Michigan State captain Torey Krug stood just inside the Wolverine blue line and saluted as confetti rained down on the Spartan student section Friday night. The No. 7 Michigan hockey team could only watch what they had done to themselves.

The celebration came after Krug rocketed a slap shot past senior goalie Shawn Hunwick for Michigan State’s second power play goal. It was on the Spartans’ seventh man-advantage opportunity and it put them up 3-1 midway through the third period. Michigan responded with two goals, including one of their own on the power play, before losing the first game in overtime on the road at Munn Ice Arena.

But more than the overtime winner, the Wolverines’ 22 penalty minutes led to their defeat.

“It’s always tough to play these guys,” senior forward Carl Hagelin said after Friday’s game. “They try to get in your head, get in your face. Today we took way too many penalties. That’s just the bottom line.”

For Michigan, Friday’s game continued the parade to the box that started in the Great Lakes Invitational championship game. The Wolverines took seven penalties in Detroit, allowing Colorado College to score four times with the man advantage — that's six power play goals allowed in two games.

With the penalty kill well off its top-10 pace from a year ago, sitting at 41st in the country, discipline has become increasingly important as the season wears on. And needing a win Saturday night to salvage a split in the series against the second-to-last place team in the conference, Michigan found it again.

The Wolverines took just three penalties Saturday, leaving an opportunity for the power play to win the special teams battle. Freshman defenseman Jon Merrill, the quarterback of the power play, returned from a two game hiatus after his participation in the World Junior Championships.

Michigan scored four power play goals in the series, converting at a 40-percent clip on the weekend. Hagelin’s bad-angle shot with the man advantage in the second period proved to be the game-winner.

“We got a little more confidence (on the power play), and our numbers looked pretty good,” Michigan coach Red Berenson said on Saturday. “At least we’re on the plus side tonight and that’s huge. You look at our power play/penalty killing, we’re not that strong — not as strong as we should be this time of year.”

Michigan’s power play has been slightly above average this season, converting just over 20 percent of its opportunities. In a sport where the man advantage is often the reason for a win or loss, Michigan is 6-1-3 when scoring a power play goal and 5-1 when not giving up a power play goal.

On Saturday the Wolverines accomplished both those feats. And without being hampered by their own penalties, the Wolverines' power play put the game away.

Already up 2-0, Michigan received a five-on-three power play with five minutes left in the game. Merrill took the puck at the point and slid it down to senior forward Louie Caporusso just to the left of the net. Caporusso passed it across the crease to sophomore A.J. Treais, who quickly put the puck top-shelf for the goal.

“We’ve probably practiced that play for over 300 hours,” Caporusso said. “Finally, it worked.”

But this time there was no saluting, no confetti — just a sense that, with the three-goal lead, the game was over.

“I thought the first goal was important, the second goal was huge and the third goal was comforting,” Berenson said.