Jan. 20, 2014
By Michael Renahan, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's hockey team fell twice at Michigan State over the weekend at Munn Arena in East Lansing.
Guy Gadowsky's squad battled hard both games, but ultimately fell 3-0 to the Spartans on Friday night, and 3-2 on Saturday night. This was their third and fourth meetings with the Spartans in program history and the first meetings as Big Ten opponents.
Throughout the two-game series, the Nittany Lions generated several good offensive opportunities. In the series opener they outshot the Spartans, 42-29, but couldn't beat Michigan State's netminder, Jake Hildebrand.
A different group of players seemed to step up each night to provide some offensive pressure for Penn State.
On Friday, it was the line of Curtis Loik, David Glen and Kenny Brooks that showcased much of the offensive prowess. The three sophomore forwards combined to take 13 shots and helped push the tempo of the game.
On Saturday night, it was David Goodwin, Eric Scheid and Zach Saar that generated several key offensive opportunities, including a swift goal from Scheid, which was his team leading ninth of the season.
Scheid's power-play goal was the team's first since Dec. 27 against Robert Morris at the Three Rivers Classic. It was a huge equalizing goal just over a minute into the third period. The Nittany Lions struggled to get going offensively in the first period, but the goal from Scheid evened things up for Blue and White.
"We didn't play well in the first [period], but we came away with it tied," said Gadowsky after the game. "We got down again, but we got a really big goal on the power-play to get it back to even. Not a great ending for us, but we're working hard right now and we really want to get some positive results. We just haven't been able to lately."
For the Nittany Lions, however, there are positives coming with each game. The 79 shots they totaled over the weekend mark the highest total this year against any opponent over a two-game stretch. The offensive chances are coming; the Nittany Lions are now focusing on converting those chances.
Along with Scheid's goal, Taylor Holstrom registered his third goal of the season on Saturday night. Last year, the Yorba Linda, Calif., native exploded for 17 points, including three game-winning goals, but hopefully his production this weekend is a sign that another forward is heating up.
Both Eamon McAdam and Matt Skoff played between the pipes against the Spartans and both played well enough to put their team in a position to beat their Big Ten foe.
Skoff saved 26 shots Friday night, while McAdam stopped 29 on Saturday. McAdam continued to showcase his development as a goalie and has shown improvement, even after his solid performances against No. 1 Minnesota last week.
Friday night's game also marked the first time this season the Nittany Lions did not take a penalty. Staying out of the penalty box is a huge step for the team as the season arguably only gets tougher heading forward.
All in all, the Nittany Lions battled hard and again showed they are capable of skating with the top teams in the country. The offensive chances are coming in huge numbers for this team, and Gadowsky's squad is sure to start capitalizing soon.
"We certainly didn't let anybody get away," Gadowsky said. "We had to come from behind twice, and just couldn't do it a third time. We scored a big power-play goal when we needed it. We're slowly building confidence that we can play with teams in the Big Ten and against the best teams in the nation. But, right now, we really want to put one in the win column."