Mavs Sweep Michigan State

Tonight UNO continued it's best start of the hockey season in the program's brief history with a 3-1 victory, sweeping Michigan State after last night's 7-1 victory. The Spartans have been struggling as of late, only scoring four goals in the last five games and losing six straight, and UNO took advantage early and often this weekend.

This year's UNO squad was faster and more physical than Michigan State. Back in October, I wondered if the talk about being faster and more physical was just talk, but now the evidence shows it's real. Something else is UNO's domination of the third period; this season, UNO is outscoring their opponents 18-5 in the final period.

UNO now finds themselves in 2nd place in the CCHA, tied with defending national runner-up Notre Dame. Up next for the Mavs is Ohio State, who's tied for fourth place with Alaska, Michigan, and Ferris State. Some people attribute UNO's fast start to a weak schedule, but it's not as light as some fans might think. They split with 4th place Ferris State last week, and split a series with Bowling Green (who is only one point out of fourth) on the road. In recent years, UNO has combined slow starts with struggles against some of the teams they really should have beaten. All that has seemed to change this season.