Michigan State University Athletics
Thursday, November 12
South Bend, Ind.
7 PM
Michigan State University
6-3-0, 0-1-0
2
at
3
Notre Dame
5-6-0, 3-2-0
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | OT 1 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan St. | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Notre Dame | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
Photo by: Photo Courtesy of Notre Dame
11/12/2026 9:56:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Junior forward Shane Vansaghi found the back of the net twice at Notre Dame on Thursday night, but No. 4-ranked Michigan State hockey fell 3-2 in overtime from Compton Family Ice Arena.
"First period I thought we kind of wanted to do our own thing and we're not a good enough team where we can do whatever we want out there," said Michigan State Head Coach Adam Nightingale. "We've got to play with detail and at the end of the day that's my responsibility. I thought we were a lot better in the second (period) and had some good sequences where we controlled the play and gave ourselves a chance, but at the end of the day not enough to get a win in our conference.
MSU moves to 6-3-0 (0-1-0 B1G) while Notre Dame improves to 5-6-0 (3-2-0 B1G). Michigan State earns one point toward the Big Ten regular season standings with the Fighting Irish picking up the extra point for an overtime win. The Spartans will look to rebound in game two of the series on Friday night at 7:00 p.m.
Michigan State out-shot Notre Dame 35-33, which included a 16-7 margin in the second period. The Spartans also won the face-off battle, 29-26, led by sophomore forward Cayden Lindstrom's nine wins at the dot. Both sides went 1-for-1 on the penalty kill on Thursday.
Vansaghi matched his career-high with a pair of goals, tying the two goals he scored at Notre Dame on March 1, 2025 during his freshman season. Sophomore forward Eric Nilson and freshman forward Jack Hextall each assisted on both of Vansaghi's goals. It's the second multi-assist game of the season for Nilson. All three players were +2 on the night. Freshman goaltender Joshua Ravensbergen made 30 saves in goal on 33 shots faced (.909 Sv%).
How It Happened
Vansaghi looked to have gotten Michigan State on the board 9:30 into the first period off a deflection, but an official review waved off the goal due to Vansaghi contacting the puck with a high stick. Nilson won the face-off and sent the puck back to freshman defenseman Chase Reid, who fired a shot on goal that hit Vansaghi's stick and found the back of the net.
Michigan State got a power play opportunity late in the period, but Notre Dame earned the kill. Sophomore forward Ryker Lee had a good look at the net on the man-advantage but had his shot from the left dot blocked in front by the Fighting Irish defense.
Vansaghi got his goal back early in the second period however, opening the scoring 1:56 into the period flipping the puck up and over the Notre Dame goaltender. Nilson left the puck for Vansaghi at the point, who drove to the net and found an opening.
Notre Dame was quick to respond though, tying the game at 1-1 less than two minutes later on a goal from the back post.
Sophomore forward Anthony Romani found himself with multiple breakaway chances in the second period, first a shorthanded chance on Notre Dame's only power play of the period and later on a 2-on-1 when he dished the puck to junior forward Cullen Potter, whose shot went wide.
MSU kept pressure on the Fighting Irish all period, leading 16-7 in shots on goal in the second including 13 shots on goal over a four-minute span late.
Vansaghi broke the 1-1 tie with his second goal of the night at 7:43 of the third period. Nilson absorbed a hit along the boards behind the net but saw the play developing and made the high IQ pass between his legs to Vansaghi for the one-timer.
A Notre Dame shot rung off the post causing a scramble around the crease at the 10:50 mark of the third, and the Fighting Irish once again found an equalizer just seconds later off the restart. A shot from the point hit a Fighting Irish skater in front of the goal, rebounding in front for Notre Dame to finish and make it 2-2.
The Spartans put a flurry of shots on goal over the final minute of regulation but couldn't find the game-winner. Vansaghi was inches away from a hat trick as he had a second chance shot sail through the crease in the closing seconds.
Notre Dame's Sammy Nelson scored the game-winner for the Fighting Irish 21 seconds into the 3-on-3 overtime period, his second goal of the evening.
"First period I thought we kind of wanted to do our own thing and we're not a good enough team where we can do whatever we want out there," said Michigan State Head Coach Adam Nightingale. "We've got to play with detail and at the end of the day that's my responsibility. I thought we were a lot better in the second (period) and had some good sequences where we controlled the play and gave ourselves a chance, but at the end of the day not enough to get a win in our conference.
MSU moves to 6-3-0 (0-1-0 B1G) while Notre Dame improves to 5-6-0 (3-2-0 B1G). Michigan State earns one point toward the Big Ten regular season standings with the Fighting Irish picking up the extra point for an overtime win. The Spartans will look to rebound in game two of the series on Friday night at 7:00 p.m.
Michigan State out-shot Notre Dame 35-33, which included a 16-7 margin in the second period. The Spartans also won the face-off battle, 29-26, led by sophomore forward Cayden Lindstrom's nine wins at the dot. Both sides went 1-for-1 on the penalty kill on Thursday.
Vansaghi matched his career-high with a pair of goals, tying the two goals he scored at Notre Dame on March 1, 2025 during his freshman season. Sophomore forward Eric Nilson and freshman forward Jack Hextall each assisted on both of Vansaghi's goals. It's the second multi-assist game of the season for Nilson. All three players were +2 on the night. Freshman goaltender Joshua Ravensbergen made 30 saves in goal on 33 shots faced (.909 Sv%).
How It Happened
Vansaghi looked to have gotten Michigan State on the board 9:30 into the first period off a deflection, but an official review waved off the goal due to Vansaghi contacting the puck with a high stick. Nilson won the face-off and sent the puck back to freshman defenseman Chase Reid, who fired a shot on goal that hit Vansaghi's stick and found the back of the net.
Michigan State got a power play opportunity late in the period, but Notre Dame earned the kill. Sophomore forward Ryker Lee had a good look at the net on the man-advantage but had his shot from the left dot blocked in front by the Fighting Irish defense.
Vansaghi got his goal back early in the second period however, opening the scoring 1:56 into the period flipping the puck up and over the Notre Dame goaltender. Nilson left the puck for Vansaghi at the point, who drove to the net and found an opening.
Notre Dame was quick to respond though, tying the game at 1-1 less than two minutes later on a goal from the back post.
Shane Vansaghi gets his goal back, no question about this one! He flips the puck over the goalie to give us a 1-0 lead. https://t.co/wriCKXylSL
— Michigan State Hockey (@MSU_Hockey) November 13, 2026
Sophomore forward Anthony Romani found himself with multiple breakaway chances in the second period, first a shorthanded chance on Notre Dame's only power play of the period and later on a 2-on-1 when he dished the puck to junior forward Cullen Potter, whose shot went wide.
MSU kept pressure on the Fighting Irish all period, leading 16-7 in shots on goal in the second including 13 shots on goal over a four-minute span late.
Vansaghi broke the 1-1 tie with his second goal of the night at 7:43 of the third period. Nilson absorbed a hit along the boards behind the net but saw the play developing and made the high IQ pass between his legs to Vansaghi for the one-timer.
Shane Vansaghi breaks through for his second goal of the night! Eric Nilson with the high IQ to see Vansaghi from the boards. https://t.co/jvAslxBCkx
— Michigan State Hockey (@MSU_Hockey) November 13, 2026
A Notre Dame shot rung off the post causing a scramble around the crease at the 10:50 mark of the third, and the Fighting Irish once again found an equalizer just seconds later off the restart. A shot from the point hit a Fighting Irish skater in front of the goal, rebounding in front for Notre Dame to finish and make it 2-2.
The Spartans put a flurry of shots on goal over the final minute of regulation but couldn't find the game-winner. Vansaghi was inches away from a hat trick as he had a second chance shot sail through the crease in the closing seconds.
Notre Dame's Sammy Nelson scored the game-winner for the Fighting Irish 21 seconds into the 3-on-3 overtime period, his second goal of the evening.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Ice Hockey
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/ Men's Ice Hockey
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/ Men's Ice Hockey
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GK
/ Men's Ice Hockey
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/ Men's Ice Hockey
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/ Men's Ice HockeyTeam Stats
MSU
ND
Shots
35
33
PPG
0
0
SHG
0
0
Penalties
2
2
Penalty Mins
4
4
Faceoffs Won
29
26
Game Leaders
+/-
2
Goals
2
Sh
5
A
0
+/-
2
Goals
0
Sh
4
A
2
+/-
2
Goals
0
Sh
1
A
2
+/-
-1
Goals
0
Sh
4
A
0
Thursday, November 12
Tuesday, November 10
Saturday, November 07
Friday, November 06