Michigan State hockey headed to first Big Ten title game after 2-1 home win over OSU
For the first time in the 11 seasons of the Big Ten hockey tournament, Michigan State is headed to the championship game with a 2-1 victory over seventh-seeded Ohio State at Munn Ice Arena in East Lansing on Saturday.
The top-seeded Spartans received a scare, first, though, with OSU’s Max Montes tying the game at 1-all just 2:03 into the third period. But Nash Nienhuis answered just 13 seconds later with his eighth goal of the season to restore the Spartans’ one-goal lead.
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From there, it was all freshman goalie Trey Augustine, who finished with 37 saves. The Red Wings’ 2023 second-round pick (No. 41 overall) allowed the tying goal on the 26th shot he faced, then blanked the Buckeyes over their final 11 shots.
Michigan State (23-9-3) will host the single-elimination final on March 23 (Big Ten Network) and will face either third-seeded Minnesota or fourth-seeded Michigan, who played late Saturday night in Minneapolis. MSU split its season series with the Golden Gophers, though the Spartans needed a shootout for a victory in November. The Spartans took three of four games this season from the Wolverines, losing at Munn in mid-January before winning twice in Ann Arbor and taking the series win at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.
The Spartans, who are attempting to become the first No. 1 seed to win the Big Ten tourney since Notre Dame in 2018, are safely in the 16-team NCAA tournament field, which will be announced March 24, and in the running for a No. 1 seed in their region.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State hockey headed to first Big Ten title game after 2-1 win
