ST. LOUIS -- Just like the last time Michigan State played Maine, the Spartans found themselves in an early hole.
It was a mere speed bump for a school that advanced to the Frozen Four championship game for the first time in 20 years.
Nick Sucharski scored the go-ahead goal off a rebound early in the third period and Jeff Lerg made 29 saves, helping Michigan State rally from the early two-goal deficit to beat Maine 4-2 on Thursday in the semifinals.
"For a second I flashed back to last year," Lerg said. "After that, I settled down. I thought, 'They can win the first five minutes of the game as long as we win the last 55 minutes."
The Spartans actually were a bit amused by the adversity.
"You could have caught most of the guys laughing," said forward Justin Abdelkader, who assisted on the tying goal in the second period. "Everyone turned to each other like 'Is this really happening?"
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| Chris Mueller records a goal and an assist for Michigan State. (AP) |
Jim McKenzie also scored off a rebound midway through the third and Chris Mueller had a goal and an assist for Michigan State (25-13-3), last in the championship game in 1987 and without a title since 1986.
Even if the route to the finals didn't follow the game plan.
"Two weeks of preparation out the window in 15 seconds," coach Rick Comley said. "It was a just a great job by these kids. All year long they've been very resilient."
The Spartans, a No. 3 seed who surged after losing four of five to end February, will play Boston College in the final Saturday. Boston College beat North Dakota 6-4 in the second semifinal.
Michigan State was motivated by a 5-4 loss to Maine in the 2006 East Regional final, also the last meeting between the teams. The Black Bears scored on two of their first four shots for a 2-0 lead at 3:24 of the first period, similar to their 3-0 first-period lead in the East Regional.
"It was the start that you want," said Josh Soares, who set up the first goal and scored the second. "I thought maybe we got too emotional.
