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Penn State Hockey Season Ends in Heartbreak at NCAA Regionals

The Nittany Lions fall to Minnesota-Duluth in a first-round game of the NCAA Men's Hockey Tournament.
Mark Wogenrich|
Penn State Nittany Lions ice hockey players enter Beaver Stadium for a top-five Big Ten game against Michigan State.
Penn State Nittany Lions ice hockey players enter Beaver Stadium for a top-five Big Ten game against Michigan State. | Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Penn State's hockey season ended with a crushing 3-1 loss Friday to Minnesota-Duluth in the Albany Regional of the NCAA Men's Hockey Tournament. A once-promising season that featured superstar freshman Gavin McKenna ended in heartbreak for a team that appeared built for a Frozen Four run.

Second-seeded Minnesota-Duluth will face No. 1 Michigan on Sunday in the regional final for a spot in the Frozen Four. Penn State heads home with a 21-14-2 record.

FINAL: Minnesota-Duluth 3, Penn State 1

Minnesota-Duluth scored two goals in the last five minutes, inciuding an empty-netter with 1 second remaining. Meanwhile, after scoring the game’s first goal, Penn State could not solve Minnesota-Duluth netmonder Adam Gajan, a Slovakian Olympian who made 29 stops on 30 shots.

GOAL: Minnesota-Duluth 2, Penn State 1

Josh Fleming has been superb in goal for Penn State, particularly with the glove. But the Bulldogs’ Hunter Anderson got one by Fleming’s glove at the 14:47 mark. Stiil, defensive lapses led to both of Penn State’s primary goals allowed. Penn State preceded the goal with an unsuccessful power play, its first of the game.

Josh Fleming preserves the tie

Penn State goaltender Josh Fleming is playing one of his better games of the season. Minnesota-Duluth had a terrific chance when Kyle Gaffney centered a pass (between his legs, no less) to Scott Truman right on Fleming's doorstep. But the keeper maintained position and shut down Gaffney's shot to hold the tie. Just a minute later, Fleming turned aside a Max Plante screamer from the right wing.

SECOND PERIOD: Penn State 1, Minnesota-Duluth 1

The Nittany Lions finally mustered some offensive life in the last 2 minutes. After taking 17 shots in the first period, Penn State managed just six in the second. But it took four of those in a final-minute flurry, getting some grimy looks that were blocked.

Penn State goaltender Josh Fleming is playing big in the net, with 25 saves through two periods. That included a stick save in the final second after the Bulldogs won a faceoff and got a sneaky good look at the go-ahead goal.

Charlie Cerrato hurt in 2nd

Penn State center Charlie Cerrato skated hunched over off the ice with 7 minutes left in the second after colliding with teammate JJ Wiebusch. Cerrato headed to the locker room after leaving the ice but returned three minutes later.

Cerrato's brief absence gave Penn State a brief scare, as he played in 22 games this season, missing time with an injury, and labored to get back to action.

Bulldogs flip the ice

After holding a 17-9 shots advantage in the first period, Penn State went nearly 6 minutes without a shot to start the second. Reese Laubach then drove the Nittany Lions' first shot of the period off a post. On the positive side, Penn State killed Minnesota-Duluth's first power play.

FIRST PERIOD: Penn State 1, Minnesota-Duluth 1

Penn State set the pace through 10 minutes of the first period, outshooting Minnesota-Duluth 10-3 and taking a 1-0 lead. Then the game was delayed by some loose glass behind the Bulldogs' goal, which turned the tone.

Minnesota-Duluth spent more quality time in the Penn State offensive zone, culiminating with Max Plante's tying goal behind a soft defense. Further, Bulldogs goalkeeper Adam Gajan frustrated Penn State with a sequence of pad saves and stopped 16 of the Nittany Lions' 17 first-period shots.

Penn State played with a lot of pace and moved the puck well, but some overly creative passing cost it offensive chances. And Gajan has proven difficult to solve.

GOAL: Penn State 1, Minnesota-Duluth 1

The Bulldogs sent extended pressure into Penn State's zone, forcing goalkeeper Josh Fleming into a pair of key saves. But Fleming couldn't stop a Max Plante back-door shot via a lovely pass from his brother Zam for the equalizer with 4:59 remaining in the first period. Fleming also didn't get any help from three defenders in front of him. The goal was Max Plante's 25th of the season.

GOAL: Penn State 1, Minnesota-Duluth 0

Freshman Shea Van Olm somehow squeezed a wrister past Bulldogs' goalkeeper Adam Gajan on the short side, giving the Nittany Lions a 1-0 lead 8:37 into the first period. A wide-open Van Olm corralled a sharp cross-ice pass from Casey Aman, and his shot snuggled past Gajan's shoulder.

No gentle runway for the goaltenders

Penn State's Josh Fleming and Minnesota-Duluth Adam Gajan are under fire early, Gajan made six saves in the first five minutes, keeping the Nittany Lions from scoring during a net-front scramble. And Fleming saved a goal with a nifty glove save against the Bulldogs' Max Plante after a turnover.

Some quick early action

Gavin McKenna snagged a juicy chance in the first minute, getting open on a slick dish from Aiden Fink. McKenna gave it a good rip but directly at Bulldogs goaltender Adam Gajan. Less than a minute later, Penn State keeper Josh Fleming needed to make a point-blank stop on a shot following a turnover.

Penn State sets its lines

Goaltender Josh Fleming gets the start for Penn State tonight against Minnesota-Duluth. Fleming (10-6-2 on the season) brings a 2.64 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage into the game. Fleming gave up four goals to Michigan in the Big Ten semifinals March 14, and his GAA has been above 2.5 in his last four starts.

Penn State's offensive coordinator can skate

Taylor Mouser has become a quick hockey fan since arriving at Penn State in December as the football team's offensive coordaintor. Turns out, Mouser has some stick skills as well.

Penn State has crafted a fun Hobey Baker Trophy campaign for Gavin McKenna, which includes the above skating session with Mouser. Not bad for an Arizona native who played Division II football at Adams State in Colorado.

Penn State hockey preview

Penn State Nittany Lions defenseman Jackson Smith skates during a Big Ten hockey game vs, Michigan State in Beaver Stadium.
Penn State Nittany Lions defenseman Jackson Smith skates during a Big Ten ice hockey game against Michigan State in Beaver Stadium . | Dan Rainville / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Nittany Lions and Minnesota-Duluth face each other for the first time. They're playing Game 2 of the Albany Regional, following the opener between Michigan and Bentley. The Penn State game is scheduled to begin at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Check out the full broadcast and streaming schedule.

Penn State enters the postseason with a 21-13-2 record and seeded third in the four-team regional field. Minnesota-Duluth (23-14-1) is the No. 2 seed after falling to Denver in double overtime in the NCHC title game. The Bulldogs won 10 more games than they did last season.

Minnesota-Duluth has a proud postseason history. The program made seven straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2015-22 (there was no tournament in 2020) and has played in four Frozen Fours since 2017. Minnesota-Duluth has won three national championships, including back-to-back titles in 2018-19.

The Nittany Lions, under head coach Guy Gadowsky, are making their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance and fifth overall. Penn State made a superb run to the Frozen Four last season, falling to Boston University 3-1.

Penn State is 4-4 all-time in eight NCAA Tournament games, going 2-1 last season. The Nittany Lions have made the regional final three times dating 2017, when they beat Union 10-3 in their first tournament game. Penn State shut out Michigan Tech 8-0 in the 2023 regionals, the most lopsided shutout in NCAA Tournament history.

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Mark Wogenrich
MARK WOGENRICH

Mark Wogenrich is the editor and publisher of Penn State on SI, the site for Nittany Lions sports on the Sports Illustrated network. He has covered Penn State sports for more than two decades across three coaching staffs, three Rose Bowls and one College Football Playoff appearance.

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