Three-seeded No. 10 Penn State men’s hockey (21-12-2, 13-10-2 Big Ten) beat the six-seeded Minnesota (11-22-3, 7-16-2 Big Ten) 6-2 on Wednesday night at Pegula Ice Arena to advance to the Big Ten Semifinals.

The Nittany Lions started fast, going up 4-0 in the opening two periods. Highlights included Mac Gadowsky’s first goal of the season and Matt DiMarsico scoring the hundredth point of his collegiate career.

How It Happened

Guy Gadowsky rolled out Gavin McKenna, Reese Laubach, and Aiden Fink as the starting forwards, with Jackson Smith and Jarod Crespo manning the blue line and Josh Fleming in net to start the game.

Penn State came out blazing, with Smith nearly opening up scoring with a rocket, beating Minnesota goalie Luca Di Pasquo, but not the crossbar.

The Nittany Lions would eventually get on the board with the game’s first shot on net, taken by Charlie Serrato to capitalize on a Golden Gopher turnover.

Welcome back Chuck!!#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/N2ALgJrNSl

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) March 11, 2026

Penn State looked to double the lead shortly after; McKenna led a three-on-one and fed Fink in front of the net. However, Minnesota captain Luke Mitteltadt made a diving play to block Fink’s shot and save what would’ve been a sure goal.

Nearly halfway through the period, the Gophers finally registered a shot on net with a one-timed blast by Tanner Ludkte that was turned away by Fleming. The Nittany Lions had an opportunity on the other end, but Fink missed the net wide right.

With just under seven minutes left in the period, McKenna led another odd-man break and delivered a great feed to Mac Gadowsky, who fired one past Di Pasquo for his first goal of the season.

How about the patience from 72 on the entry and what a bullet from Gadowsky!!#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/hYGUNs59Pf

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) March 11, 2026

A tripping call on Ben Schoen sent Minnesota on the game’s first power play late in the first period. The Nittany Lions would get the kill without much trouble and would nearly score in the final moments, but Fink was robbed on the backdoor tap-in, and Penn State would settle for taking a 2-0 lead into the locker room.

Early in the second, Di Pasquo made two huge saves on JJ Wiebusch and Carter Shade to keep the Minnesota deficit at two.

After plenty more Penn State pressure, Matt DiMarsico found the back of the net with a drive to the goal for his hundredth career point.

Career point No. 100 for DD was a beauty!!#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/xalftFpKeY

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) March 12, 2026

Less than two minutes later, Laubach made it 4-0, capitalizing on a lucky bounce after a Crespo shot deflected off a Minnesota defenseman.

The boys are rollin'!!#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/dpi00ViX2X

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) March 12, 2026

The Gophers responded with a push of their own, but Fleming flashed the leather on a heater by Cal Thomas to keep the away team scoreless.

The Penn State shutout came to an end, with Javon Moore forcing a turnover and beating Fleming five-hole to make it 4-1.

In the final moments of the middle frame, Smith let off a slapshot, but Di Pasquo made a nice pad save to keep Penn State’s goal total at four going into the third.

A couple of nice stops by both Di Pasquo and Fleming kicked off the final period.

A scrum broke out in front of the Penn State net after Fleming made a sprawling save nearly eight minutes into the third. Soon after, Fink sniped one top-shelf for Penn State’s fifth goal.

SNIPESHOWWWWW! #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/IZxucc104L

— Penn State Men’s Hockey (@PennStateMHKY) March 12, 2026

With a little under five minutes left to play, Minnesota got one back with a shot from the blue line by Jacob Rombach.

A hooking penalty by Shea Van Olm gave the Gophers their second power play, but Cade Christenson scored an empty net shorthanded goal in the final minutes to put the game away for a 6-2 Nittany Lions victory.

Takeaways

• The Nittany Lions dominated offensively, outshooting the Gophers 40-29, while controlling most of the offensive zone time.
• Penn State’s first line was in control every time they stepped onto the ice; each of the forwards had three points in the contest.
• More postseason play awaits, as Penn State likely clinched a bid to the NCAA tournament with the win.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions will take on two-seeded Michigan in the Big Ten Semifinals. The Wolverines will host the game on Saturday, March 14, at Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The single-elimination game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network, but the puck drop time is still to be announced.