Kelley Rink Hosts Friday Night Showdow against the Spartans

GAME DAY INFORMATION
WHEN	Friday, Nov. 13 at 7 p.m.
WHERE	Kelley Rink at Conte Forum // Chestnut Hill, Mass.
HOW TO FOLLOW	Live Stats // Video // Audio
GAME NOTES	PDF // WEB // Michigan State Notes
MEDIA CENTER	Radio (WEEI 850 AM): P x P: Jon Rish // Color: Andy Powers // Engineer: Mark Feldman

BOSTON COLLEGE vs. MICHIGAN STATE
After the Eagles journeyed to East Lansing last November, Michigan State will return the favor and make its first trip to Kelley Rink since Oct. 25, 1996. Friday's date marks just the fourth time Boston College and Michigan State will do battle at Kelley Rink as the series is an even 1-1-1 over the course of those three games. The MSU contest marks the second of three games against the Big Ten as BC defeated Wisconsin, 6-0, in the season opener and will open the Florida College Classic against Ohio State on Dec. 28. Despite a 3-2 win at Munn Ice Arena last season, the Spartans have dominated the overall 26-game series, holding a 17-8-1 advantage over Boston College and winning perhaps the most important game between the two programs in 2007. Current Detroit Red Wing Justin Abedelkder broke the hearts of Boston College with the game-winning goal with 18.9 seconds left in regulation in the 2007 National Championship game in St. Louis on April 7, 2007. Since then, Boston College defeated Michigan State, 5-2, in Grand Forks, N.D., at the 2011 Ice Breaker Tournament to start the season and then the Nov. 14, 2014 contest in East Lansing last year; BC's first trip there since Nov. 17, 1990. The two storied programs have carried out a tradition of meeting one another in the NCAA Tournament, playing each other seven-consecutive times from March 17, 1984, to March 26, 1989. Boston College has won the last three out of four meetings as Jerry York looks to improve his record to 2-0 against Spartans' head coach Tom Anastos.

SPARTY ON
Michigan State enters Friday's contest riding a three-game winning streak on the heels of a dominating performance of a New Hampshire sweep on Nov. 6-7. The Spartans welcome UNH to East Lansing and outscored the Wildcats, 12-4. The weekend prior, Michigan State split with Lake Superior State at home after getting swept at Denver on Oct. 16-17. Michigan State also took part in the Ice Breaker Tournament in Portland, Maine, tying the Black Bears in the season opener (3-3) before beating Lake Superior State, 4-1. Like BC, Friday marks the Spartans' only contest of the weekend. Junior forward JT Stenglein leads the Spartans in goals scored (5) and points (10) and is one of four skaters on the roster with a team-best +4 rating. Stenglein's points per game average of 1.25 ppg is tied for 19th best in college hockey. Senior forward Michael Ferrantino is averaging an assist per game, tied for seventh best in the game. First-year center Mason Appleton is Michigan State's leading newcomer, having scored two goals and five assists and is tied for 22nd amongst all rookies in scoring. Fourth-year vet Jake Hildebrand has started all eight games for MSU and owns the nation's 15th-best goals against average (2.12) and 21st-best save percentage (.925). Hildebrand is one of eight goaltenders in the nation to have two or more shutouts. Hildebrand backstops college hockey's 16th-ranked defense (2.38 goals per game) while the offense chimes in at 23rd after averaging 3.12 goals per game. Despite the power play struggling at 15.0 percent (6-for-40) and ranked 36th in the NCAA, the penalty kill is tied for eighth best with a rate of 90.6 percent (29-for-32).

OFFENSIVE NUGGETS
- Even amidst BC's shutout streak, the offense is excelling -- the Eagles are tied for sixth, overall, in the country and are just one of eight teams averaging four goals or more currently

- Matthew Gaudreau is in the midst of his most productive stretch since skating onto The Heights - since moving up to the third line, Gaudreau's on a four-game point streak (1-4-5)

- Miles Wood tallied his first-career power play goal on Nov. 8 against Maine - the Manchester, Mass. native is 10th in the country amidst all rookies with 1.11 points per game (3-7-10)

- After coming back from a DQ suspension on Nov. 8 against Maine, Ryan Fitzgerald scored BC's first goal of the game and took the team lead in goal scored with five

DEFENSIVE NUGGETS
- Boston College has posted its best defensive start in program history and has allowed just as many goals (6) as it has shutout opponents in its first nine games of the season

- Thatcher Demko is now one of two goaltenders (Blaine Lacher - LSSU) in the history of college hockey (as records indiciate) to have shutout six opponents in seven starts

- The Eagles' penalty kill is tied for third in Hockey East and ranked 12th overall (90.2 percent) despite having racked up the second most penalty minutes in the country (24 PIM / game)

- With the six shutouts, Boston College possesses the top scoring margin (+3.33) in the country, averaging 4.00 goals per game while surrendering only 0.67 gpg defensively

HISTORIC HALF DOZEN
Thatcher Demko continues to rewrite history after posting his sixth shutout in seven starts (Oct. 16 - Current), stringing together a pair of three-game shutout streaks. Demko's historic run ties Blaine Lacher of Lake Superior State for posting six shutouts in seven games, marking only the second time in the history of college hockey something of that magnitude has been achieved. Below are the runs posted by each goaltender:

Blaine Lacher – Lake Superior State
• Feb. 25, 1994 – 3-0 (Illinois-Chicago)
• March 4, 1994 – 4-0 (Kent State)
• March 5, 1994 – 7-0 (Kent State)
• March 11, 1994 – 5-0 (Ohio State)
• March 12, 1994 – 8-0 (Ohio State)
• March 19, 1994 – 4-0 (Michigan State)

Thatcher Demko – Boston College
• Oct. 16, 2015 – 6-0 (Wisconsin)
• Oct. 23, 2015 – 3-0 (Colorado College)
• Oct. 24, 2015 – 5-0 (Colorado College)
• Nov. 3, 2015 – 7-0 (Massachusetts)
• Nov. 6, 2015 – 3-0 (Maine)
• Nov. 8, 2015 – 2-0 (Maine)

SHUSH.
Demko's first shutout streak started in the third period at Rensselaer on Oct. 11, 2015, where he played shutout hockey for 206 minutes and two seconds (206:02), denoting the 19th-longest stretch of zero goals allowed in the history of the game. The San Diego native is currently in a stretch of 183 minutes and 55 seconds (183:55) of scoreless hockey. Denver is the only team that has duped Demko, scoring three on Oct. 30, 2015. Demko's scoreless mark of 206:02 is third longest in school history behind Scott Clemmensen (254:23 – Jan. 9-24, 1998) and Cory Schneider (242:19 – Jan. 13-27, 2006).

STANDING TALL AMONGST THE BEST
Demko is currently leading all of college hockey in goals against average (0.67) and save percentage (.974) on the year and is two shutouts clear (6) of the next closest netminder, Charlie Lindgren of St. Cloud State. For a career, the 6-foot-4 backstopper is 43-19-6 (.677) with a 2.01 goals against average and a .929 save percentage (1,782 saves on 1,919 shots). If Demko's 2.01 GAA held, it would stand as the lowest goals against average mark in Boston College history (Matti Kaltiainen – 2.04 – 2001-05). His six shutouts this season is two shy of matching the single-season mark set by Cory Schneider during the 2005-06 season. Demko possesses nine career shutouts, good for fourth-best all-time. He is three blankings shy of matching John Muse's third-place mark of 12 career shutouts (2007-11). Schneider holds the record with 15 (2004-07) while Scott Clemmensen is second with 13 (1997-2001).

HALF DOZEN BAGELS
For the first time in Boston College hockey history, the Eagles have shutout their sixth opponent in seven outings after a 2-0 win over Maine on Nov. 8. Thatcher Demko has backstopped all six of those blankings. The closest BC has ever come to this current record is when the Eagles shutout four teams in six games from Jan. 23 to Feb. 11, 2000.

STARTING STRONG
Three times in the last five seasons, head coach Jerry York has started off the season with an 8-1 mark, matching the 2011-12 and 2012-13 Eagle entries. Those three starts mark the best record (8-1) through nine games under York's tenure. The Eagles currently have the the third-best winning percentage in the game behind Quinnipiac (8-0-0) and Providence (7-0-1) and are tied for the second-longest unbeaten streak in the country thus far.

RAPID FIRE
After skating to a 0-0 draw in the first period of play against UMass on Nov. 3, Boston College lit the lamp six times in the second period to run away with victory. The last time Boston College scored six goals in a period was almost 20 years ago. The Eagles posted a six spot against St. Lawrence on Nov. 25, 1995 in a 10-4 victory.

ONE-SIDED
Over the course of BC's six shutouts in five games, the Eagles have outscored their opponents by a combined 30-3. BC's 7-0 shutout against Massachusetts on Nov. 3 was the largest margin of victory in a blanking since the 11-0 win over Army on Nov. 10, 2013.

BEST DEFENSIVE START IN 94 YEARS
In allowing only six goals in BC's first six regulation games, the Eagles are off to their best defensive start in program history. Boston College's 0.67 goals allowed per game through the first seven contests of the season is the lowest mark in BC's 94 years of varsity hockey.

WHITEOUT
First-year forward Colin White has accounted for nine points (2-7-9) in his last four games and has risen as the second-ranked rookie scorer in all of college hockey, averaging 1.29 points per game.

BEACON STREET BULLIES
Boston College is currently second in the nation, averaging 24.0 penaly minutes per game, trailing Army, who is averaging 24.4 PIMs.

FREEBIE
Colin White was awarded a penalty shot on Nov. 6 against Maine, marking the first penalty shot for BC since Chris Kreider vs. Notre Dame on Nov. 18, 2011.

Kelley Rink Hosts Friday Night Showdow against the Spartans

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Players Mentioned

Thatcher Demko

Ryan Fitzgerald

Matthew Gaudreau

Colin White

Miles Wood

Boston College Athletics