Penn State Hockey: Nittany Lions Thumped 8-1 By Michigan Split Weekend Series

How It Happened:

Only 24 hours removed from a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Nittany Lions, Michigan wasn’t about to let their Big Ten opening series turn into a home sweep.

The Wolverines won with ease Saturday night 8-1.

Michigan opened the scoring in the second period after a scoreless opening 20 minutes that saw both teams come close to netting the opening tally. 

The second period saw a whopping 38 shots fired by the two teams. PSU thought it had a 1-0 lead on a Scott Conway wrap around attempt, but after a review the puck was ruled not to have crossed the line and the game remained scoreless.

Michigan jumped ahead on a Boo Nieves goal with 17:56 remaining in the period.  The Wolverines doubled the lead on a Tyler Motte tally midway through the frame before going on a 5-on-3 power play. Despite killing off the two-man advantage, Michigan’s Zach Hyman marker made it 3-0 with 3:16 left.

Penn State’s Taylor Holstrom would score only seconds before the end of the period to cut into the Wolverines’ lead and make it 3-1 heading into the break.

While Penn State scored 3 unanswered goals following Michigan’s opening score on Friday night, the Wolverines took advantage of an early net pull by Penn State on the power play and aggressive offense to net a shorthanded goal six minutes into the third period.

From there the Wolverines dominated the rest of the way with JT Compher scoring at 11:32 and 15:54, while Alex Kile added a tally at 13:37. The scoring was capped by Michael Downing’s third of the year with 3:15 remaining in the game.

Turning Point: 

An early third period short-handed goal would give Michigan a 4-1 lead in the third period that was too much to overcome for the Nittany Lions.

Player of the Game: 

After a shaky night in net on Friday, Michigan held a 45-42 advantage in shots with Zach Nagelvoort making 41 saves for his third victory of the year. 

Stat of the Game: 

Penn State kept Michigan scoreless on its power play for a second straight night, turning away all five opportunities. The Nittany Lions were 9-for-9 on the penalty kill for the weekend. 

What’s Next: 

Penn State plays Cornell next Saturday at Madison Square Garden. It’s the only game for the Nittany Lions next weekend.

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