No. 5 Penn State men’s hockey (1-0-0, 0-0-0 Big Ten) opened the season with a victory, taking down No. 14 Arizona State (0-1-0, 0-0-0 NCHC) by a score of 6-3 on Friday night in the desert.

Penn State potted two early goals, but gave away the lead in a disastrous second period. After taking a breather during intermission, they rebounded with a four-spot in the third, led by a stellar performance by Charlie Cerrato, which saw him score two goals and tally five total points, and Matt DiMarsico’s first career hat trick. Gavin McKenna had two assists in his first collegiate game.

How It Happened

The game and the season started slowly as both teams looked to get their feet wet in the season opener. Kevin Reidler, the Omaha transfer making his Penn State debut, made his first save in the blue and white in the opening minute, while Jarod Crespo got the team’s first shot on net just under two minutes in, but neither was a high-danger chance.

The first penalty of the season would be taken just over two minutes in, as Ben Schoen was taken off for holding, and the Nittany Lions would go on the penalty kill for the first time. While the Sun Devils controlled the puck in the offensive zone for much of the two minutes, they were held off the board thanks to two saves by Reidler and four blocked shots.

McKenna got the first chance of his collegiate career when he gained the offensive zone at the five-minute mark of the first period, but he was partially taken down before breaking free for a breakaway. Both Reidler and Arizona State netminder Connor Hasley made big saves in the next minute to keep the game scoreless.

Penn State got to show off its power play for the first time, as 6:28 into the first, DiMarsico caught a stick up high from Arizona State’s Austin Zemlak. Additionally, Nolan Collins and ASU’s Noah Powell were sent off on offsetting roughing penalties.

The big guns came out for the power play, but the Nittany Lions struggled to maintain the zone. McKenna got his first collegiate shot on goal from the point that got through, although JJ Wiebusch was in position for a deflection. That was the best opportunity they had, as the ASU penalty kill did a great job keeping them at bay.

The action quieted down for the next several minutes until a break for Arizona State put them back on the penalty kill, as the puck hit the skate of a player making a line change, resulting in a too many men on the ice call.

Penn State would not waste its second chance on the power play, as after Aiden Fink missed an opportunity at a wide-open net in the first few seconds, a takeaway at the point by McKenna led to the Sun Devils being out of position.

A 3-on-1 crashed on the net, where McKenna put it on the stick of Fink for the team’s first goal of the season. McKenna gets the assist, the first of his collegiate career. At the 10:55 mark, it’s 1-0 Penn State on the power play.

McKenna Fink

Penn State leads 1-0!!#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/vRRRKbPHSc

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) October 4, 2025

Aside from the second power play opportunity for Penn State, the two sides played even for much of the first period. Arizona State got its first high-quality chance at the 12:28 mark on a hard drive by Carmelo Crandall that was stopped by Reidler. Another golden opportunity evaded the Sun Devils at the 13:17 mark, when a 3-on-1 was botched before getting a shot off. On the other end, Shea Van Olm got a chance at his first collegiate goal by following up an initial shot attempt with a nifty wraparound try that was smothered by Hasley.

The next five minutes were quiet, with the teams going back and forth. In the final minute of the period, Penn State got an offensive zone faceoff and overwhelmed the Arizona State defense with quick passes and shots that eventually led to a McKenna pass to set up Charlie Cerrato with a snipe over the left shoulder of Hasley. 2-0 Penn State on a goal by Cerrato, assisted by Fink and McKenna. Strong first period of the year.

Fink McKenna Cerrato

Penn State leads 2-0!!#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/NbhQaDXVzI

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) October 4, 2025

It was pivotal for Arizona State to wake up on both ends to start the period, and they came out playing better, but the first big chance of the period again went to the Nittany Lions, with DiMarsico setting up Cerrato on a big one-timer on a 2-on-1 at the 2:14 mark, but Hasley was able to stop it.

Finally, the Sun Devils started to generate some odd-man rushes after a period of Penn State dominance. One specific instance saw Crespo smother a 2-on-1 attempt at the 4:40 mark before crashing hard into the boards and crumpling to the ice. He was helped off the ice.

A second period that saw stronger play from the Sun Devils finally turned into their first goal, as Reese Laubach tripped on his own with the puck and gave it away in the defensive zone, leading to a Samuel Alfano goal, the first allowed by Reidler, at the 8:16 mark.

The momentum continued to swing, as Wiebusch took a minor penalty for hooking at the 9:44 mark. Some good movement generated good chances for ASU, but Reidler was up for the net test, making a pair of saves. The power play ended after only 1:22, as Arizona State’s Benjamin Kevan went off for hooking at the 11:06 mark.

After 38 seconds of 4-on-4 play saw a pair of shots on, Penn State got 82 seconds of power play time. After keeping the puck in the zone for over a minute, some nifty passing saw Cerrato set up Wiebusch with a golden opportunity in the crease, but a fantastic save by Hasley kept him off the scoresheet. An ensuing tussle led to Wiebusch and Bennett Schimek taking dueling roughings, but the Sun Devils killed it off.

The penalties kept coming. Van Olm went off for roughing at 13:34, but it could’ve been a tie game beforehand if not for a great save by Reidler on the delayed penalty. After keeping ASU to the perimeter for the first minute, an unlucky bounce saw Sean McGurn swing at the puck like he’s a slap hitter in baseball, beating Reidler for a game-tying power play goal at 14:35.

The bad breaks didn’t stop there, as just 44 seconds later, a shot by Arizona State’s Logan Morrell squeaked through the five-hole and just barely cleared the goal line. All of a sudden, the Sun Devils had soared in front, 3-2.

The offense disappeared for Penn State, and frustrations started to boil over. A Nick Fascia roughing penalty at 17:42 again put the Nittany Lions shorthanded. They were finally able to slow down the ASU offense, but the team would have to go into the locker room licking their wounds, trailing after allowing three goals in the period.

Penn State badly needed a big response out of the break, and they definitely got it. Just over a minute in, a drive behind the net by Cerrato saw him dump the puck back to DiMarsico, who shot it on net. Hasley, who’s been stellar in net all night, couldn’t find the puck, and it trickled in underneath him for the game-tying goal. Penn State ties it at three on the goal by DiMarsico, assisted by Cerrato and Wiebusch at 1:13.

TIE GAME IN TEMPE!! pic.twitter.com/poZGa1CTgp

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) October 4, 2025

Luke Misa tried to join the party by getting a high-danger chance in close about a minute later, but was denied. Arizona State came the other way and got one of their own, but Reidler made the save outside the crease at around the 2:30 mark.

Penn State started to get sloppy in the defensive zone, but their goalie picked them up. Schimek picked up a loose puck at 5:20 in a dangerous spot, but Reidler snagged it with the glove.

DiMarsico would strike again for the Nittany Lions at 8:05, as a loose puck on the blue line turned into an odd-man rush and saw Cerrato again set up DiMarsico for the go-ahead goal. It’s a four-point night for Cerrato, as he and Wiebusch pick up assists for DiMarsico’s second goal to make it 4-3.

This line, man!!#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/lScahM9Ke8

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) October 4, 2025

It’s never easy, though. Nolan Collins took another penalty for Penn State at 9:39 for holding and put them on the penalty kill for the fifth time. However, they’d once again be saved by a boneheaded offensive zone penalty for the Sun Devils, as Schimek went off for interference at 11:10 for setting a pick on Nic Chin-DeGraves.

Penn State got 90 seconds of power play time and generated multiple chances, including a high danger chance in front for Cerrato. Still, all attempts were smothered by Hasley or blocked by defensemen.

As we headed towards the final five minutes, Arizona State pushed hard for the equalizer, forcing Reidler to make multiple difficult saves. Their bid for that equalizer would take a crushing blow at 16:30, as Justin Kipkie took a brutal cross-checking call to put Penn State back on the power play.

Smelling blood in the water, the Penn State power play put this game to bed. McKenna collected the puck at the point with 30 seconds left in the power play and started a chain of passes that led to Cerrato’s second goal and fifth point of the night. Cerrato’s goal made it 5-3, assisted by Wiebusch and Fink at 18:07 on the power play.

FIVE-POINT NIGHT FOR CHUCK!!#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/WALs10yFQx

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) October 4, 2025

The Sun Devils pulled the goalkeeper in a final desperation move, but Penn State was able to get possession and pot the empty netter at 18:58. DiMarsico found the loose puck in front of the net and tapped it in, finishing off his first career hat trick, Laubach with the assist.

Three more penalties with 11 seconds left, two being dueling roughings, finished this game off.

Takeaways

• On the injury front: Jackson Smith, who was a surprise scratch before the game, missed the game with illness, per the NCHC.TV broadcast. Doesn’t seem like it’ll be long before he makes his collegiate debut. On the other hand, Jarod Crespo did not return after he suffered an apparent knee injury in the second period.
• Gavin McKenna’s collegiate debut was a big success. Arizona State fans jeered him every time he possessed the puck, but as Reggie Jackson once said, “fans don’t boo nobodies.” He picked up two primary assists in the first period and looked comfortable all night.
• Five points for Charlie Cerrato. In his first game since being picked in the second round of the NHL Entry Draft by the Carolina Hurricanes, the sophomore was stellar.
• Many know Matt DiMarsico as the hero who sent Penn State to the Frozen Four last year. How do you set up an encore? A season-opening hat trick.
• Reidler was very good in the first and third periods, but allowed three goals in a shaky third that saw the entire team break down defensively. He finished with 35 saves.
• Lots of penalties mean there’s still some stuff to clean up. The teams combined for 17 of those puppies, with Penn State taking nine. The power play went 2-for-5, and the penalty kill went 5-for-6.
• All in all, Penn State’s top-six combined for six goals and 11 assists. Get ready for more of that, folks.

Up Next

Penn State will go for the series sweep of Arizona State at 8 p.m., Saturday, October 4, at Mullet Arena in Tempe, AZ.