Columbus, OH- The Michigan State hockey team continues to grab defeat from the jaws of victory.
Entering this mid-week match up the Buckeyes were a disappointing 2-5-1 with only a single win in conference play (1-4-1) despite being picked by many to win the CCHA heading into this season.
OSU struck when forward Tom Fritsche redirected a shot past Spartan
netminder Dominic Vacari to take a 1-0 lead midway through the first and in the process stopping the Green-and-White’s five-game streak of scoring first.
MSU fought back as freshmen Justin Abdelkader and Sophomore Jim McKenzie scored back-to-back goals, fourteen seconds apart, to give the Spartans a 2-1 lead heading into the final twenty minutes.
As we have seen recently with this team, no lead is safe, the inability of the Spartans to put teams away has come back to haunt them throughout this two-week stretch.
Ohio State outshot the Spartans 16-5 during the last period and held MSU to a season low sixteen total shots on goal. Buckeye forward Andrew Schembri scored twice, including the game winner with just under three minutes remaining, sending the Spartans for the second straight game back to Heartbreak Hotel.
The Spartans (5-4-2) look to right the ship as Western Michigan comes calling to begin a home-and-home series beginning Friday night, 7:05pm at Munn Ice Arena in East Lansing.
While the MSU hockeyhas a brutal schedule early on this season, key injuries have plagued this team. While some of the Spartans newcomers have really stepped up and done a solid job, they have been able to close against teams they should beat.
Ohio State falls into that category. While they are very talented they're inconsistent. When a good team like State gets a team like that down, they need to finish regardless of the schedule, injuries or whatever.
Coach Comley needs to circle the wagons and get this team back on the winning track.
Until next time, remember hockey fans to always light the lamp.