College Hockey News: Back to the Drawing Board For Penn State

March 24, 2018 PRINT

Blowout Loss to Denver Shows How Much More Still Needed

by Sara Civian/CHN Reporter

Penn State

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — “Timber,” a song by Pitbull ft. Ke, started blasting with 1:19 left to play.

Four years ago, that would’ve meant a Penn State goal. That was its notorious goal song, after-all. And as annoying as Pitbull songs are, it was the young program’s first real tradition.

But this wasn’t Pegula Ice Arena in 2014, it was the PPL Center in 2018. Denver was up 5-1, the Timber days have come and gone, and after two consecutive NCAA tournament appearances, this program isn’t exactly brand new anymore.

“Brand new” expired last year, after Penn State had no tangible expectations and just seemed happy to be floating around and smashing through program firsts. That chapter ended when the Nittany Lions fell to the Pioneers 6-3 in the Second Round. Coach Guy Gadowsky soaked in the atmosphere, smiled and said he’d remember that team forever.

Then he said he’d like another shot at Denver.

There’s a lot of uncharted territory and speculation surrounding how far this team can go and how soon, but what’s a better measuring stick than the same powerhouse almost exactly one year later?

Well, Gadowsky got it. Penn State fell 5-1 this time around.

“We got beat,” Gadowsky started. “We got beat bad.”

The coach’s smile showed up — of course it did — he had a lot to be proud of in the man to his left, captain James ‘Jimmy Pucks’ Robinson. But it was far more subdued. He traded in last year’s grand statement for an admittance of expectations.

“Maybe that’s why I am just so disappointed,” he trailed off. “ ... I know that’s negative but I’m just being honest.”

It doesn’t really matter why he was so disappointed, just that he was at all.

“I don’t think that we did what we do well enough tonight,” Gadowsky said. “The result was not what I had expected.”

Even in front of what was essentially a home crowd, Penn State did not stack up against Denver in any facet of the game. It was clear from Troy Terry’s 2-0 goal 16:40 into the first that no matter how hard the lovable, raggedy group of guys tried, they couldn’t grit their way through this one. None of the Andrew Sturtz shorthanded breakaways in the world, no Trevor Hamilton hit or transition, not even a 6-foot-7 Russian cemented in front of Tanner Jaillet could have made much of a difference.

“We’ve played a lot of great teams all year, but they’re [Denver’s first line] no doubt the best we’ve played,” Robinson said. “But no excuses. It doesn’t matter who you’re playing, you have to come ready to match their intensity. Our team didn’t do that tonight and it’s disappointing.”

Perhaps most disappointing is how almost exactly one year went by and, on the surface, Penn State had nothing to show for it. This game wasn’t a nailbiter, it didn’t even have a “they might pull it off” vibe. It was virtually a Groundhog Day scenario against the same old team.

The time of being loveable upstarts is now over.

“To build off this game, there are lessons that we need to learn if we are going to compete with the likes of Denver, which is what Penn State wants to do,” Gadowsky said. “We have more lessons to learn, for sure.”

But there’s a quiet hope hidden somewhere in tonight’s outcome.

It’s easy to look at Penn State’s season last year and see all the firsts — No. 1 ranking, Big Ten championship, tournament appearance, tournament advancement. Those were decisive and fun, and they happened so quickly that maybe it feels like they could disappear just as fast — but they won’t. The 2017-18 Penn State team that beat Minnesota four times in a row isn’t going to just vanish into thin air.

“Looking at our program where it is now from when I first got here, I’m very proud of where it is,” Robinson said. “It’s taken every person in this program to get it where it is now and we have a very bright future ahead of us. Unfortunately [Erik] Autio and I and the rest of the seniors won’t be a part of it, but we feel it’s in great hands.”

Tonight’s first wasn’t as fun as any of last season’s, and you definitely can’t hang it up in Pegula Ice Arena on a pretty banner. But it’s a rite of passage each Frozen Four team before them has gone through, and no matter what Robinson said, he’s part of it. For the first time, Penn State felt the weight of real expectation. How it responds will be the next lesson learned.

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