BIG RAPIDS, Mich. – After a scoreless first period, 14
th-ranked Minnesota State and Ferris State combined for four goals in three minutes to open up the second period and the Mavericks cruised to a 5-1 Central Collegiate Hockey Association win over the Bulldogs.
With the win, MSU extended its CCHA lead to four points over second-place Bowling Green with both teams having six games remaining on the league slate.
The game saw MSU get on the scoreboard first when junior
David Silye came down the slot while taking a pass from the right side from junior
Akito Hirose. He one-timed the puck home before FSU goalie Logan Stein could slide across the net.
The goal was Silye's team-leading 20
th of the season. Hirose and junior
Jake Livingstone both picked up their 20
th assists of the season, sharing the team lead in helpers.
Jason Brancheau evened the score just under two minutes later, setting off a scoring flurry which saw the Mavericks regain the lead 46 seconds later, followed by another tally just 11 seconds later for a 3-1 lead.
Livingstone gave MSU the lead for good when he took a cross-ice pass from junior
Tony Malinowski as he entered the Bulldog zone on the right side. He then used a toe drag move to get around one defender before snapping off a shot from the right circle to the far side of the net.
Just 11 seconds later, junior
Odrej Pavel won a faceoff in his own zone and sophomore
Will Hillman carried the puck up the right side before hitting junior
Connor Gregga, who skated up the middle before scoring his second goal of the season.
Freshman
Christian Fitzgerald and senior
Ryan Sandelin each recorded a goal in the third to conclude the Maverick scoring.
After that, the Mavericks locked down their hosts, allowing just seven shots on goal of the final 35 minutes.
The win gives MSU a perfect 8-0-0 record in the month of January with sophomore
Keenan Rancier, who made 14 saves in the game, winning all eight.
The Mavericks take an 18-9-1 overall record and 13-6-1 CCHA mark into next weekend's home-and-home series with St. Thomas. The teams square off, Friday, at the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center beginning at 7:07 p.m.
Saturday's game moves to the Twin Cities and Mendota Heights, Minn., where the teams will face off at 6:07 p.m. at St. Thomas Arena.
