Oct. 1, 2015
By Maria Canales, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. ââ'¬" The Penn State men's hockey team is set to begin its 2015-16 season on Sunday at noon against Windsor in what is the first international matchup in program history.
Head coach Guy Gadowsky emphasized that opening day against Windsor will be a test to see how well captains David Glen, Luke Juha and David Thompson have done preparing the rest of the team. The first official practice of the 2015-16 NCAA hockey season isn't until Oct. 3, which gives Gadowsky merely hours to work with his team before their first time competing against an opponent this season.
"[The captains] have been doing a tremendous job," said Gadowsky. "…The number of hours that we actually can spend as coaches with them until October 3rd is limited. So you need your upperclassmen not only have to be good examples they have to actually teach really well."
Alternate captain and senior defenseman Luke Juha explained the team takes matchups one game at a time. As for now, the team is working toward opening night in Pegula Ice Arena against the Lancers.
"We've been working really hard over the summer and into the fall and it's just good to put it all together at some point," said Juha. "That's what I'm working towards."
With the dawn of a new season approaching, the Penn State men's hockey team is preparing for a schedule that pits them against new opponents like Notre Dame, as well as traditional Big Ten foes.
As opening day inches closer, Gadowsky explained some key details to setting the tone early in the season.
Gadowsky hopes David Goodwin can build off of his successful 2014-15 campaign, where he was named an All-Big Ten Honorable Mention. With the departure of his line mates Casey Bailey and Taylor Holstrom, Goodwin will now have to find synergy with new teammates.
"I think our challenge is to find another line that can have the same chemistry or find strong chemistry with him," said Gadowsky.
Another area of focus Gadowsky wishes to further build off of is the Nittany Lions' defense. With veterans on defense including Luke Juha, David Thompson and Erik Autio, Gadowsky is confident the defense will continue to make important plays in the defensive zone.
"As we are continuing we talked about the creativity of offense being part of our identity, we also want to be very good and very consistent in suffocating defensively," said Gadowsky.
The Nittany Lions also look forward to some schedule consistency this season. During the 2014-15 campaign where Penn State went more than a month without a home contest, this year's schedule provides more of a balance between home and road matchups.
"The schedule is tough because it's often made three years in advance and sometimes you don't have as much flexibility as you think," said Gadowsky. "We're very happy with this schedule."
Gadowsky was quick to point out that although a schedule can seem ideal on paper, it is up to the team to perform and take advantage of its schedule.
"Often you look back on the year and you decide how happy you are with it," said Gadowsky. "Just because the schedule, you might like the balance at the start, and it really depends on if you win those games you love the schedule, if you don't you can blame the schedule."
One thing Gadowsky and the rest of the Nittany Lions are ready for is to be back on home ice in front of their loud and loyal fan base.
"I'm excited to play in Pegula," said Gadowsky. "Every game here, it's very exciting. I love it. It's awesome."
Although Pegula will play host to some great teams in the coming season, Gadowsky knows no matter the opponent, the fans will show up enthusiastically at every game.
"It doesn't matter who we're playing I know that this place is gonna rock," said Gadowsky. "It's so much fun to coach in this building, it's way more fun to even play in this building and every game we play here I look forward to."
Penn State will take on Windsor in the International Game Sunday at noon.