After six long weeks without Penn State hockey, the Nittany Lions return to the ice tonight to start a two-game series against RIT. These are the final two non-conference games for Penn State before Big
Ten play resumes next weekend.
How to Watch
Who: RIT Tigers
NPI Ranking (PSU): 42 (7)
When: Saturday, January 3 and Sunday, January 4
Where: Gene Polisseni Center, Rochester, NY (Saturday) / Pegula Ice Arena, State College, PA (Sunday)
Times: 7:05pm (Saturday), 5pm (Sunday)
TV: FloHockey (Saturday), Big Ten Plus (Sunday)
Radio: Penn State Sports Network
Opponent Preview
RIT started the season 10-2 but started to slump shortly before Thanksgiving. The Tigers have lost six of their last seven games, and this will be their first contest against a team currently ranked in the USCHO Poll.
Christian Catalano and Evan Konyen lead the Tigers with six goals each this season. RIT scores just 2.6 goals per game and is tied for 54th in the NCAA in shots on goal per game (25.5). This team is limited offensively and has not scored more than three goals in its last ten games.
RIT boasts one of the top goaltenders in the country in Jakub Krbecek. He has a .929 save percentage and 1.83 GAA in his first 16 starts this season. Penn State’s offense will be the toughest he has seen this season, but the numbers speak for themselves. The Tigers are also 10th in the NCAA in shots against per game (25.2). A faster paced game will benefit Penn State, although the Nittany Lions have struggled against teams that can clog the neutral zone and limit offensive pressure.
RIT is a bit of a half-team on special teams, ranking 61st on the power play (9.2%) but 2nd on the penalty kill (91.2%). Penn State will need to make the most of its chances on the power play. Hopefully Aiden Fink’s return will give the man advantage a boost.
News & Notes
- Gavin McKenna will be unavailable this weekend, as he is competing for Canada at the World Junior Championships. Canada will take on Czechia in the semifinals tomorrow.
- The US Collegiate Selects team finished second at the Spengler Cup in Switzerland, falling 6-3 to HC Davos in the final. Aiden Fink, Charlie Cerrato, JJ Wiebusch, and Guy Gadowsky all represented Penn State at the tournament.
- Aiden Fink was named to the Spengler Cup All-Star team and finished the tournament with four goals and four assists.
- Penn State leads the all-time series with RIT 3-0-1.
Prediction
I am anticipating a slow start for Penn State in this series. The first game is on the road, several of the top players just came back from Switzerland, and Gavin McKenna is not playing. That said, Penn State has the talent and goaltending to take both games this weekend.
Penn State 5-2, 4-2
