UNIVERSITY PARK. Pa - The defending CHA regular-season champion Penn State Nittany Lions enter conference play on the road this weekend against a young and talented Mercyhurst team. The Nittany Lions, who were picked to repeat their title in the preseason CHA poll, are excited to start defending their title but recognize the challenge that lies ahead for them.
Penn State sports a 3-3-2 record so far this season in out-of-conference play. They have impressive wins against Brown and Holy Cross, while also playing several close games against St. Lawrence and Boston College. However, CHA play presents a different challenge because of league's bruising style of play.
"CHA teams are more physical, so playing physically will be a big aspect of our game this weekend," said junior forward Julie Gough.
"We want to come out fast and bring the energy and excitement on the bench, and on the ice," added senior defender Izzy Heminger.
It's a style of play that this year's Nittany Lion team has experience facing thanks to several returners from previous seasons. Head coach Jeff Kampersal put an emphasis on tough physical drills in practice to be sure his team would be ready for the next couple of weekends in conference action.
"We've been doing battle drills in the corners and trying to get people in front of the net against the defense," said Gough.
Putting bodies in front of the net will be a huge point of emphasis for the Nittany Lions this weekend against Mercyhurst. They employ a two-goalie system in which they've rotated goalies game by game. It's not a new strategy to collegiate hockey, but still one to account for in a matchup of this importance. However, Kampersal believes his team is ready for the challenge.
"We hope we're getting a lot of traffic in front," he said. "I hope that our players see the net and not the goalie inside there."
There is added incentive for this Penn State team to play well in the CHA conference. The CHA announced the number one seeded team in the conference will play host to the CHA tournament at the end of the season, which reverts back to the conference's initial postseason format after having all teams at a neutral site the past few seasons. The winner of that tournament still gets a ticket to the women's hockey NCAA tournament, where the Frozen Four where happens to be hosted in Hockey Valley this year.
"I told our team now there is great incentive to finish first in our league because one gets to host the CHA tournament. "Four" plays "five" and they battle each other and then the next day have to play the one seed. So, it's definitely our goal, it's just a matter of rising to the challenge," said Kampersal.
"I think it would be amazing if we could host CHA's and then be able to play in the NCAA tournament here with all our fans," said Heminger. "I think over the season we can't take any day for granted and every day we're working towards our goals."
Last season the Nittany Lions handled all their CHA opponents well, going a combined 16-2-2 in a COVID-altered season where they saw a lot more of their own conference. But, the Blue and White came up short in the game that mattered against Syracuse losing 3-2 in a nail-biting CHA semifinal game.
This year, Kampersal is confident that his team can continue to win games against their conference rivals at home and on the road.
"We've always had trouble with Syracuse and Mercyhurst," he said. "Last year kind of felt like a turning point for us. Syracuse is strong, Mercyhurst is strong, and then you can't sleep on Lindenwood and RIT."
The Nittany Lions look to handle business on the road this Friday and Saturday, Oct. 29-30, against Mercyhurst. They then stop home for a quick set against Lindenwood Nov. 5-6. The Nittany Lions end their first CHA stretch of the season battling Syracuse in enemy territory Nov. 19-20.
