Irish set to host Penn State in Big Ten Hockey Title Game

by | Mar 20, 2019 | Headlines, RRSN News | 0 comments

• The 2019 Big Ten Hockey Tournament concludes on Saturday with Notre Dame hosting Penn State in the championship game at 8 p.m. ET on BTN. The second-seeded Fighting Irish reached the championship game by defeating No. 3 seed Minnesota 2-1 in overtime last Saturday, while the fourth-seeded Nittany Lions topped No. 1 seed Ohio State 5-1 last Sunday …

• Both the Fighting Irish and Nittany Lions are seeking their second Big Ten Tournament title in a matchup that features the two most recent Big Ten Tournament Champions. Notre Dame will host the championship game for the second consecutive season, while Penn State reaches the championship game for the second time overall and the first time since 2017, when the Nittany Lions defeated Wisconsin 2-1 in double overtime to claim the tournament crown at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit …

• Saturday’s game will feature a matchup of arguably the two most successful goalies in Big Ten Tournament history and the two most recent Most Outstanding Players of the tournament. Notre Dame’s Cale Morris is 5-0-0 for his career in Big Ten Tournament play and owns the career tournament records for save percentage (.970), goals-against average (0.97) and winning percentage (1.000). Penn State’s Peyton Jones holds the Big Ten Tournament records for career wins (8) and career saves (358), while the junior ranks second to Morris’ career winning percentage (.800) …

• After a two-point game against Ohio State, Penn State’s Liam Folkes has claimed the record for most points in a single Big Ten Tournament with 10. Teammate Alex Limoges holds the second spot with nine points. Folkes and Limoges also rank first (16 points) and second (12 points) in career tournament points …

• Michigan’s Quinn Hughes, Michigan State’s Taro Hirose and Ohio State’s Mason Jobst have been named among the 10 finalists for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award, presented annually to college hockey’s top player. Hughes led Michigan in scoring with 33 points in 32 games and ranks is fifth in the nation in assists by a defenseman. Hirose completed his season with 15 goals, 35 assists for a nation-leading 50 points in 36 games, while Jobst is the active leading career scorer in the NCAA with 164 points in 149 career games. The Hobey Hat Trick will be announced on April 4 and the winner will be announced on April 12 …

• Notre Dame’s Cale Morris and Ohio State’s Tommy Nappier were named among the 10 semifinalists for the 2019 Mike Richter Award, which honors the most outstanding goaltender in NCAA men’s hockey. The five finalists for the fifth annual award will be announced on March 28, with the winner presented on April 12 at the 2018 NCAA Men’s Frozen Four in Buffalo, N.Y. …

• The Big Ten Conference announced the hockey All-Big Ten teams and individual award winners on Tuesday as selected by the conference’s coaches and a media panel. Michigan State’s Taro Hirose was named Big Ten Player of the Year, while also earning Scoring Champion honors with 34 points in 24 conference games. Ohio State’s Tommy Nappier was named the Goaltender of the Year, while teammate Sasha Larocque was tabbed the Defensive Player of the Year, which is awarded to a defenseman or forward. Minnesota’s Sammy Walker collected Freshman of the Year laurels, while Ohio State’s Steve Rohlik was unanimously selected as the Coach of the Year …

• Four Big Ten teams rank among the top 20 in scoring offense this season. Penn State currently leads the nation, averaging 4.61 goals per game. Minnesota is 17th with 3.11 goals per game, Ohio State is 18th at 3.09 and Michigan is 19th, scoring an average of 3.06 goals per outing …

• Six of the top 15 scorers in the nation this season skate for Big Ten squads. Michigan State’s Taro Hirose and Penn State’s Alex Limoges lead the country with 50 points. They are joined atop the national points list by Minnesota’s Rem Pitlick (45 points; 6th), Penn State’s Evan Barratt (43 points; 10th), Penn State’s Liam Folkes (42 points; 13th) and Minnesota’s Tyler Sheehy (41 points; 15th) …

• Ohio State’s Sasha Larocque and Penn State’s Chase Berger were named finalists for the 2018-19 Senior CLASS Award. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award honors the attributes of senior students in four areas: community, classroom, character and competition. To be eligible for the award, student-athletes must be classified as NCAA Division I seniors …

• The finalists for the 2019 Hockey Humanitarian Award include a pair of Big Ten representatives in Ohio State’s Tommy Parran and Wisconsin’s Jake Bunz. Also among the finalists for the honor, presented annually to college hockey’s “finest citizen” for leadership in community service, is Wisconsin women’s hockey standout Annie Pankowski. The 24th recipient of the Hockey Humanitarian Award will be announced Friday, April 12th as part of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Frozen Four in Buffalo, N.Y. Additionally, the Hockey Humanitarian Award Foundation will make a donation to the charity most important to each of the five finalists …

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