SERIES PREVIEW: No. 6 Penn State vs No. 17 Michigan State
As the weather in State College starts getting cooler, the Big Ten hockey schedule starts to get hotter. For the No. 6 Penn State Nittany Lions, that means slowing down the red hot Michigan State Spartans. The Spartans currently sit atop the Big Ten standings with 14 points and are ranked for the first time since the 2019-20 season. Last year, both teams split each series.
The Nittany Lions continue their historic season. They became the first team in NCAA history to defeat a No. 1 ranked opponent in consecutive weeks, splitting with Michigan and Minnesota. Connor MacEachern and Christian Sarlo each had two goals in the series.
The Nittany Lions have struggled in the second game of the series, going all the way back to St. Thomas, where they played a hard-fought game which resulted in a 3-2 overtime win. In Game 2 against Minnesota, Penn State could not get a lot of high-danger chances against Justen Close and were also 0-for-3 on the power play.
"We're aware of it. We've talked about it," coach Guy Gadowsky said. "I'm hoping that it's a process thing that will get better and better."
Even though Penn State is currently fourth in the PairWise rankings, not being able to come away with six points could be detrimental down the stretch. The Nittany Lions continue to struggle on the power play, going 1-for-21 in their last six games.
Furthermore, the one player who scored that lone power-play goal, Ashton Calder, is questionable for this series because of an injury. Gadowsky says that he is day-to-day. He was injured in the first period of Game 2 against Minnesota and ended up playing through the injury.
However, Chase McLane finally made his long awaited season debut against Minnesota. McLane had a season-ending lower body injury last year.
"I think just be good in the faceoff dot, kill penalties [and] do the little things that coach expects me to do and just play for the team." McLane said.
The scoring depth that Penn State had at the start of the season has started to decline. The line of Ryan Kirwan, Ture Linden and Kevin Wall only have five points in conference play after having 24 points in the first three series. Linden in particular only has one goal.
The Spartans are the most improved team in the Big Ten this year. With the Spartans now ranked, six out of the seven Big Ten teams are in the USCHO top 20 poll. The Spartans swept Wisconsin and No. 12 Ohio State.
The Spartans have always been known for their strong defensive play. Their defensive style will always be one of the stingiest in college hockey. However, head coach Adam Nightingale has given the Spartans a new offensive identity in first season as the bench boss. Offense has been something that Michigan State has been lacking for a while.
Five players have 10 or more points. Freshman Daniel Russell leads the Spartans with 15 points (four goals, 11 assists). Jagger Joshua is having a breakout season, setting a career-high 10 points (five goals, five assists) through 12 games. However, Michigan State has not gotten the production it has needed its two big transfers; graduate student Miroslav Mucha, who only has six points (two goals, four assists) and Zach Dubinsky who only has two assists.
In between the pipes, Dylan St. Cyr has established himself as a true starting goaltender. St. Cyr has been lights out going 7-3-1 with a 2.00 goals-against average and a .936 save percentage, which leads the Big Ten. He is a big reason why the Spartans won their last four games.
The series kicks off on Friday at 7 p.m., at Pegula Ice Arena.
Prediction: Split
--------------------------------------------------------------
• Subscribe to our YouTube Channel