Michigan State clinches third straight Big Ten title, 7-1, at Minnesota

Michigan State secured continued dominance of Big Ten hockey with a dominating 7-1 victory at Minnesota, securing the Big Ten Championship for a third straight year, Thursday at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis.  Porter Martone, Ryker Lee and Tiernan Shoudy each scored two goals and Cayden Lindstrom added another as No. 2-ranked Michigan State ripped the Gophers, lifted the trophy and reserved the right to raise another banner at Munn Ice Arena in the near future.  Michigan State clinched the outright regular season title with one regular season game remaining, Friday against the Gophers. Michigan State had a chance to clinch last weekend, but allowed Ohio State to take four of six points from the Spartans in East Lansing. The Spartans needed a bounce-back weekend in Minneapolis, and secured it with bang on Thursday. “I mean it is special,” said Michigan State head coach Adam Nightingale, who has won three Big Ten titles in four years as head coach. “We get so much support from the university and our alums and our fans, and every time we put the jersey on we try to put our best foot forward. I told the guys after that each (title) is different." (MORE inside SpartanMag. Join SpartanMag: $1 to get started, and enjoy a complimentary year of The Athletic included with your membership. Get Deal Now! 👉 https://www.on3.com/teams/michigan-state-spartans/join/)