Michigan State men’s ice hockey has become a laughingstock. The Spartans have not been able to contend in the Big Ten Conference or with its biggest rival, Michigan, in years. Only three of the meetings between the in-state rivals in the past three seasons have resulted in victories for MSU.
Former Spartan hockey player Danton Cole took over a struggling program in 2017. Five years later, Cole has only been able to lift the program out of last place in the conference once.
MSU has not advanced in the conference tournament since its last year in the CCHA, when the Spartans beat the Alaska Nanooks in 2013.