Augustine, Howard Propel MSU into B1G Tournament Final

East Lansing, Mich. -- No. 2/2 Michigan State got a third-period score from Isaac Howard and a 18-save shutout from sophomore netminder Trey Augustine to post a 1-0 victory over visiting Notre Dame on Saturday night in the Big Ten semifinal at Munn Ice Arena. The Spartans will host Ohio State next Saturday in the Big Ten title match – a game the Spartans will host for the second consecutive season.

Michigan State pitched its first shutout in a postseason game since the 2013 CCHA quarterfinal series against Miami, which was a 3-0 win in game one before 4-1 losses in the next two contests. It Is MSU's first postseason win by a 1-0 score since Jeff Lerg shut out New Hampshire in the first round of the 2006 NCAA Tournament.

The Spartans (25-6-4) were dominant in all areas other than the scoreboard through the opening 40 minutes, pelting Irish goalie Owen Say with 17 and 19 shots in the opening two periods. The difference in the game came 19 seconds into the final period, as a nifty pass from Karsen Dorwart at the left faceoff dot found Howard at the top of the right circle, and the junior found space below the glove hand of Say for his Big Ten-leading 24^th goal of the season.

Notre Dame goaltender Owen Say was exceptional for the Irish, who end their season at 12-25-1. Say made a total of 45 saves, matching his 45 stops against the Spartans in the final game of the regular season in South Bend.

MIchigan State will host No. 3 seed Ohio State next Saturday at Munn Ice Arena. The Spartans aim to capture back-to-back B1G Tournament titles, its first ever in school history.

STATISTICS OF NOTE

MSU earns its second consecutive trip to the Big Ten Championship game. The Spartans look to join Notre Dame (2018, 2019) and Michigan (2022, 2023) to win consecutive tournament titles.
Michigan State posted 35, 50, and 46 shots on goal against the Irish in its last three games. Say allowed five goals in each game of the final regular-season series, but limited MSU to just one on Saturday.
Isaac Howard leads the Big Ten with 24 goals, which ranks in a tie for second nationally. He has tripled his eight goals he scored last year as a sophomore.
Howard's goal was his 100^th career point in three seasons (106 games).
Augustine made 18 saves in in his third shutout of the season, tying his freshman year total. It was his second-fewest saves in a shutout – he made 15 stops on Oct. 25 at Canisius..
Augustine earned his Big Ten best 18^th win between the pipes this season.
Karsen Dorwart earned his 16^th assist of the season. He has 20 points over the last 11 games. He has not gone back-to-back games without a point since the start of December.
Matt Basgall, the leading scorer among defensemen, earned his 20^th assist of the season.
MSU started its third line – which had been its top-scoring unit over the previous four games. The trio of Tommi Männistö, Tiernan Shoudy, and Tanner Kelly accounted for 12 shots on net, led by Shoudy's six.

That carryover PP time was a big deal - Isaac Howard makes one flutter past the glove hand of Say for a 1-0 MSU lead . pic.twitter.com/vJnpnqVMRM
— Michigan State Hockey (@MSU_Hockey) March 15, 2025

PERIOD RECAPS

First Period:   The Spartans came out and looked to set the tempo immediately – the offense was buzzing, and had a 9-6 edge in shots on net in the opening 10 minutes. Things were increasingly physical as the period wore on, and Joey Larson was whistled for cross-checking at 14:54. MSU killed off the penalty, limiting the Irish to just one shot on net in the advantage. There was a fair amount of end-to-end action, but MSU controlled the pace of play and outshot its guests 17-9 in the opening period.

Second Period:    Five minutes into the second period, the Spartans were set up in the offensive zone and Carter Slaggert took a hooking penalty, giving MSU its first power play chance of the night,. The teams traded hooking calls seven seconds apart right after the media time out, putting the team down to 4x4. MSU got a second chance on the power play at 13:45, as Zach Plucinski was called for interference after swatting the stick of a Spartan out of his hands and behind the net. The Irish successfully kept MSU from finding any offensive presence on this man advantage, holding MSU without a shot on net. The Irish were called for a third straight penalty as they tried to hold on for the final two minutes of the period, but Hunter Strand got called for hooking to put MSU on the man advantage for the final 90 seconds, with just over 30 seconds to carry over. The Spartans were in control from whistle to whistle, with a overwhelming 19-5 edge in shots on goal.

Third Period:    That final 30 seconds of power play time as the third period began led to the first goal of the game Karsen Dorwart laced it from the left faceoff dot to Isaac Howard at the top of the right circle, and Howard's shot fluttered under the glove hand of Owen Say for his 24^th goal of the season and a 1-0 lead. The Spartans had 10 shots in the third – their low for the game – but also limited the Irish to just four shots on Augustine, who continued to turn them all away.

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Team Stats

Isaac Howard

Karsen Dorwart

Matt Basgall

Tiernan Shoudy

Players Mentioned

Trey Augustine

Matt Basgall

Karsen Dorwart

Isaac Howard

Tanner Kelly

Joey Larson

Tiernan Shoudy