New Nittany Lions in Happy Valley
Following the departure of 10 members of the 2023-24 roster, the Nittany Lions are thrilled to welcome 11 newcomers to Hockey Valley; nine freshmen and two juniors. This incoming recruiting class consists of six forwards, three defensemen and two goaltenders.
After the departure of two of their five leading scorers in Jacques Bouquot and Ryan Kirwan that tallied a combined 24 goals and 27 assists last season, Gadowsky emphasized his excitement and confidence in this incoming freshman class to fill these key roles.
“We have lots of optimism for this year's class. They’ve got more than offense, they’re just really good players…When you see these guys play, you’re going to understand that they fit in really well.”
While the Nittany Lions were coursing through their 2023-24 campaign, the group of six new forwards in Keaton Peters, Andrew Kuzma, Charlie Cerrato, Nic DeGraves, JJ Wiebusch and Braedon Ford, were lighting up the score sheets across the USHL, AJHL and BCHL. The six combined for a total of 310 points on 127 goals and 183 assists in 350 games played last season.
New Hopes in Net
Coming off the season-long hot seat, the question arose at the conclusion of the 2023-24 season; who will the Nittany Lions commit to in net? Throughout last season, senior Liam Souliére and sophomore Noah Grannan split time in the net for the first half of the season, competing for the starting role that was evidently granted to Souliére for the remainder of the year.
Following his graduation from the university this past May, Souliére decided to enter the transfer portal and will play his final collegiate season with a familiar foe in the University of Minnesota, leaving the starting role in Happy Valley up for grabs.
Not long after his commitment was announced, the Nittany Lions began their search for another goaltender, where the Blue and White were able to land a 6 '4 powerhouse from the Hockey East conference, in Arsenii Sergeev.
“We weren’t committed to getting a goalie out of the portal, but once a guy like Arsenii became available, it was really a no-brainer…he’s a competitive guy, he’s really fun to be around, the team loves him already, and most importantly he’s an excellent goaltender,” said Gadowsky.
The junior goaltender out of Yaroslavl, Russia spent the first two years of his collegiate career with the Huskies of the University of Connecticut, before entering the transfer portal with two years of eligibility remaining.
“There was a great opportunity for me at this university, to grow as a person and player. We have great coaches here, great people and I think it was just the best spot for me to be,” exclaimed Sergeev.
Despite the Huskies’ eighth-place finish in Hockey East with an underwhelming 9-14-1 record in 2023-24 season, Sergeev finished the year with an astounding 8-7-0 record while boasting a .918 save percentage and 2.74 goals-against average. There is lots of excitement surrounding Sergeev and his potential from the Nittany Lion faithful.
The Return of the Kid Line
As previously mentioned, the Nittany Lions were met early in their 2023-24 season with the injury bug, forcing players to step into roles they had never been in before. Despite unfortunate circumstances and crucial losses throughout the season, this silver lining soon became a saving grace.
The ‘Kid Line’ was composed, and became the catalyst for the offensive success as the season progressed. In the thick of Big Ten play, sending out a line of three freshmen is an incredibly daunting task, one that most collegiate coaches would not even consider, but quickly became a last-resort option for Gadowsky.
The trio of newcomers in Aiden Fink, Reese Laubach and Matt DiMarsico took the world of college hockey by storm, and was the light in the dark for Penn State fans. The pure synergy and youthful exuberance embodied in these three athletes became the spark of life that the Nittany Lions so desperately needed after finding themselves in an offensive rut.
The infamous Kid Line wound up the most productive scoring line by the end of the season, one the Blue and White grew dependent on. The three combined for 82 points as a unit, with 32 goals and 50 assists.
Traveling With the Team
This will be a crucial year for the overall development of the team as a cohesive unit, one that will be tested right off the bat with back-to-back road trips to kick off the season.
The Nittany Lions open the non-conference portion of their season with a cross-continent trip to Fairbanks, Alaska. This trip will be immediately followed by a long bus ride over to Hamden, Connecticut to face off against the 2023 National Champion, Quinnipiac Bobcats.
Not only are the Nittany Lions faced with extensive travel plans to kick off their season, they are also participating in two historical games to ring in the new year with the 2025 slate of their season.
The Blue and White will play the final game of the opening semester against Army, at the Capital One Arena, the home of the Washington Capitals. This matchup set to be a sequel of their record-breaking 7-6 victory over Army back in January of 2024, where coach Guy Gadowsky and his Nittany Lions faced off against his son, Mac Gadowsky and the Black Knights.
Penn State will restart their conference slate against Notre Dame, at the Big Ten Frozen Confines, a neutral site series played at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois.
For more information on Penn State Men’s Hockey, visit gopsusports.com and follow along with @PennStateMHKY on Instagram and X.
