After five games of struggles, Penn State’s power play found its game again, scoring twice in a 2-1 win over Minnesota on Saturday night. The Nittany Lions won their final game before the extended holiday
break to earn a split against a desperate Minnesota team.
First Period
Minnesota found the scoreboard first after a cross-checking penalty on Carter Schade. LJ Mooney found an open Tanner Ludtke in the low slot at the left faceoff circle, and Ludtke slapped home the puck with Kevin Reidler out of position to give Minnesota a 1-0 lead.
Offense was hard to come by, with both teams combining for 12 shots on goal in the opening frame. Minnesota’s neutral zone trap continued to stymy Penn State’s zone entries and forced the Nittany Lions to dump and chase. The Gophers took a 1-0 lead into the intermission.
Second Period
Penn State finally started to sustain pressure in the offensive zone early in the second with the top two lines but could not crack Nathan Airey. Reese Laubach, Luke Misa, and Ben Schoen all had high-danger chances, but Airey was in good position to hold them off.
Penn State drew its first power play of the night, and Charlie Cerrato blasted home a slapshot from the left faceoff circle to even the game at 1:
Minnesota took a too many men on the ice penalty in the closing seconds of the period to put Penn State on the power play entering the final frame. The game went to the intermission tied at 1.
Third Period
The power play gave Penn State its first lead of the night, as Jackson Smith slapped home the puck off a cross-ice pass by JJ Wiebusch:
Mac Gadowsky took a slashing penalty with just under 12 minutes to play to put the Gophers on the power play. Penn State came up with a clutch kill and did get one shorthanded chance.
Minnesota started to tilt the ice in their favor following the power play. Kevin Reidler made two massive saves after a defensive zone turnover with 7:28 left in regulation to preserve the lead. Minnesota brought heavy pressure late in the third trying to tie the game, but Reidler held down the fort in the closing seconds to secure a 2-1 road win for Penn State.
Scoring Summary
First Period
- MINN: Tanner Ludtke (3)- LJ Mooney (8), Brody Lamb (6)- PP- 9:23
Second Period
- PSU: Charlie Cerrato (5)- Gavin McKenna (13), Matt DiMarsico (9)- PP- 14:32
Third Period
- PSU: Jackson Smith (3)- JJ Wiebusch (8), Gavin McKenna (14)- PP- 1:06
Shots By Period
- PSU: 8-15-6-29
- MINN: 4-8-12-24
Takeaways
- Power Play- The power play scored both goals in tonight’s game and looked more structured and disciplined. They are starting to figure things out without Aiden Fink, but hopefully they will not have to worry about that for too much longer.
- Defense- There were anxious moments in the third period as Minnesota pressed for the tying goal, but the first 50 minutes were a solid performance from the defense. Effort was better on the backcheck, and there were noticeably fewer turnovers than last night.
- Kevin Reidler- Josh Fleming has been the better goalie overall, but Kevin Reidler was outstanding tonight. His 12-save third period was arguably his best 20 minutes of the season with Penn State needing a win on the road. The goaltenders’ growth will be key in the second half of the season.
- See You In January- This was Penn State’s final game of 2025. The Lions finish the calendar year with an overall record of 30-10-1 and the program’s first Frozen Four. The Nittany Lions are positioned well to make noise in 2026. It’s certainly going to be a long six weeks for me without Penn State hockey.
Standings and Such
Wisconsin took five of six points from Michigan State, and Michigan swept Ohio State by a combined margin of 13-3.
Penn State is third in total points and fourth in points percentage. The good news is the Lions already have half of their Big Ten road games in the rearview mirror and all four games against Notre Dame remaining. There is still a lot of hockey to be played, but you have to like the position Penn State is in now compared to the same time last year.
As of posting time, Penn State is No. 11 in the NPI.
What’s Next
Penn State will be off until January 3 and 4, when they will face RIT in a home-and-home for the final non-conference games of the regular season.
