Penn State men’s hockey was outscored 5-2 in the first period during its most recent series with Notre Dame. Despite this, the Nittany Lions still managed to force overtime on both occasions, crawling back from 3-0 and 2-1 deficits.

Playing from behind has been a theme for Guy Gadowsky’s squad for a while now. Dating back to last year, the blue and white have consistently found themselves in early deficits in need of a comeback.

Penn State has claimed victory seven times this season when trailing after two periods. But despite the Nittany Lions’ ability to generate late-game momentum surges, Gadowsky and the players will look to get off to a quicker start against Wisconsin and beyond.

“We keep striving for a situation where we don’t have to [comeback],” Gadowsky said. “But boy, did they play Friday night.” 

Gadowsky was referring to Friday’s matchup against the Fighting Irish. Notre Dame quickly jumped out to a three-goal lead before Aiden Fink and Shea Van Olm eventually helped knot the score 3-3. In a series where every point mattered for Penn State, being able to record a tie in the game and earn the extra shootout point meant a lot to the group.

“As many times as it happens, it doesn’t get less impressive,” Gadowsky said.

Gadowsky and his coaching staff take a more hands-off approach when it comes to coaching “fast starts.” While they make it a point of emphasis to develop player habits and systems, establishing pace and motive at different points of the game comes from within.

“You don’t want to coach a desire or an effort,” Gadowsky said. “I think that’s something that should be ingrained in what Penn State hockey is. Moving forward, that’s on them to be ready to compete.”

Defenseman Jarod Crespo also believes that fixing the team’s problem of slower starts is vital for long-term success.

“Working on your first shift, and each line focusing on their first shift,” he said, will be the key moving forward. “The mentality going into game two wasn’t a great result for us, but as far as the start goes, it was a lot better, and that’s kind of what we need.”

Being able to foster this mentality stems from having a strong leadership group. With captain Dane Dowiak out for the rest of the season, Crespo is one of the players needing to step up in his absence, donning the “A” on his chest.

But aside from the designated alternate captains in Crespo, Ben Schoen, and Reese Laubach, guys all across the roster are coming forward to help fuel Penn State’s need for speed, physicality, and scoring.

“I do think that there’s guys that understand that are stepping up,” Gadowsky said. “Braedon Ford is one of them. I think Aiden Fink has been a guy that’s really tried to take a leadership role on a lot of things away from the puck as well. In a sense, I think [Dowiak’s injury] has been a catalyst for other guys to step up.”

So while Penn State heads into the last series of the regular season, postseason implications and seeding remain on the line. The Nittany Lions will aim to get on the board early and never look back, relying on each member of the group to do their respective part.

Friday’s matchup with the Badgers will mark the annual “Wear White” game at Pegula Ice Arena. The team will look to harness the crowd’s energy, in addition to the fire within, to propel itself to success.

“The White Out is an incredible experience,” Crespo said. “Using that energy, it’ll be helpful, for sure.”