The annual Michigan-Michigan State “Duel in the D” made history Saturday night by drawing 19,405 fans to Little Caesars Arena, a new record for the largest indoor crowd in college hockey. The record-setting audience watched No. 2 Michigan State defeat No. 1 Michigan, 5–2, in the final regular-season meeting between the programs.
The matchup concluded a two-game series that began one night earlier at Yost Ice Arena, where Michigan rallied from a two-goal third-period deficit to win 4–3 in overtime. The split left both teams even in the season series, but Saturday's regulation win moved the Spartans one point ahead of the Wolverines in the Big Ten standings with six conference games remaining.
Michigan State entered the night ranked second nationally with a 22–6–0 overall record and a 13–5–0 Big Ten record. Michigan, ranked No. 1, fell to 23–5–0 overall and 14–4–0 in conference action after the loss. The Spartans have now won the “Duel in the D” three years in a row.
Michigan State got off to a strong start. Gavin O'Connell opened the scoring midway through the first period, converting on the Spartans' ninth shot. Porter Martone followed later in the frame with a power-play goal from the left circle, giving MSU a 2–0 lead after one period while holding a 14–8 advantage in shots on goal. Michigan State generated the game's only power-play opportunity in the opening period and capitalized.
The second period was a turning point, with the Spartans scoring two goals in just over a minute to push the lead to 4–0. Charlie Stramel finished a backdoor play for his 18th goal of the season, and Tiernan Shoudy scored on an odd-man rush, all but ending the game. The Wolverines got on the board late in the period when Perron slammed home a rebound with just over a minute remaining, making it 4–1.
Nick Moldenhauer scored early in the third period to bring Michigan within two, extending his goal-scoring streak to three games. The Wolverines were in control for much of the third period, outshooting Michigan State 9–3 over 12 minutes, but they couldn't find the back of the net on their power plays. Tommi Mannisto made sure there'd be no comeback, scoring into an empty net at 17:10.
Goaltender Jack Ivankovic returned from injury for Michigan and made 32 saves, while the Spartans' netminder Trey Augustine stopped 25 shots. Michigan State finished with advantages in shots on goal (37–27) and faceoffs (38–34), and 12 different skaters recorded at least one point.
