2023-2024 Penn State men's hockey report card: Notre Dame

Penn State and Notre Dame split a series as much as you could possibly split it with two ties over the weekend. The Fighting Irish earned a second point in Game 1 with a shootout victory while the Nittany Lions did the same in Game 2.

But how well did Penn State fair in two seemingly even tilts? Here is a look at how each group performed against Notre Dame.

Offense: B-

It’s no secret that it’s hard to score against Notre Dame. Goaltender Ryan Bischel is the reigning Big Ten Goaltender of the year and already has two shutouts in the young season.

But Penn State had plenty of opportunities and shots on goal to put pucks in the back of the net. The Nittany Lions had 81 shots on goal and eight power play opportunities. They scored one power-play goal.

Despite scoring just five goals in the series, Penn State showed perseverance coming back from a two-goal deficit in Game 2.

Things could have been better for the Nittany Lions offensively, but the Fighting Irish defense is fierce. It was a respectable weekend.

Defense: B+

The Penn State defense fought a lot of adversity over the weekend.

On Saturday the Nittany Lion defense went on the penalty kill eight times, killing six efforts. One goal against came on a five-on-three.

Penn State had a crucial kill in overtime in order to secure the tie for Game 1.

In Game 2 the Nittany Lions allowed two goals in the second period, then shut down the Irish throughout the entirety of the third period in overtime.

The Penn State d-core should also be applauded for stepping up after Carter Schade went down due to injury on Saturday.

Goaltending: A

Both Noah Grannan and Liam Souliere each started a game for the Nittany Lions against the Fighting Irish.

Grannan looked like a veteran, strong on his posts and making the saves he is expected to make. He allowed three goals on Saturday, but two came on the man-advantage for Notre Dame.

Grannan denied two out of three Notre Dame shootout attempts but got no help from his squad's shooters resulting in the shootout loss.

Souliere looked like his old self in Game 2. After having rough outings against AIC and Alaska Anchorage where he allowed six goals each, Souliere dialed in against Notre Dame.

The senior netminder denied 29 of 31 Notre Dame shots and stopped all three shootout attempts.

The two goaltenders look ready for a tough trip to East Lansing this upcoming weekend.

Coaching: C+

Coach Guy Gadowsky often says college hockey is an unpredictable world of bouncing pucks, goaltenders and officials. This series certainly had all of that.

However, the team’s discipline was an issue with the eight penalties on Saturday. Also, Penn State struggled to get off to good starts conceding the first goal in both games.

Special teams were not a strength either with the power play going one for eight and the penalty kill going seven for nine.

The coaching staff should be applauded though for the shuffling of the lineup while dealing with loads of injuries.

Freshman defenseman Casey Aman was asked to play forward for the first time in his career and he did a tremendous job for the situation.

That and the perseverance of the Nittany Lions coming from behind in both games speak volumes about the Penn State coaching staff and the culture they have built.

Next weekend's series features a daunting task at Michigan State. It should be an opportunity for some forwards to return from injury for the Nittany Lions to learn where they stand against one of the powerhouses in the Big Ten and the entire country.

Maclain Young is a fourth-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email macyoung21@gmail.com.