Feb. 24, 2014
By Michael Renahan, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - The Penn State men's hockey team split their weekend series at No. 10 Michigan over the weekend and it was some familiar faces that led Guy Gadowsky's squad as the Nittany Lions recorded their second conference win of the season.
The five goals the Nittany Lions scored in Friday night's win mark the most scored by a visitor inside Yost Ice Arena this season, which allowed Penn State to become just the third team to walk out of the historic building with a win in 2013-14.
David Goodwin, Casey Bailey and Matthew Skoff all played exceptionally well for the men in blue and white. Goodwin was the star of Friday night's overtime win, scoring two goals, including the game-winner to earn the victory.
"Their defense fumbled it at the blue line and I just tried to be as quick as I could in transition," Goodwin told the Big Ten Network. "I know I would have been kicking myself all night if I passed it to [Zach] Saar and he didn't bury it, so I just shot it and was able to beat the goaltender.
"To be honest, I was thinking shot the whole time," Goodwin said. "Saar is my best friend on the team, and I am confident that he could have scored it, too, but I just took my opportunity."
The goals were the freshman's sixth and seventh of the season, putting him second on the team in points behind only Eric Scheid. Goodwin, as Gadowsky always says, is a very cerebral player who is always looking to make a play for himself or his teammates.
"Give a lot of credit to David [Goodwin], that was a great play on a two-on-one against a good goaltender," Gadowsky told the Big Ten Network. "Give our guys a lot of credit, too. They battling back twice from two goals down. The first time we took the lead was when [Goodwin] put it in the back of the net to end the game."
Along with Goodwin, Bailey made his presence felt over the weekend scoring two goals, as well. The forward has been coming on as of late for the Nittany Lions, registering five points over his last five games.
This is the type of production he and his coaches have been expecting all season after he exploded for 13 goals and 14 assists last season. Bailey expects his recent success on the ice to only be a sign of things to come.
The most impressive Nittany Lion of the weekend, though, might have been the sophomore netminder Skoff. The McKees Rocks, Pa., native has been on a tear as of late, racking up 136 saves over his last five outings, including a 4-0 shutout over Michigan on Feb.8.
Skoff has emerged as the Nittany Lions' leading goaltender over the last few series and he looks to be playing the best hockey of his young career. In Saturday night's game, the sophomore made key save after key save and kept the game much closer than the score appeared.
His ability to recover after the initial shot and slide to make a secondary save has been terrific over the past three weeks. Time and time again, the netminder was asked to make big save after big save and he came through for his teammates more often than not.
His workload has also increased as the Nittany Lions wait for the return of defensemen Nate Jensen and Luke Juha.
The weekend came and went and the Nittany Lions once again earned a victory and the steps the program has taken over the last few series have been crucial to building the foundation.
Penn State now looks forward to a showdown at No. 2 Minnesota.