The Penn State men's hockey team staved off an opening 5-on-3 penalty kill before erupting for a 7-1 win over Connecticut Saturday afternoon at Pegula Ice Arena in front of 6,016. Taylor Holstrom (Yorba Linda, Calif.) stood out with two goals and an assist.
Holstrom's linemates, David Goodwin (Des Peres, Mo.) and Casey Bailey (Anchorage, Alaska) teamed up to tally four goals and five assists in a game that saw Penn State (1-0-1) set new records for most goals in the NCAA Division I era and match the most goals in the varsity era of the program. Penn State used five second-period goals to put away the Huskies.
The Nittany Lions ran into some trouble early as Patrick Koudys (Smithville, Ontario) committed a two-minute interference penalty at 3:41. Less than a minute into the penalty kill, Connor Varley (Lansdale, Pa.) was issues a game misconduct and a five-minute major for checking from behind, putting the Lions down two men.
After an initial flurry in the first moments of the 5-on-3, where Matthew Skoff (McKees Rocks, Pa.) was forced into four quick saves, the Nittany Lions staved off the Connecticut (0-1-1) advances to allow Koudys to return. Then Penn State was able to kill off the final 3:41 of the major to achieve full strength. Skoff made eight saves on that power play and finished the game with 29.
The Nittany Lions wasted little time in capitalizing on their even standing as Curtis Loik (North Vancouver, B.C.) caused a turnover in the UConn end as the puck reached Glen, who put it away from the slot with 6:36 remaining in the first period.
In the second period, Jonathan Milley (Gatineau, Quebec) won a puck along the boards behind the net, dishing to Eric Scheid (Blaine, Minn.) whose initial shot was saved and he scored on his own rebound for a 2-0 lead 43 seconds into the frame.
The Nittany Lions again went on the penalty kill, but capitalized on another UConn miscue. Dylan Richard (Sherwood Park, Alberta) stole a pass at center ice and Holstrom moved behind Richard, took the pass and scored the short-handed goal for a 3-0 lead with 15:50 remaining in the second.
UConn cut the Penn State advantage to two on a Spencer Naas goal on the right post after an initial shot was saved by Skoff with 13:58 to go in the second.
PSU would put the game out-of-reach with back-to-back goals from the Holstrom-Goodwin-Bailey line. Goodwin passed below the goal line and up the boards to Bailey whose cross-ice pass found Holstrom and his wrister snapped off the post and in for the 4-1 lead with 6:59 to go.
Just 26 seconds later, it was Bailey and Holstrom dishing to Goodwin this time for the 5-1 lead. The five-goal period was capped by a Milley power-play goal with 68 seconds remaining. Goodwin received a pass from Juha and found Milley on the left wing, making no mistake and giving the Lions a 6-1 cushion.
The third period was controlled by the Nittany Lions as Bailey got into the scoring act with his first goal of the year with 3:33 left in the game during a 4-on-4 situation. Juha's pass garnered him a second assist on the night and Bailey blasted a slap shot past backup goalie Tom Comunale (17 saves), who made his collegiate debut Saturday. Starter Rob Nichols (18 saves) lasted 33:27, giving up five goals on 23 shots.
The last time PSU scored seven times in a game was during its initial stint as a varsity squad, on Jan. 17, 1942, in a 7-0 win over Carnegie Tech. Under head coach Guy Gadowsky, Penn State scored a 6-3 win over Sacred Heart on Oct. 27, 2013 in his first season. The 1-0-1 start is the best opening weekend under Gadowsky.
NEXT TIME OUT
Penn State travels to Fairbanks, Alaska for the Brice Goal Rush beginning Friday, Oct. 17 vs. Alaska Anchorage (9:07 p.m. ET). The game will be a homecoming of sorts for Bailey, an Anchorage native, while Scheid will face his former team. PSU wraps up the weekend against the Alaska Nanooks, where Gadowsky previously coached, on Saturday Oct. 18 (11:07 p.m. ET).