1/18/2023 other sports Edit

How the loss of Ryan Kirwan affects the lineup

Jacob Cheris • Happy Valley Insider

Hockey Writer

Jacob is currently a senior at Penn State majoring in broadcast journalism. He is from Gaithersburg, Maryland and has played hockey for almost 13 years. His favorite team is the Washington Capitals.

Penn State men's hockey coach Guy Gadowsky said in his weekly media availability on Tuesday that the Nittany Lions will be without Ryan Kirwan for a prolonged period of time. It is not clear the kind of the injury he is dealing with, but he sustained it in Game 1 against RIT.

"It is not day-to-day, but he's out," Gadowksy said. "You gotta wait a month before we ask those questions again."

Kirwan currently has 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in 20 games. The sophomore winger leads Penn State with 85 shots. He has struggled to find consistency this year after having a terrific rookie season with 26 points (13 goals, 13 assists), which led all freshmen and was third on the team in points and goals. A lot of those points came in the second half last year where he compiled 10 points down the stretch.

He went eight games without scoring a goal which led to him being a healthy scratch in Game 2 against Michigan State back in November.

The DeWitt, New York, native had four assists in four games before he got hurt.

Kirwan played on a line with Xander Lamppa and Christian Sarlo before he got hurt. So now the question becomes who steps up and who can replace him.

Alex Servagno, a lefty, was the replacement for Kirwan and ended up scoring his first career goal. That trio was split up after Penn State's 3-2 overtime loss against Michigan State.

In Game 2, Sarlo moved back to his natural position on the left side, and Tyler Paquette skated on the right side with Lamppa centering. That line had three points over the weekend (one goal, two assists). The trio is likely to stick together this weekend against Notre Dame.

The extra winger that has been sidelined for all but four games is Dylan Lugris. Lugris had an assist back in October against St. Thomas. Gadowsky could go for a fresh look and get him back in the lineup. He can't go wrong with any combination because of the amount of scoring depth this team has.

While no player on the roster can replicate Kirwan's lightning quick release, his production can be replaceable. The Nittany Lions are going to have to rely on transfers Ashton Calder and Ture Linden to replace Kirwan's production.

Both players had points against Michigan State and need to play like they did at the start of the season in order for Penn State to have a successful second half.