Michigan State’s season starts with the kind of expectation most programs can only dream about.
The Spartans opened unofficially last week with a 5-2 exhibition win over then-No. 12 Boston College at Munn Ice Arena, and now the real thing begins there again when Northern Michigan comes to East Lansing for a Friday-Sunday series. It’s a slightly odd setup, with Michigan State playing Illinois in football on Saturday, but the hockey schedule is locked in: the official opener is here.
Northern Michigan arrives with a fresh result and a long climb ahead. The Wildcats split their first weekend against Miami (Ohio) in Marquette, taking Friday’s game 3-0 before dropping Saturday’s rematch 4-1. That came after a brutal 3-29-2 season in which NMU won only three games and finished 62nd out of 63 Division I teams in the NPI, the metric that helps determine NCAA Tournament at-large bids and seeding.
Still, Michigan State isn’t treating this like a tune-up. Adam Nightingale made it clear Wednesday that Northern Michigan has already shown enough to demand full attention.
"Their teams are organized, and they're going to be ready to compete," MSU head coach Adam Nightingale said Wednesday. "So, if you're looking for easy offense, that's not going to happen.
You've got to really work, and they've got a really good goaltender [Oliver Auyeung-Ashton]. Look at what they did last weekend: split with a really good Miami team.
They've got a lot of turnover on their team, but just looking at their roster and watching them on tape, they're much improved."
Michigan State enters the season at No. 3 in the country, trailing only defending national champion Denver and rival Michigan. The roster is loaded, with only three skaters from the Boston College exhibition lineup not being NHL draft picks, and nine players carrying first-round status.
That kind of talent base is why the pressure around this group feels different. MSU has won three straight Big Ten regular-season titles and captured the conference tournament twice during that stretch, but Nightingale’s team is still chasing its first Frozen Four appearance. That’s the real marker for this season, the place where the story will ultimately be judged.
For now, though, it starts with Northern Michigan.
In Other News...
Michigan State Just Got A Tough Reality Check In Big Ten Play
Michigan State volleyball got a wake-up call in a high-level Big Ten matchup at the Breslin Center, falling to Oregon in four sets. The loss came in a meeting of top-25 teams and nudged the Spartans to 13-2 overall and 3-2 in conference play, while Oregon moved to 13-2 and 4-1 in the league.
Even in defeat, Michigan State had some production it can build on, with Alanna Bankston finishing with 14 kills and Malayah Long handing out 32 assists. But the bigger takeaway is that Big Ten play has already started to sharpen the margins, and the Spartans saw firsthand how quickly a strong start can be tested when a ranked opponent settles in and controls the match. [Read more 🡒]
Spartans Just Grabbed The Kind Of Win That Can Change October
Michigan State picked up the kind of road result that can settle a team into the Big Ten race, edging Maryland 2-1 in conference play at Ludwig Field. The Spartans got the decisive breakthrough from senior forward Andrew Darakdjian, whose goal in the 67th minute gave them the edge in a matchup that mattered plenty for the standings and for the programs confidence away from home.
For a Michigan State side that has been building momentum, the win pushed its conference record to 4-1-0 and brought a long wait to an end. It was the Spartans first victory over Maryland since 2018, a small but meaningful marker in a league where results like this can shape the rest of October. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State Opened Its No. 3 Season Looking Every Bit The Part
Michigan State wasted little time making an opening-night statement at Munn Ice Arena, rolling past Northern Michigan 6-2 to start the regular season with the kind of pace and finish that suggests a team intent on living up to its No. 3 billing. Sophomore forward Anthony Romani set the tone with two goals and an assist, while the Spartans also got early production from a power play that converted half of its chances.
Freshman goaltender Joshua Ravensbergern settled in well enough in his first start, turning aside 16 shots as the Spartans controlled the game in front of him. For a team carrying high expectations into the fall, the opener offered the kind of balanced performance Michigan State wants to build on, even if the larger questions about how this group will hold up against tougher opposition are only beginning to take shape. [Read more 🡒]