Penn State Hockey: Gadowsky Hoping for Strong Weekend Against Ohio

Having split a two-game road series with Michigan State over the weekend, the Nittany Lions returned home to prepare for a two-game stand against former club rival Ohio University on Friday and Saturday.

Coach Guy Gadowsky addressed the media following Tuesday’s practice, focusing on his players’ mental focus heading into another exhibition series. The Nittany Lions have struggled at times in exhibitions, especially following big wins. Gadowsky says that the ability to get up for games that are against opponents that are perceived to be weaker is an important quality of a good team.

On Michigan State Series:

“I think it was unexpected,” Gadowsky said. “It was a very valuable experience to go in there and understand the environment, to be on the Big Ten Network. And I think the result was surprising. We’re pumped. That was a huge win for us. It’s how we played. We accomplished many of the objectives that we set out to do, so overall I was thrilled by it.”

On Upcoming Series with Ohio:

“We want to see if we’ve learned the lesson,” Gadowsky said. “We’re not going to go in and kick garbage cans and break sticks. I don’t want to do that as a coach. I want to see it come from the players. Does that mean the seniors? Sure, it could be. But it could be the young guys too that have learned to be more mentally tough. Either way it’s fine by me.”

Reflecting on Season So Far:

“We can’t yet,” Gadowsky said. “There is still a lot of hockey to be played and I think that depending on how these eight games go will really determine a lot about how we feel about the season.”