MSU Hockey Sweep Irish — and more

Michigan State did exactly what they needed to do this weekend and that was to sweep the Fighting Irish and stay on pace to three peat as conference champs. MSU took all 6 points this weekend and at the time of writing this piece, Wisconsin took the first three points from Michigan in their weekend series to help the Spartans out.

Before we get into the game play on Thursday, we have to talk about the 1986 throwback jerseys that were worn for 80’s night. They were a thing of beauty and if I can get my hands on one I will be adding that to my jersey closet. The green helmets and gloves added for a nice look. The game itself didn’t look like a typical Spartan hockey game. MSU was playing sloppy and at times just got lucky bounces that helped them out. Notre Dame played a solid game and made Augustine work as he had a season high of 37 saves.

The Spartans started quick with a nice slap by Strbak but ND responded two minutes later to tie it up. That’s where it stayed after one. The second period was all power play goals as Stramel connected early in the second and again, two minutes later, Cole Knuble scored a power play goal to even the score at two. This shot was so hard that it hit the back of the net and popped right back out and wasn’t even called a goal. They had to go to replay to see it even hit the net. Gavin O’Connell slapped one home late in the second period with another power play goal. Martone just uses strength and speed mixed with determination to put home the empty netter to seal the Spartan victory at 4-2.

ND had a lot of shots but they weren’t all great looks. Considering the weird puck bounces, the goalie collisions, and quick whistles (O’Connell had a goal taken away that would have likely stuck if not for the early whistle) MSU got the three points and the better team got it done.

Friday night’s game was the game of penalties. The NCAA doesn’t specifically keep track of most penalty minutes in a game as they keep stats more specifically on the individual. There have been NCAA games with 100 plus penalty minutes. After a multitude of very early penalties it felt like this game was on pace to match. This one ended with 63 combined. Refs seemed to be quick with the whistle and a few that went against MSU seemed questionable. The biggest penalty was the game misconduct that was given to Lindstrom. It was a challenged penalty and wiped out a goal by Nilson. This was Lindstrom’s second of the year and a third will force him to sit a game. Considering the amount of kills the Spartans and looking the final score of 8-2, you knew something special happened. The big shift in this game came during the 5 minute misconduct and a tripping penalty that was just unlucky. MSU killed a 5 on 3 and nearly 7 minutes with Augustine being the best penalty killer on the ice. On top of the kill the Spartans get a shorty from Männistö on a beautiful slap shot. That all but sucked the life out of the Irish as MSU got another goal from the hot handed Owen West and headed into the third up 5-2.

Period three was all MSU as ND only managed to get 4 shots on goal. MSU scored three goals within 2:30 late in the third to get to 8. Martone started it off and got the hat trick after scoring one in each period and putting him up to 20 goals on the season and a 5 point weekend. Notre Dame hopes to never see Martone again as he has just destroyed the Irish this season. Martone now also sits on top of the conference in goals and the point leader is also within reach for a few Spartans, including Martone. Griffin Jurecki hit a slap shot in and within 20 seconds Ryker Lee got his second of the night. The move Lee made in front of the net is exactly why he’s nicknamed The Wizard. There could have been a whistle on the hit put on Lee that sent his head into the goal post but it felt like the refs really missed and unsportsmanlike there as they seemed to be calling it at ease all night long.

This weekend was crucial. It showed how goof this freshman class is and how much they’ve improved throughout the season. The top line was able to stay on fire and Augustine showed during that 7 plus minute kill why he is one of the best. Getting the help from Wisconsin helps out MSU a bunch as the most points Michigan can get now if they win out is 52 where the Spartans can hit 57 if they win out. Ohio State comes to Munn next Friday and Saturday for the last regular season games at Munn and Senior night on Saturday. That will be a special night to hear the crowd for Stramel, Shoudy, Basgall and Russell. After getting rid of their sea legs on Thursday they stepped back into form and look to be playing the kind of hockey you need to play this late in the season.

Alongside talent, it takes leadership, character, and big personalities to win the Premier League. Every side that has won the Premier League, be it Manchester City or any other club, has had the big characters and leaders required to inspire and lift their side when needed. Looking at the current City side, it is blessed with an array of strong characters and leaders. As the 25/26 season reaches a critical phase, you do sense that Pep Guardiola’s side may have an intangible that their rivals do not have as the pressure ramps up in the final months of this season.

Pep Guardiola has praised Rodri’s personality and believes it will be crucial through the backend of this season.

Speaking during his pre-game press conference yesterday ahead of Manchester City’s crucial Premier League fixture against Newcastle, Pep Guardiola praised Rodri’s personality and influence on his team. Guardiola also mentioned several other players with similar characteristics. Speaking on this aspect of Rodri’s play, Pep Guardiola said: “Rodri is Rodri. At his age he’s wiser and understands the game. There are players like Phil that say when he’s on the pitch, he’s not just a mate, he’s a manager and we are better, we feel better. That is experience and timing.”

“There are players who are defined on bigger stages in difficulties and Rodri is one of them. Like Bernie [Bernardo Silva], Ruben [Dias] and many I had in the past. That defines the biggest teams and clubs. We can’t achieve what we have without huge personalities.”

Outside of Rodri, Manchester City have a host of players with the character to stand up in the biggest moments.

Rodri’s influence on this Manchester City team, as a player and a leader, is well-documented. His credentials as one of the most important players that City have long been established. Rodri’s teammates walk taller when he is on the pitch and his presence and leadership are crucial to Pep Guardiola’s side. In Rodri, Manchester City have one of the most influential players in the game through his performances and leadership. But he isn’t the only big character amongst Pep Guardiola’s squad.

You can add Bernardo Silva, Ruben Dias, Erling Haaland and Gianluigi Donnarumma to this mix. Each player is a strong character who will not settle for anything less than the best. Each player drives the standards on the pitch at City. Pep Guardiola sets the template, and the big characters on the pitch ensure that it is followed. The other side of the big characters that Manchester City have is that in big moments they stand up. We saw this when City beat Liverpool 2-1 at Anfield just under two weeks ago. Bernardo Silva scored the equalizer to set up City’s comeback win. Erling Haaland converted the match-winning penalty when the stakes were at their highest. Gianluigi Donnarumma made one of the saves of the season to preserve City’s lead at Anfield. Each moment was made for big characters and personalities, and they each stood up. That trait, which was on show at Anfield, cannot be measured.

This Manchester City squad is filled with big characters and personalities who thrive when the stakes are at their highest. That could prove to be a vital element in this season’s title race. Pep Guardiola’s squad has the leaders who know when to stand up, and you do question if their rivals have similar in their ranks.

Toronto Raptors (33-23, fifth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Milwaukee Bucks (24-30, 11th in the Eastern Conference)

Milwaukee; Sunday, 3:30 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Milwaukee will try to keep its three-game home win streak intact when the Bucks play Toronto.

The Bucks are 17-18 in Eastern Conference games. Milwaukee has a 13-17 record in games decided by 10 or more points.

The Raptors are 25-15 in conference matchups. Toronto is the league leader with 19.4 fast break points per game led by RJ Barrett averaging 3.8.

The Bucks score 112.3 points per game, 0.2 more points than the 112.1 the Raptors allow. The Raptors average 11.4 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.8 fewer made shots on average than the 14.2 per game the Bucks allow.

The teams meet for the fourth time this season. The Raptors won 111-105 in the last matchup on Dec. 19.

TOP PERFORMERS: Ryan Rollins is averaging 17.1 points, 5.5 assists and 1.5 steals for the Bucks. Kyle Kuzma is averaging 13.6 points over the last 10 games.

Brandon Ingram is averaging 22 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists for the Raptors. Immanuel Quickley is averaging 17.2 points and 5.0 rebounds while shooting 48.9% over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Bucks: 6-4, averaging 114.1 points, 43.3 rebounds, 25.8 assists, 6.0 steals and 4.6 blocks per game while shooting 48.9% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.3 points per game.

Raptors: 6-4, averaging 110.8 points, 43.1 rebounds, 27.1 assists, 9.4 steals and 6.8 blocks per game while shooting 47.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 110.1 points.

INJURIES: Bucks: Giannis Antetokounmpo: out (calf), Myles Turner: out (calf), Taurean Prince: out (neck).

Raptors: None listed.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

Wellington Phoenix goalkeeper Josh Oluwayemi commits one of the worst howlers this A-League Men season, heading a clearance kick into his own net as Auckland FC romps to a big win. 

Arsenal's north London derby trip to Tottenham Hotspur will be played out against a backdrop of searching questions about their nerve - "bottle", as it is often called - character and even public mockery from their rivals.

The most basic question is this. Are Mikel Arteta's side choking amid Arsenal's greatest opportunity to win the Premier League for the first time since Arsene Wenger's "Invincibles" of 2003-04?

The landscape around this trip to hostile territory has shifted so dramatically in the last fortnight that it has moved from what resembled a walk in the park to a test of every quality required to win the title.

Arsenal will go to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium - where Spurs have won only two of 13 league games this term - with the toxicity caused by former head coach Thomas Frank's presence potentially removed by his sacking and replacement by Igor Tudor.

Tudor's appointment is essentially designed to avoid relegation.

His chequered managerial career has taken in Hajduk Split, Galatasaray, Udinese, Marseille, Lazio and Juventus.

For all that, Tudor has specialised in fast starts in charge of clubs, a powerful personality whose arrival delivers an extra ingredient to what was already going to be a super-charged atmosphere.

It all adds up to a severe examination of Arsenal just as they look to be creaking under the pressure of chasing that elusive Premier League crown.

First, there must be context.

Arsenal remain top of the table. They finished top of the Champions League standings with eight wins from eight games. They face Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final and have an eminently winnable FA Cup fifth round tie at League One side Mansfield Town.

So what is eating Arsenal?

Arsenal's catastrophic concession of a 2-0 lead at relegation certainties Wolves, as well as the way in which that advantage was lost, was an example of tension that has gripped the Gunners on and off the pitch in a run of only two wins from seven Premier League games.

As if that collapse at Molineux, concluded amid angry scenes involving players from both sides, was not enough, Wolves' social media accounts rubbed salt in Arsenal's wounds by poking fun in a TikTok post captioned "Game Management".

In a post watched by more than two million, it was aimed at Arsenal's perceived time-wasting at corners and what was clearly regarded as an over-reaction to injuries.

There was also an image of Gabriel Martinelli taunting Wolves' fans with a "2-1" gesture, only to look daft when Arsenal conceded that late leveller.

Wolves' time-wasting jibe was followed by an Opta statistic that Arsenal have taken a league-high total of 117 minutes to restart games from corners this season. They also have the longest average delay of restart from corners at 44 seconds.

Low blows from Wolves, but blows that may have landed on already frayed nerves.

The chaotic manner of Wolves' 94th-minute equaliser from Tom Edozie - eventually going in off Riccardo Calafiori - summed up Arsenal's panic-stricken finale as goalkeeper David Raya collided haplessly with defender Gabriel to cause confusion.

What was an opportunity to apply psychological pressure by extending their lead to seven points was squandered, leaving Arsenal only five clear of Manchester City having played one game more.

It was Arsenal's recent problems in microcosm.

Raya and the Gunners' defence have slipped from the high standards that gave them a nine-point advantage over City and Aston Villa on 7 February, albeit that Pep Guardiola's side had a game in hand.

Arsenal's fate still remains in their own hands. The problem is that the same applies to City, with the sides scheduled to meet at Etihad Stadium on 18 April.

And this is where the nerves and the past play into the current narrative that Arsenal are wobbling, having finished second in the last three campaigns, twice to City and last season to Liverpool.

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In this chase, Manchester City have form for successfully hunting down league leaders.

Arsenal's form at this stage of the season is unflattering when compared to City's. In each of the last four campaigns, City have amassed more points than Arsenal in the final 12 games.

The biggest differential was 12 points in 2021-22, the narrowest one point in 2023-24, when a 2-0 loss at home to Aston Villa on 14 April effectively cost Arsenal the title.

And several factors are now coming into play as Arsenal need to prove they can cope with the pressure of ending that barren title run, with City breathing down their necks.

Since their 4-1 win against Aston Villa on 30 December, the ring of steel Arsenal assembled in defence has lost its strength. They have subsequently conceded one league goal per game as opposed to 0.61 before.

Arsenal have also appeared to drop into a more risk-averse, negative approach when in front and looking to have games under control.

Leads have been lost against Manchester United, Brentford and - most damagingly - Wolves in recent weeks.

Is the fear of losing, or drawing, turning up the pressure valve on players who will know this season represents their best chance of winning the title to such an extent they are now struggling to close out victories?

It is a highly pressurised environment. This season there are no excuses. It may just be now or never.

Arteta invariably cuts an agitated figure on the sidelines. He recently urged Arsenal's fans to "jump on the fun boat", but does not look as if he is having fun at the moment, even though he is leading a team top of the table and insists "the present is beautiful".

He says he will be "keeping calm, keeping my eyes open, my ears open, and understanding what the players need to give their best".

Arteta added: "We have to live the present. What we did in the past is great, but we have to live the present, and the present is beautiful.

"We are exactly where we want to be in every competition. We need to earn it, like we've done in the last seven or eight months."

Getting to this position, and it is a healthy one, is another factor in the equation. Are the physical demands starting to take their toll on players?

Martin Zubimendi, outstanding since his summer move from Real Sociedad, is one such example.

He has seen more Premier League action than any other Arsenal outfield player, figuring in all 27 games with 26 starts, playing 2,270 minutes in his first season in the English top flight.

Eberechi Eze has almost been a bystander in comparison, despite the fanfare that greeted his £60m arrival from Crystal Palace in August, stolen away from Spurs at the 11th hour.

Since scoring a hat-trick in the 4-1 win against Spurs in November, Eze has featured in all 15 of Arsenal's league games but has made only four starts and played 360 minutes.

The wider questions, however, surround Arsenal's temperament to withstand the pressure that is suddenly closing in on them, an ominous reminder of previous failings.

Arsenal are still in a superb position in every competition – positions they would have instantly signed up for in August. And their cause could be helped the return of key duo Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz.

If the Gunners win at Spurs, doubts will be eased, but one thing is beyond question.

This north London derby is now a completely different proposition from a fortnight ago.

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