Sports: Mason Forsees Success In 1993-94
MASON FORESEES SUCCESS IN 1993-94
Hockey coach Ron Mason has done it all. He's won the NCAA, league playoffs and championships, and holiday tournaments. Last season, he became the winningest coach in college hockey history. So 1993-94 is merely his 15th season at MSU, ho-hum, right? Wrong.
Mason was feeling very charged early this season. Last season, finishing 10 games above .500 and ranked among the nation's top 10 most of the year, the MSU hockey team was denied an NCAA tournament berth for only the second time in 12 years after being eliminated from the CCHA quarterfinals. Mason knows last year's relatively young team has matured. 'Last season, in the overall scheme of things, was pretty decent,' explains Mason. 'Our unpredictability, though, was not characteristic of past Spartan teams. I said early in the year that we could beat any team in the country, but along with that, that any team in the country could beat us on a given night. That was the case right up to the end, and remains our main concern for this season.
'We were also hit with some untimely injuries last year,' Mason adds. 'Players were going down or getting sick just as their games were picking up, and we had a tough time making adjustments. That was a big factor in our lack of consistency.'
The Spartans lost First Team All-America Bryan Smolinski, along with Rob Woodward and Wes McCauley. But the 20 returning lettermen look to better their CCHA finish and return to their traditional national stature. 'In past years, our goal was at least a fourth-place CCHA finish, to guarantee home ice,' he notes. 'With the changes in the playoff format and more parity across college hockey, we have to aim for at least third in the CCHA in order to advance to the NCAAs.'
Mike Buzak is the incumbent in goal. Buzak inherited the starting netminder spot last season and compiled a 22-10-2 record and a 2.93 goals-against average, the 10th best single-season figure in MSU history. Also ready for action is fellow junior Eric Kruse, who posted a 2-4 mark last season, and sophomore John Weidenbach.
Inexperience was a problem for the spartan defense season, as four rookie blueliners received trials by fire. As a result, MSU returns seven seasoned defensemen this year, including seniors Steve Norton, Nicolas Perreault and Bart Turner. Norton tied for the team lead in plus-minus ratio last season with a plus- 25 while scoring 11 points. Perreault led the 'full-time' defensemen in scoring with 13 points, while Turner (5-9=14) made a name for himself as one of the Spartans' most versatile players, moving to defense from left wing midway through the season.
In addition to the three seniors, sophomores Ryan Fleming (3-9=12), Chris Smith (4-3=7), Chris Sullivan (1-2=3) and Bart Vanstaalduinen (1-5=6) return on defense. Chris Slater, a standout with the Kalamazoo Junior K-Wings, is the lone newcomer on the back line.
The Spartans welcome back a large cast of returnees at forward, including junior Rem Murray, the Green and White's leading active career scorer. Murray (22-35=57) earned all-CCHA honorable mention, and fellow junior Steve Guolla (19-35=54) also cracked the 50-point plateau last season. The Spartans must count on the continued success of the 'Wexford Line' of ex-Wexford Raiders Guolla, sophomore center Anson Carter (19-11=30) and senior Kelly Harper (11- 20=31).
Brian Clifford (15-7=22) fought back from an early knee injury, while Steve Suk reached the 40-point mark for the second consecutive year. Seniors Scott Worden (3-4=7) and Michael Burkett (2-10=12), junior Matt Albers (1- 0=1), and sophomores Ryan Folkening (0-2=2) and Mike Ware (1-0=1) all return in 1993-94 after earning letters last year. Mike Mattis saw action in four games last season and returns for his junior year. Newcomers on offense include Brian Crane, Steve Ferranti, Tony Tuzzolino and Josh Weigand. 'They're an interesting group,' says Mason. 'They'll get better each year, but they'll still be able to come in and contribute right away.'
In addition to the always-rough CCHA schedule, MSU will host Guelph (Nov. 13) and head to a pair of tournaments in the Detroit area -- the inaugural WCHA-CCHA Challenge (Nov. 26-27 at the Palace of Auburn Hills) and the Great Lakes Invitational (Dec. 29-30 at Joe Louis Arena). Additionally, MSU's Munn Ice Arena will be the site of the NCAA West Regional on Saturday-Sunday, Mar. 26-27.
One note of interest is that every win by the Spartans mark history as Mason forges ahead as 'the winningest coach in college hockey.'