Comments from 2009-2010 Season

3/18/10... I think it was a disappointing weekend after the expectations that the players and staff had going into the Michigan series. We did accomplish a lot this year, so we can't be entirely unhappy. It can't be a total negative either. But we do want the losses to hurt so the guys will learn from them. We made great progress after the 2008-09 season and we hope to do the same this year. We are still trying to sort out a potential chance of making it into the NCAA playoffs this year, but a lot of things need to happen in order for us to do so. - Brian Renfrew, associate head coach

3/4/10... On Friday night, we came out with high energy and executed very well. I thought that we could have had twice as many goals in the first period. We were not as intense in the second and third periods, but we were still good. On Saturday, I give Bowling Green a lot of credit. They came out hard on their Senior Night and were emotionally charged. Drew Palmisano really helped keep us in the game, and they had great goaltending as well. We finally got a sense of urgency in the second half of the third period and were able to tie up the game. It's a real accomplishment to finish second in the CCHA. We were consistent all year getting points every weekend. We will use this week to get healthy and stay in tip-top shape for post-season play. We expect to play really good teams from here on out, no matter what time we face them in the CCHA playoffs. - Tom Newton, assistant coach

2/24/10... We have reached the end of the regular season with only two games remaining on our schedule... a home-and-home series against Bowling Green. We are excited about how the year has gone and we are now trying to wrap up a first-round bye for the CCHA playoffs. The CCHA has been "wild" this year, so anyone could win the playoffs and no one has any idea who will play whom. We had a tough series last weekend against Ferris State. We played poorly on Friday night, but we were able to come out with a hard-fought win at home on Saturday. That series sets the stage for the weekend as we are still competing for second place in the conference. We need to win as many games as we can now to add to our record for post-season play. All of our players are healthy and excited to begin the post-season. - Rick Comley, head coach

2/16/10... We have two very important games against Ferris State this weekend. I expect a lot of energy and emotion out there. We will play in a tough environment on Friday in Big Rapids. We hope that there is a good crowd at Munn Ice Arena on Saturday. These two games could very well determine who finishes second in the league and could help our NCAA tournament resumé. We must play our system this weekend and really battle in what will be two hard-fought games. - Damon Whitten, director of hockey operations

2/9/10... It was a very long trip to Alaska, to say the least. We tried to practice outside when we first got up there, but it was just too cold. On Friday night, we were really sluggish all game. We had some good scoring opportunities, but we were unable to get many shots on net. The bright spot was Bobby Jarosz's excellent play in goal. The goalies on both teams played "unreal" again on Saturday night. Drew Palmisano got a huge shoot-out win which is great for his confidence. Andrew Rowe and Corey Tropp had beautiful shoot-out goals. Scoring came at a premium last weekend. We're glad that we came back with at least two points. Alaska is a strong team that plays well in their own building. Coach Comley switched the lines around on Saturday night which got us going a little bit, and we were able to come back strong for a hard-earned shoot-out win. - Rob Woodward, volunteer assistant coach

2/2/10... On Friday night, we played very well as a team. Unfortunately, our penalty issues continued in that game which made it possible for Michigan to get back into it. The game was exciting, and was a big win for the Spartans. It's always great to come out ahead, especially against such a big rival. We were nervous coming out on Saturday night due to being a young team. We displayed a tremendous amount of resilience and showed that we are never out of any hockey game. It was a disappointing result, but we can't lose sight of the fact that we are a "team in progress." If we stay with the process, which is sometimes difficult, we will achieve good results. - Brian Renfrew, associate head coach

1/26/10... Friday night's game with Ohio State was a tough one. Special teams played a huge factor in the win. There was no flow or rhythm because there was not much even-strength play. Our sign of strength was that in the third period, the Green and Maroon lines each had goals. We were happy with the way we battled on Friday night, especially playing a strong third period. Saturday night's game was disappointing. We went ahead early, but we weren't able to get the next goal, which would have put the Buckeyes in a tough spot. They got the next two goals, but we battled back to even the score. It hurt to let it slip away at the end like we did, but we will rebound from that game. Our strength lies in the team play of our system, which we must get back to for a tough series with Michigan this weekend. - Tom Newton, assistant coach

1/19/10... Going into the Notre Dame series, we knew it was going to be tough. We tied and lost to them earlier in the season. We came out with a lot of energy and got up early on Friday night. Then they scored a couple and just took the momentum from us. We couldn't get anything going in the third period and Notre Dame played really well to win. On Saturday night, we got off to the same kind of start. We played two great periods of hockey, but Notre Dame scored a couple of power play goals in the third to take the lead. The guys showed a tremendous amount of resilience and battled to take the game into overtime. We gained a great amount of confidence by winning our first shootout of the season. Hopefully, we can learn to put away teams when we get an early lead and stay within our system like we did on Saturday night. - Rob Woodward, volunteer assistant coach

1/12/10... It's hard to imagine but we only have 12 games left! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, and the New Year brings you health and happiness. The year started positively with the GLI win and a good series with a very good LSSU team. We are currently in third place, one point behind Miami and Ferris... who is legitimate! Our remaining schedule is difficult, but we know the challenge we face, and we are excited about it. Hopefully we can fill the building a few times. And as always, we thank you for your continued support of MSU Hockey. Thanks, and Go Green! - Rick Comley, head coach

1/12/10... The GLI was a strong effort by our team. It was as productive of an offensive weekend as we have had in a long time. Many of our players gain a great deal of confidence in that weekend. We had great goaltending both nights and we were stingy on the amount of quality offensive chances that we gave up. Our guys really grasped the importance of the GLI, which is a tournament that we highlight each season. We showcased the Spartan hockey program in the GLI against two quality opponents. This past weekend's games against Lake Superior were real quality college hockey games. They were tough games between two teams that are playing well right now. I'm happy with the way the guys competed in both games. We were able to win the opener against a team that had been unbeaten in their previous eight games. The second night we battled back in the third period and had some opportunities to win the game, but we just fell short in the shootout. We expect Lake Superior to finish in the upper eschelon of the CCHA, so ultimately we had a pretty successful weekend. - Tom Newton, assistant coach

12/15/09... It was an important weekend for Spartan hockey. We went to Bowling Green on Friday and were not at the level we wanted to be for the first two periods. The team showed some heart and desire in the third period, tying the score and eventually winning in overtime. Being down by two goals on the road, we persevered through a tough situation. Saturday's game was a much better start and entire game for the team. We came out fast and outplayed them nearly the entire game. We scored two power play goals that really sparked us after struggling in past games in that aspect. A sweep in the CCHA is always great and we will take that confidence into the holiday break. We are looking forward to the GLI. It has a lot of tradition. It always meant a lot to win this tournament when I played. MSU will play a Michigan Tech team from the always tough WCHA, and then either RPI or Michigan, so we will have two hard-fought games. Hopefully, we can get all the guys healthy over holiday break and rested up for a chance to win a GLI tournament title and finish out the rest of the season strong. Go State! - Damon Whitten, director of hockey operations

12/8/09... On Friday, we played outstanding. We weathered Northern Michigan's storm for the first 8-10 minutes of the game and Bobby Jarosz made some huge saves. From then on, the guys settled down and really played well. We had many good chances even-strength and on the power play. We gained a great deal of confidence after this game because we have had some bad luck in Marquette in past years, and we were able to come out with a big victory this time. Saturday's game was disappointing to say the least. We were not able to skate during the day on Saturday and the whole day seemed to drag on, which may be why we came out with little energy. Drew Palmisano played a great game, and the team as a whole played well enough to get at least a point. We showed resilience by coming back from being down a goal twice and tying it up to send it into overtime. It's just a tough loss to take on a flukey bounce like that. We have two games against Bowling Green this weekend to end a tough strectch of games before break. We cannot take Bowling Green for granted. We must play "our game" this weekend. We have to play in a tough atmosphere on Friday and hopefully we take care of business down there, so we can have the chance to sweep them at home on Saturday night. Go State! - Brian Renfrew, associate head coach

12/1/09... We knew going in that we were going to have two tough games last weekend. Wisconsin had been playing well, and Minnesota is a team full of NHL draft picks. The score of the Wisconsin game was not indicative of how well we played. We had chances in the third period to make it a one-goal game. The Minnesota game was frustrating because we tied the game late in the third period only to have them score seconds later. We were able to get shots, but not enough quality shots to put the puck in the net. It is never good to lose. But after a few losses, we know what we need to do to be successful. We started out really well this season and have had some "growing pains" as of late. I think we got away from our system the last few games. We're looking forward to going up to Northern Michigan this weekend, getting back to playing our system, and winning a couple hockey games. Go State! - Rob Woodward, volunteer assistant coach

11/24/09... Notre Dame is a very good hockey team. They are defensively sound and well-coached. We competed hard on Thursday night and had a chance to win the game. Our power play didn't score in the game. We had good puck movement, but just couldn't get it past their goalie much. Give credit to Notre Dame's goaltender who made some phenomenal saves on our power play toward the end of the game. On Sunday in Ft. Wayne, Notre Dame got ahead early and was able to get into a defensive shell that hindered our ability to create scoring opportunities. We played pretty well overall last weekend, but learned that any lapses against a high-caliber team like Notre Dame will hurt us. The College Hockey Showcase Tournament is a great Thanksgiving weekend tradition. The four teams always play hard-fought games. We know that both Wisconsin and Minnesota will have a lot of skill, and will play high-tempo hockey. We will have a good week of practice and come out ready on Friday night. We expect there to be a good crowd to support us, and hopefully we can beat two good WCHA hockey teams. Happy Thanksgiving to all! - Tom Newton, assistant coach

11/17/09... We had two great wins against our archrival last weekend. The guys did a great job executing in a tough environment on Friday night at Yost, and then they came out with a great amount of energy on Saturday night and completed the sweep at Munn. Drew Palmisano has played very well this season, recording his second shut-out of the season on Saturday. We were unable to score on the power play last weekend, which has been a strong suit for us all year long. But the penalty kill came through and allowed no Michigan goals with the man-advantage. With both Leveille's and Forfar's line adding goals, our scoring came from more than just the top line. The more balanced scoring is crucial to continuing our success this season. While it was a huge weekend sweep over Michigan, we were able to enjoy the wins for only a few hours. Now we're focused on Notre Dame with the short turnaround game on Thursday. The Fighting Irish are a well-structured, talented, and disciplined team. We did a good job at practice Monday and are totally focused on our next opponent. We are prepared for tough games this weekend and a difficult upcoming stretch. - Damon Whitten, director of hockey operations

11/10/09... Thursday night's game was great. Goaltender Drew Palmisano was able to get his first career shut-out which is a big milestone for any goaltender. We expected Nebraska-Omaha to come out and play better on Friday night, which they did. It's always disappointing to lose a shoot-out, but we took four out of six points from a very good team. We've done a great job learning the new system and in getting better every time we step out onto the ice. Our issue has been taking too many penalties, and that is something we have been harping on lately because it makes it hard to win a hockey game. We have been preaching to the freshmen that if you see numbers on the player's back, you can't hit them. Our young players will learn and be more disciplined about taking penalties as the year goes on. We are all really excited to play Michigan this weekend. I know I was anxious to play them when I was an MSU player, and I'm equally so as a volunteer assistant coach! There will be a ton of emotion in the game, especially after what happened last season in Ann Arbor. I expect a very hostile rink on Friday night and two unreal battles against a tough Michigan team. They had their fair share of penalties against Miami last weekend, so it will be a test of which team can be more disciplined. We had a good practice on Monday and we will be ready for the Wolverines this weekend. Go Green! - Rob Woodward, volunteer assistant coach

11/3/09... The team lacked energy on Friday night, but we were able to persevere and come out with a win. Grassi's major penalty took some air out of the team because we had to kill a five-minute penalty and were down to five defensemen for the rest of the game. We were very fortunate to come away with three points after Western Michigan's late charge. Those kinds of games happen with a young team. It was important that we found a way to win the hockey game. On Saturday night, we came out harder and with more fortitude. We played well at Lawson Ice Arena which has traditionally been a tough place to play for the Spartans. We took command of the game early and kept it that way until we took a few late penalties. They were hard-working penalties, but we need to learn to have good sticks and be conscientious of finishing our hits late in games. Two wins on the weekend in the CCHA always looks good. We have a short week to prepare for a tough Nebraska-Omaha team on Thursday and Friday. Our young team will have to be ready for another conference test. Go State! - Brian Renfrew, associate head coach

10/27/09... The team capped off a great weekend with the overtime goal on Saturday night. It was a great way to win a hockey game, and it means a great deal for the confidence and development of the players. There were a number of positives in Friday night's game, as well. For us to go into a hostile environment against the #1 ranked team in the country (Miami of Ohio) and come out with a one-goal loss and then an overtime win makes a great statement for Spartan hockey! We will be facing a tough 4-0 opponent this weekend in Western Michigan, so we must continue to show growth and play hard for 60 minutes, or more, both nights. Our .500 record on the road looks impressive considering we played in two tough environments, and two of the four games were against the top-ranked team in the nation. The ability to play well on the road bodes well as we get into the heart of CCHA play. After two road weekends, the team is excited to return to Munn for their CCHA home opener against the Broncos. Go Spartans! - Damon Whitten, director of hockey operations

10/20/09... The Maine series was very positive from a few different angles. Our young team bonded and showed some internal growth over the course of the trip. It was a great environment to play in, and the players really stuck together through two hard-fought games. Having a win on the road in Hockey East will truly standout come March. The only negative was that we had some good opportunities to win the game on Saturday night, but we couldn't capitalize on our chances and we ended up losing a close one. Overall, it was a great experience for all the players. There is no question that Miami of Ohio will be better than any team we have faced so far this season. We are going into hostile environment in Oxford. It will give us another growth opportunity to show the caliber of play and cohesiveness we must have to compete with the elite teams in the country. I am thrilled with the development of our team, and the way the players have all bought in and competed. Go Green! - Tom Newton, assistant coach

10/13/09... Congratulations to Coach Comley on collecting his 750th career win last Friday night! We were able to get the exact results we were looking for last weekend. Scoring 10 goals really helps our confidence! The Spartans showed they have both fight and competitiveness after they went down a goal in the second game. We stayed composed and were able to pull out a win at the end. We will rely heavily on our junior class this season. Juniors Gazley, Rowe, and Tropp had goals on Friday night and hopefully that production will continue. Also, we received key contributions from freshmen Grant and Josepher. It was important to give both goalies an opportunity to play; Jarosz played well on Saturday after battling through some early adversity. Our power play was impressive last weekend and our penalty kill was pretty good as well. We took the team through the trenches with a tough practice on Monday. We will have two more good practices this week including a 6:30 AM practice on Wednesday due to traveling issues. The Spartans will then travel to Maine this weekend for two tough road contests. Thanks for the support, - Brian Renfrew, associate head coach

10/6/09... The first official practice went well. We actually had six practices before that in which we tried to do as much teaching on the ice as we could. The players have made great progress, and have really "soaked in" everything we tell them. We have taken steps in the right direction, but we're looking to improve each day. The players had a great time in the Green-White game, especially with the shootout. It was hard from an evaluation standpoint to look at the Green-White game because it was an intrasquad scrimmage. The Western Ontario game gave us a better look. We generated a great deal of scoring chances in the game, and did some real good things defensively. Both MSU goalies played great, and there will be competition between the two for playing time. We won the right way against Western Ontario and played exactly how we want to play. Every win is a big win for the Spartans. We win as a team, and we lose as a team. We are excited about the Clarkson series this weekend, and we look forward to getting the season underway. Go Green! - Brian Renfrew, associate head coach

9/25/09... The 2009-2010 season is almost here. We are excited about the addition of nine new freshman and the return of several players who were injured last season. The combination of the two should result in a very competitive hockey club this season. We should surprise those who are not expecting a strong Spartan team. Players we expect to contribute greatly this season are Drew Palmisano, Jeff Petry, Andrew Rowe, Nick Sucharski, and Corey Tropp. In addition, we expect big things from all of our freshman, especially Zach Golembiewski, Derek Grant, Torey Krug, and Kevin Walrod. The new MSU Blue Line Club website looks great, and we are excited about keeping everybody up-to-date with what is going on in Spartan hockey. We are proud to "Go Green" with this electronic newsletter, and think the highlights of the program are great for everyone. It really shows how the Blue Line Club and all of its members are an integral part of Michigan State hockey. We have a great partnership with the Blue Line Club. It's crucial that we have a strong membership and that it continues to grow into the model for college hockey booster clubs.

Thanks, and Go Green!       - Rick Comley, head coach