8. Michigan State University

Michigan State University

Key losses: Jim Slater, F; Ash Goldie, F; Mike Lalonde, F; Tom Goebel, F; A.J. Thelen, D
Key Returnees: Drew Miller, F; David Booth, F; Corey Potter, D; Colton Fretter, F
Key Newcomers: Justin Abdelkader, F; Jeff Lerg, G; Nick Sucharski, F; Tim Crowder, F
Projected leading scorer: David Booth

Grades:
Offense: B
Defense: C
Goaltending: B
Coaching: D

Analysis:

Who would have ever thought that Michigan State would ever sink this low? Rick Comley has been treading on thin ice with alumni and fans ever since he took over for Ron Mason. At the beginning of last year, I declared that this past season would be the make or break year for Rick Comley. He had a veteran team led by the country’s lone returning Hobey Finalist. Everything was in place for a top 10 finish in the country and an NCAA tournament run. Michigan State finished the season with a losing record in the CCHA for the first time since joining the league. Think about that. This was a team some people had in their preseason top 5 and they managed to hit previously uncharted levels of awfulness. A 6th place finish isn’t the end of the world, but for a program with the advantages that MSU has over most other CCHA schools, that’s simply unacceptable.

No matter how loudly people call for the head of Rick Comley, he’ll remain as head coach until his contract expires. The question is whether or not he’ll receive an extension. Like I said, last year was his best chance to add something to his resume to make people consider keeping him. He’s running out of chances though, and things look to be getting worse and not better.

As for next year, Michigan State still has some remnants of talent left over from the Mason era, but they lose the one player that has kept MSU from being worse than mediocre the past three seasons: Jim Slater. MSU still has some very good forwards but Slater was the one guy they could count on consistently to put up points for them. Drew Miller and Colton Fretter both had excellent years last year beside Slater, but were only average in previous years without his assistance. It remains to be seen if they’ll put up similar numbers next year, or if they’ll struggle without Slater attracting so much attention like Tom Goebel did last year. Michigan State should benefit from getting a healthy David Booth back from various injuries last year. Booth is another player whose best year came in his freshmen season when paired on the same line as Jim Slater, but Booth has the potential to be a top level scorer in the CCHA.

MSU’s first line should be solid. The question will be finding a second and third line that can compete as well. During the Mason era, MSU could roll 4 lines and grind teams down. Now, MSU’s talent level has dropped back down to the rest of the CCHA. Bryan Lerg had an average first year of college hockey, but has the potential to step up and lead a second line. MSU will also rely on talented freshmen forward Justin Abdelkader to make an immediate impact and score goals from the second or third line.

The defense for MSU looks shaky at best again. A.J. Thelen’s dubious fall from grace really hurt MSU. Corey Potter is still back on the blueline, but by the end of last season, he looked like a mere shadow of the talented defenseman that anchored the US’ World Junior Gold Medal run. He seemed more interested in hacking at opponents than playing defense. Ethan Graham seemed to fill Thelen’s role of an offensive defenseman quite nicely. After that, the defense is pretty non-descript. Big things were expected of Dan Vukovic, but he barely saw the ice last year. State will need a big improvement from him this year.

MSU should be very solid in goal. Dominic Vicari returns in goal and he should be very solid. While he has a lot of very good games, he also has the tendency to also have some horrible games. They will be playing with house money with freshmen goalie Jeff Lerg. Lerg could be very good next year, but he doesn’t have to be because Vicari is ahead of him. It’s a no-lose situation.

The past three years have been difficult for MSU fans, and this year should be another one that tests their patience. I think it’s just a matter of playing out the rest of Comley’s contract and then bringing in someone new to rebuild the program. Right now, things seem to be heading the wrong direction in East Lansing.