 6:45 mark of the opening period. Justin Abdelkader found Daniel Vukovic at the top of the slot as the Spartans set up their offense. Vukovic fired a hard shot on goal that was redirected past Dekanich by Tim Kennedy on the left side.

MSU capitalized on a Raider turnover as Colgate was trying to break out of its own end with a quick tic-tac-toe play. Mike Ratchuk stole the puck away for the Spartans, passed it down to Tim Crowder between the circles, and he tapped it over to Abdelkader on the left side. Abdelkader sent a quick shot on net that floated over Dekanich's left shoulder.

Colgate used a 5-on-3 power-play opportunity late in the first period to get on the board. The Raiders set up in the zone and worked the puck up to junior Nick St. Pierre (St. Etienne, Que.) at the blue line. He held it, then passed it down to senior captain Jesse Winchester (Long Sault, Ont.) who was low on the left side. Winchester shot on goal, where classmate Tyler Burton (Langley, B.C.) and sophomore Jason Williams (Plattsburgh, N.Y.) were waiting to clean up any rebounds. Williams swiped at the puck before Burton collected it on the other side of the goalmouth and jammed it past Lerg.

The Raiders had a chance to even the scored 11:01 into the second period. Burton was taken down from behind by Brandon Gentile as he was going to goal on a breakaway, and the referee signaled for a penalty shot. Burton skated straight in from center, and let off a wrist shot from between the circles that Lerg stopped with his blocker.

Colgate participates in the Citizens Bank Governor's Cup next weekend at the Times Union Center in Albany, N.Y. On Friday, Oct. 26, the Raiders take on St. Lawrence in the first game of the tournament, which starts at 4:00 p.m. The next day, Colgate will play either Rensselaer or Union, with the consolation game scheduled for 4:00 p.m., and the championship game slated for 7:00 p.m. All-session tickets, which include admission to all four games of the tournament, may be purchased through the Colgate ticket office for $30; fans can call (315) 228-7600 to order.