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

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 »

The 2021–22 Penn State Nittany Lions men's ice hockey season was the 16th season of play for the program. They represented Penn State University in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season. This season marked the ninth season in the Big Ten Conference. They were coached by Guy Gadowsky, in his 11th season, and played their home games at Pegula Ice Arena.

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 Bell Defenseman  United States Graduation (retired)
Tim Doherty Forward  United States Graduation (signed with Allen Americans)
Bobby Hampton Forward  United States Graduation (retired)
William Holtforster Goaltender  Canada Graduation (retired)
Alex Limoges Forward  United States Graduation (signed with San Diego Gulls)
Max Sauvé Forward  United States Signed professional contract (Wheeling Nailers)
Sam Sternschein Forward  United States Graduate transfer to Boston College
Alex Stevens Defenseman  United States Graduation (signed with Wheeling Nailers)
Aarne Talvitie Forward  Finland Signed professional contract (New Jersey Devils)
Jared Westcott Forward  United States Transferred from Lake Superior State

Recruiting

Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Ben Copeland Forward  United States 22 Edina, MN; transfer from Colorado College
Doug Dorr Goaltender  United States 22 Pittsburgh, PA; already completed one year of classes
Carson Dyck Forward  Canada 20 Lethbridge, AB
Danny Dzhaniyev Forward  United States 19 Brooklyn, NY
Ryan Kirwan Forward  United States 19 DeWitt, NY
Dylan Lugris Forward  Canada 20 Buffalo, NY; joined mid-season
Simon Mack Defenseman  Canada 20 Brockville, ON
Ben Schoen Forward  United States 19 Toledo, OH

Roster

As of September 5, 2021.[1]

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

Standings

2021–22 Big Ten ice hockey Standings
Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL 3/SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#5 Minnesota † 24 18 6 0 1 2 0 55 90 50 39 26 13 0 138 91
#2 Michigan * 24 16 8 0 0 3 0 51 91 59 42 31 10 1 167 94
#9 Notre Dame 24 17 7 0 5 1 0 47 74 55 40 28 12 0 122 75
#16 Ohio State 24 13 9 2 1 1 1 42 76 59 37 22 13 2 125 87
Penn State 24 6 17 1 1 1 1 20 63 92 38 17 20 1 117 122
Wisconsin 24 6 17 1 1 2 0 20 53 96 37 10 24 3 76 132
Michigan State 24 6 18 0 1 0 0 17 51 87 36 12 23 1 76 119
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

Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Regular Season
October 3 3:00 PM Long Island* Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA   Autio W 3–1  5,795 1–0–0
October 4 7:00 PM Long Island* Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA   Autio W 5–2  5,592 2–0–0
October 8 7:00 PM Canisius* Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA   Autio L 1–4  5,996 2–1–0
October 9 1:00 PM Canisius* Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA   Soulière W 5–2  6,020 3–1–0
October 21 7:00 PM Niagara* Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA   Autio W 4–0  5,547 4–1–0
October 22 7:00 PM 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 Arena • Nashville, 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 Arena • Columbus, 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 #2 Michigan #19 Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA BTN Autio L 1–5  6,128 6–4–0 (0–3–0)
November 12 7:00 PM #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 Mariucci • Minneapolis, MN BSN 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, MN BSN Autio L 2–4  7,309 7–6–0 (1–5–0)
November 23 8:07 PM at St. Thomas* St. Thomas Ice Arena • Mendota 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 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 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 Center • Madison, WI BSW Autio L 1–4  9,369 10–8–0 (2–7–0)
December 11 7:00 PM at Wisconsin Kohl Center • Madison, WI BSW Autio W 5–4 OT 10,176 11–8–0 (3–7–0)
January 1 5:05 PM at Army* Tate Rink • West Point, NY   Autio W 5–3  1,160 12–8–0
January 7 7:00 PM #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 #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 Arena • Ann 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 #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 #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 Arena • Notre Dame, IN Peacock 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, IN Peacock Autio L 0–3  4,678 14–15–1 (5–14–1)
February 18 6:30 PM #5 Minnesota Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA BTN Soulière L 1–3  6,043 14–16–1 (5–15–1)
February 19 6:00 PM #5 Minnesota Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, PA BTN Autio L 4–6  6,216 14–17–1 (5–16–1)
February 25 7:00 PM at Michigan State Munn Ice Arena • East 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 Arena • Columbus, Ohio (Quarterfinal game 1)   Soulière L 3–4  2,039 15–19–1
March 5 7:00 PM at #12 Ohio State* Value City Arena • Columbus, Ohio (Quarterfinal game 2)   Soulière W 3–2  2,198 16–19–1
March 6 8:00 PM at #12 Ohio State* Value City Arena • Columbus, 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 Wall RW 38 16 13 29 32
Connor MacEachern F 36 14 14 28 16
Ryan Kirwan F 36 13 13 26 8
Ben Copeland C 33 6 17 23 10
Ben Schoen C 37 6 16 22 39
Jimmy Dowd D 37 3 18 21 32
Danny Dzhaniyev F 36 6 12 18 6
Tyler Paquette RW 36 11 4 15 6
Connor McMenamin LW 38 5 10 15 25
Christian Berger LW 38 2 13 15 6
Chase McLane C/RW 30 3 10 13 22
Tyler Gratton RW 37 9 3 12 24
Clayton Phillips D 32 5 7 12 16
Christian Sarlo F 38 5 7 12 16
Carson Dyck F 29 1 10 11 16
Xander Lamppa F 29 2 6 8 2
Paul DeNaples D 38 2 6 8 29
Adam Pilewicz D 38 3 4 7 8
Simon Mack D 37 0 7 7 14
Dylan Lugris F 17 4 1 5 4
Kenny Johnson D 31 1 4 5 46
Oskar Autio G 23 0 4 4 0
Doug Dorr G 1 0 0 0 0
Liam Soulière G 15 0 0 0 0
Bench - - - - - 2
Total 117 199 316 379

[3]

Goaltending statistics

Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Doug Dorr 1 5:19 0 0 0 0 1 0 1.000 0.00
Liam Soulière 15 897 7 7 1 43 409 0 .905 2.88
Oskar Autio 23 1367 10 13 0 71 591 1 .893 3.12
Empty Net - 42 - - - 6 - - - -
Total 38 2311 17 20 1 122 1001 1 .891 3.17

Rankings

Main article: 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey 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.