Though the Falcon hockey team didn’t get the three or four points they really needed this weekend, they were happy with the effort they saw Saturday night.
Right from the opening face-off the Falcons (4-10-1, 4-7-1) played a hard, physical game winning a lot of the battles along the boards and races to loose pucks in 4-2 win over the Michigan State Spartans at the BG Ice Arena. It was a win that gave the Falcons a split on the weekend after being blanked by the Spartans (6-7-4, 3-5-3) 3-0 the night before in East Lansing, Mich.
Unlike Friday’s game, BG had much better luck against MSU goaltender Dominic Vicari as they were able to make some of the plays and get some of the bounces that have eluded them in numerous games this season on way to one of their best performances of the season.
Freshman net-minder Jimmy Spratt got the start earning first star honors on the night as he made 22 stops on 24 shots to earn his third career win. BG had a good balance of scoring as they got goals from all four lines and four different players.
“This was one really from the first minute all the way through the 60th minute where I thought we were extremely solid,” BG coach Scott Paluch said. “Right from the saves Jimmy [Spratt] was making to the defense not having any dangerous plays and probably all one to 19 players that were involved contributing.”
Balance has been something the Falcons have struggled with all season as their first line has accounted for most of their points. However, on Saturday night it was their second line that stepped up and scored two of the biggest goals on the night to put BG in position for only their second win in eight games.
It was an even strength goal at 14:23 of the second period by Brett Pilkington of that line which proved to be the game-winner as BG took a 3-2 lead. His rebound in front off a shot by Derek Whitmore found the back of the net after landing right on his stick after Vicari misplayed the puck on Whitmore’s shot from the left circle.
That second line which consisted of Pilkington, Whitmore and James Unger was one line in particular that coach Paluch has expected a lot out of this season and he was pleased with their all-out effort in the game.
“They generated chances for us and got to a lot of loose pucks,” he said.
One of the line’s other chances resulted in the other key goal on the night as Unger scored his sixth goal on the season on a rush from the blue line on the power-play to give BG a 2-1 lead at the 6:20 mark of the second period. His goal aroused some controversy as his shot went in just before the net dislodged from the ice which stops the play.
“I was just driving the net and got tripped and put it in five-hole before the net was off,” Unger said of the goal. “It wasn’t very questionable if you ask me.”
Unger’s goal was the lone power-play goal for the Falcons on the night as they went 1-5. MSU finished 2-5 with the extra-attacker.
BG took the lead three different in the games as after each of their first two goals the Spartans answered right back.
After Rich Meloche’s goal to open the game at 4:06 for BG in the first period, Jim McKenzie answered back for MSU just 1:23 later on the power-play to tie the game at 1-1.
Following Unger’s goal, Bryan Lerg, who recorded his second-career hat-trick the night before, also answered back with a power-play goal of his own at 9:27 of the second period to tie the game at 2-2.
Lerg accounted for all of MSU’s scoring on Friday and scored a goal on the only penalty-shot BG has faced all season as he beat Jon Horrell to give MSU a 2-0 lead at the time.
“He had quite a weekend,” Paluch said of Lerg. “He’s a dangerous player and when a player has a big night the first night you really hope they just disappear for a while.”
Lerg and the Spartans out-played the Falcons in the final period on Friday winning most of the 1-on-1 battles to pucks as BG looked to be dragging their feet from exhaustion towards the end. On Saturday though the Falcons came out with a 3-2 lead in the final period and controlled the play doing the exact same thing the Spartans had done to them in the final period the night before.
Just 7:22 into the period John Mazzei was able to cap off the scoring on a 2-on-1 with Brandon Svendson as his shot found the net over Vicari’s right shoulder.
The Spartans couldn’t mount much of a charge as BG continued to play hard on defense and Spratt made saves when they needed them.
“The team was so good in front of me tonight,” Spratt said. “I had to make a couple big saves, but that was it, I didn’t get hung out at all.”
Coach Paluch was also pleased with his young net-minder as he’s seen steady improvement out him in his last three outings.
“It was almost a less-is-more type of game for him,” Paluch said of Spratt. “He just kept himself square and kept himself big without going down to early. He was really clean in there and really solid.”
