“One word to describe our mentality heading into tonight… Hungry,” said senior Tyler Paquette, as the Nittany Lions prepare for the first round of the NCAA tournament where they face an unfamiliar foe in the University of Maine.
Penn State serves as the host for the Allentown Regional, where Maine is the No. 1 seed, followed by Quinnipiac, UConn, and the Blue & White. But if there’s one thing this season has taught us about Penn State, it’s to never count them out, no matter the circumstance.
After being swept in four consecutive weekends of Big Ten play, the Nittany Lions were universally overlooked, despite their strengths and competitive efforts. Flash forward to the conclusion of the regular season, Penn State turned their 0-8 start to a 9-11-4 record, and rapidly climbed through the pairwise rankings.
The Maine Black Bears have been an undeniable force not only in Hockey East, but the entire collegiate hockey realm throughout the whole season. They enter with an astounding 24-7-6 record on the year, their only seven losses coming from teams that also received tournament bids.
For the first time in each program’s history, these two forces will collide at 8:30 p.m. on Friday night, both in search of advancing to Sunday night’s regional final.
Heating up in the Postseason
Maine enters the contest hot on the heels of a Hockey East tournament championship, where their two consecutive preliminary matches sent them to a matchup against UConn in the championship, where they reigned victorious with a 5-2 final score.
This win secured the Black Bears the third overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, and the top-seed in Allentown. This marks their sixth Hockey East championship in program history, to send them to their 20th NCAA tournament.
Downing UMass-Lowell, Northeastern and UConn, respectively, Maine outscored their opponents a combined 16-5 to trek their way to the championship.
For the Nittany Lions, Penn State’s second half comeback secured the fifth overall seed in the Big Ten Tournament, sending them on the road to Yost Ice Arena where they faced a common foe in the Michigan Wolverines.
What was expected to be a major feat for Penn State turned into a historic weekend as they earned the program’s first-ever sweep over Michigan on the road, to send them to the semifinals against Ohio State. A tough battle turned to an overtime loss for the Nittany Lions, but they did enough to earn an at-large bid thanks to a…
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