Penn State 3, Canisius 2 (OT): Smith Lifts Lions To Sweep

Jackson Smith scored 15 seconds into overtime to lift Penn State to a 3-2 win over Canisius on Saturday night. The Nittany Lions secured a sweep on home ice in the last non-conference game before Big Ten play starts next weekend.

First Period

It was a sleepy start at both ends of the ice, but Penn State generated most of the offense in the early going. A failed power play seemed to stem Penn State’s momentum, but a seeing-eye shot by Mac Gadowsky from the point put the Lions up 1-0 with 3:41 left before the intermission:

A penalty on Dane Dowiak opened the door for Canisius to claw back into it. Ryder Fetterolf robbed Louis-Philippe Fontaine in the final minute of the period, and the Nittany Lions took their 1-0 lead to the locker room with most of the penalty killed off.

Second Period

The pace of the game picked up in the second, but Penn State could not capitalize on the increased open ice. The Nittany Lions had a 2-on-0 rush midway through the period, but Jack Lisson made a great save on Justin Poirier. The more Canisius was able to hang around, the more nervous it felt for Penn State, and eventually the Golden Griffins broke through when David Elmy ripped home the game-tying goal after the puck deflected to him in the high slot.

After a scuffle in front of the net resulted in matching minor penalties and two minutes of 4-on-4 play, Canisius took the lead for the first time in the series. Rhys Chiddenton crashed the net for a chance, and after Fetterolf made a save, Penn State was unable to clear the puck from the net front, and Chiddenton poked the puck home to give Canisius a 2-1 lead.

Third Period

Justin Poirier tied the game for Penn State when he one-timed home a slow pass from Nolan Collins from the left faceoff circle:

Penn State had to kill off two penalties but did gain a power play chance of their own late in regulation. Canisius was smart to pin the puck against the boards after winning the faceoff and killed off the remainder of regulation to send the game to overtime tied at 2.

Overtime

Canisius moved in on a shorthanded breakaway, but the first chance hit the post and Ryder Fetterolf made an incredible save. Justin Poirier fed Jackson Smith ahead on a 2-on-1 break, and Smith wristed home the game-winning goal to secure a sweep on home ice:

Scoring Summary

First Period

• PSU: Mac Gadowsky (3)- Kaden Pitre (2), Marco Mignosa (1)- 5v5- 16:19

Second Period

• CU: David Elmy (1)- Cole Gordon (2), Joey Henneberry (1)- 5v5- 15:18
• CU: Rhys Chiddenton (3)- Hunter Price (2)- 4v4- 17:45

Third Period

• PSU: Justin Poirier (3)- Nolan Collins (1), Kaden Pitre (3)- 5v5- 5:59

Overtime

• PSU: Jackson Smith (2)- Justin Poirier (5), Ryder Fetterolf (1)- PP- 0:15

Shots By Period

• CU: 7-17-3-1-27
• PSU: 10-15-11-1-37

Random Observations

• Ryder Fetterolf- The freshman goalie has struggled at times this season, but he made a massive save in overtime to set up the counterattack. He also made a few big saves in regulation that kept Canisius from tying or taking the lead earlier.
• Jackson Smith- Smith has seven points in six games and is on a five-game point streak. He is by far the best playmaker on the team from the blue line, and the Nittany Lions will need his production to continue against the better teams on the schedule.
• Grind It Out- Penn State did not play their best but still found a way to win. There is still a lot to work on with the defense, but winning is still better than losing.

What’s Next

Penn State will hit the road to Minnesota for the first Big Ten series of the season next Friday and Saturday.