Michigan State University
7-20-2, 3-10
Penn State
18-8-3, 8-5
No. 16 Penn State Tops Spartans in Weekend Opener
2/12/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
EAST LANSING - No. 16 Penn State topped the Michigan State hockey team, 6-1, on Friday night at Munn Ice Arena in the first of two games between the teams this weekend. The Nittany Lions (18-8-3, 8-5) never trailed as they scored a pair of goals in all three periods while goaltender Matthew Skoff made 28 saves.
Freshman Cody Milan scored for the Spartans (7-20-2, 3-10).
A pair of power plays less than eight minutes into the game helped Penn State get on the board early. The Nittany Lions capitalized on the second man-advantage when Vince Pedrie scored on a shot from the right circle at the 7:41 mark.
The Nittany Lions made it 2-0 with 3:02 to play in the opening period when Tommy Olczyk got to a loose puck in the low slot and put it past MSU goaltender Jake Hildebrand.
"I thought we started fine, but we took a few penalties early and that allowed them to build some momentum," said MSU coach Tom Anastos. "Now you're on your heels killing penalties, rather than being on your toes getting after them."
Michigan State pushed back 5:56 into the second period as linemates Cody Milan, Connor Wood and Brennan Sanford teamed up to make it 2-1.
Wood took the puck from Sanford in the high slot and quickly fed Milan on the right side. Milan then beat Skoff with a low shot.
The one-goal game lasted just 55 seconds as PSU's Eric Scheid made it 3-1 at the 6:51 mark.
The Nittany Lions were able to capitalize on a turnover in the neutral zone to make it 4-1 with 6:18 to play in the middle stanza. Andrew Sturtz grabbed the puck near the MSU blue line and raced into the zone where he snapped the puck over Hildebrand's left shoulder.
Michigan State appeared to cut the deficit to 4-2 when Mason Appleton jammed in a loose puck during a scrum in front of the net. The play was ruled a goal on the ice but then disallowed after an official review.
David Goodwin (2:49) and Zach Saar (16:05) capped the scoring for the Nittany Lions in the third period.
Hildebrand finished the game with 43 saves, his best coming when he thwarted a 2-on-0 4:30 into the second period, preventing the Nittany Lions from building on their then 2-0 lead.
The Spartans and Nittany Lions will meet again on Saturday at 7 p.m.
