MSU Skates to Tie, Loses GLI TItle in Shootout - Michigan State University Athletics (2024)

Box Score East Lansing, Mich. – No 7/7 Michigan State skated to a 3-3 tie in the finals of the 57^th annual Great Lakes Invitational Tournament on Friday evening. While the results of the game go into the record books as a tie, Michigan Tech earns the GLI title with a 1-0 win in the shootout.

The Spartans (13-4-3) battled back from a 1-0 deficit after the first period and a 3-2 deficit in the third to earn the tie, with sophom*ore Joey Larson scoring a pair of goals in the second frame and Red Savage netting the game-tying tally in the third period. Freshman goalie Luca Di Pasquo made 22 saves in the game.

Michigan Tech goalie Blake Pietela made 54 saves in regulation to earn All-Tournament team goaltender honors. Jack Works had all three goals for Michigan Tech (10-8-3) in the game.

In the overtime period, MSU outshot Tech 9-4, with both netminders coming up big for their teams with point-blank stops. MSU outshot Tech 57-25 overall, its second 50-shot contest this month.

The Spartans failed to capture their first Great Lakes Invitational title since 2009, but made its first appearance in the GLI finals since 2014.

MSU returns to Munn Ice Arena for the first time in a month when it hosts the US National Team Development Program on Friday, Jan. 5.

STATISTICS OF NOTE

• Joey Larson scored his team-best 10th and 11^th goals of the season, one on the power play. It was his second multiple-goal game of the season.
• Red Savage scored his seventh goal of the year in the third period, matching his previous career best for goals in a season. He also contributed an assist on the Larson power play marker.
• Nicolas Muller had assists on both of Larson's tallies.
• Luca Di Pasquo played his first career back-to-back games in the GLI. He made 22 saves on Friday after a 26-save performance on Thursday vs. Ferris State.
• Defensem*n David Gucciardi and Matt Basgall each had assists in the game.
• Larson and Gucciardi earned GLI All-Tournament Team honors.
• In addition to MSU having a 57-25 edge in shots on net, Michigan Tech blocked 24 Spartan shots in the contest.
• Michigan State has four players at the World Junior Championships: Goalie Trey Augustine and forward Isaac Howard (Team USA), Tommi Männistö (Team Finland) and Maxim Štrbák (Slovakia).

First Period: Michigan State opened the game with a ton of energy and momentum, putting six shots on goal over the opening four minutes – but Blake Pietela was on his game and turned each of them aside. The host school got on the board first, popping a power play goal at 8:55. Jack Works converted the goal from the right side, putting back a rebound off a shot by centerman Logan Pietela. Despite a 16-5 edge in shots in the period, the Spartans were still trailing by a 1-0 deficit thanks to the power play goal by the Huskies.

Second Period: MSU gained its first power play opportunity five minutes into the frame, and the Spartans quickly put one on the board to knot the game at 1-1. Joey Larson carried it into the left circle off the half wall and put it on net, and what ensued was a scramble for a loose puck at the top of the goalmouth. With six players piled up to the left of the goal cage, the puck popped out to the right, and Larson jumped on it and scored his 10^th goal of the season to tie the game up at 1-1. Larson added a second in the final minute of the frame, as Nicolas Müller held the puck behind the net and fed it to Larson below the left hash marks, and Larson found twine to send the Spartans into the locker room with their first lead of the night. MSU held Tech to a single shot on goal in the period, with a 15-1 edge in SOG for the Spartans,

Third Period: Jack Works tied the game for Tech at 2:22. Kyle Kukkonen carried the puck up the left wall and fed it to Works in the slot for the junior's second of the night. Works potted another to complete his hat trick at 9:29 – Chase Pietela made the initial attempt from the half wall on the right side, and after Di Pasquo made the initial save, Works was there to pop back the rebound on the left. MSU was determined and knotted things up again at 12:03. A strong shift by David Gucciardi – who seconds before had broken up a rush along the left wall – collected the puck below the goal line, skated to the top of the left circle, and threw a nasty stretch pass right onto the stick of Red Savage at the offensive blue line. Savage broke free of the defender, went in, and shot high blocker-side for his seventh goal of the season.

Overtime: Both netminders were up to the task in the extra frame – MSU put nine shots on Pietela (two from point-blank range by Joey Larson), while Di Pasquo made four stops in the Spartan end to end any hopes of an MTU hero.