There’s a Pulse: How can Penn State hockey keep its postseason hopes alive?

It’s no secret that the Penn State hockey season is not going as planned. The team currently has a record of 10-10-2, largely due to an easy non-conference slate. However, the team’s record in Big Ten play is an abysmal 1-9-2. 

But there are signs that the tide may be turning for the Nittany Lions. Two weeks ago, the Blue and White put together two solid performances against No. 1 Michigan State. The first was a losing effort, but the second night resulted in a shootout win.

While nationally, the game counts as a tie, the Nittany Lions handed the Spartans their first Big Ten loss of the year and their first defeat of any kind since October. Penn State carried the momentum from that performance into last weekend’s sweep of Canisius, playing two games that were never really in doubt.

How can Penn State hockey keep its postseason hopes alive?

© Chris Eutsler / Basic Blues Nation, 2024.

The last two weekends have left the door cracked for Penn State hockey to make a run to the postseason. The margin for error is near zero, but here is what needs to happen for the Nittany Lions to make the NCAA Tournament.

Protect Home Ice

Pegula Ice Arena has one of the best home-ice advantages in college hockey. Since joining the Big Ten, the Nittany Lions have a winning record against four of the six other conference teams on home ice. The program doesn’t have a winning record against any of those teams on the road.

Penn State has always done a great job of protecting its home ice, but it will need to do it more now than ever.

It starts this weekend when Ohio State comes to town. The Buckeyes have been a nice surprise, having a resurgent season after a tough year in 2023-2024. They currently sit at No. 10 in the PairWise, the computer ranking system used to select teams for the NCAA Tournament. Assuming they win both games, Penn State can rocket itself back into the top 20 of the PairWise with a solid weekend.

Notre Dame and Minnesota both come to Pegula later in the season. Notre Dame is actually below Penn State in the Pairwise, so that is a must-sweep. The highly ranked Gophers will represent a massive opportunity for a major ranking jump in the final weekend of the regular season.

Steal one (or two) on the road

As previously mentioned, Penn State hockey’s struggles on the road are well documented. Perhaps no place gives them more trouble than Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor, Michigan, winning there just four times ever. It is not great news that the next time the Nittany Lions hit the road, they will face the Wolverines. The path doesn’t get easier after that, with trips to No. 2 Michigan State and Madison, Wisconsin, to face a surging Badgers squad.

However, Penn State doesn’t have the luxury of playing with house money in these games. Coming in as underdogs in each matchup, the Nittany Lions need to steal at least one, perhaps two, of these games to play their way into the postseason picture.

Win a round in the Big Ten Tournament

Given the conference standings, Penn State hockey will assuredly be going on the road for its first-round conference tournament matchup. The Nittany Lions will need to win that first round to give themselves a shot at hearing their name called on Selection Sunday.

This may seem like a tall task, and it is. Penn State has 12 games left on the regular season schedule. It needs to win at least seven of those to have a realistic shot. Combining that with the two wins it would take to win a round in the Big Ten Tournament would put the team at 19-20 wins, which would likely be enough given the strength of the Big Ten.

Injury concerns are starting to mount for the Nittany Lions, making this tall task even more daunting. Star freshman Charlie Cerrato suffered an apparent injury in last Saturday’s game against Canisius. His status is unknown for this weekend and beyond. That doesn’t even consider injury concerns to other players like Reese Laubach and Jimmy Dowd Jr. 

The Nittany Lions appear to be playing some of their best hockey of the season. If this young team can get healthy and continue to gel as a group, Penn State hockey might just be able to skate its way into the dance.

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