Spartan Faceoff: MSU vs. Michigan

• Times and sites: 7 p.m. tonight at Munn Arena, 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit.

• Tickets update: Only standing room tickets remain for tonight's game. Tickets remain for Saturday's game at Joe Louis Arena. They're priced at $32, $22, $12 and $10.

• TV: Big Ten Network, tonight; Fox Sports Detroit, Saturday.

• Radio: WJIM 1240-AM tonight, WVFN 730-AM Saturday

• Records: MSU 16-8-4, 11-5-4-1 CCHA (2nd), ranked No. 12/13; Michigan 14-11-1 overall, 9-8-1- CCHA (7th).

• Coaches: Michigan - Red Berenson, 26th season (687-325-69); MSU - Rick Comley, 8th season at MSU, 37th overall (168-116-33, 765-591--105).

• Rivalry: Michigan leads the series 137-121-18. Last season, the Wolverines swept all five games. This year, MSU swept U-M, 3-2 and 2-0, in mid-November. Over the past five seasons, MSU is 8-9-5 against U-M; going back 10 seasons, the Spartans are 18-16-10; and in the past 15 years, MSU leads 28-25-12. During Comley's eight seasons at MSU, his teams are 13-14-8 vs. Berenson's Wolverines, with last year's sweep shifting the balance.

• Wolverines to watch: Junior forwards Carl Hagelin (12-15-17), Matt Rust (8-14-22), Louie Caporusso (6-13-19), freshman forward Chris Brown (9-9-18), senior forward Brian Lebler (8-6-14), senior defensemen Steve Kampfer (1-11-12) and Chris Summers (1-9-10), junior goaltender Bryan Hogan (14-10-1, 2.18 goals-against average, .906 save percentage)

• Wolverines update: U-M is 5-1-1 since losing to Rensselaer in the first game of the Great Lakes Invitational. But like the Spartans, the Wolverines are coming into the weekend 1-1-1, both going tie, win, loss in the last three games. Last weekend, U-M blanked Ferris State 2-0 at home, then lost 3-2 at FSU, giving up a power-play goal in the last minute of the game. ... The Wolverines hold a statistical edge over MSU in three categories: team defense (2.33 goals per game to 2.39 for MSU), power play (19.8 to 18.5), penalty kill (88.5 percent to 82.8 percent). MSU leads in scoring offense, averaging 3.29 goals a game to 3.12 for U-M.

• Spartans update: MSU's productive fourth line is made up of three players - center Brett Perlini, right wing Trevor Nill and left wing Dean Chelios - whose fathers all played in the NHL. Chris Chelios played for the Canadiens, Blackhawks and Red Wings; Jim Nill played with the Red Wings and Winnipeg Jets; and Fred Perlini had a short stint with the Toronto Maple Leafs before embarking on a European career. The Spartan trio has been together in six of the last seven games and combined for eight goals and 12 assists for 20 points. The line's plus-minus number is +17. ... Junior left wing Andrew Rowe has played in just seven games against U-M, but he has three goals and seven points. He had one goal in each of MSU's 3-2 and 2-0 wins over the Wolverines in November.

• Analysis: The Spartans are 2-2-2 this month and haven't been in sync in a few of those games against LSSU, Notre Dame and Ohio State. MSU still has a lot to prove and will be challenged to keep its hold on second place in the CCHA. So, this weekend's games are critical to the Spartans' league finish and in the NCAA tourney picture. Maybe the buzz and excitement of the rivalry will boost MSU's game to a higher level than it has shown recently. It's not so much about work ethic but creating and finishing plays, being aggressive and playing smart. After Saturday, just six regular-season games remain for MSU, and four of those will be on the road.

- Neil Koepke