EAST LANSING, Mich. — There were a lot of options for where Michigan State Hockey would be playing in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. Notre Dame knocked off Michigan, so the Spartans now head to South Bend.
The Spartans and Fighting Irish battled in the first conference series of the weekend, and now, they'll face off once again.
"In a perfect world, you want to be able to control your destiny, and we were in a spot where we weren't able to, and you had to sit back and watch. Obviously, we would love to play at home, but regardless, we have such a good league there was not going to be an easy draw," head coach Adam Nightingale said.
Nightingale wanted to go gain respect back in college hockey this year, and the Spartans have done that. After being picked to finish at the bottom of the Big Ten, MSU missed out on home ice by one point.
"I don't think it's the craziest thing in the world. I knew what kind of kids we had in here," senior forward Jagger Joshua said. "Obviously, people outside of our locker room didn't expect us to be, but I can't say that myself."
This weekend also will loom large as Michigan State enters the weekend as the No. 19 team in the Pairwise rankings. The top 16 teams make the NCAA tournament.
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