POTSDAM, N.Y. – The No. 18 Penn State Nittany Lions conclude their season opening three-game road swing with a trip to the North Country to battle ECAC foes Clarkson and St. Lawrence for one game each this weekend.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
Dates Friday, October 13 |Saturday, October 14
Place: Potsdam, N.Y. | Canton, N.Y.
Time: 7 p.m.
Streaming Video: Friday | Saturday
Listen: Friday | Saturday
Live Statistics: Friday | Saturday
Game Notes: Penn State
THIS WEEK'S MATCHUP
- Friday marks the fifth all-time meeting between Clarkson and Penn State with the Nittany Lions holding the 3-1-0 edge including a series sweep the last time the two squads met in Hockey Valley to open the 2018-19 season.
- It marks just the second trip for the Nittany Lions to Cheel Arena with Clarkson owning a 2-1 victory over Penn State in the only other meeting in Potsdam to open the 2017-18 season.
- Saturday marks the sixth all-time meeting with St. Lawrence and is also just the second trip to historic Appleton Arena for the Nittany Lions. Penn State is 2-2-1 all-time against the Skating Saints including a 4-1 victory the last time the two teams met in Canton six years ago.
- With an average age of 22 years 2 months, Penn State boasts the oldest team in the Big Ten. St. Lawrence is the oldest team in the ECAC and the seventh oldest in the nation with an average age of 22 years 10 months while Clarkson's average age is 22 years 5 months.
SCOUTING CLARKSON
- This marks the home opener for Clarkson and they have dubbed it a Wear White game. The Golden Knights opened the season last week in South Bend earning a split with the Irish winning the opener 3-1 before dropping the series finale 3-0. The Golden Knights are now 6-4-2 against Big Ten opponents over the past five seasons, two of those games were losses to Penn State in 2018.
- Providence transfer Cody Monds scored twice including the game-winner last Saturday against the Irish while another former Friar, Austin Roden, played all 120 minutes last weekend stopping 48-of-52 Notre Dame shots. Roden is appearing for his third different team using his Covid year after beginning his career at Nebraska-Omaha and playing last season with Providence.
- Clarkson finished the 2022-23 season 16-17-4 its worst season statistically since 2014-15, where they finished 12-20-5.
- Clarkson returns three of its top-5 scorers from last season led by Ayrton Martino who paced the team with 38 points and a team-high 29 assists to go along with nine goals. Mathieu Gosselin also returns after tying for the team lead with 14 goals and finishing second with 33 points.
- The Golden Knights are also without the services of leading goaltender Ethan Haider who transferred to UConn after starting 35 of 37 games last season posting a 16-16-3 record with a 2.51 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage. Along with former Friar, Roden, the Knights return Brady Parker between the pipes who had seven appearances with a pair of starts last season posting a .929 save percentage and a 1.84 goals-against average.
- Last week in South Bend, Clarkson struggled with the man-advantage going 0-for-4 and also struggled to stay out of the box averaging four penalties a game, however, they did go 6-for-7 on the PK while scoring a shorthanded goal.
SCOUTING ST. LAWRENCE
- The Saints opened the season last weekend with a single contest against RIT securing a 4-3 win. St. Lawrence battles Vermont Friday night before taking on Penn State on Saturday to close out its opening three-game homestand.
- St. Lawrence went 17-19-0 last season bowing out to Colgate in the ECAC Quarterfinals, however, the Saints return 11 of their top-12 scorers from a season ago including each of their top-9 led by Luc Salem who was the only double-digit goal scorer for the Saints leading the team in each offensive category with 10 goals and 17 assists for 27 points. Cameron Buhl was second on the team with nine goals and 18 points. Drake Burgin opened the season last week against RIT with a multi-goal effort including the game-winner on the powerplay midway through the third period.
- The Saints scored just 88 goals in 36 games last season averaging just 2.4 per contest, however, they only allowed 2.8 goals per contest.
- St. Lawrence enters the 2023-24 season without the services of Swedish goaltender Emil Zetterquist who started all 36 games last season posting an .899 save percentage and a 2.64 goals-against average.
- Arizona State transfer Ben Kraws got the start against RIT stopping 26-of-29 shots in the victory.
- The Saints powerplay converted once on six opportunities last weekend against the Tigers while the PK went 3-for-3.
NEW LINES
- With a good amount of turnover at the forward position between last year and this year, Penn State put together four completely new lines last weekend against LIU.
- The most successful was the trio of juniors Ryan Kirwan and Danny Dzhaniyev along with freshman Aiden Fink who combined for five of Penn State's nine points in the game with one goal and four assists.
- All three combined for the game-tying goal as Kirwan lit the lamp with passes from Dzhaniyev and Fink and then Dzhaniyev and Kirwan set up the game-winning goal late in the third period.
SPECIAL EDITION
- The Nittany Lions will be the first to admit that their specialty units a season ago were not the strength of the team. With a full offseason and preseason of work, the new look special teams opened the year strong last weekend.
- The PK went a perfect 3-for-3 only allowing three shots while the powerplay went 1-for-4 with the one being the game-winning goal.
MR. BIG SHOT
- Junior Dylan Lugris once again found himself in the right place at the right time as he potted the game-winning goal last Saturday at LIU. It was his first goal since the 2022 Big Ten Tournament where he scored three of his previous four goals including the series clinching goal against Ohio State in the B1G Quarterfinals. Of his now five career goals three have been game winners.
NEXT UP
- Penn State returns to Hockey Valley for its home opening series against the American International College Yellow Jackets next Friday and Saturday marking the start of a six-game homestand.
For more information on the 2023-24 season presented by the Penn State Bookstore: Official Bookstore of Penn State Athletics, visit the men's hockey page at GoPSUsports.com or call 1-800-NITTANY Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.