Penn State men’s hockey (0-3, 0-0-0 Big Ten) fell to No. 8 Quinnipiac (4-1, 0-0-0 ECAC), 6-3, at Pegula Ice Arena in the team’s home opener.

Penn State started strong with two early goals in the first period, but six straight Quinnipiac tallies led to the Nittany Lions falling short.

How It Happened

Dane Dowiak won the opening faceoff for the Nittany Lions, but both teams struggled to establish continued possession at the start of the game.

Shea Van Olm had the first shot for the Nittany Lions, but Quinnipiac quickly cleared it off the goal line. The Bobcats’ first chance of the game came moments later, when Jack Stockfish’s attempt forced Penn State goaltender Josh Fleming into an early save.

The first goal came just before five minutes had passed, when Justin Larose deked out Quinnipiac goaltender Christian Kirsch on a breakaway and went top shelf to give the Nittany Lions a 1-0 lead.

Following the goal, Penn State took the first penalty of the game when Jackson Smith was sent to the box for a cross-checking minor.

Quinnipiac put the pressure on during the man advantage early but took a penalty of its own during the power play when captain Mason Marcellus was sent to the box for interference.

During the ensuing four-on-four, chaos broke loose, as a big hit by Bobcat defenseman Elliott Groenewold led to a retaliation unsportsmanlike penalty from Larose.

On the man advantage, the Bobcats peppered Fleming with shots, but Penn State was able to return to full strength with its 1-0 lead intact.

Immediately following Quinnipiac’s power play, Penn State extended its lead to 2-0 9:53 into play as Mac Gadowsky beat Kirsch over the shoulder.

Quinnipiac returned to the power play moments after the goal, as Caeden Herrington was taken to the box for interference. The Bobcats would score early on the ensuing minor penalty, as left winger Antonin Verreault picked up a rebound in front of the net and beat Fleming.

Quinnipiac tied the game moments later, as sophomore right winger Ethan Wyttenbach beat Fleming on a backhander following a Penn State chance at the other end.

Van Olm added to the list of penalties when he tripped the Quinnipiac netminder with just over two 2:30 to go in the first period. Quinnipiac took advantage on the power play when Marcellus scored on a tic-tac-toe goal, the Bobcats’ second power-play goal of the game, to give his squad a 3-2 lead heading into intermission.

A shot from Justin Poirier that caromed off the glass gave Smith the first dangerous chance of the second period for the Nittany Lions. Moments later, Lev Katzin failed to capitalize on a prime backdoor opportunity.

Smith would take another penalty following continued Quinnipiac pressure, as he was called for a cross-checking minor. Quinnipiac would capitalize again for its third power-play goal of the game when Stockfish beat Fleming with a one-timer to make it 4-2.

Penalties continued to run wild throughout the second period when Quinnipiac center Markus Vidicek took a tripping minor nearly midway through the frame. The Bobcats killed it off to maintain their 4-2 advantage.

Penn State had a chance to cut into the deficit moments later but narrowly missed the opportunity as Shea Busch wrang a wrister off the post. Penn State would continue the pressure, but Van Olm squandered a golden opportunity by missing a wide-open Quinnipiac net off a feed from Luke Misa.

Quinnipiac would take another penalty a few minutes later, as Graham Sward was sent to the box for interference. But Penn State would once again fail to capitalize on the man-up.

The Bobcats would extend their lead to three as Vidicek buried a backdoor feed from Marcellus to make it 5-2 with just 15 seconds remaining in the second period.

Penn State would start the third with early pressure but failed to capitalize despite numerous opportunities for Katzin. Shortly after, Quinnipiac had a prime chance of its own. Wyttenbach sprang free past the Penn State defense, but Fleming shut down the opportunity.

Penn State would continue the penalty parade with an interference minor from defenseman Nolan Collins and then a too many men on the ice penalty. Quinnipiac would capitalize on that later as a shot from Sward would beat Fleming to make it 6-2 Bobcats.

Directly after the goal, Quinnipiac’s Nate Tivey would take an interference penalty. On the ensuing power play, Misa scored to cut the deficit to 6-3.

A massive scrum in the final minutes of the contest led to ejections for Van Olm, Collins, and Dowiak for Penn State, as well as Matthew Lansing and Gabriel Frasca for Quinnipiac.

Takeways

• Sloppy defense from each team told the story of the game early on, as five goals were scored in the first period alone.
• Special teams were the main story of the contest, as a previously perfect Penn State penalty kill gave up four power-play goals after taking seven penalties, while Quinnipiac took four penalties and allowed only a single power-play goal.
• Defensive zone turnovers were a major factor in the Nittany Lions’ struggles, as the multiple mistakes allowed Quinnipiac to create multiple dangerous scoring chances.

What’s Next?

Penn State will continue its season with a home matchup against Robert Morris at Pegula Ice Arena on Tuesday, October 20, at 6 p.m. The game will be streamed on BTN+ or FloHockey.

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