They don’t get much bigger than this, do they?

No. 17 Penn State men’s hockey (22-14-2, 14-13-1 Big Ten) and No. 16 Notre Dame will square off for the Big Ten title at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Compton Family Ice Arena in South Bend, Indiana. The game, which will be aired on the Big Ten Network, will crown the conference’s first two-time champion.

Saturday’s winner is headed to the NCAA tournament, but the loser’s season will be over. Buckle up, folks — the Big Ten’s last two tournament winners are about to put on a hell of a show.

The Team

Despite failing to recreate its dominant 2017-18 performance, Notre Dame (21-13-3, 11-11-2 Big Ten) is back in the Big Ten title game for the second consecutive year.

Head coach Jeff Jackson’s squad will try to defend its conference title against the Nittany Lions. The Fighting Irish have won seven of their last 10 contests, including a split against Penn State to end the regular season.

Notre Dame has hung around the middle of the pack nationally in terms of scoring offense for most of the season. The Fighting Irish attack currently ranks No. 28 with an average of 2.86 goals per game, but the team’s true strength lies between the pipes and on the blue line.

Offense

Dylan Malmquist and Cal Burke have led the charge among Notre Dame’s group of forwards this season. They’ve scored 30 and 27 points, respectively, as the team’s top two scorers.

Freshman sharpshooter Michael Graham has been excellent in his debut season — he leads the Irish with 12 goals and was named to the Big Ten all-freshman team for his efforts.

Notre Dame’s offense hasn’t necessarily produced at the highest volume, but the team has nine forwards with double-digit point totals. Despite Penn State’s regular season struggles in keeping the puck out of its net, the Irish will face a tall task in finding a way past a hot goalie and defense.

Defense & Goaltending

Goaltender Cale Morris hasn’t posted the same mind-boggling numbers as last season, but he’s still undoubtedly the backbone of this Fighting Irish team.

Morris’ 2.19 goals-against average and .930 save percentage both rank second behind Ohio State’s Tommy Nappier in the Big Ten. His 17-12-3 record, however, is fairly modest, and Penn State proved its lack of trouble against elite goaltending last week.

On the blue line, Bobby Nardella and captain Andrew Peeke anchor the Notre Dame defense on the top pairing. Nardella actually leads the team in scoring with 31 points and earned first team All-Big Ten honors. Meanwhile, Peeke isn’t far behind with 22 points, good for fourth on the team.

Matt Hellickson and Tory Dello also chip in offensively with 16 and 13 points, respectively. If the Fighting Irish ultimately secure the Big Ten title and an NCAA tournament bid, they’ll do so on the back of some suffocating defensive play.

Prediction

Both of these teams are playing their best hockey of the season right now, and you can make the argument for either as the hottest squad in the conference.

As captain Chase Berger said in December, Penn State always plays unbelievably well against Notre Dame. However, the Irish have almost always found a way to win against the Nittany Lions, save for a 9-1 demolition and a tight 3-2 result in the regular season.

Guy Gadowsky’s team may seem like one of destiny, but I think Notre Dame comes out on top 4-3 thanks to a late winner.