Penn State Falls To Wisconsin 8-5

Penn State battled back from an early deficit but was unable to hold on late in the game. Wisconsin refused to quit, matching each Lion goal with one of their own, until finally pulling away.

It was a chance for a series win on the road that would have been nice in the early-going in conference play.

Penn State will host Notre Dame next weekend in the final full series before the December break.

How It Happened

Wisconsin came out firing shots on net, making Peyton Jones stop a few before one got past for an early 1-0 Badger lead. Just 20 seconds later, Liam Folkes took a turnover in the Badger zone and made it count for a game-tying goal.

Alec Marsh went to the penalty box with 12 minutes to go in the first period. The Lions were able to kill the penalty and soon afterward Nate Sucese had a breakaway chance but was not able to get a shot off.

The teams got matching penalties and then the Lions got another, giving Wisconsin 27 seconds with a 4 on 3 advantage. Penn State killed the penalties and even managed a couple of quality short-handed chances.

With 1:11 to play before the first intermission, Will Johnson of Wisconsin scored to take a 2-1 lead. A little over a minute into the next period, the Badgers added another one when the puck was thrown off Peyton Jones and into the net.

Evan Barratt took a pass from Alex Limoges and put it in the back of the net a couple of minutes later to close the gap. Max Zimmer was called for a penalty shortly after, giving the Lions a power play, down 3-2. Limoges made a behind the back pass to Liam Folkes to spring him for an open shot. Folkes finished to tie the game.

Nikita Pavlychev completed the effort with a goal off a rebound from a Cole Hults shot that came out in front of the net. The Lions led 4-3 with 9 minutes to play in the second period.

Sam Sternshein added to the lead on a power play a couple of minutes later. A faceoff win in the zone came back to Sternschein and he blasted a shot from the point. It was 5-3 with 5 minutes to go.

Peyton Jones made a few saves during a penalty kill but finally Will Johnson bounced a puck off Jones’ back and into the net for the second time on the night, cutting the lead o 5-4 with a minute before the intermission.

With 10:08 to play Sam Sternschein took a hard hit into the wall. He stayed on the ice for a very long time, having slid backward into the boards. Players waited and watched as Sternschein slowly got to his feet with the help of medical staff. From the looks of it, the injury was to his mouth mostly, as Sternschein was able to skate off under his own power.

Less than a minute later Max Zimmer tied the game when he beat Peyton Jones on a shot that hit both posts before going in. Wisconsin added another goal for the lead with 7:29 to play. The refs went to the replay to check for an offside on the play but the goal was upheld. K’Andre Miller plucked the puck out of the air, set it down, and put it past Jones.

Wisconsin added another goal late to take a 7-5 lead. An empty net goal went in late to conclude the scoring.