Penn State Hockey Stays Hot, Beats No. 1 Michigan State in East Lansing

The Nittany Lions extend their unbeaten streak to six games with a 3-2 victory over the Spartans in East Lansing.

Penn State hockey continued its hot streak by defeating No. 1 Michigan State 3-2 to score five points on its road trip to East Lansing. | Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images

Penn State left East Lansing on Saturday night with the nation's hottest hockey team, one that took five points from the No. 1 team in the country. The Nittany Lions followed their Friday-night shootout victory over Michigan State with a 3-2 win on Saturday that vaulted them into prime NCAA Tournament contention.

Once 0-8 in the Big Ten, Penn State is now fifth in the conference, one point behind the Michigan, its first-round opponent in the Big Ten Tournament. The Nittany Lions even could host that first-round series, a remarkble turn of events for a team that had one conference point when it played Notre Dame at Wrigley Field on Jan. 2.

Since tying the Fighting Irish (ultimately a shootout loss) that day, Penn State is 10-2-3, has swept two consecutive series and pushed its unbeaten streak to six games with the trip to Michigan State. The Nittany Lions also have moved up to 14th in the NCAA Tournament PairWise ratings, signaling a real chance at the NCAA Tournament.

"It's just coming coming together for us," forward Aiden Fink told Big Ten Network after the game. "In the first half, we learned from our mistakes and we want to come out for the full 60 [minutes]. Obviously consistency is better than greatness, so we just want to be consistent all the time, and I think that’s why we’re on a roll right now."

DOWN GOES NO. 1! 🚨

No. 18 @PennStateMHKY takes down No. 1 Michigan State#NCAAHockey pic.twitter.com/3GF4ECvhJc

— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey) February 23, 2025

Penn State jumped on Michigan State early, taking a 2-0 lead less than 2 minutes into the game. Freshman Charlie Cerrato scored just 59 seconds into the game, and teammate JJ Weisbusch gave the Nittany Lions a 2-0 lead 41 seconds later. Fink scored the eventual game-winner on a second-period power play.

Fink's goal was his 23rd of the season, setting a Penn State single-season record. He leads the nation in points (45) and points per game. He also leads the Big Ten in goals and is second nationally. The power-play goal was Fink's eighth of the season, tying his own school record.

Penn State goalkeeper Arsenii Sergeev continued his absolute hot streak with a 42-save performance to record his 14th win of the season. Sergeev made 78 saves in the two games at Michigan State and improved to 10-2-4 since returning from an early season injury.

The Nittany Lions' regulation win followed 24 hours after they scored a shootout victory over the Spartans. The result officially was recorded as a tie in the Big Ten standings, but Penn State picked up an important two points for the shootout result. Sophomore Reese Laubach followed his regulation goal with the clinching shot in the shootout. It was their third straight shootout win over Michigan State and third consecutive shootout victory overall. Sergeev made 36 saves.

Noteworthy

• Penn State coach Guy Gadowsky recorded his 399th career victory with the Nittany Lions.

• Penn State's three shootout victories this season are a program record.

• Penn State is 15-0-1 when leading after two periods and 13-4-2 when scoring in the first period.

• Penn State won 57.3 percent of the faceoffs Saturday vs. Michigan State. Dane Dowiak went 10-for-12.

• Freshman Cade Christenson had four of the Nittany Lions' 16 blocked shots.

Up Next

Penn State closes the regular season with a consequential home series vs. Minnesota, which ended the weekend atop the Big Ten standings, two points ahead of Michigan State.