MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — No. 5 Penn State wraps up its first semester of action this weekend with a Big Ten series at Minnesota, skating into 3M Arena on Friday and Saturday looking to build momentum ahead of the holiday break.
After this weekend, Penn State goes on break with many competing in the Spengler Cup in Davos, Switzerland. Penn State returns to the ice for a two-game set against RIT at the Pegula Ice Arena on January 3 and 4.
Series Info
Dates: Friday, Nov. 21 | Saturday, Nov. 22 – both 8 PM Eastern
TV/Streaming: Friday – FS1 | Saturday – Big Ten Plus
Series Information
No. 5 Penn State enters the series with Minnesota trailing in the all time series 19–32–1, including a 7–20–0 mark at 3M Arena. The Golden Gophers have dominated at home winning six consecutive while outscoring Penn State 18-4 and shutting them out three times.
Among current Penn State skaters, only five have scored vs. Minnesota. Matt DiMarsico leads them with 3 goals, 2 assists in 10 career games. Reese Laubach follows with 2 goals, 2 assists in 10 games.
Minnesota Notes
Minnesota enters the weekend 5–8–1 overall and 2–2–0 in Big Ten play, after splitting with LIU and posting mixed results. They’ve lost each of their top five scorers from last season, including Jimmy Snuggerud, who is now in the NHL. Leading the offense now are Brody Lamb (7 goals, 12 points) and Brodie Ziemer (6 goals, 11 points).
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.Minnesota has a goaltender rotation with Nathan Airey and Luca Di Pasquo (Michigan State transfer). Di Pasquo’s 7 starts carry a 2.74 GAA and .904 SV%.
Part of Minnesota’s struggles in 2025-26 have been on special teams where the Golden Gophers are last in the Big Ten on the power play (15.9%) and has the second worst penalty kill (67.4%).
Defensively, Minnesota paces the nation in shot blocks, with 209 total (14.9/game). Luke Mittelstadt (30) and John Whipple (29) are nationally top leaders.
No. 5 Penn State Notes
Freshman goaltender Josh Fleming continues to impress: 5–1–0, .934 save percentage (second in the Big Ten), 2.17 GAA (fourth in the Big Ten).
Forward Gavin McKenna leads all Big Ten freshmen and is tied for the national rookie points lead with 15 points (4 goals, 11 assists). His 11 assists lead freshmen nationally, and he’s already among the top Big Ten point-getters.
Forward Charlie Cerrato tops the Big Ten with 20 points (4G, 16A). He’s been incredibly consistent — points in 10 out of 14 games, including six multi-point outings. Cerrato’s linemates forward JJ Wiebusch is second in the nation with 11 goals, while forward Matt DiMarsico is in the Top 15 nationally in goals (8) and points (16).
Together Cerrato, Wiebusch, and DiMarsico fuel “The B-T-B Line,” that has propelled the Nittany Lions in one of the top goal-scoring teams in the country (3.36 goals/game).
Defenseman Jackson Smith is emerging quickly, with 8 points in 12 games, putting him in the mix among the league’s top-scoring defensemen.
