UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Graduate transfer Jacques Bouquot (South Windsor, Conn.) registered his first collegiate hat-trick to lift No. 19 Penn State to a 9-3 victory over Lindenwood in non-conference action on Friday afternoon inside Pegula Ice Arena.
Bouquot's hat-trick marks the first time in Penn State history that a Nittany Lion has scored a hat-trick in back-to-back games after Aiden Fink tipped the hat last Saturday against Michigan. It also marks just the third time the Nittany Lions have had multiple hat-tricks in the same season joining the 2017-18 and 2019-20 squads.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Nittany Lions (7-4-3) opened the scoring as freshman Aiden Fink (Calgary, Alberta) knocked down a shot from the point from sophomore Dylan Gratton (Pottstown, Pa.) and deposited it into a yawning net at the near post for the 1-0 edge at 6:16 of the first period.
- Penn State extended the lead just after killing off a penalty as junior Ryan Kirwan (DeWitt, N.Y.) received a pass from classmate Danny Dzhaniyev (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and danced through the slot beating Lion goaltender Trent Burnham past the glove for the 2-0 advantage at the 12:37 mark.
- PSU extended its lead to 4-0 early in the second period with two goals just 38 seconds apart as freshman Reese Laubach (San Jose, Calif.) ripped home a rebound at the 6:21 mark before Kirwan potted one off the far post and in on the powerplay at 6:59 of the middle frame.
- Lindenwood (3-8-2) finally got on the board just 50 ticks later with a man-advantage score of its own as Jaeden Mercier slotted home a rebound at the 7:49 mark.
- The Nittany Lions continued to pressure and tallied a second powerplay goal as Bouquot sent a centering pass off a Lion skate and through the wickets of Burnham for the 5-1 margin at 9:40 of the second stanza.
- Adam Conquest finished in tight off the rush to give the Lions a second goal at the 12:04 mark capping off a stretch of five goals in 6:43 of game action with Penn State holding the 5-2 advantage.
- Penn State pushed the lead to 6-2 late in the middle frame as freshman Matt DiMarsico (Wexford, Pa.) finishing from the low slot off a nice pass from junior Simon Mack (Brockville, Ontario) at the 15:31 mark.
- Freshman Dane Dowiak (Pittsburgh, Pa.) sniped one from above the far dot for the 7-2 advantage just 3:00 into the third period before Bouquot collected his second powerplay goal of the game as he redirected classmate Tanner Palocsik's (Aliquippa, Pa.) shot from the point for the 8-2 margin at 12:51 of the third period.
- The Lions got one back as Mercier collected his second of the game for the 8-3 deficit at the 17:15 mark.
- Bouquot would then tip the hat thanks to a strong play behind the net by freshman Casey Aman (Johnstown, Pa.) who stripped the puck from a Lindenwood defenseman and fed Bouquot at the far post for a one-timer that didn't miss and the 9-3 final score at 18:39 of the third period.
GOALTENDING
- Souliere improves to 6-2-1 on the year after making 18 saves in the victory while his counterpart, Burnham, falls to 3-8-2 after stopping 28 shots over the opening 29:40 before being relieved by Matthew Syverson who collected 23 saves over the final 30:20.
- Souliere's 33 career victories move him past Matt Skoff '16 and into second all-time at Penn State.
NOTES
- Penn State held the commanding 60-21 edge in shots on goal while going 3-for-6 on the powerplay. Lindenwood finished the day 1-for-3 with the man-advantage.
- The Nittany Lions hit the 60+ shot category for the first time since firing 63 shots in an 8-2 victory over Niagara on October 19, 2018.
- The nine goals for Penn State mark the most in a game since a 9-5 victory over Michigan on December 3, 2020.
- Bouquot extends his point-streak to six games with his hat-trick, a new career-long. Bouquot's hat-trick is the 12th in program history, the 10th in Hockey Valley and first at Pegula Ice Arena since Kevin Wall '23 against Niagara on October 22, 2021.
- Fink's opening goal snapped a streak of six-straight games where the Nittany Lions failed to score first. Penn State is now 5-1-0 when scoring the opening goal of a game this season.
- Fink has now scored in five of his last six games including four-straight to extend his career-long goal and point streaks to four games.
- Fink added a pair of assists to secure his fourth multi-point game of the season and third-straight.
- Kirwan's first period goal snapped a nine-game goalless streak for the junior winger. He later added a powerplay goal to secure his first multi-goal game of the season and the third of his career.
- DiMarsico tallied one goal and three assists to tie his career-high with four points as he registers his second-straight four-point game and his third-straight multi-point effort. His current three-game point-streak is a career-best.
- Dzhaniyev and Mack along with sophomore Dylan Gratton (Pottstown, Pa.) each added a pair of assists to secure their fourth, first and second multi-point games this season, respectively. For Dzhaniyev it marks the 12th of his career and is the second and third for Mack and Gratton, respectively.
NEXT UP
Both teams return to Pegula Ice Arena tomorrow afternoon to close out the series with another 4 p.m. puck drop.
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.