Junior right wing Bryan Rust is tied for second on the Irish roster in scoring with 15 points.  He has more points this season in 19 games than he did a year ago (11) in 40 contests.

Irish Hockey Returns To CCHA Action At Michigan State This Weekend

Jan. 10, 2013

East Lansing, Mich. –

Notre Dame Hockey Game NotesGet Acrobat Reader

Michigan State Game NotesGet Acrobat Reader

– The Teams: #3/#2 Notre Dame (14-5-0/10-1-0-0) at Michigan State (5-12-3/4-9-1-0)

– The Games: Friday, January 11, 2013 – Munn Arena (6,470) – 7:08 p.m. Saturday, January 12, 2013 – Munn Arena (6,470) – 7:08 p.m.

– Broadcast Information: Radio: The Notre Dame-Michigan State series will be broadcast live on Real Country 99.9 FM in South Bend. Darin Pritchett, the voice of the Irish, will call the action. Television: Both games of the Michigan State series will be televised live by Comcast in Michigan. The games will be available on South Bend Comcast Channel 3. Matt Shepard and Lyle Phair will call the action both nights.

– Internet: Audio/Video: Live audio streaming for the Michigan State game is available on the Notre Dame website at UND.com free of charge. Statistics: Livestats can be found at ccha.com or collegehockeyinc.com. Twitter: Follow Irish hockey on Twitter at ND_hockey.

ROAD WARRIORS: Notre Dame continues its four road games in eight days run this weekend with a two games at Michigan State. The Irish and the Spartans will play a pair of 7:08 p.m. contests on Jan. 11-12 at Munn Arena. Both games will be televised by Comcast in Michigan and can be seen on South Bend Comcast Channel 3. Matt Shepard and Lyle Phair will call all the action. Notre Dame opened its four-game road swing on Tuesday night (Jan. 8) at top-ranked Minnesota where the Irish dropped a 4-1 decision to the Gophers at Mariucci Arena. The loss snapped a six-game Notre Dame winning streak that began on Nov. 24. The Irish will enter the series with Michigan State with a 14-5-0 overall record and a 10-1-0-0 mark in CCHA play and remain tied for first in the conference with Miami as each team has 30 points. Notre Dame has three games in hand on the RedHawks. The Irish still have an eight-game CCHA winning streak that started on Nov. 4 with a 4-1 win over Western Michigan. Michigan State brings a 5-12-3 mark into the weekend series and is tied for ninth in the CCHA with a 4-9-1-0 record, good for 13 points. The Spartans last played on Jan. 5 and dropped a 3-0 decision at Ferris State.

IRISH VERSUS SPARTANS: Notre Dame and Michigan State have met 112 times in the all-time series with the Spartans owning a 60-41-11 advantage. The Irish have only played Michigan more often (132 games) in the program’s history. In games played at Michigan State, the Spartans have a 35-14-4 advantage, but the Irish are 1-0-2 in the last three games played at Munn Arena. Notre Dame is 8-1-1 against Michigan State in the last 10 games played dating back to the 2006-07 campaign. The last time the Irish won at Michigan State was Feb. 28, 2009 by a 2-1 score with the next two meetings resulting in ties. The last time the Irish lost at Munn Arena was Jan. 11, 2008, a 3-1 loss. The teams have met twice this season, in South Bend on Dec. 7-8, with the Irish taking 3-2 and 5-1 victories.

NEXT ON THE SCHEDULE: The Irish close out their four road games in eight nights with a 7:05 p.m. game at Bowling Green on Tuesday, Jan. 15. The two teams met on Dec. 15 at BGSU Ice Arena with the Irish taking a 4-1 victory in the first game of the series.

ON A ROLL: Notre Dame’s 4-1 loss at Minnesota on Tuesday night snapped a six-game winning streak that was the longest for the Irish since Feb. 13 to March 21, 2009. Notre Dame’s current eight-game CCHA win streak is the longest for the team since Dec. 2 to Jan. 13, 2006-07 when that team won eight-straight conference games, the most ever by a Notre Dame team in conference play.

LAST TIME OUT: The University of Minnesota scored twice in the first 7:29 of the opening period on the way to a 4-1 win over the Irish on Tuesday, Jan. 8 at Mariucci Arena. The Gophers got goals from Nate Condon, Sam Warning, Christian Isackson and Zach Budish in the win. Jeff Costello (Jr., Milwaukee, Wis.) scored the lone goal for the Irish. Minnesota out shot Notre Dame by a 26-23 margin. Junior goaltender Steven Summerhays (Anchorage, Alaska) made 22 saves in the game as his personal five-game winning streak came to an end. Adam Wilcox stopped 22-of-23 Irish shots in the game. The Gophers got on the board just 1:23 into the game when Condon snapped a shot through a screen from the right circle that beat Summerhays high to his glove side for his sixth goal of the season. Minnesota got the eventual game winner at 7:29 when Warning dug a loose puck out of scramble in front of the goal and tucked a short wrist shot inside the left post for his fourth goal of the year to make it 2-0. After being off for 24 days, the Irish seemed to find their legs late in the period and cut the lead to 2-1 on a nifty move by Costello for his sixth goal of the season at 14:41 of the opening period. The junior left wing took a pass inside the Gopher zone from Bryan Rust (Jr., Novi, Mich.) and barged and charged his way past a Minnesota defender and slid a backhander through the pads of Wilcox for the goal. Anders Lee (Jr., Edina, Minn.) also picked up an assist on the play. Minnesota took advantage of a Notre Dame turnover to make it a 3-1 game with the only goal of the second period. Freshman center A.J. Michaelson forced a turnover at the bottom of the left wing circle with the puck going right to the stick of Isackson. The sophomore right wing walked in on Summerhays and made a move that forced the Irish netminder to move towards the right post. Isackson then backhanded a shot over Summerhays’ blocker for his third goal of the season. The Gophers then sealed the deal in the final minute as the Irish pulled Summerhays in favor of a sixth attacker. Kyle Rau broke up a pass at center and carried to the Irish blue line before flipping a pass to Budish who was all alone. The former high school teammate of Anders Lee in Edina, Minn. fired the puck into the empty net for his sixth of the year and the final score of 4-1.

IRISH VERSUS NO. 1: Notre Dame’s 4-1 loss to Minnesota on Jan. 8 was the second loss by the Irish to a No. 1 team this season. On Nov. 9, Notre Dame traveled to top-ranked Boston College where the Irish dropped a 3-1 decision to the Eagles. The last time that Notre Dame defeated a No. 1-ranked team came on Oct. 23, 2010 when the Irish defeated #1/#1 Boston College with a 2-1 win. Notre Dame owns 12 wins over No. 1 ranked teams with four of those wins coming against Boston College. Here’s a list of previous Irish wins versus top-ranked teams.

10/23/10 - vs. Boston College, 2-1 4/10/08 - vs. Michigan, 5-4 ot (at Frozen Four)10/9/07 - at Miami, 2-110/21/06 - vs. Boston College, 7-110/22/04 - vs. Boston College, 3-210/23/03 - at Boston College, 1-01/3/99 - at North Dakota, 4-311/20/78 - at Minnesota, 3-21/13/78 - vs. Denver, 5-31/18/74 - vs. Michigan Tech, 7-12/24/73 - vs. Wisconsin, 4-32/23/73 - vs. Wisconsin, 8-5

SEASON WORST: The four goals scored by Minnesota on Tuesday night are the most goals given up by the Irish in a single game this season. Previously, the Irish had given up three goals in a game on three different occasions this season.

WELCOME BACK: Notre Dame has added sophomore forward Garrett Peterson (Manhattan, Ill.) to the roster for the second half of the season. Peterson sat out the first semester for personal reasons. As a freshman during the 2011-12 season, the 5-11, 196-pound center/right wing played in 20 games with two goals and two assists for four points. He was whistled for eight penalties resulting in 24 minutes. Peterson did not play versus Minnesota.

FATHER VS. SON: Tuesday night’s game was homecoming for Notre Dame freshman left wing Mario Lucia (Plymouth, Minn.) as he faced the team coached by his father, Don Lucia, who is a 1981 graduate of Notre Dame. Notre Dame’s Lucia saw his five-game point streak (4g, 4a, 8 pts.) snapped by his dad’s Gophers. The younger Lucia had just returned from Ufa, Russia where he was a member of the United State’s team that won the gold medal in the 2013 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships.

IRISH VERSUS WCHA: Notre Dame’s loss to Minnesota closed out a the Irish schedule with teams from the WCHA at 3-3-0 this season. Notre Dame opened the year with a 3-2 win over Nebraska Omaha in the championship game of the Ice Breaker Tournament (Oct. 13). The Irish then started their home schedule with two games against Minnesota Duluth (Oct. 18-19), splitting those contests, losing 3-1, and then taking a 4-1 decision. Notre Dame picked up another split versus North Dakota (Nov. 23-24), losing the first night, 2-1, before taking the second game, 5-2. The Irish fell to Minnesota, 4-1, on Jan. 8.

USA-USA-USA: Freshman left wing Mario Lucia spent his Christmas break in Ufa, Russia as a member of the gold-medal winning United States World Junior Team. He is the 16th Notre Dame player to be selected to play in the championships and joins current teammates defenseman Stephen Johns (Jr., Wampum, Pa.) and center T.J. Tynan (Jr., Orland Park, Ill.) who were members of the 2012 team that finished seventh in Calgary, Alta. Lucia became the second Irish player to win a gold medal and the fifth to earn a medal since the tournament started in 1977. He joins Kyle Palmieri as a gold medal winner (Palmieri won gold in 2010) and Palmieri (bronze in 2011), Kyle Lawson `10 (bronze in 2007) and Ben Simon `00 (silver in 1997) as all-time medal winners. Lucia finished with one assist for one point in the seven games.

PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Notre Dame junior center T.J. Tynan was named the CCHA Warrior Player of the Month for the month of December. In four games, Tynan helped the Irish to a 4-0-0 record by scoring three goals with four assists for seven points. He scored one power-play goal and had a pair of game winners while being +4 for the month. Tynan scored at least one point in each game and had three games with two or more points. On the season, he is now tied for second on the team in scoring with five goals and 10 assists for 15 points in 19 games.

ROOKIE OF THE MONTH: Notre Dame freshman left wing Mario Lucia was named the CCHA Gongshow Rookie of the Month for the month of December. The 6-3, 193-pound forward helped the Irish to a 4-0-0 month by scoring three goals with four assists for seven points. Two of his goals came on the power play and he was +4 over the four games. During November, Lucia recorded his first multiple-goal game (2 goals versus Lake Superior on Dec. 1) and had three multiple-point games overall. He was twice named the CCHA Gongshow Rookie of the Week (Dec. 3 and Dec. 10). In 10 games this season, Lucia has five goals and five assists for 10 points and is tied for the team lead with three power-play goals.

WORK HORSE: Dating back to last Feb. 24, Irish goaltender Steven Summerhays has played in 23 of the last 26 games, making 22 starts. During those 23 games, Summerhays is 15-7-0 with a 1.53 goals-against average, a .939 save percentage and four shutouts. His shutout win versus Western Michigan (4-0) on Nov. 4 was the 20th win of his Notre Dame career. He is now 27-17-1 for his career with a 2.24 goals-against average and a .911 save percentage. This season, Summerhays leads the CCHA in wins (12) and is second in goals-against average (1.62). He is fourth in save percentage (.934) and tied for second with two shutouts.

STINGY DEFENSE: The Irish defense ranks among the stingiest in the nation as they have given up just 33 goals in 19 games to allow 1.74 goals per game. That ranks Notre Dame second in the CCHA and third in the nation. The Irish have given up the second-fewest goals (33) but Miami (1.55) and Quinnipiac (1.62) have better goals-per-game averages.

SCORING FIRST: Scoring the first goal of the game has been important to Notre Dame’s early-season success. The Irish are 12-0-0 when they get the first goal of the game and 2-5-0 when the opposition scores first.

COMMUNITY SERVICE ON THE ROAD: While spending Wednesday afternoon in Minnesota, both the Notre Dame and Minnesota hockey teams took time out to give back to the local region. Both teams visited Feed the Starving Children organization in Coon Rapids, Minn., a group that provides food to needy children. In an hour-and-a-half, the teams combined to pack 20,000 lunches to help feed children in the region. The two teams had a competition to see who could pack the most and the Irish edged out the Gophers, 48 boxes of lunches to 47 boxes to gain a bit of revenge from the previous night’s game.

TURNING ON THE POWER: After going the first 13 games of the season with just seven power-play goals in seven different games, the Notre Dame power play has now scored two man-advantage goals in four of the last six games. Versus Lake Superior State, the Irish were 2-for-6 on Friday (Nov. 30) and 2-for-5 on Saturday (Dec. 1) for a 4-for-11 mark (36.4%). They added a 2-for-5 night versus Michigan State on Dec. 7 before going 0-for-5 in the Dec. 8 game. On Dec. 15, the Irish were 2-for-3 on the power play against Bowling Green. Against Minnesota, the Irish were 0-for-4 on the night. Over the last six games, Notre Dame is 8-for-28 (28.6%). On the season, the Irish are 15-for-87 with the man advantage and are scoring at a 17.2% clip.

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON: With the addition of freshman Mario Lucia to the Notre Dame roster in 2012-13, the Irish now have three sons who have followed in their father’s footsteps to play hockey at Notre Dame. Mario, follows his father, Don Lucia `81, who was a defenseman for the Irish from 1977-81. He is the head hockey coach at Minnesota. Current teammate, Kevin Nugent followed his dad – Kevin Nugent, Sr., `78 who played at Notre Dame from 1974-78 and was a teammate of Lucia’s for one season. The third father-son duo is goaltender Rory Walsh `06 who played for the Irish from 2002-06. He was the first to follow his dad – Brian Walsh `77, who played for the Irish from 1973-77 and was a teammate of Nugent’s for three seasons (1974-77).

MAKING UP FOR LOST TIME: Freshman left wing Mario Lucia missed the first nine games of the 2012-13 season with a broken leg that was suffered on Aug. 29 in preseason training. He returned to the lineup on Nov. 15 at Michigan and in nine games back in action, he has scored five goals with five assists for 10 points. Three of his goals have come on the power play. He currently has a five-game point streak (4g, 4a, 8 pts.).

STRONG START: Notre Dame’s 14-4-0 start this season going into the Christmas break is its best since the 2008-09 season when the Irish were 14-3-2 heading into the holidays. The14 wins is the second-best mark for the Irish, something they have done three times since 2006-07. The most wins and the best record that Notre Dame has had going into the holidays came in 2007-08 when the Irish were 16-4-0.

2007-08:   16-4-02008-09:   14-3-22006-07:   14-3-12012-13:   14-4-0

SHORT-HANDED: Since giving up two power-play goals to Western Michigan on Nov. 2, Notre Dame is 45-for-48 (.938) killing penalties over the last 12 games. Only North Dakota (11/23), Michigan State (12/7) and Bowling Green (12/15)have managed to beat the Irish with the man advantage. Notre Dame held Minnesota’s eighth-ranked power play to an 0-for-6 night on Jan. 8. For the year, the Irish are 69-for-76 for a .908 success rate. That is tops in the CCHA and fourth nationally. Notre Dame also has scored three short-handed goals.

ODD FACT: Until Bowling Green scored its power-play goal against Notre Dame on Dec. 15, Notre Dame had given up all six opponent power-play goals at home. The Irish are 38-of-44 on the penalty kill at home for an 86.4% success rate. On the road and on neutral ice, Notre Dame is 31-of-32 killing penalties (96.9%).

ON A TEAR: Several Notre Dame players saw point streaks stopped in the 4-1 loss at Minnesota. T.J. Tynan had a six-game point streak (3g, 7a, 10 pts.) come to an end. Mario Lucia had a five-game streak (4g, 4a, 8 pts.) stopped and junior right wing Mike Voran had his five-game point streak (3g, 3a, 6 pts.) end. Meanwhile, Anders Lee now has points in three straight (1g, 2a, 3 pts.) and has points in seven of his last eight games (6g, 3a, 9 pts.). Junior right wing Bryan Rust has a three-game streak (1g, 2a, 3 pts.).

CLIMBING THE LADDER: Junior center T.J. Tynan reached the “Century” mark in scoring at Notre Dame on November 15th to become the 47th player in the program’s history to reach 100 points for his career. He is now 39th on the scoring list with 41 goals and 69 assists for 110 points in 102 career games. Next to join the list should be junior center Anders Lee who now has 52 goals and 44 assists for 96 points in 103 career games.

"Century Club"Name (Seasons)                       G     A     Pts1   Brian Walsh (1973-77)           89   145     2342.  John Noble (1969-73)            81   145     2263.  Eddie Bumbacco (1970-74)       103   117     2204.  Ian Williams (1970-74)          92   119     211
34. Ryan Thang (2006-10) 57 58 11535. Kevin Deeth (2006-10) 35 79 114 Ray DeLorenzi (1971-74) 55 59 11437. Aaron Gill (2000-04) 49 62 111 Connor Dunlop (1999-03) 25 86 11139. T.J. Tynan (2009 - ) 41 69 11040. Jack Brownschidle (1973-77) 31 78 10941. Tim Reilly (1981-86) 43 65 10842. Billy Maday (2008-12) 45 60 105 Aniket Dhadphale (1995-99) 61 44 10544. Bob Thebeau (1982-86) 40 63 10345. Matt Hanzel (1985-89) 50 51 101 Kevin Hoene (1968-71) 50 51 10147. Paul Clarke (1973-77) 38 62 100-- Anders Lee (2009 -) 52 44 96

PUCKS TO THE NET: Through the first 19 games this season, Notre Dame has out shot the opposition 14 times and is 11-3-0 in those games. In games that opponents get more shots, the Irish are 3-2-0. For the year, Notre Dame is averaging 31.8 shots per game while the opposition is getting 24.6 per game. The Irish were out shot by Minnesota, 26-23.

30 OR MORE: Through the first 19 games of the 2012-13 season, Notre Dame has outshot its opposition in 14 of them, getting 30 or more shots in a game all 14 times. The Irish are averaging 31.8 shots per game to 24.6 for their opponents. The 41 shots against North Dakota on Nov. 24 was a season high for Notre Dame. The 20 shots that the Irish registered against Boston College was a season low for a game.

BROOM TIME: Notre Dame’s sweep of Michigan State on Dec. 7-8 was the second consecutive home sweep for the Irish this season and the fourth overall. The last time that Notre Dame swept back-to-back series was during the 2010-11 season when the Irish swept Bowling Green at home on Feb. 11-12, 2011 and then won two at Ferris State the following weekend (Feb. 18-19). The last time that Notre Dame had four sweeps in a season came in that 2010-11 season when the Irish had five series sweeps.

GETTING OFFENSIVE: Sophomore defender Robbie Russo (Westmont, Ill.) leads all CCHA defensemen in scoring with four goals and 11 assists for 15 points. He is tied for second in the CCHA in power-play points (3g, 5a, 8pts.) and his 11 assists tie him for fifth in the conference. His 15 points tie him for 11th overall in the CCHA scoring race while nationally, his 15 points tie him for fifth for the most points by a defenseman in the country.

SHARING THE WEALTH: In Notre Dame’s 5-1 win over Michigan State on Dec. 8, the Irish got goals from all four lines with the fourth line leading the way with a pair of goals. Through the first 19 games of the 2012-13 season, 16 different Notre Dame players have scored the team’s 59 goals with Anders Lee leading the way with 11. Nineteen of the team’s 22 skaters have scored at least one point with Lee leading the way with 18 points while Robbie Russo, T.J. Tynan, Bryan Rust and Jeff Costello are second with 15. Eight different players have scored game-winning goals for the Irish with Tynan and Rust leading the way with three.