Penn State drops home series opener vs. Wisconsin, 6-0
The Penn State men’s hockey program lost the series opener against the No. 6-ranked Wisconsin Badgers 6-0 Friday night, making it the third time the Nittany Lions have been shut out in their last five games.
Penn State is now 13-15-3 on the season, and 5-13-3 in Big Ten play.
How It Happened
The Badger had their foot on the gas from the opening faceoff to the final horn, and Penn State did not match that intensity.
The Badgers netted the first score just under seven minutes into the game, courtesy of William Whitelaw. Cruz Lucius followed the Whitelaw score four minutes later, and quickly put the Badgers up 2-0.
Mathieu De St. Phalle grew the Badger lead to three just five minutes into the second period, followed by Lucius’s second score of the night shortly after.
With just 20 minutes remaining in the game, Penn State faced a 4-0 deficit.
With 13:41 remaining in the game, De St. Phalle netted his second goal of the game, and put the Badgers up 5-0, with Carson Bantle adding a score of his own, to bring the game to its 6-0 final.
Takeaways
In his post-game press conference, Penn State head coach Guy Gadowsky said he pulled Souliere late in the third period so he could get ready for tomorrow, rather than pulling him because of the score.
“I am not going to sit here and tell you he was great, but this was on the team,” Gadowsky said on Soulieres night.
The team had 18 penalty minutes Friday night, which led to two of the Badger’s six goals on the night, both of which were scored by Lucius.
Gadowsky also mentioned that the team was having mental issues Friday night.
“Once the first goal went in, we got mentally frustrated, and we showed it,” Gadowsky said.
What’s Next for Penn State
The Nittany Lions will host the Badgers in the series finale Saturday at Pegula Ice Arena, with puck drop slated for 6 p.m.
