# 2021–22 Michigan State Spartans men's ice hockey season

The 2021–22 Michigan State Spartans men's ice hockey season was the 80th season of play for the program. They represented Michigan State University in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season. This season marked the 32nd season in the Big Ten Conference. They were coached by Danton Cole, in his fifth season, and played their home games at Munn Ice Arena.

## Season

Michigan State began the season well, posting a winning record through the first month of the season. After dropping both games to arch-rival Michigan, the Spartans dipped below .500 but they responded with four consecutive wins to get back onto the plus side of the ledger. MSU ended the first half of their season with a split against Notre Dame, putting them in a strong position to make a run for a home game in the postseason.
Unfortunately, both the team's offense and defense faltered in the back half of their campaign and the Spartans lost 13 consecutive games. Both goaltenders played during the stretch and performed well, but neither received much help. MSU allowed an average of 37 shots per game, while recording just 27 of their own. While most of their losses were against ranked teams, that would provide little solace as Michigan State finished last in the conference for the fourth time in five years.
They faced Michigan in the first round of the conference tournament and were thoroughly beaten, losing both games by a combined 1–12 score.

## Departures

| Player | Position | Nationality | Cause |
| Tommy Apap | Forward | United States | Graduation (Signed with Indy Fuel) |
| Charlie Combs | Forward | United States | Graduation (Signed with Wichita Thunder) |
| Gianluca Esteves | Forward | Canada | Graduation (Signed with Cincinnati Cyclones) |
| Austin Kamer | Forward | United States | Graduation (retired) |
| Tommy Miller | Defenseman | United States | Graduate transfer to Northeastern |
| Jake Smith | Forward | United States | Graduation (retired) |
| Brody Stevens | Forward | United States | Graduation (retired) |

## Recruiting

| Player | Position | Nationality | Age | Notes |
| Christopher Berger | Forward | United States | 23 | Amherst, NY; graduate transfer from Brown |
| Jeremy Davidson | Forward | United States | 21 | Schoolcraft, MI; transfer from Massachusetts |
| David Gucciardi | Defenseman | Canada | 18 | Toronto, ON |
| Tanner Kelly | Forward | United States | 19 | San Diego, CA |
| Griffin Loughran | Forward | United States | 22 | Orchard Park, NY; transfer from Northern Michigan |
| Erik Middendorf | Forward | United States | 21 | Scottsdale, AZ; transfer from Colorado College |
| Jesse Tucker | Forward | Canada | 21 | Thunder Bay, ON |

## Roster

As of August 12, 2021.

## Standings

2021–22 Big Ten ice hockey Standingsvte :
| | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record |
| | GP | W | L | T | OTW | OTL | 3/SW | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| #5 Minnesota † | 24 | 18 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 55 | 90 | 50 | 39 | 26 | 13 | 0 | 138 | 91 |
| #2 Michigan * | 24 | 16 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 51 | 91 | 59 | 42 | 31 | 10 | 1 | 167 | 94 |
| #9 Notre Dame | 24 | 17 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 47 | 74 | 55 | 40 | 28 | 12 | 0 | 122 | 75 |
| #16 Ohio State | 24 | 13 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 42 | 76 | 59 | 37 | 22 | 13 | 2 | 125 | 87 |
| Penn State | 24 | 6 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 20 | 63 | 92 | 38 | 17 | 20 | 1 | 117 | 122 |
| Wisconsin | 24 | 6 | 17 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 53 | 96 | 37 | 10 | 24 | 3 | 76 | 132 |
| Michigan State | 24 | 6 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 51 | 87 | 36 | 12 | 23 | 1 | 76 | 119 |
| Championship: March 19, 2022 † indicates conference regular season champion * indicates conference tournament champion Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll; updated April 7, 2022 |||||||||||||||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date | Time | Opponent$^#$ | Site | TV | Decision | Result | Attendance | Record |
| Exhibition ||||||||||
| October 2 | 7:00 PM | at USNTDP* | USA Hockey Arena • Plymouth MI (Exhibition) | | | L 0–3 | | |
| Regular Season ||||||||||
| October 8 | 7:00 PM | Air Force* | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | DeRidder | L 2–3 | 4,420 | 0–1–0 |
| October 9 | 7:00 PM | Air Force* | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | Charleson | W 5–1 | 4,918 | 1–1–0 |
| October 15 | 7:00 PM | Miami* | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | Charleson | W 3–1 | 6,511 | 2–1–0 |
| October 16 | 7:00 PM | Miami* | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | DeRidder | W 2–1 | 5,010 | 3–1–0 |
| October 22 | 7:15 PM | at Massachusetts Lowell* | Tsongas Center • Lowell, MA | | DeRidder | T 2–2 $^{OT}$ | 4,658 | 3–1–1 |
| October 23 | 6:05 PM | at Massachusetts Lowell* | Tsongas Center • Lowell, MA | | Charleson | L 0–4 | 3,468 | 3–2–1 |
| October 29 | 6:00 PM | at Ohio State | Value City Arena • Columbus, OH | | DeRidder | W 2–1 | 3,324 | 4–2–1 (1–0–0) |
| October 30 | 2:00 PM | at Ohio State | Value City Arena • Columbus, OH | | DeRidder | L 1–5 | 2,826 | 4–3–1 (1–1–0) |
| November 5 | 7:30 PM | at #3 Michigan | Yost Ice Arena • Ann Arbor, MI (Rivalry) | BTN | Charleson | L 2–7 | 5,800 | 4–4–1 (1–2–0) |
| November 6 | 7:30 PM | #3 Michigan | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI (Rivalry) | | DeRidder | L 2–3 | 6,705 | 4–5–1 (1–3–0) |
| November 11 | 7:00 PM | Ferris State* | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | DeRidder | W 2–0 | 4,622 | 5–5–1 |
| November 13 | 7:07 PM | Ferris State* | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | DeRidder | W 4–3 | 2,490 | 6–5–1 |
| November 19 | 7:00 PM | Wisconsin | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | DeRidder | W 3–2 | 5,653 | 7–5–1 (2–3–0) |
| November 20 | 8:00 PM | Wisconsin | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | DeRidder | W 5–2 | 5,009 | 8–5–1 (3–3–0) |
| December 3 | 7:00 PM | at Penn State | Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA | | DeRidder | L 2–4 | 6,008 | 8–6–1 (3–4–0) |
| December 4 | 5:00 PM | at Penn State | Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA | | Charleson | W 4–3 | 6,144 | 9–6–1 (4–4–0) |
| December 10 | 7:30 PM | at #8 Notre Dame | Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, IN | NBCSN | Charleson | L 2–3 | 4,046 | 9–7–1 (4–5–0) |
| December 11 | 7:00 PM | at #8 Notre Dame | Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, IN | NBCSN | DeRidder | W 1–0 $^{OT}$ | 4,445 | 10–7–1 (5–5–0) |
| Great Lakes Invitational ||||||||||
| December 29 | 7:00 PM | #4 Western Michigan* | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI (Great Lakes Invitational) | | DeRidder | L 1–3 | 5,538 | 10–8–1 |
| December 30 | 5:00 PM | #18 Michigan Tech* | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI (Great Lakes Invitational) | | DeRidder | W 3–2 $^{OT}$ | 5,564 | 11–8–1 |
| Regular Season ||||||||||
| January 7 | 6:30 PM | #9 Minnesota | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | BTN | DeRidder | L 1–4 | 4,922 | 11–9–1 (5–6–0) |
| January 8 | 7:30 PM | #9 Minnesota | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | BTN | Charleson | L 3–6 | 5,209 | 11–10–1 (5–7–0) |
| January 14 | 8:00 PM | at Wisconsin | Kohl Center • Madison, WI | BSW | DeRidder | L 2–5 | 8,572 | 11–11–1 (5–8–0) |
| January 15 | 9:00 PM | at Wisconsin | Kohl Center • Madison, WI | BSW | Charleson | L 2–3 | 10,946 | 11–12–1 (5–9–0) |
| January 21 | 7:00 PM | #15 Ohio State | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | DeRidder | L 1–4 | 4,728 | 11–13–1 (5–10–0) |
| January 22 | 6:00 PM | #15 Ohio State | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | DeRidder | L 2–3 | 6,203 | 11–14–1 (5–11–0) |
| February 4 | 8:00 PM | at #8 Minnesota | 3M Arena at Mariucci • Minneapolis, MN | BSN | Charleson | L 2–4 | 7,824 | 11–15–1 (5–12–0) |
| February 5 | 6:00 PM | at #8 Minnesota | 3M Arena at Mariucci • Minneapolis, MN | BSN | DeRidder | L 1–3 | 8,305 | 11–16–1 (5–13–0) |
| February 11 | 7:00 PM | at #4 Michigan | Yost Ice Arena • Ann Arbor, MI (Rivalry) | | DeRidder | L 2–6 | 5,800 | 11–17–1 (5–14–0) |
| February 12 | 7:00 PM | vs. #4 Michigan | Little Caesars Arena • Detroit, MI (Rivalry) | BSD | DeRidder | L 3–7 | 16,289 | 11–18–1 (5–15–0) |
| February 18 | 7:00 PM | #12 Notre Dame | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | Charleson | L 1–2 | 5,635 | 11–19–1 (5–16–0) |
| February 19 | 7:00 PM | #12 Notre Dame | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | DeRidder | L 2–4 | 6,068 | 11–20–1 (5–17–0) |
| February 25 | 7:00 PM | Penn State | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | Charleson | L 3–5 | 4,940 | 11–21–1 (5–18–0) |
| February 26 | 6:00 PM | Penn State | Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI | | DeRidder | W 2–1 | 6,122 | 12–21–1 (6–18–0) |
| Big Ten Tournament ||||||||||
| March 4 | 7:00 PM | at #5 Michigan* | Yost Ice Arena • Ann Arbor, Michigan (Quarterfinal game 1) | FS2 | DeRidder | L 1–4 | 3,741 | 12–22–1 |
| March 5 | 7:00 PM | at #5 Michigan* | Yost Ice Arena • Ann Arbor, Michigan (Quarterfinal game 2) | BSD | DeRidder | L 0–8 | 5,429 | 12–23–1 |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time. Source: ||||||||||

## Scoring statistics

| Name | Position | Games | Goals | Assists | Points | PIM |
| Jesse Tucker | C | 36 | 2 | 22 | 24 | 12 |
| Jeremy Davidson | F | 32 | 11 | 11 | 22 | 24 |
| Erik Middendorf | LW | 36 | 12 | 8 | 20 | 24 |
| Mitchell Lewandowski | LW | 21 | 7 | 12 | 19 | 12 |
| Dennis Cesana | D | 36 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 14 |
| Joshua Nodler | C/RW | 26 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 4 |
| Nash Nienhuis | D | 36 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 6 |
| Griffin Loughran | F | 22 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 34 |
| Kristóf Papp | C | 34 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 8 |
| David Gucciardi | D | 36 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 22 |
| Cole Krygier | D | 35 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 72 |
| Jagger Joshua | F | 36 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 68 |
| Christian Krygier | D | 36 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 79 |
| Nicolas Müller | C/RW | 36 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 18 |
| Tanner Kelly | F | 34 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 8 |
| Adam Goodsir | F | 36 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 39 |
| A. J. Hodges | F | 34 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Mitchell Mattson | C | 23 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 16 |
| Aiden Gallacher | D | 32 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| Drew DeRidder | G | 25 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Kyle Haskins | F | 27 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 17 |
| Pierce Charleson | G | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Powell Connor | D | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Bench | - | - | - | - | - | 10 |
| Total | | | 76 | 142 | 218 | 501 |

## Goaltending statistics

| Name | Games | Minutes | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals Against | Saves | Shut Outs | SV % | GAA |
| Drew DeRidder | 25 | 1449 | 9 | 15 | 1 | 71 | 799 | 2 | .918 | 2.94 |
| Pierce Charleson | 12 | 707 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 43 | 406 | 0 | .904 | 3.65 |
| Empty Net | - | 12 | - | - | - | 5 | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 36 | 2169 | 12 | 23 | 1 | 124 | 1205 | 2 | .910 | 3.29 |

## Rankings

| Poll | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 (Final) |
| USCHO.com | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | - | NR |
| USA Today | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR |
Note: USCHO did not release a poll in week 24.

## Players drafted into the NHL
### 2022 NHL Entry Draft

| Round | Pick | Player | NHL team |
| 7 | 213 | David Gucciardi | Washington Capitals |