In the third year of Division I hockey at Penn State, it’s crystal clear that this year’s team is the best yet. Season records of 13-14-0, 8-26-2, and 16-12-4 (with four games to play) make the debate black-and-white.

But the win column isn’t the only statistical category in which the Nittany Lions have broken a record this season.

The format for these statistics (all courtesy of GoPSUSports) will show numbers in chronological order from the last three seasons, with the best appearing in bold. Stats from the first season of D-I play are adjusted for a 36-game schedule, because that year’s squad only played 27 contests. Let’s take a look.

Team Offense

Goals: 99, 80, 104

Shot Attempts: 1,363, 1,269, 1,297

Shooting Percentage: .072, .063, .082

Assists: 163, 122, 171

There aren’t any surprises here. Penn State has made its money this season by scoring goals and shooting the puck, and the numbers back that up. The Nittany Lions rank ninth nationally with 3.31 goals per game. The 2014-15 squad already has the best numbers in almost all of these statistics, and will only add to them in its remaining games. By shooting the puck 40.5 times per game, Penn State should have no problem setting a season-high in shots in the next four games.

Team Defense

Goals Against: 107, 129, 92

Shot Attempts Against: 1,148, 1,185, 1,023

Opponents’ Shooting Percentage: .093, .109, .090

Assists: 184, 223, 162

Again, this year has been the best, but these statistics are bound to go up — and that’s not a good thing in this case. In order to claim the best defense in Penn State’s Division I history, it can only allow 15 goals and 125 shots across four games against the high-flying Michigan and Minnesota offenses. It’s attainable, but the team has its work cut out.

Special Teams

Powerplay Goals: 16, 23, 25

Penalties Drawn: 204, 155, 134

Powerplay Percentage: .113, .177, .219

Shorthanded Goals: 4, 5, 4

Powerplay Goals Against: 25, 30, 22

Penalties Taken: 231, 191, 132

Penalty Kill Percentage: .846, .811, .802

Powerplay/Penalty Kill Goals For and Against: -9, -7, +3

These are certainly the most sporadic statistics across the years. The first year was ludicrously undisciplined for both teams, and despite drawing so many penalties, Penn State put up an insanely low conversion rate on the powerplay. This year’s team has the eighth-best powerplay in the nation, so it’s no surprise that it’s also the best Penn State has had. However, even with the superior talent and discipline compared to other years, the Lions’ penalty kill pales in comparison to years past.

Individual Stats

These aren’t adjusted to represent an equal number of games played for the 2012-13 team, since projections aren’t as useful on an individual basis.

Goals: 16 (David Glen), 11 (Eric Scheid), 21 (Casey Bailey)

Assists: 19 (Max Gardiner), 11 (Three-way tie), 26 (Taylor Holstrom)

Points: 27 (Bailey), 20 (Scheid), 37 (Bailey)

Shots: 117 (Glen), 130 (Bailey), 186 (Bailey)

Plus/Minus: +9 (Glen), +3 (Glen), +14 (Bailey and David Goodwin)

Goalie Wins: 9 (Matt Skoff), 8 (Skoff), 7 (Skoff)

Save Percentage: .921 (Skoff), .906 (Skoff), .923 (P.J. Musico)

Goals Against Average: 2.48 (Skoff), 2.95 (Skoff), 2.57 (Musico)

Obviously, the best offensive players for Penn State are currently on the team. The top line of Bailey, Holstrom, and Goodwin has torn up college hockey this season, and it only makes sense that they tore up the record books at Penn State. At the other end of the ice lies a peculiar set of numbers. Skoff, the bona fide starter for the last two seasons, has traditionally been the go-to guy for coach Gadowsky. This season, however, Gadowsky has split the season between all three of his goaltenders (the third being Eamon McAdam). Musico has come out of nowhere to be the statistical leader, but Skoff still has tallied seven wins, and depending on if he catches Gadowsky’s attention at the right time, could have a shot to surpass his own wins record.

So, there we have it. This year’s Nittany Lions are the best iteration in the last three years, especially on offense and on the top line. With a series each against the top two teams in the Big Ten, it’s essentially playoff time for Penn State. With increased talent comes increased expectations, and it’ll be fun to see how this team will fare.