Spartans hold firm at No. 2 after a weekend sweep, gearing up for a high-stakes showdown with surging Penn State.
No news is good news.
Michigan State held steady at No. 2 in the national rankings this week after sweeping the Minnesota Golden Gophers in East Lansing over the weekend. Two gritty wins added to the column and kept the Spartans right on the heels of in-state rival Michigan at the top of college hockey.
Michigan (20-4-0) remained No. 1, receiving 48 of the 50 first-place votes. Michigan State (19-5-0) stayed put at No. 2, earning one first-place vote, while Western Michigan (18-6-0) held firm at No. 3 and also picked up a first-place nod.
Rounding out the top five were North Dakota (20-6-0) at No. 4 and Penn State (18-6-0), which jumped three spots to No. 5 following an impressive weekend.
Penn State surged after sweeping then-No. 4 Wisconsin, outscoring the Badgers 10–3 across the two games. The Nittany Lions, who were ranked as high as No. 3 earlier this season, endured some tough early losses but appear to be peaking at the right time. That sweep propelled them from eighth to fifth in the national rankings.
Now, Penn State heads back home to host the No. 2 Michigan State Spartans.
It sets up one of the marquee series of the regular season.
These two teams met back in the first week of November in their respective Big Ten openers. Michigan State held strong in hostile territory, winning game one 2–1 in overtime before pulling away in game two with a dominant 5–0 shutout. It was an early statement series for the Spartans, and now both teams look very different — and even more dangerous — heading into round two.
We’ll dive deeper into that matchup later in the week with a full breakdown and predictions. For now, the focus stays on Michigan State as a whole.
Last weekend carried heavy emotions in East Lansing following the passing of Daniel Sturges. The Spartans honored his memory and will wear a commemorative patch for the remainder of the season. Rest in peace, Coach.
On the ice, Michigan State improved to 19-5 overall and 10-4 in Big Ten play. With just five series — ten games — remaining in the regular season, every weekend now carries postseason weight. That pressure only intensifies with a brutal stretch ahead: No. 5 Penn State this weekend, No. 1 Michigan next weekend, followed by three more tough Big Ten opponents in Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Minnesota again. There is no time to breathe.
Offensively, the Spartans will need to find ways to consistently put the puck in the net down the stretch. Michigan State has leaned heavily on the best goaltender in college hockey, Detroit Red Wings second-round pick Trey Augustine, but balanced scoring will be critical against elite competition.
The offense is led by Philadelphia Flyers first-round pick Porter Martone, who ranks ninth nationally in goals per game at 0.64, scoring 14 goals in 22 games. Martone also sits 12th in the nation in points per game (1.27).
Not far behind is Minnesota Wild first-round pick Charlie Stramel, who averages 0.54 goals per game, tied for 23rd nationally. Stramel has 13 goals in 24 games and is tied for 15th in the nation in points per game (1.25). He leads the Spartans in total points with 30, adding 17 assists to his goal total. Stramel also ranks second nationally in faceoffs won with 302 and is tied for second in game-winning goals this season with five.
Still, the Spartans’ bread and butter remains junior goaltender Trey Augustine.
Augustine ranks second in the nation in save percentage (.938), trailing only Penn State’s Joshua Fleming (.944), the very goalie Michigan State will face this weekend. Augustine is fifth nationally in win percentage (.773) and leads the country in goals-against average, allowing just 1.73 goals per game. He has surrendered only 38 goals in 1,317 minutes of action this season.
The No. 2 Spartans and No. 5 Nittany Lions collide this weekend in what promises to be one of the best series of the regular season. But before the puck drops, here’s a look at how the top of college hockey stacks up this week.
| Rank | Team (1st Place Votes) | Record | Points | Previous |
| 1 | Michigan (48) | 20-4-0 | 996 | 1 |
| 2 | Michigan State (1) | 19-5-0 | 942 | 2 |
| 3 | Western Michigan (1) | 18-6-0 | 877 | 3 |
| 4 | North Dakota | 20-6-0 | 850 | 4 |
| 5 | Penn State | 18-6-0 | 797 | 8 |
| 6 | Quinnipiac | 19-5-2 | 668 | 6 |
| 7 | Minnesota Duluth | 17-9-0 | 666 | 7 |
| 8 | Wisconsin | 15-7-2 | 644 | 5 |
| 9 | Providence | 15-7-2 | 631 | 11 |
| 10 | Cornell | 14-5-0 | 526 | 12 |
| 11 | Denver | 14-11-2 | 511 | 9 |
| 12 | UConn | 15-7-3 | 474 | 13 |
| 13 | Boston College | 13-8-1 | 356 | 15 |
| 14 | Dartmouth | 14-6-1 | 355 | 10 |
| 15 | St. Thomas | 16-7-3 | 330 | 16 |
| 16 | Augustana | 16-7-3 | 247 | 14 |
| 17 | Maine | 14-9-2 | 221 | 17 |
| 18 | Minnesota State | 13-8-5 | 120 | 20 |
| 19 | Michigan Tech | 17-9-2 | 72 | 19 |
| 20 | St. Cloud State | 13-13-0 | 57 | NR |