UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — After starting back-to-back nights against Michigan State this past weekend for the first time, Liam Soulière is pleased with his performance.
"I was happy. There's definitely some stuff to clean up. I mean, there's always things to do better," Soulière said. "I'm just going to watch video with coach and go over areas of my game that I can improve for the weekend coming up, just making sure I'm mentally ready for the playoffs."
Goaltenders are known for needing a high-level of mental toughness to perform well come game time. So, for many goaltenders, pregame routines help get both mind and body ready for an evening between the pipes.
Soulière's typical pregame routine involves a cold shower, hand-eye coordination exercises, and breathing techniques.
"I think just having my routine, having those cues during my routine that kind of just prepare me subconsciously that I'm ready for game time," Soulière said.
Coming into the playoffs, Soulière's routines will help him prepare to go against Ohio State on Friday night at Value City Arena. For Soulière, getting the start "means the world," to him.
To teammate Jimmy Dowd, Soulière gives the team confidence when he's in the net. During practice, the Ontario native encourages his teammates and motivates them to perform better.
"He wants to get better every single second of the day that he's at the rink," Dowd added.
Unlike his teammates, Soulière won't be focused on making plays and netting goals. But he knows the rest of the team is confident they can play Penn State-style hockey and make an impression.
"I think if we stick to simple hockey… the way we know we can do it, I think we can do some damage in the playoffs," Soulière said. "It's not a complicated game that we play, but it's a hard one and it's demanding."
Ben Copeland and Dowd echoed Soulière's sentiments, agreeing that in order to have success against the Buckeyes the team needs to play their game.
"Forecheck hard, backcheck hard, have good sticks all over the ice, be disciplined, finish hits – do the little things right," Dowd said.
The last time the team played Ohio State in late January the Nittany Lions tied the first game in the series and fell 6-0 the following evening. With over a month of work under their belts, Guy Gadowsky and the team are confident they have the pieces to make a comeback.
"I think they're a very well-conditioned team, and the experience we (had in Columbus earlier in the year) is we played very well for two periods each night and then ran out of gas," Gadowsky said. "We've been working hard in the weight room, in strength and conditioning, but it's also how you handle the game that matters… they're very talented, they're going to finish if you give them the opportunity."
With just a few days until puck drop, the team is eager to get on the ice and start, according to Dowd, "the best time of the year."
"I'm super excited," Copeland said. "It's gonna be fun. Playoffs are fun. I played in the playoffs a couple times at Colorado College… It's different hockey. (Playoff hockey is) faster, it's more exciting, there's more on the line – so we're super excited."
