2020–21 Michigan State Spartans men's ice hockey season

The 2020–21 Michigan State Spartans men's ice hockey season was the 79th season of play for the program and the 31st season in the Big Ten Conference. The Spartans represented Michigan State University and were coached by Danton Cole, in his 4th season.

2020–21 Michigan State Spartans
men's ice hockey season
Conference7th Big Ten
Home iceMunn Ice Arena
Rankings
USCHONR
USA TodayNR
Record
Overall7–18–2
Conference5–16–1–2–0–0
Home5–9–1
Road2–8–1
Neutral0–1–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachDanton Cole
Assistant coachesChris Luongo
Joe Exter
Jim Slater
Captain(s)Tommy Apap
Tommy Miller
Alternate captain(s)Dennis Cesana
Mitch Lewandowski
Michigan State Spartans men's ice hockey seasons
« 2019–20 2021–22 »

Season

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As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic the entire college ice hockey season was delayed. Because the NCAA had previously announced that all winter sports athletes would retain whatever eligibility they possessed through at least the following year, none of Michigan State's players would lose a season of play.[1] However, the NCAA also approved a change in its transfer regulations that would allow players to transfer and play immediately rather than having to sit out a season, as the rules previously required.[2]

In the first half of their season, Michigan State could find very little consistency but were able to hold their own in the Big Ten. Up until mid-January the team had a .500 record and had a chance to make something of their abbreviated season. Unfortunately, from the 15th onward, the team's offense collapsed MSU wasn't able to score more than two goals in a game after January 9 and went 2–13 to end their season The Spartans' defense was not a problem most games but with so few goals scored, the team sank to the bottom of the conference standings. MSU's offense was so paltry that the team averaged less than one and a half goals per game for the entire season (1.48) and were shut out in 6 of their 27 games.

Jon Mor sat out the season.

Departures

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Player Position Nationality Cause
Damian Chrcek Defenseman   United States Graduation
Butrus Ghafari Defenseman   United States Graduation (Signed with Toledo Walleye)
Patrick Khodorenko Forward   United States Graduation (Signed with New York Rangers)
Logan Lambdin Forward   United States Graduation (Signed with Kalamazoo Wings)
John Lethemon Goaltender   United States Graduation (Signed with Greenville Swamp Rabbits)
Jerad Rosburg Defenseman   United States Graduation (Signed with Dallas Stars)
Sam Saliba Forward   United States Graduation
Anthony Scarsella Defenseman   United States Graduation
Wojciech Stachowiak Forward   Poland Signed professional contract (ERC Ingolstadt)
Spencer Wright Goaltender   United States Graduation

Recruiting

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Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Pierce Charleson Goaltender   Canada 20 Aurora, ON
Charlie Combs Forward   United States 24 St. Louis, MO; transfer from Bemidji State
Powell Connor Defenseman   Canada 20 Vernon, BC
Cal Dybicz Defenseman   United States 20 Elk Grove Village, IL
Aiden Gallacher Defenseman   United States 20 Rochester Hills, MI
Kyle Haskins Forward   United States 20 Huntington, VA
A. J. Hodges Forward   United States 19 Littleton, CO
Jon Mor Goaltender   United States 20 Highland Park, IL
Nash Nienhuis Defenseman   Canada 20 Sarnia, ON
Kristóf Papp Forward   Hungary 19 Budapest, HUN

Roster

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As of January 3, 2021.[3]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1   Drew DeRidder Junior G 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-05-01 Fenton, Michigan USNTDP (USHL)
2   Aiden Gallacher Freshman D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2000-03-20 Rochester Hills, Michigan Youngstown (USHL)
4   Nash Nienhuis Freshman D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 176 lb (80 kg) 1999-12-05 Sarnia, Ontario Omaha (USHL)
5   Powell Connor Freshman D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 2000-05-04 Vernon, British Columbia Trail (BCHL)
6   Cal Dybicz Freshman D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 2000-07-16 Elk Grove Village, Illinois Tri-City (USHL)
7   Charlie Combs Graduate F 5' 6" (1.68 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 1996-07-13 St. Louis, Missouri Bemidji State (WCHA)
8   Cole Krygier Junior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 196 lb (89 kg) 2000-05-05 Novi, Michigan Lincoln (USHL) FLA, 201st overall 2018
9   Mitchell Lewandowski (A) Senior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 1998-04-17 Clarkston, Michigan Chicago (USHL)
10   A. J. Hodges Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 184 lb (83 kg) 2001-08-24 Littleton, Colorado Sioux City (USHL)
11   Tommy Apap (C) Senior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 206 lb (93 kg) 1996-02-27 Bloomfield Hills, Michigan Youngstown (USHL)
12   Tommy Miller (C) Senior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 191 lb (87 kg) 1999-03-06 West Bloomfield, Michigan USNTDP (USHL)
13   Kristóf Papp Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 174 lb (79 kg) 2001-06-27 Budapest, Hungary Des Moines (USHL)
14   Adam Goodsir Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 196 lb (89 kg) 1998-09-22 Okemos, Michigan Tri-City (USHL)
15   Christian Krygier Junior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2000-05-05 Novi, Michigan Lincoln (USHL) NYI, 196th overall 2018
16   Brody Stevens Senior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 1997-04-26 Ann Arbor, Michigan Green Bay (USHL)
17   Kyle Haskins Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2000-02-16 Huntington, Vermont Waterloo (USHL)
19   Nicolas Müller Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 182 lb (83 kg) 1999-06-21 Arisdorf, Switzerland Modo J20 (J20 SuperElit)
20   Josh Nodler Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 2001-04-27 Oak Park, Michigan Fargo (USHL) CGY, 150th overall 2019
21   Jake Smith Senior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 1996-11-28 East Amherst, New York Chilliwack (BCHL)
22   Dennis Cesana (A) Junior D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 182 lb (83 kg) 1998-04-04 Providence, Rhode Island Brooks (AJHL)
23   Jagger Joshua Sophomore F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1999-03-29 Dearborn, Michigan Muskegon (USHL)
24   Austin Kamer Senior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 1996-05-23 Grand Rapids, Michigan Lone Star (NAHL)
27   Mitchell Mattson Junior F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1998-01-02 Grand Rapids, Minnesota Sioux Falls (USHL) CGY, 126th overall 2016
28   Gianluca Esteves Senior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 172 lb (78 kg) 1997-01-29 Winnipeg, Manitoba Aston (NAHL)
29   Pierce Charleson Freshman G 6' 2" (1.88 m) 186 lb (84 kg) 2000-02-27 Aurora, Ontario Brooks (AJHL)
30   Jon Mor Freshman G 6' 2" (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2000-07-20 Highland Park, Illinois Langley (BCHL)

Standings

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Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL 3/SW PTS PT% GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#8 Wisconsin 24 17 6 1 1 1 0 52 .722 92 52 31 20 10 1 118 80
#7 Minnesota * 22 16 6 0 0 0 0 48 .727 69 44 31 24 7 0 117 64
#9 Michigan 20 11 9 0 1 0 0 32 .550 69 45 26 15 10 1 91 51
#17 Notre Dame 24 12 10 2 1 2 2 41 .542 65 53 29 14 13 2 84 78
Penn State 18 7 11 0 2 1 0 20 .389 48 68 22 10 12 0 65 81
Ohio State 22 6 16 0 0 2 0 20 .273 39 82 27 7 19 1 53 101
Michigan State 22 5 16 1 2 0 0 15 .250 32 70 27 7 18 2 40 77
Championship: March 16, 2021
† indicates conference regular season champion
* indicates conference tournament champion
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and Results

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Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Regular Season
November 19 6:04 PM vs. Arizona State* Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan BTN DeRidder T 1–1 OT 100 0–0–1
November 20 6:04 PM vs. Arizona State* Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan   DeRidder W 2–0  100 1–0–1
November 28 5:30 PM at #10 Ohio State Value City ArenaColumbus, Ohio   DeRidder W 3–2 OT 0 2–0–1 (1–0–0)
November 29 5:30 PM at #10 Ohio State Value City ArenaColumbus, Ohio   DeRidder L 2–4  0 2–1–1 (1–1–0)
December 3 8:00 PM vs. #5 Minnesota Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan FSD, FSN DeRidder L 1–3  100 2–2–1 (1–2–0)
December 4 8:05 PM vs. #5 Minnesota Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan FSD, FSN DeRidder L 2–4  88 2–3–1 (1–3–0)
December 19 6:36 PM at #16 Notre Dame Compton Family Ice ArenaNotre Dame, Indiana NBCSN DeRidder T 1–1 OT 0 2–3–2 (1–3–1)
December 20 5:06 PM at #16 Notre Dame Compton Family Ice ArenaNotre Dame, Indiana NBCSChi DeRidder W 4–3 OT 0 3–3–2 (2–3–1)
January 3 3:00 PM vs. Penn State Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan   DeRidder L 0–1  125 3–4–2 (2–4–1)
January 4 3:00 PM vs. Penn State Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan   DeRidder L 5–1  100 4–4–2 (3–4–1)
January 8 7:04 PM at #9 Michigan Yost Ice ArenaAnn Arbor, Michigan   DeRidder L 0–9  100 4–5–2 (3–5–1)
January 9 4:30 PM vs. #9 Michigan Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan   DeRidder W 3–2  100 5–5–2 (4–5–1)
January 15 6:04 PM at Penn State Pegula Ice ArenaUniversity Park, Pennsylvania   DeRidder L 2–3 OT 177 5–6–2 (4–6–1)
January 16 3:04 PM at Penn State Pegula Ice ArenaUniversity Park, Pennsylvania   DeRidder L 1–3  195 5–7–2 (4–7–1)
January 23 4:00 PM vs. Ohio State Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan BTN DeRidder L 1–5  123 5–8–2 (4–8–1)
January 24 4:00 PM vs. Ohio State Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan   DeRidder W 2–0  101 6–8–2 (5–8–1)
January 29 8:04 PM vs. #13 Wisconsin Kohl CenterMadison, Wisconsin   DeRidder L 0–6  0 6–9–2 (5–9–1)
January 30 4:04 PM vs. #13 Wisconsin Kohl CenterMadison, Wisconsin   DeRidder L 1–4  0 6–10–2 (5–10–1)
February 14 3:00 PM vs. Wisconsin* Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan   DeRidder L 2–3  101 6–11–2
February 15 5:00 PM vs. Wisconsin* Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan   DeRidder W 2–1  81 7–11–2
February 19 8:05 PM at #4 Minnesota 3M Arena at MariucciMinneapolis, Minnesota   DeRidder L 2–4  0 7–12–2 (5–11–1)
February 20 6:05 PM at #4 Minnesota 3M Arena at MariucciMinneapolis, Minnesota   DeRidder L 1–5  0 7–13–2 (5–12–1)
February 26 6:00 PM vs. Notre Dame Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan   Charleson L 0–2  103 7–14–2 (5–13–1)
February 27 3:00 PM vs. Notre Dame Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan   DeRidder L 0–2  0 7–15–2 (5–14–1)
March 5 4:00 PM vs. #5 Wisconsin Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan   DeRidder L 0–4  0 7–16–2 (5–15–1)
March 6 2:30 PM vs. #5 Wisconsin Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, Michigan BTN Charleson L 1–2  0 7–17–2 (5–16–1)
Big Ten Tournament
March 14 4:05 PM vs. #4 Minnesota* Compton Family Ice ArenaNotre Dame, Indiana (Big Ten Quarterfinal) BTN Charleson L 1–2 OT 134 7–18–2
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time.

[4]

Scoring statistics

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Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Mitchell Lewandowski LW 27 6 7 13 28
Dennis Cesana D 27 2 10 12 10
Josh Nodler C/RW 27 3 8 11 0
Charlie Combs LW 23 6 4 10 21
Tommy Apap F 25 5 4 9 8
Nicolas Müller C/RW 26 2 6 8 8
Jagger Joshua F 26 4 1 5 41
Kyle Haskins F 27 1 4 5 10
Mitchell Mattson C 21 2 2 4 2
Brody Stevens C 27 2 2 4 18
Adam Goodsir F 25 1 3 4 10
Tommy Miller D 27 1 3 4 4
Nash Nienhuis D 25 0 4 4 2
Kristóf Papp C 25 0 4 4 0
Gianluca Esteves F 23 2 1 3 4
Cole Krygier D 25 2 1 3 25
Christian Krygier D 26 1 2 3 54
A. J. Hodges F 22 0 2 2 0
Aiden Gallacher D 26 0 2 2 23
Austin Kamer RW 7 0 1 1 0
Calvin Dybicz D 1 0 0 0 10
Pierce Charleson G 7 0 0 0 0
Jake Smith F 10 0 0 0 4
Powell Connor D 15 0 0 0 2
Drew DeRidder G 24 0 0 0 0
Bench - - - - - 8
Total 40 71 111 282

[5]

Goaltending statistics

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Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Pierce Charleson 7 326 0 3 0 14 210 0 .938 2.57
Drew DeRidder 24 1304 7 15 2 60 723 2 .923 2.76
Empty Net - 14 - - - 3 - - - -
Total 27 1646 7 18 2 77 933 2 .924 2.81

Rankings

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Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR - NR
USA Today NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR

USCHO did not release a poll in week 20.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "NCAA approves blanket waiver for 2020 fall sports athletes to retain year of eligibility". CBS Sports. August 21, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  2. ^ "DI Council grants waiver to allow transfer student-athletes to compete immediately". NCAA. December 16, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  3. ^ "2019–20 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Michigan State Official Athletic Site. Retrieved August 29, 2017.
  4. ^ "Michigan State Spartans (Men) 2020-2021 Schedule and Results". College Hockey Stats. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  5. ^ "Michigan State Univ. 2020-2021 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  6. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
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