Do-or-die hockey begins now for Penn State, which is slated to face Minnesota Duluth in the opening round of the NCAA tournament on Friday night.
On Tuesday, head coach Guy Gadowsky met with the media to preview the upcoming matchup with the Bulldogs in Albany, New York.
The Nittany Lions stumbled through the end of the regular season, going 0-3-1 in series against Wisconsin and Notre Dame before falling in the second round of the Big Ten tournament to No. 1 Michigan — who they could face again in Albany. After entering the season with sky-high aspirations, late struggles have challenged the coaches and players.
“We certainly anticipated a lot of it and tried to talk it through, but you still have to go through it,” Gadowsky said. “I think if we’re fortunate enough to ever go through something like that again, we’ll be more prepared, but we certainly learned a lot, and it is very different.”
Despite the late slide, Gadowsky remains confident his team can dial up the intensity for the tournament, similar to last season when it made a run to the Frozen Four.
To defeat Minnesota Duluth, Penn State will have to handle a special teams unit that ranks among the best nationally — the Bulldogs are No. 2 in power-play percentage and No. 3 in penalty kill percentage.
“I give them a ton of credit,” Gadowsky said. “At the same time, I think it’s good because it gets our attention … it’s very obvious how we have to approach this game in terms of discipline.”
The Nittany Lions have slipped in both metrics recently but still rank top-15 in both and will need to return to their old ways to better their chances on Friday.
In net, the Bulldogs will start goaltender Adam Gajan, who Gadowsky crossed paths with while coaching at the Spengler Cup. Gajan is allowing 2.24 goals per game with a .908 save percentage this season.
“Very, very good goalie,” Gadowsky said. “Really nice guy. He’s played in very big games in his career. We’re going to get his best. He’s not going to be nervous. He’s played in some huge hockey games in the Spengler Cup and international play as well. Very athletic.”
For a Penn State squad that averaged 3.75 goals per game and prides itself on offense, the key will be creating traffic in front of the net so Gajan can’t get a clear read on the puck, per Gadowsky.
Involved in that offensive output is star freshman Gavin McKenna, who’s responsible for a team-high 51 points (15 goals, 36 assists). The Hobey Baker Award candidate totaled one goal and three assists in the conference tournament and has shown progression throughout the year.
“Just what he’s done, in terms of how he’s done it, to play with 10 different linemates … he’s played with so many different guys. And to put up the numbers that he has … to do what he did in the toughest year in college hockey ever is absolutely incredible,” Gadowsky said.
