No. 4 Michigan State heads into Saturday night carrying plenty of firepower, plenty of NHL pedigree and a freshman goalie who just put together one of the best weekends of his young season.
The Spartans meet No. 8 North Dakota in a heavyweight matchup in the Lone Star State, with Michigan State ranked No. 4 in both the USCHO and USA Hockey polls. That marks a two-spot drop from No. 2 in both polls last week, but the Spartans have stayed in the Top 5 every week so far this season.
Freshman goaltender Joshua Ravensbergen was a bright spot last weekend at New Hampshire. He stopped 38 shots on Saturday, a season high, and allowed only two power-play goals over the series.
Ravensbergen finished the weekend with a .973 save percentage, turning aside 71 of 73 shots. Through four starts, he ranks No. 7 nationally in save percentage at .957 and No. 9 in goals-against average at 1.26.
At the other end, sophomore Anthony Romani has come flying out of the gate. He has eight points through five games, with five goals and three assists, and he has scored in four of those five contests. Romani is tied for No. 2 nationally in goals per game at 1.00 and sits No. 8 nationally in points per game at 1.60.
Saturday also puts Adam Nightingale on the doorstep of a major milestone. The Michigan State coach is one win away from 100 in his Spartan career, entering the weekend at 99-45-11 with a .674 winning percentage. Ron Mason reached 100 wins fastest in program history, doing it in 182 games, while Nightingale has coached 155 games since taking over.
There’s another coaching wrinkle too: both teams are led by coaches representing their alma maters. Nightingale played at Michigan State and graduated in 2005, while North Dakota coach Dane Jackson is a 1992 alum. There are 25 Division I head coaches leading their alma mater this season.
This game also carries a place in program history for Michigan State. The Spartans are taking part in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game for the fourth time, with previous appearances in 1999, 2007 and 2013, and now 2026.
The roster numbers around this one are eye-catching. The 2026 U.S.
Hockey Hall of Fame Game features 31 NHL draft picks and the most first-round selections ever in collegiate hockey, with 13. Michigan State has nine of those first-round picks, while North Dakota has four.
The Spartan first-rounders include Chase Reid, Ryker Lee, Tommy Bleyl, Cayden Lindstrom, Ethan Belchetz, Jack Hextall, Mason West, Cullen Potter and Ravensbergen.
Michigan State’s overall draft presence is just as striking. The Spartans have 17 NHL Draft picks on the roster, the second-most in the NCAA this season, and their nine first-round picks are the most of any NCAA team. There are 30 first-round NHL selections playing college hockey in 2026-27, and Michigan State accounts for 30% of them.
That 17-draft-pick total also ties the all-time Michigan State mark, matching the 1990-91 team. That squad had three first-round selections: Jason Muzzatti, Bryan Smolinski and Michael Stewart.
Fans can watch Saturday night’s game through NCHC.tv, Midco Sports and the Great Lakes Sports Network, with local coverage on Fox 47.2 and Xfinity channel 1188. On the radio, Scott Moore and Rob Woodward will have the call on WJR 760 AM and the Michigan State Athletics app.
In Other News...
Michigan State Just Made An Early Push For A Top Defensive Piece
Michigan States staff has already started laying groundwork for the future on defense, and one of the first names to surface is Kaleb Woseley. The highly rated cornerback from Imhotep Charter in Philadelphia is part of the 2028 recruiting class, and the Spartans have now joined a growing list of programs showing early interest in a prospect who already carries a four-star composite rating.
For a program trying to build out its defensive pipeline through high school recruiting, getting in early on a player like Woseley matters. He has multiple offers on the board, which only adds to the competition, and Michigan States push is an indication that the Spartans are not waiting around to identify the next wave of secondary talent. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan Rivalry Could Be Headed For Another Jarring Change
The latest round of coaching chatter around the Michigan-Michigan State rivalry has more to do with instability than the game itself, and that is becoming a familiar theme. A CBS report suggested Michigan head coach Kyle Whittingham could be facing a one-and-done run because of the programs struggles and the criticism piling up around him, another reminder that the rivalry has been shaped as much by turnover on the sidelines as by what happens on the field.
From Michigan States perspective, Pat Fitzgerald does not appear to be in the same kind of danger right now, even with the usual pressures that come with the job. Still, the possibility of another abrupt change at Michigan would add another layer of uncertainty to a rivalry that has already seen plenty of movement in recent years, and it would be another storyline the Spartans would have to navigate whether or not the on-field matchup changes with it. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State's Pat Fitzgerald Faces A Brutal Year 1 Debate
The first year of Pat Fitzgeralds Michigan State tenure has been defined as much by the treatment room as the sideline. A roster already built with limited investment has been further thinned by injuries to key players, leaving the Spartans scrambling to stay competitive in a 2026 season that has repeatedly tested the depth and margin for error of the entire program.
Even with a few competitive stretches, the results have been hard to ignore, and the losing record has only sharpened the scrutiny around Fitzgeralds debut season. Media voices and fans alike have turned critical as Michigan State tries to navigate the rest of the year, with the bigger question now centering on how quickly this group can stabilize and whether the early setbacks have already shaped the long-term conversation around the new staff. [Read more 🡒]