UNIVERSITY PARK — Tommy Olczyk’s final weekend at Pegula Ice Arena brought some mixed results. After Penn State drubbed Ohio State 6-1 on Feb. 19, they were outplayed for much of the following day during Senior Day before ultimately falling to the Buckeyes, 7-4.
An emotional senior class presentation prior to the Nittany Lions’ contest on Feb. 20 saw the Penn State faithful say goodbye to eight seniors including captain David Glen, redshirt senior Olczyk, redshirt senior Eric Scheid, Kenny Brooks, Curtis Loik, Luke Juha, Matthew Skoff and Connor Varley.
Even though Penn State won in convincing fashion the night prior, coach Guy Gadowsky was worried about the Senior Day contest. “There’s a lot going on, so I hope we can maintain our focus,” Gadowsky said. “THON means a lot to the guys. It’s something they value and take a lot of pride in, and I know that’s something on their minds too … it will be interesting to see how well they can keep their focus.” Almost prophetic from the coach, as Penn State found themselves down 3-0 early in the Feb. 20 game. After mounting an impressive comeback, Penn State took a 4-3 lead before ultimately letting in four unanswered goals to end the game.
It was not the result any of the seniors wanted. It effectively ended any chance Penn State had at a Big Ten championship. It also hurt their chances of an at-large NCAA bid. After a bye week this weekend, the Nittany Lions finish their regular season on the road at Wisconsin for two games Friday, March 4, and Saturday, March 5, and then a huge series with the Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor on Friday, March 11, and Saturday, March 12. Beating Wisconsin in both games and winning at least one of the games against Michigan will do wonders for Penn State’s postseason chances.
The Feb. 20 result against the Buckeyes aside, this senior class has plenty to be proud of and was vital to the program’s rapid rise. To put it in perspective, this class has the last player link, in Olczyk, to the university’s club team, the Penn State Icers. Captain Glen arrived on the scene with Casey Bailey and immediately provided a jolt to the program. Scheid committed to Penn State after playing his freshman season with Alaska-Anchorage. Loik, Brooks and Varley have provided leadership and a steadying presence fans would expect from veterans on the team. Skoff has had some huge saves and great games during his tenure. Juha has really come into his own and even finds himself in the discussion for the Hobey Baker Award, which is awarded to college hockey’s best player.
In just one recruiting cycle for Gadowsky, the program finds itself on the cusp of a postseason bid. This group has helped to post a 29-19-6 record all-time at Pegula Ice Arena. It also was instrumental in beating a top-four opponent last season in UMass-Lowell. That’s just a small snapshot of what this group has helped to accomplish in just four short years.
Maybe most importantly, this group took a chance on Penn State when everything was new and the future was so uncertain. Gadowsky did not mince words when talking about how important this class was to the program. “(They’ve meant) close to everything,” Gadowsky said. “When (this class) was recruited, a lot of the ones that were recruited that said ‘no,’ they said ‘no’ because the feedback was Penn State is great, but we don’t want to lose for four years. These guys, they were the opposite.”
So, while the outcome was certainly not the way these seniors wanted to end their time at Pegula Ice Arena, they have plenty to be excited about. They were absolutely instrumental in bringing the program to national prominence so quickly.
While the game did not go as planned on Feb. 20, the final send-off for Olczyk was storybook. After the postgame Penn State Alma Mater with the fans, some of the student section stayed to salute these seniors. Olczyk was the last one on the ice. He saluted the student section, and then started to skate away. He didn’t get very far before he turned one last time to point to the student section and tap his chest. One last gesture of how much the students meant to him. Of course, they gave the former captain one final standing ovation. A proper send-off indeed.
