Michigan State hockey: Previewing NCAA Tournament regional

Michigan State hockey got the No. 1 seed in its region, but it faces a loaded group and a tough path to the Frozen Four.

In case you didn’t already know, Michigan State hockey is having one of the best seasons in program history. The Spartans won the Big Ten regular season championship and then capped off a sweep of the conference last week by beating Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament title game in an overtime thriller.

Now the Spartans have their eyes set on a national championship.

Michigan State earned a 1-seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament and the puck drops on Friday night in Maryland Heights, Mo.

The Spartans face Western Michigan

The NCAA Hockey Tournament is much smaller than what you may be used to for basketball. It’s still a single-elimination tournament, but only 16 teams qualify for the hockey field. So there really isn’t an easy first-round game for a 1-seed like we see in the basketball tournament.

MSU begins its NCAA Tournament run against in-state foe Western Michigan. The Broncos are coming off a solid year themselves, finishing 21-15-1 and No. 14 in the country.

The Broncos are making their third straight NCAA Tournament appearance whereas MSU is in for the first time since 2012. So experience actually favors Western in this matchup.

But the Spartans have proved themselves in one of the best hockey conferences all season long, so the expectation is that Michigan State hockey wins this game. MSU and Western did not play each other this year, but losing this game would undoubtedly be a disappointment.

Other regional semifinal

The second regional semifinal also takes place on Friday directly after the Spartans’ game. This game features rival Michigan as they take on North Dakota. If Michigan State were to beat Western, they would play the winner of this game.

I think we all know a lot about Michigan at this point. The Spartans boast a 4-1 record over the Wolverines this season, including their Big Ten Tournament title game win last weekend.

Michigan finished the year No. 11 in the country and have really turned it on late in the season. About a month ago, the Wolverines were on the outside looking in for the NCAA Tournament, but they won seven of their final 10 games to secure their spot in the tournament.

The Wolverines are the underdog in this matchup as North Dakota is the fifth-ranked team in the country. North Dakota finished the season 26-11-2 and won their conference’s regular season title, but they were bounced out of their conference tournament in the semifinals.

North Dakota and Michigan also haven’t played each other this season, but this should be an extremely good matchup. As I mentioned, Michigan is the underdog, but it’s playing much better and can definitely upset the 2-seed in this region. How much fun would it be if MSU and Michigan play again with a Frozen Four appearance on the line?

One interesting note is that North Dakota and Western Michigan are also in the same conference did play twice this season. North Dakota won both matchups 5-3 and 3-0.

Michigan State hockey takes on Western Michigan this Friday at 5 p.m. ET on ESPN+ and ESPNU. If they win, they will play in the regional final on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET.