After a three-game stretch where the team was outscored 14-2, No. 5 Penn State came up with a key 4-2 win over No. 2 Michigan on Saturday night. The Nittany Lions never trailed in the game and got three goals
from the bottom six to earn a hard-fought win on home ice.
First Period
Just like last night, Penn State had the better of the play early on, outshooting Michigan 8-2 in the first 10 minutes. Shea Van Olm had two grade-A chances in the opening minute, but Jack Ivankovic made two great saves to keep it scoreless. The Nittany Lions failed twice on the power play, but given the recent trajectory on the man advantage, it was good to see them not concede any shorthanded chances.
The back half of the period was chippy, and both teams continued to impose themselves physically. Penn State came up with a key penalty kill in the closing minutes of the period, and the game went to the first intermission scoreless.
Second Period
Michigan brought heavy pressure early in the second, and a shot by Cole McKinney got past Josh Fleming but trickled just wide of the net. Penn State headed back to the power play after a tripping call against McKinney, but the Wolverines again shut the Lions down with their aggressive penalty kill.
Midway through the period, Penn State rushed into the offensive zone 4-on-3. Shea Van Olm slapped a one-timer wide of the net, but Luke Misa gathered the puck after getting a favorable bounce off the boards and fired home a goal from a tough angle with Ivankovic out of position:
After facing just 8 shots in the first 30 minutes of regulation, Josh Fleming made three big saves to preserve the Nittany Lions’ lead. A penalty on Nick Fascia while Penn State was 4-on-5 gave Michigan a two-man advantage for just over a minute. Carter Schade made a critical clear midway through the 5-on-3 to allow Penn State to change. Charlie Cerrato blocked a shot and deflected a cross-ice pass out of play after getting out of the box to complete the penalty kill.
In the final moments of the period, Charlie Cerrato made a perfect drop pass to Nick Fascia on the rush, and Fascia found just enough room in front of the Michigan defense to wrist home his first goal of the season:
Penn State led 2-0 entering the second intermission, just the second time in five conference games that the Lions held the lead after two periods.
Third Period
Penn State did not rest on its laurels and created some good chances early in the period looking to extend the lead. The Nittany Lions started to shut off Michigan’s shooting and passing lanes.
Adam Valentini rang a wrist shot from the high slot off the post, and the Nittany Lions immediately started the counterattack. Dane Dowiak threaded a cross-ice pass to Reese Laubach, and Laubach found the back of the net to give Penn State a 3-0 lead with 11 minutes to play:
Desperate for any offense to materialize, Michigan went to work in the offensive zone. Will Horcoff deflected in a shot from the point to cut Penn State’s lead to 3-1 with 10 minutes left in regulation. Ben Schoen took a tripping penalty with 8:22 left to give Michigan a power play, but the penalty kill was able to bail out his mistake.
Luke Misa nearly salted the game away on a breakaway with five minutes left, but his shot hit the left post. Moments later, Jayden Perron skated right around Penn State’s defense and fired home the puck into the top left corner of the net to cut the Lions’ lead to 3-2 with 3:49 to play.
Michigan pulled Jack Ivankovic with 1:30 left. It took a few cracks at the empty net, but Nic Chin-DeGraves iced the game with six seconds left to secure a 4-2 win and a split against Michigan.
Scoring Summary
Second Period
- PSU: Luke Misa (2)- Shea Van Olm (1), Ben Schoen (3)- 5v5- 9:00
- PSU: Nick Fascia (1)- Charlie Cerrato (16), Matt DiMarsico (8)- 5v5- 18:54
Third Period
- PSU: Reese Laubach (2)- Dane Dowiak (2), Lev Katzin (1)- 5v5- 8:27
- MICH: Will Horcoff (13)- Luca Fantilli (4), Tyler Duke (7)- 5v5- 9:59
- MICH: Jayden Perron (5)- TJ Hughes (13), Nick Moldenhauer (5)- 5v5- 16:11
- PSU: Nic Chin-DeGraves (2)- Gavin McKenna (11), Carter Schade (1)- EN- 19:54
Shots By Period
- MICH: 6-14-14-34
- PSU: 11-10-10-31
Takeaways
- Leads- This was only the fourth game out of 14 this season where Penn State never trailed in regulation. That is a trend the Nittany Lions must continue to reverse in the second half of the season.
- Bottom Six- After mostly performing a disappearing act so far, the bottom six scored two huge goals to give Penn State the cushion it needed. The Nittany Lions won for the first time this season without at least one goal from Cerrato, DiMarsico, or Wiebusch.
- Josh Fleming- Fleming had a strong night in net for Penn State after a rough outing by Kevin Reidler on Friday. He made several key saves in the second and third periods to prevent Michigan from tying the game. At this time, Fleming looks like the more consistent option in net.
- Physical Play- It was refreshing to see Penn State unafraid to get physical and finish checks. Opponents had figured out how to push this team around by throwing bodies, but the Nittany Lions answered the bell tonight.
- Penalty Kill- The PK was a perfect 4-for-4 tonight, including a 5-on-3 in the second period.
- Winning Is Fun- As we saw with football earlier today, winning a hard-fought game after a rough stretch is exactly what the doctor ordered.
Standings and Such
Michigan State has the early edge over the rest of the conference with two games in hand over Michigan and Wisconsin. The middle class of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Penn State is separated by just one point through six games. Minnesota has looked horrid in non-conference play but remains just a step behind in the Big Ten standings. Next weekend’s Penn State-Minnesota series in Minneapolis will be pivotal for both teams.
As of publishing time, Penn State is No. 8 in the NPI. It’s still early, but the Lions have avoided putting themselves behind the eight ball for NCAA Tournament contention.
What’s Next
Penn State will hit the road next Friday and Saturday to take on Minnesota in its final series before the holiday break. Puck drop on Friday is scheduled for 8pm on FS1.
