EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Coming off a statement weekend against Denver in Tempe, No. 16 Sun Devil Hockey (8-4-2) begin their long, grueling holiday stretch away from home with No. 18 Michigan State (8-7-1) Saturday and Sunday at Munn Ice Arena.
Last fall when these squads battled it out on the ice, both were on the brink of being ranked as each were receiving votes. This season in East Lansing, both teams are in the top-20 USCHO poll with yet another crucial match-up. ASU not only jumped up two spots in the USCHO poll, but broke the top-10 in the Pairwise and RPI ranking as they come in ranked ninth in the country.
"They have been a handful for everybody that they have played, so they're building a really good program there and head coach Danton Cole is in his third year there," said head coach Greg Powers. "We have our work cut out for us because they are big, they are fast, they are heavy and play hard."
Devilishly Good
Sophomore goaltender Evan DeBrouwer held Denver to two goals (neither coming at full strength) in his career-high 44 save night Saturday. Much of the Sun Devil success is attributed to DeBrouwer as of late, riding a five-game unbeaten streak allowing just six goals (1.2/G) while posting a .960 save percentage (144 saves on 150 shots) in that stretch.
Junior forward James Sanchez has grown comfortable quick in the maroon and gold. In his last 10 games, he's posted 13 points (4g,8a) and has a team-high and season total of 18 points. One point behind him is linemate Johnny Walker (9g,8a), who netted his second career hat trick against the Pioneers in Friday's series opener.
Defensive pairing Brinson Pasichnuk and Josh Maniscalco have become a dangerous duo for the Devils each totaling 14 points, respectively, ranking them in a tie for 7th in scoring among national defensemen.
In their series sweep over the Spartans last season, six different Sun Devils attributed with goals including now-sophomore forward Jordan Sandhu who tallied a career-high three points in one game.
Sparty's Season
The Spartans are also coming off a successful weekend at home as they swept Big Ten foe Wisconsin, putting them in a tie for second place in the Big Ten standings with Ohio State. Michigan State split their series with then-No. 6 Penn State and held then-No. 3 Notre Dame to a tie the first night before following with a win. So far this season, MSU is 4-5-1 against ranked opponents.
Senior forward Patrick Khodorenko has paced the Spartans offensively, ranking 5th in the Big Ten with 16 points (8g,8a) in 10 games.
Junior forward Mitchell Lewandowski is another Spartan to watch, as the former Chicago Steel linemate of ASU's Johnny Walker has 11 points (5g,6a). The two combined for 63 points in 96 games played in the 2015-16 season, and Lewandowski held off Walker for the NCAA national freshman goal scoring title in 2016-17.
On the back end, senior goaltender John Lethemon is having a career season as he sports the highest save percentage (.941) and second-highest goals against average (2.01) in the conference. Like DeBrouwer, his past month has been in his favor, boasting a 1.41 goals against average, .957 save percentage, and allowing more than two goals in a game just once since their home game against Michigan on Nov. 16.
Puck drop on Saturday will be 5:00 p.m. (MST) with Sunday beginning at 3:00 p.m. Both games against the Spartans will be available on Big Ten Plus.
Last fall when these squads battled it out on the ice, both were on the brink of being ranked as each were receiving votes. This season in East Lansing, both teams are in the top-20 USCHO poll with yet another crucial match-up. ASU not only jumped up two spots in the USCHO poll, but broke the top-10 in the Pairwise and RPI ranking as they come in ranked ninth in the country.
"They have been a handful for everybody that they have played, so they're building a really good program there and head coach Danton Cole is in his third year there," said head coach Greg Powers. "We have our work cut out for us because they are big, they are fast, they are heavy and play hard."
Devilishly Good
Sophomore goaltender Evan DeBrouwer held Denver to two goals (neither coming at full strength) in his career-high 44 save night Saturday. Much of the Sun Devil success is attributed to DeBrouwer as of late, riding a five-game unbeaten streak allowing just six goals (1.2/G) while posting a .960 save percentage (144 saves on 150 shots) in that stretch.
Junior forward James Sanchez has grown comfortable quick in the maroon and gold. In his last 10 games, he's posted 13 points (4g,8a) and has a team-high and season total of 18 points. One point behind him is linemate Johnny Walker (9g,8a), who netted his second career hat trick against the Pioneers in Friday's series opener.
Defensive pairing Brinson Pasichnuk and Josh Maniscalco have become a dangerous duo for the Devils each totaling 14 points, respectively, ranking them in a tie for 7th in scoring among national defensemen.
In their series sweep over the Spartans last season, six different Sun Devils attributed with goals including now-sophomore forward Jordan Sandhu who tallied a career-high three points in one game.
Sparty's Season
The Spartans are also coming off a successful weekend at home as they swept Big Ten foe Wisconsin, putting them in a tie for second place in the Big Ten standings with Ohio State. Michigan State split their series with then-No. 6 Penn State and held then-No. 3 Notre Dame to a tie the first night before following with a win. So far this season, MSU is 4-5-1 against ranked opponents.
Senior forward Patrick Khodorenko has paced the Spartans offensively, ranking 5th in the Big Ten with 16 points (8g,8a) in 10 games.
Junior forward Mitchell Lewandowski is another Spartan to watch, as the former Chicago Steel linemate of ASU's Johnny Walker has 11 points (5g,6a). The two combined for 63 points in 96 games played in the 2015-16 season, and Lewandowski held off Walker for the NCAA national freshman goal scoring title in 2016-17.
On the back end, senior goaltender John Lethemon is having a career season as he sports the highest save percentage (.941) and second-highest goals against average (2.01) in the conference. Like DeBrouwer, his past month has been in his favor, boasting a 1.41 goals against average, .957 save percentage, and allowing more than two goals in a game just once since their home game against Michigan on Nov. 16.
Puck drop on Saturday will be 5:00 p.m. (MST) with Sunday beginning at 3:00 p.m. Both games against the Spartans will be available on Big Ten Plus.