In many cases, unless you've lived under a rock for the past half-century, you know that Michigan and Michigan State, two schools who hail from Ann Arbor and East Lansing respectively, don't really like each other.
There's the aspect of college football, where the Wolverines have dominated the Spartans for decades until as of late when Michigan State turned their program around handed four-straight losses to their arch rival.
Then there is NCAA basketball, an area that has it's perennial favorites with coach Tom Izzo and his Michigan State Spartans near the top of the heap nationally; though the Wolverines have become a young, talented team in the Big Ten and even defeated the Spartans in three-straight match ups having only just lost their most recent meeting last Sunday at the Breslin Center.
But in some circumstances, it's gotten downright nasty. As has been the case for these two rivals in the realm of college hockey.
Hockey can be a pretty physical sport. Long-notorious for it's hard knocks, broken bones, and millions of stitches, players on the ice know that every time they skate onto the rink, they might not leave it in the same condition.
Over the years, some of the fights and battles between these two schools on the frozen field have made for some high-quality, entertaining games; And at other times, they've gotten almost downright scary. Like back in 2009 when Michigan State trailed the Wolverines 5-3 in a hotly-contested match up when with only 53 seconds left, MSU's Andrew Conboy checked and clothes-lined Michigan defenseman Steve Kampfer from behind and the Spartans' Corey Tropp slammed his stick in a chopping motion onto Kampfer's neck-region as he lay motionless on the ice.
The resulting fight and horrific aftermath (Kampfer would go on to recover from his injuries) set a new standard in brutality that changed the way many fans and players approach the game and forced both teams take a harsh look at the realities surrounding their rivalry.
But that was then, and this is now.
No. 4 Michigan (17-9-4, 11-7-4-1 CCHA) visits Munn Arena in East Lansing tonight for the first of a two game set with the No. 17-ranked Spartans (15-11-4 overall, 10-9-3-3 CCHA). The Wolverines have been white hot going 10-1-2 in their last 13 games with two victories over MSU and a tie.
The two teams will then head to downtown Detroit to play at the Joe Louis Arena to cap off the series on Saturday with U of M serving as the home team. First year head coach Tom Anastos embraces this rivalry, like all of the coaches affiliated with the university do, and is looking to help his team reclaim some of the glory from back in their National Championship days in 2007.
"We’re in a position where certainly we can’t determine our own destiny to win the league because there’s so many teams ahead of us, but we certainly can make noise within the league,” Anastos said.
“One of our objectives heading into the season was to try to finish in the top four, get a bye and home ice in the playoffs. We have a chance to do that.”
Anastos knows that playing with raw emotion can work for a team, as well as against them. When it comes to the Wolverines, he wants his players focused on the goal in mind.
“If you don’t play with emotion, then you can’t compete in a rivalry series like this. You can’t do it,” he said. “At the same time, emotion can help you or it can hurt you. So we have to channel our emotion in the right direction. If we’re not emotionally engaged in a series like this, you just don’t give yourself a chance.
“The first time we played (U-M) this season, I think the focus was on the rivalry. But (now) we’re in the stretch run where these games are very meaningful for every team. There’s a lot on the line, so I think while the rivalry is important for sure and it means a little more, the points mean a lot at this stage of the season.”
There has been a lot of great rivalries in the CCHA over the last few decades, many including the Boston and Minnesota areas, but coach Anastos thinks these two teams in Michigan have something special...something great. And as times goes on, that truth will shine through.
“Without a doubt in my mind, it’s the best college hockey rivalry. You want to have bragging rights.”
You can follow MSU Examiner, Michael Ferro, at twitter.com/MichaelFerro.
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