2021–22 Penn State Nittany Lions men's ice hockey season

The 2021–22 Penn State Nittany Lions men's ice hockey season will be the 15th season of play for the program. They will represent Penn State University in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season. This season will mark the ninth season in the Big Ten Conference. They will be coached by Guy Gadowsky, in his 11th season, and play their home games at Pegula Ice Arena.

2021–22 Penn State Nittany Lions
men's ice hockey season
Conference5th Big Ten
Home icePegula Ice Arena
Rankings
USCHONR
USA TodayNR
Record
Overall17–20–1
Conference6–17–1
Home6–9–1
Road10–11–0
Neutral1–0–0
Coaches and Captains
Head CoachGuy Gadowsky
Assistant CoachesKeith Fisher
Juliano Pagliero
Matt Morrow
Captain(s)Paul DeNaples
Alternate captain(s)Connor McMenamin
Clayton Phillips
Adam Pilewicz
Penn State Nittany Lions men's ice hockey seasons
« 2020–21 2022–23 »

Season

Penn State's season began with a bang and the Nittany Lions won six of their first seven games, culminating with a win over North Dakota at the Bridgestone Arena, the home of the Nashville Predators. The hot start got PSU its first ranking of the season but their circumstances quickly changed. As soon as they began their conference schedule, Penn State lost four game in a row with both their offense and defense crumbling. They recovered a bit at the end of November but the respite didn't last long and the Nittany Lions finished the first half of their season near the bottom of the Big Ten standings.

After a win over Army to kick off their second half, Penn State lost four consecutive game again and were wallowing at the bottom of their conference. Oskar Autio hadn't been playing well in goal and the team began to move away from his as the primary starter. Liam Soulière began sharing the load in goal and the team got a boost at the end of January when they made their only conference weekend sweep of the year. The offense then failed afterwards and Penn State lost another 5 games in a row before managing a split with Big Ten bottom-feeder Michigan State to close out the regular season.

The team's terrible season was supposed to end quickly against Ohio State, who were gearing up for the NCAA tournament. Instead of surrendering to expectations, the Lions fought hard against the Buckeyes; after losing the first game by just a goal, the offense bombarded the OSU cage with 81 shots in two games. Soulière held back the counterattack just enough to earn two 1-goal wins and Penn State knocked out #12 team in the country. The Lions were nearly able to pull off a stunning comeback the following game when they tied Minnesota after being down 0–2, but a late goal from the Gophers ultimately ended their season.

Departures

Player Position Nationality Cause
Evan BellDefenseman United StatesGraduation (retired)
Tim DohertyForward United StatesGraduation (signed with Allen Americans)
Bobby HamptonForward United StatesGraduation (retired)
William HoltforsterGoaltender CanadaGraduation (retired)
Alex LimogesForward United StatesGraduation (signed with San Diego Gulls)
Max SauvéForward United StatesSigned professional contract (Wheeling Nailers)
Sam SternscheinForward United StatesGraduate transfer to Boston College
Alex StevensDefenseman United StatesGraduation (signed with Wheeling Nailers)
Aarne TalvitieForward FinlandSigned professional contract (New Jersey Devils)

Recruiting

Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Ben CopelandForward United States22Edina, MN; transfer from Colorado College
Doug DorrGoaltender United States22Pittsburgh, PA; already completed one year of classes
Carson DyckForward Canada20Lethbridge, AB
Danny DzhaniyevForward United States19Brooklyn, NY
Ryan KirwanForward United States19DeWitt, NY
Simon MackDefenseman Canada20Brockville, ON
Ben SchoenForward United States19Toledo, OH

Roster

As of September 5, 2021.[1]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
3 Paul DeNaples (C) Senior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 184 lb (83 kg) 1998-09-19 Moscow, Pennsylvania Sioux Falls (USHL)
4 Simon Mack Freshman D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2001-03-29 Brockville, Ontario Des Moines (USHL)
5 Christian Berger Sophomore D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 182 lb (83 kg) 2000-05-22 St. Louis, Missouri Omaha (USHL)
6 Jimmy Dowd Jr. Sophomore D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 161 lb (73 kg) 2000-07-09 Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey Chicago (USHL)
7 Carson Dyck Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2001-06-07 Lethbridge, Alberta Okotoks (AJHL)
9 Xander Lamppa Sophomore F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 2000-04-30 Rochester, Minnesota Waterloo (USHL)
10 Christian Sarlo Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 2001-06-29 Lynbrook, New York Lincoln (USHL)
11 Ryan Kirwan Freshman F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2002-02-27 DeWitt, New York Green Bay (USHL)
12 Ben Schoen Freshman F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 150 lb (68 kg) 2002-05-18 Maumee, Ohio Tri-City (USHL)
13 Danny Dzhaniyev Freshman F 5' 4" (1.63 m) 145 lb (66 kg) 2002-09-15 Brooklyn, New York Dubuque (USHL)
14 Ben Copeland Junior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-04-27 Edina, Minnesota Colorado College (NCHC)
15 Kenny Johnson Junior D 6' 4" (1.93 m) 230 lb (104 kg) 1998-05-28 Ann Arbor, Michigan Victoria (BCHL)
16 Mason Snell Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2000-06-18 Courtice, Ontario Penticton (BCHL)
17 Chase McLane Sophomore F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 2000-04-22 Trenton, Michigan Tri-City (USHL) NSH, 209th overall 2020
18 Clayton Phillips (A) Graduate D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1999-09-09 Edina, Minnesota Minnesota (Big Ten) PIT, 93rd overall 2017
19 Connor McMenamin (A) Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-02-25 Collegeville, Pennsylvania Tri-City (USHL)
21 Kevin Wall Junior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2000-02-01 Penfield, New York Chilliwack (BCHL) CAR, 181st overall 2019
23 Tyler Paquette Sophomore F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2001-03-18 Collegeville, Pennsylvania Green Bay (USHL)
24 Adam Pilewicz (A) Graduate D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1996-07-20 Sewickley, Pennsylvania Johnstown (NAHL)
25 Jared Westcott Sophomore F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1999-07-18 Imperial, Missouri Sioux Falls (USHL)
28 Tyler Gratton Junior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 1999-08-06 Pottstown, Pennsylvania Central Illinois (USHL)
29 Connor MacEachern Junior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1999-07-01 Brooklin, Ontario Youngstown (USHL)
30 Doug Dorr Sophomore G 6' 4" (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1999-05-07 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Utica (NCDC)
31 Liam Soulière Sophomore G 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-03-16 Brampton, Ontario Victoria (BCHL)
35 Oskar Autio Senior G 6' 0" (1.83 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 1999-10-06 Espoo, Finland Chicago (USHL)

Standings

Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL 3/SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#5 Minnesota241860120559050392613014184
#2 Michigan *241680030519159423110116794
#9 Notre Dame241770510477455402812012882
#16 Ohio State241392111427659372213212587
Penn State2461711112063923817201117122
Wisconsin246171120205396371024376132
Michigan State246180100175187361223176119
Championship: March 19, 2022
† indicates conference regular season champion * indicates conference tournament champion
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll; updated April 7, 2022

Schedule and results

DateTimeOpponent#Rank#SiteTVDecisionResultAttendanceRecord
Regular Season
October 3 3:00 PM vs. Long Island* Pegula Ice ArenaUniversity Park, PA  Autio W 3–1  5,795 1–0–0
October 4 7:00 PM vs. Long Island* Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Autio W 5–2  5,592 2–0–0
October 8 7:00 PM vs. Canisius* Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Autio L 1–4  5,996 2–1–0
October 9 1:00 PM vs. Canisius* Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Soulière W 5–2  6,020 3–1–0
October 21 7:00 PM vs. Niagara* Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Autio W 4–0  5,547 4–1–0
October 22 7:00 PM vs. Niagara* Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Soulière W 6–2  5,597 5–1–0
October 30 8:07 PM vs. #6 North Dakota* Bridgestone ArenaNashville, TN (US Hockey Hall of Fame Game)  Autio W 6–4  14,659 6–1–0
November 5 7:00 PM at Ohio State #16 Value City ArenaColumbus, OH  Soulière L 2–5  4,376 6–2–0 (0–1–0)
November 6 5:00 PM at Ohio State #16 Value City Arena • Columbus, OH  Autio L 1–4  3,941 6–3–0 (0–2–0)
November 11 8:30 PM vs. #2 Michigan #19 Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PABTN Autio L 1–5  6,128 6–4–0 (0–3–0)
November 12 7:00 PM vs. #2 Michigan #19 Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Soulière L 2–6  6,437 6–5–0 (0–4–0)
November 19 8:00 PM at #7 Minnesota 3M Arena at MariucciMinneapolis, MNBSN Autio W 5–3  7,426 7–5–0 (1–4–0)
November 20 9:00 PM at #7 Minnesota 3M Arena at Mariucci • Minneapolis, MNBSN Autio L 2–4  7,309 7–6–0 (1–5–0)
November 23 8:07 PM at St. Thomas* St. Thomas Ice ArenaMendota Heights, MN  Autio W 5–1  559 8–6–0
November 24 8:07 PM at St. Thomas* St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota Heights, MN  Soulière W 4–1  544 9–6–0
December 3 7:00 PM vs. Michigan State Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Autio W 4–2  6,008 10–6–0 (2–5–0)
December 4 5:00 PM vs. Michigan State Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Autio L 3–4  6,144 10–7–0 (2–6–0)
December 10 8:00 PM at Wisconsin Kohl CenterMadison, WIBSW Autio L 1–4  9,369 10–8–0 (2–7–0)
December 11 7:00 PM at Wisconsin Kohl Center • Madison, WIBSW Autio W 5–4 OT 10,176 11–8–0 (3–7–0)
January 1 5:05 PM at Army* Tate RinkWest Point, NY  Autio W 5–3  1,160 12–8–0
January 7 7:00 PM vs. #13 Notre Dame Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Autio L 2–4  5,639 12–9–0 (3–8–0)
January 8 5:00 PM vs. #13 Notre Dame Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Autio L 4–5 OT 5,871 12–10–0 (3–9–0)
January 14 7:30 PM at #4 Michigan Yost Ice ArenaAnn Arbor, MI  Autio L 2–3  5,800 12–11–0 (3–10–0)
January 15 7:00 PM at #4 Michigan Yost Ice Arena • Ann Arbor, MI  Autio L 3–4  5,800 12–12–0 (3–11–0)
January 21 7:00 PM at Wisconsin Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Soulière W 4–1  6,008 13–12–0 (4–11–0)
January 22 6:00 PM at Wisconsin Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Autio W 7–2  6,247 14–12–0 (5–11–0)
January 28 7:00 PM vs. #12 Ohio State Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Soulière T 2–2 SOW 6,059 14–12–1 (5–11–1)
January 29 7:00 PM vs. #12 Ohio State Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA  Autio L 0–6  6,059 14–13–1 (5–12–1)
February 4 7:30 PM at #13 Notre Dame Compton Family Ice ArenaNotre Dame, INPeacock Soulière L 2–7  4,358 14–14–1 (5–13–1)
February 5 6:00 PM at #13 Notre Dame Compton Family Ice Arena • Notre Dame, INPeacock Autio L 0–3  4,678 14–15–1 (5–14–1)
February 18 6:30 PM vs. #5 Minnesota Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PABTN Soulière L 1–3  6,043 14–16–1 (5–15–1)
February 19 6:00 PM vs. #5 Minnesota Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PABTN Autio L 4–6  6,216 14–17–1 (5–16–1)
February 25 7:00 PM at Michigan State Munn Ice ArenaEast Lansing, MI  Soulière W 5–3  4,940 15–17–1 (6–16–1)
February 26 6:00 PM at Michigan State Munn Ice Arena • East Lansing, MI  Soulière L 1–2  6,122 15–18–1 (6–17–1)
Big Ten Tournament
March 4 7:00 PM at #12 Ohio State* Value City ArenaColumbus, Ohio (Quarterfinal game 1)  Soulière L 3–4  2,039 15–19–1
March 5 7:00 PM at #12 Ohio State* Value City ArenaColumbus, Ohio (Quarterfinal game 2)  Soulière W 3–2  2,198 16–19–1
March 6 8:00 PM at #12 Ohio State* Value City ArenaColumbus, Ohio (Quarterfinal game 3)  Soulière W 2–1  1,188 17–19–1
March 12 9:00 PM at #2 Minnesota* 3M Arena at Mariucci • Minneapolis, MN (Semifinal)BTN Soulière L 2–3  6,856 17–20–1
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time.
Source: [2]

Scoring statistics

Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Kevin WallRW3816132932
Connor MacEachernF3614142816
Ryan KirwanF361313268
Ben CopelandC336172310
Ben SchoenC376162239
Jimmy DowdD373182132
Danny DzhaniyevF36612186
Tyler PaquetteRW36114156
Connor McMenaminLW385101525
Christian BergerLW38213156
Chase McLaneC/RW303101322
Tyler GrattonRW37931224
Clayton PhillipsD32571216
Christian SarloF38571216
Carson DyckF291101116
Xander LamppaF292682
Paul DeNaplesD3826829
Adam PilewiczD383478
Simon MackD3707714
Dylan LugrisF174154
Kenny JohnsonD3114546
Oskar AutioG230440
Doug DorrG10000
Liam SoulièreG150000
Bench-----2
Total117199316379

[3]

Goaltending statistics

Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Doug Dorr15:190000101.0000.00
Liam Soulière15897771434090.9052.88
Oskar Autio23136710130715911.8933.12
Empty Net-42---6----
Total3823111720112210011.8913.17

Rankings

Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR NR NR NR 16 19 NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR - NR
USA Today NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR

Note: USCHO did not release a poll in week 24.[4]

References

  1. "2019–20 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Penn State Nittany Lions. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  2. "Penn State 2021-22 Team Schedule". College Hockey Inc. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  3. "Penn State Univ. 2021-2022 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  4. "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
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