After leading the World Junior Championship in goals, Porter Martone made his return to the Michigan State Spartans on Friday night, facing the Ohio State Buckeyes. He quickly made the most of his return to college hockey, potting two first period goals and adding two assists along the way.
The game opened somewhat quietly, but firmly in Michigan State’s favor. Ohio State was held without a shot for the first twelve minutes, and even then it came on a wrist shot from long range. After winning a puck battle, Cayden Lindstrom found Anthony Romani in the slot to open the scoring. Following a lengthy review for a missed game stoppage, the goal stood. Just seven seconds of game time later, Martone added his first goal of the night, getting in alone on the goaltender.
Just seven seconds of clock time later Porter Martone makes it 2-0! pic.twitter.com/6q32LzIZJC
— Michigan State Hockey (@MSU_Hockey) January 10, 2026
It was Charlie Stramel who found Martone streaking in with no defender in front of him, as the two quickly reconnected following Martone’s return. The duo has been paired for much of the season, aside from the games Martone missed while at the World Junior Championship. Just 16 seconds later, Stramel added a goal of his own.
Ohio State looked to be on their way to exiting the zone, but a stretch play by Martone at the blue line kept the puck in. Daniel Russell collected it along the wall and found Stramel cutting back into the zone. Using Martone as a decoy, Stramel elected to shoot and was able to beat the goaltender clean.
Martone was not finished. With just over 90 seconds remaining in the period, he redirected a Matt Basgall point shot on the power play to push the Spartans’ lead to four.
Make it two for Porter Martone in the first period!
He tips in Basgall’s shot from the blue line to make it 4-0 MSU on the power play. pic.twitter.com/KHY7kNw1da
— Michigan State Hockey (@MSU_Hockey) January 10, 2026
Martone appeared to pick up right where he left off with Michigan State. Following Friday night’s game, he has now scored 13 goals in 17 games for the Spartans, along with 11 assists for 24 points. Entering the night, Martone ranked eighth in the NCAA in goals per game, and climbed to seventh following his two-goal performance. His 1.41 points per game ranks fifth nationally at the time of this writing.
The middle frame was less favorable for Michigan State, as Ohio State began to close the gap in shots and broke Trey Augustine’s shutout bid. The Spartans also ran into penalty trouble during the period, which is something that isn’t exactly new territory for them this season. That carried over into the third, with Cayden Lindstrom being called for boarding, and the Buckeyes responding quickly on the ensuing power play.
After briefly seeing their four-goal cushion trimmed to two, Michigan State found themselves with a huge opportunity with a two-man advantage early in the third period. The power play capitalized, with Martone working the left boards before slipping below the goal line. The sequence resulted in his fourth point of the night and Stramel’s second goal.
Charlie Stramel scores his second of the night on the 5-on-3 power play to make it 5-2! pic.twitter.com/nbCETwf0P6
— Michigan State Hockey (@MSU_Hockey) January 10, 2026
As passes from behind the net begin to show up with a bit of consistency in Martone’s game, it’s something that the Flyers could certainly use as they desperately search for answers on the man advantage. Michigan State’s lead later grew back to four when Ryker Lee finished a slick spin move in tight. Over the final ten minutes, Martone generated a few chances looking to complete the hat trick, but was unable to convert. The performance marked his first four-point game at the college level and capped off another dominant showing from the Flyers’ 2025 sixth overall pick.
Fellow Flyers prospect Shane Vansaghi also returned to the lineup following the World Junior Championship and had a relatively quiet night. He made an early impact in the first period, generating a couple of quality chances and creating traffic around the Ohio State goaltender. However, it is fair to say that he has yet to take the next step offensively that many hoped to see him take this season.
Ultimately, Michigan State took the opener of the two-game series with a 6-2 win, improving to 15-4-0 on the season. The final shots on goal total read 32-27 in favor of the Buckeyes. The teams will meet again Saturday at 5 p.m. EST to close out the weekend set. With several key pieces back from international play, the no. 2 ranked Spartans appear well equipped to make a push in the Big Ten.