By John Fineran
For 15 seconds Saturday night in its 6-3 Big Ten hockey loss at No. 8 Penn State, there was a very encouraging light at the end of the very long season tunnel for beleaguered Notre Dame and its first-year head coach Brock Sheahan.
Though the setback was the ninth straight and 15th in the last 16 games for the last-place Irish (4-17-1, 0-12-0 Big Ten for one point), for the second straight night Notre Dame looked like it belonged on the same ice with coach Guy Gadowsky’s Nittany Lions (16-6-0, 8-4-0 Big Ten for 25 points).
The Fighting Irish showed some fight and not the kind of fight they have showed during this penalty-marred season. With 14 games remaining in the regular season, 12 of them in the Big Ten, Notre Dame may not have reached what once looked like a bottomless pit in the making.
Coming off 4-1 penalty-filled loss Friday night at the Pegula Ice Arena, things started badly enough when Penn State took a 1-0 lead just 17 seconds into the game when JJ Wiebusch beat Irish netminder Nicholas Kempf with a backhander, breaking in alone after defenseman Henry Nelson had lost the edge on a skate.
It looked even worse when 6-foot-4 freshman defenseman Jackson Smith made it 2-0 with a thunderbolt from inside the Irish blueline that beat Kempf at 7:06, sending the capacity crowd of 6,449 into a frenzy. At that point, Penn State held a 5-1 lead in shots and looked like it was going to make it an easy night for 6-foot-6 Swedish sophomore goaltender Kevin Reidler, a transfer from Omaha of the NCHC.
But instead of rolling over and playing dead, the Irish fought back over the next 11 minutes. First, junior left-wing Brennan Ali ripped home a 30-footer with assists from grad center Sutter Muzzatti and defenseman Jimmy Jurcev to make it 2-1 at the 18:24 mark.
Then just 15 seconds later, junior right-wing Cole Knuble broke in to beat Reidler after feeds from center Danny Nelson and defenseman Jaedon Kerr. Those two goals in 15 seconds may just be what Sheahan and his staff have been waiting to see all season.
Penn State’s talented freshman left wing Gavin McKenna, who many believe might be the top choice in next summer’s NHL Draft, put his team back on top 3-2 at 4:54 of the second period. But a little over six minutes later, Muzzatti took a pass from Jurcev and broke into the Nittany Lions’ defensive zone with fellow penalty-kill forward Jayden Davis. Muzzatti skated into the faceoff circle and beat Reidler at 11:11 to tie the game at 3-3.
But the Irish, who had seven minor penalties to eight by the Nittany Lions, found themselves trying to kill off a 5-on-3 a little over four minutes later and couldn’t. Matt DiMarsico, who had a hat trick in Friday’s game, poked home the eventual game-winner at 15:46.
It remained 4-3 Penn State late into the second period when Ben Schoen went off for cross checking, giving the Irish another power-play opportunity. But Reidler held his ground, stopping shots by Evan Werner, Muzzatti, Cole Brown and Ali as the period ended.
McKenna added his second goal of the game at 10:57 of the third period to make it 5-3, and the Nittany Lions doubled their pleasure when McKenna and Smith fed Dowiak for a shorthanded empty-net goal at 19:49.
For the game, Penn State right wing Aiden Fink finished with four points, all of them assists, while McKenna and Smith had three-point efforts. Muzzatti (goal and assist) and Jurcev (two assists) had two-point evenings for the Irish. Kempf, who made 39 saves Friday to Penn State freshman Josh Fleming’s 41, turned aside 29 shots Saturday while Reidler had 27 saves.
After being swept by four Top 10 teams (Wisconsin, Western Michigan, Michigan and Penn State) the Irish face off the next two weekends against teams from Ohio. League-rival Ohio State visits the Compton Family Ice Arena Friday at 7 and Saturday at 5 (the team will sign autographs afterward). Notre Dame then has a home-and-home series to close out January with CCHA contender Bowling Green Jan. 30 at Compton and Jan. 31 in Bowling Green.
PENN STATE 6, NOTRE DAME 3
At Pegula Ice Arena, State College, Pa.
Notre Dame 2 1 0—3
Penn State 2 2 2—6
First Period—Scoring: 1. Penn State, JJ Wiebusch 12 (Jarod Crespo, Reese Laubach) EV 0:17; 2. Penn State, Jackson Smith 6 (Jarod Crespo, Aiden Fink) EV 7:06; 3. Notre Dame, Brennan Ali 5 (Sutter Muzzatti, Jimmy Jurcev) EV 18:24; 4. Notre Dame, Cole Knuble 4 (Danny Nelson, Jaedon Kerr) EV 18:39. Penalties: Notre Dame 1-2, Penn State 2-4
Second Period—Scoring: 5. Penn State, Gavin McKenna 5 (Jackson Smith, Aiden Fink) EV 4:54; 6. Notre Dame, Sutter Muzzatti 8 (Jimmy Jurcev) SH 11:11; 7. Penn State, Matt DiMarsico 14 (JJ Wiebusch, Aiden Fink) 5-on-3 PP 15:46. Penalties: Notre Dame 4-8 (5-10), Penn State 3-6 (5-10).
Third Period—Scoring: 8. Penn State, Gavin McKenna 6 (Luke Misa, Aiden Fink) EV 10:57; 9. Penn State, Dane Dowiak 6 (Gavin McKenna, Jackson Smith) SH/EN 19:49. Penalties: Notre Dame 2-4 (7-14), Penn State 3-6 (8-16).
Shots on goal: Notre Dame 30 (11-10-9), Penn State 35 (10-15-10).
Goalie saves: Notre Dame, Nicholas Kempf 29 (8-13-8); Penn State, Kevin Reidler 27 (9-9-9).
Power-play opportunities: Notre Dame 0 of 7, Penn State 1 of 6.
Faceoffs won: Notre Dame 28 (10-8-10), Penn State 38 (10-14-14).
Blocked shots: Notre Dame 13 (4-5-4), Penn State 20 (9-6-5).
Referees: Kevin Corbett and Andy Thackaberry. Linesmen: Nick Huff and Logan Bellgraph. Attendance: 6,449c (6,014)
Records: Notre Dame 4-17-1 overall, 0-12-0 Big Ten for 1 point; Penn State 16-6-0 overall, 8-4-0 Big Ten for 25 points.
BIG TEN STANDINGS AND SCHEDULE
(Numbers in parentheses are school’s rankings in this week’s USCHO.com media/USA Hockey-The Rink Live coaches polls):
Conference Overall
GP Pts W-L-T-SW-OW-OL GF-GA W-L-T GF-GA
(1/1) Michigan 14 31 11-3-0-0-2-0 61-34 20-4-0 116-50
(8/8) Penn State 12 25 8-4-0-0-0-1 35-31 16-6-0 76-56
(4/3) Michigan St. 12 24 8-4-0-0-1-1 37-22 17-5-0 78-39
(2/2) Wisconsin 12 22 8-4-0-0-2-0 53-39 15-5-2 87-56
(nr/nr) Minnesota 12 14 4-8-0-0-0-2 29-39 8-14-1 63-79
(nr/nr) Ohio State 10 9 3-7-0-0-1-1 31-45 7-12-1 59-69
(nr/nr) Notre Dame 12 1 0-12-0-0-0-1 23-59 4-17-1 55-95
Thursday, Jan. 15
Michigan State 4, Wisconsin 3
Friday, Jan. 16
Penn State 4, Notre Dame 1
Michigan State 4, Wisconsin 1
Michigan 5, Minnesota 1
Saturday, Jan. 17
Penn State 6, Notre Dame 3
Michigan 3, Minnesota 2 (OT)
UPCOMING
Friday, Jan. 23
Ohio State at Notre Dame, 7 p.m. (Peacock)
Minnesota at Michigan State, 7 p.m.
Penn State at Wisconsin, 8 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 24
Ohio State at Notre Dame, 5 p.m. (Peacock)
Minnesota at Michigan State, 6 p.m.
Penn State at Wisconsin, 8:30 p.m.
Friday, Jan. 30
Bowling Green at Notre Dame 7 p.m. (Peacock)
Michigan State at Penn State, 6 p.m.
Michigan at Ohio State, 6:30 p.m.
Wisconsin at Minnesota, 8 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 31
Notre Dame at Bowling Green, 7 p.m.
Michigan State at Penn State, 1 p.m. (Beaver Stadium)
Michigan at Ohio State, 5 p.m.
Wisconsin at Minnesota, 7 p.m.
SATURDAY’S RESULTS
Big Ten Conference
Penn State 6, Notre Dame 3
Michigan 3, Minnesota 2 (OT)
Atlantic Hockey America
Robert Morris 3, Army 0
Bentley 4, Sacred Heart 4 (OT) (Bentley wins shootout, 2-0)
Mercyhurst 4, Niagara 2
Air Force 5, Holy Cross 2
Canisius 4, RIT 1
CCHA
Lake Superior State 1, Bowling Green 0
Michigan Tech 4, Minnesota State 1
Augustana 4, Ferris State 3 (OT)
St. Thomas 3, Bemidji State 2
ECAC
RPI 4, Brown 1
Yale 4, Union 1
Harvard 2, Clarkson 1
Dartmouth 4, St. Lawrence 0
Colgate 2, Princeton 0
Quinnipiac 4, Cornell 1
Hockey East Association
Vermont 4, Connecticut 2
Boston University 3, UMass Lowell 0
Massachusetts 3, Merrimack 1
Providence 4, Boston College 3
NCHC
Miami 6, Omaha 2
Minnesota Duluth 5, St. Cloud State 3
Denver 3, North Dakota 2
Non-conference
Colorado College 8, Simon Fraser 3 (exhibition)
Lindenwood 5, Stonehill 1
Governor’s Cup
Alaska Anchorage 1, Alaska Fairbanks 1 (OT) (Anchorage wins shootout, 1-0) (Friday)
Alaska Fairbanks 4, Alaska Anchorage 1 (Saturday)
UPCOMING
Sunday, Jan. 18
Hockey East Association
New Hampshire at Northeastern, 4 p.m.
Monday, Jan. 19
ECAC
Union at Harvard, 4 p.m.
SCHEDULES FOR THE USCHO.COM MEDIA POLL TOP 20 TEAMS AND OTHERS
1. Michigan (Big Ten) (20-4-0) won at Minnesota Saturday, 3-2 (OT). Next: Jan. 30 at Ohio State; Jan. 31 at Ohio State.
2. Wisconsin (Big Ten) (15-5-2) was idle Saturday. Next: Jan. 23 vs. No. 8 Penn State; Jan. 24 vs. No. 8 Penn State.
3. Western Michigan (NCHC) (16-6-0) was idle Saturday. Next: Jan. 23 at No. 6 Minnesota Duluth; Jan. 24 at No. 6 Minnesota Duluth; Jan. 30 vs. Omaha; Jan. 31 vs. Omaha.
4. Michigan State (Big Ten) (17-5-0) was idle Saturday. Next: Jan. 23 vs. Minnesota; Jan. 24 vs. Minnesota.
5. North Dakota (NCHC) (18-6-0) lost to No. 9 Denver Saturday, 3-2. Next: Jan. 23 at Arizona State; Jan. 24 at Arizona State.
6. Minnesota Duluth (NCHC) (17-7-0) won at St. Cloud State Saturday, 5-3. Next: Jan. 23 vs. No. 3 Western Michigan; Jan. 24 vs. No. 3 Western Michigan.
7. Quinnipiac (ECAC) (18-4-2) won at No. 13 Cornell Saturday, 4-1. Next: Jan. 23 vs. Sacred Heart in CT Ice Tournament at Yale; Jan. 24 vs. No. 11 Connecticut or Yale in CT Ice Tournament at Yale.
8. Penn State (Big Ten) (16-6-0) beat Notre Dame Saturday, 6-3. Next: Jan. 23 at No. 2 Wisconsin; Jan. 24 at No. 2 Wisconsin.
9. Denver (NCHC) (13-10-2) won at No. 5 North Dakota Saturday, 3-2. Next: Jan. 23 vs. St. Cloud State; Jan. 24 vs. St. Cloud State.
10. Dartmouth (ECAC) (14-4-1) beat St. Lawrence Saturday, 4-0. Next: Jan. 23 at No. 13 Cornell; Jan. 24 at Colgate.
11. Connecticut (Hockey East) (13-7-3) lost to Vermont Saturday, 4-2. Next: Jan. 23 at Yale in CT Ice Tournament; Jan. 24 vs. No. 7 Quinnipiac or Sacred Heart in CT Ice Tournament at Yale.
12. Boston College (Hockey East) (11-8-1) lost at No. 14 Providence Saturday, 4-3. Next: Jan. 23 vs. New Hampshire; Jan. 24 at New Hampshire; Jan. 30 at No. 20 Boston University.
13. Cornell (ECAC) (12-5-0) lost to No. 7 Quinnipiac Saturday, 4-1. Next: Jan. 23 vs. No. 10 Dartmouth; Jan. 24 vs. Harvard.
14. Providence (Hockey East) (13-7-2) beat No. 12 Boston College Saturday, 4-3. Next: Jan. 23 vs. No. 20 Boston University; Jan. 24 at No. 20 Boston University; Jan. 31 at No. 16 Maine.
15. Augustana (CCHA) (16-6-3) beat Ferris State Saturday, 4-3 (OT). Next: Jan. 24 at No. 17 Minnesota State; Jan., 30 vs. Lake Superior State; Jan. 31 vs. Lake Superior State.
16. Maine (Hockey East) (12-9-2) was idle Saturday. Next: Jan. 23 at UMass Lowell; Jan. 24 at UMass Lowell; Jan. 31 vs. No. 14 Providence.
17. Minnesota State (CCHA) (12-8-5) lost at Michigan Tech Saturday, 4-1. Next: Jan. 24 vs. No. 15 Augustana; Jan. 30 at Ferris State; Jan. 31 at Ferris State.
18. Princeton (ECAC) (11-7-0) lost at Colgate Saturday, 2-0. Next: Jan. 23 at Bentley; Jan. 24 at Bentley.
19. St. Thomas (CCHA) (14-7-3) beat Bemidji State Saturday, 3-2. Next: Jan. 23 at Lake Superior State; Jan. 24 at Lake Superior State.
20. Boston University (Hockey East) (12-10-1) won at UMass Lowell Saturday, 3-0. Next: Jan. 23 at No. 14 Providence; Jan. 24 vs. No. 14 Providence; Jan. 30 vs. No. 12 Boston College.
Others
Union (ECAC) (14-7-2) lost to Yale Saturday, 4-1. Next: Monday at Harvard; Jan. 24 vs. RPI; Jan. 30 at No. 10 Dartmouth.
Northeastern (Hockey East) (11-9-0) was idle Saturday. Next: Sunday vs. New Hampshire; Jan. 22 at Merrimack; Jan. 23 at Merrimack; Jan. 30 at Massachusetts.
Michigan Tech (CCHA) (16-8-2) beat No. 17 Minnesota State Saturday, 4-1. Next: Jan. 23 at Northern Michigan; Jan. 24 vs. Northern Michigan.
New Hampshire (Hockey East) (11-9-0) was idle Saturday. Next: Sunday at Northeastern; Jan. 23 at No. 12 Boston College; Jan. 24 vs. No. 12 Boston College.
Arizona State (NCHC) (12-11-1) was idle Saturday. Next: Jan. 23 vs. No. 5 North Dakota; Jan. 24 vs. No. 5 North Dakota; Jan. 30 at Colorado College; Jan. 31 at Colorado College.
Bentley (Atlantic Hockey) (12-7-3) tied at Sacred Heart Saturday, 4-4 (OT) (Bentley wins shootout, 2-0). Next: Jan. 23 vs. No. 18 Princeton; Jan. 24 vs. No. 18 Princeton.
St. Cloud State (NCHC) (12-12-0) lost to No. 6 Minnesota Duluth Saturday, 5-3. Next: Jan. 23 at No. 9 Denver; Jan. 24 at No. 9 Denver.
Massachusetts (Hockey East) (12-10-0) beat Merrimack Saturday, 3-1. Next: Jan. 23 at Vermont; Jan. 24 at Vermont.
Bowling Green (CCHA) (12-6-4) lost to Lake Superior State Saturday, 1-0. Next: Jan. 23 at Bemidji State; Jan. 24 at Bemidji State.
Harvard (ECAC) (9-7-1) beat Clarkson Saturday, 2-1. Next: Monday vs. Union; Jan. 23 at Colgate; Jan. 24 at No. 13 Cornell.
Bemidji State (CCHA) (9-12-3) lost at No. 19 St. Thomas Saturday, 3-2. Next: Jan. 23 vs. Bowling Green; Jan. 24 vs. Bowling Green.
Miami (NCHC) (14-8-2) beat Omaha Saturday, 6-2. Next: Jan. 30 at St. Cloud State; Jan. 31 at St. Cloud State.
Colorado College (NCHC) (9-10-3) beat Simon Fraser Saturday, 8-3 (exhibition). Next: Jan. 23 at Omaha; Jan. 24 at Omaha.
Merrimack (Hockey East) (10-12-0) lost at Massachusetts Saturday, 3-1. Next: Jan. 22 vs. Northeastern; Jan. 23 vs. Northeastern.
RIT (Atlantic Hockey) (13-11-0) lost to Canisius Saturday, 4-1. Next: Jan. 23 at Niagara; Jan. 24 vs. Niagara.
Minnesota (Big Ten) (8-14-1) lost to No. 1 Michigan Saturday, 3-2 (OT). Next: Jan. 23 at No. 4 Michigan State; Jan. 24 at No. 4 Michigan State.
Ohio State (Big Ten) (7-12-1) was idle Saturday. Next: Jan. 23 at Notre Dame; Jan. 24 at Notre Dame.
Notre Dame (Big Ten) (4-17-1) lost at No. 8 Penn State Saturday, 6-3. Next: Jan. 23 vs. Ohio State; Jan. 24 vs. Ohio State.
Clarkson (ECAC) (11-12-1) lost at Harvard Saturday, 2-1. Next: Jan. 23 vs. St. Lawrence; Jan. 24 at St. Lawrence.
Sacred Heart (Atlantic Hockey) (12-7-3) tied Bentley Saturday, 4-4 (OT) (Bentley wins shootout, 2-0). Next: Jan. 23 vs. No. 7 Quinnipiac in CT Ice Tournament at Yale; Jan. 24 vs. Yale or No. 11 Connecticut in CT Ice Tournament at Yale.
Holy Cross (Atlantic Hockey) (11-9-2) lost to Air Force Saturday, 5-2. Next: Jan. 23 at Robert Morris; Jan. 24 at Robert Morris.
Air Force (Atlantic Hockey) (11-11-2) won at Holy Cross Saturday, 5-2. Next: Jan. 30 vs. Sacred Heart; Jan. 31 vs. Sacred Heart.