• Times and site: The Spartans face the No. 20 Mavericks in a two-game CCHA series at 8 p.m. tonight and Saturday at the 16,000-seat Quest Center in Omaha.
• TV/radio: WJIM 1240-AM, tonight; WDFN 730-AM, Saturday; No TV.
• Records: Nebraska-Omaha 7-2-1 overall, 3-2-1-1 CCHA (tied for 6th), ranked No.20 by USCHO; MSU 4-6-2 overall, 2-4-2-2 CCHA (tied for 6th).
• Coaches: Nebraska-Omaha - Mike Kemp, 12th season at UNO and overall (188-208-50); MSU - Rick Comley, 7th season, 36th overall (146-91-26, 743-566-97).
• Rivalry: MSU holds an 18-9-1 edge in a series that started with a 2-0 Spartan victory on Dec. 4, 1998, at Munn Arena. The Spartans are 6-2-1 against the Mavericks since January, 2006. Last season, the teams split at Munn Arena in February, with UNO winning the opener 5-4 in overtime and MSU posting a 4-2 victory in the second game.
• Mavericks to watch: Senior forwards Dan Charleston (5-6-11) and Tomas Klempa (6-3-9), sophomore forwards Rick Purslow (2-6-8) and Joey Martin (4-3-7), junior defenseman Eddie Del Grosso (1-11-12), senior goaltender Jerad Kaufmann (5-0-0, 1.97 GAA, .927 sv. pct) and junior goaltender Jeremie Dupont (2-2-1,1.98, .926).
• Mavericks update: Over the last three weekends, UNO split at Bowling Green, earned four CCHA points with a victory and shootout win at Western Michigan and then came home to split with Ferris State, winning the finale, 4-2. UNO may be the smallest team in the CCHA with five of its top-scoring forwards ranging from 5-foot-7 to 5-foot-9. Charleston is 5-8 and 180 pounds, Klempa is 5-8, 170, and Martin is 5-7, 170. The Mavs make up for the lack of size up front with excellent speed. UNO is one of the CCHA's oldest teams with four players 24-years-old and only one player younger than 20. Goaltending has been an issue in recent seasons, but thus far Kaufmann and Dupont have been solid, both with averages under 2.00.
• Spartans update: After a five-game unbeaten streak at 3-0-2, MSU is now winless in five games (0-4-1) and has lost four in a row for the first time since Jan. 19-Feb. 1, 1991, when the Spartans lost to Lake Superior State, two games vs. Western Michigan and one game against Ferris State. MSU will face the Mavs without senior center Nick Sucharski, who is likely out for the season with a shoulder injury, and freshman forward Andrew Conboy, who also has a shoulder injury but should return next weekend. Senior right wing Tim Crowder is the Spartans' top scorer against UNO with two goals and five assists for seven points in 10 games. Goaltender Jeff Lerg is 5-3-1 against the Mavs with a 2.94 average and .916 save percentage.
• Analysis: Five-on-five scoring is tough for the Spartans so it's critical that the power play create better scoring opportunities and score a goal here and there. MSU is focusing on it in practice and hopes it can make more of an impact in games. As usual, the Spartans will look to forwards Crowder, Matt Schepke, Corey Tropp, Andrew Rowe, Dustin Gazley and Daultan Leveille and defenseman Jeff Petry help the team break out of its scoring slump. The bad news for MSU is that the Mavericks have improved defensively and are getting balanced. scoring. The combination has led to UNO's strong start.
- By Neil Koepke
