Penn State hockey forward Andrew Kuzma arrived at Penn State in 2024 expecting to begin his college hockey career. Instead, he found himself preparing for open-heart surgery.

A routine medical examination uncovered a heart condition he never knew he had, forcing Kuzma to miss his entire freshman season. What followed was months of recovery, a year away from Penn State playing junior hockey in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), and a long road back to the program he originally came to play for.

Nearly two years later, Kuzma finally got his moment Friday night at Pegula Ice Arena.

The sophomore forward scored his first collegiate goal in the second period against Canisius, lifting the front of his jersey in celebration. He added an empty-net goal late in the third period, helping Penn State secure its first win of the season in a 5-1 victory over the Golden Griffins.

For Kuzma, who spent most of two years working toward this moment, the goals meant more than just getting his name on the score sheet.

“I think even coming back, that’s kind of such a good feeling to be able to be back,” Kuzma said after the game. “And then obviously, hit those couple goals. It makes me feel like I’m right where I should be.”

Before arriving in Hockey Valley, Kuzma had established himself as a promising forward with the Madison Capitals of the United States Hockey League, recording 30 goals and 52 points during the 2023-24 season.

He was expected to contribute to head coach Guy Gadowsky’s lineup right away, but those plans changed when Penn State medical staff discovered that he had a bicuspid aortic valve, a congenital heart condition he had unknowingly lived with his entire life.

On November 22, 2024, Kuzma underwent open-heart surgery, ending his first season with the Nittany Lions before it even began.

Although he returned to the ice roughly six weeks after surgery, getting back to the player he once was took much longer.

“Personally, I knew I’d get back. It’s just you don’t know how you get back,” Kuzma said. “And as a kid growing up, you don’t ever think that something is wrong with you. And then obviously, when I got here, it kind of just hit me at the same time that I have a long, long road ahead of me to get back.”

Rather than return to Penn State for the 2025-26 season, he elected to spend another year in junior hockey, joining the Kingston Frontenacs of the OHL before eventually moving to the Erie Otters.

He played 69 games for the two organizations, scoring 20 goals and recording 19 assists. More importantly, the season gave him a chance to regain his confidence and adjust to competitive hockey after spending so much time away from the game.

“No amount of training can get you used to playing ice hockey like that, and especially games,” Kuzma said. “But for myself, I think just getting the repetition of 70 games in the [OHL] helped me more than anything.”

Throughout every step of his recovery, Kuzma had his family by his side.

While fans could follow his return to the ice, his family witnessed the challenges long before he could even think about playing hockey again.

“They’re the ones that saw me every day after surgery, during the surgery. Like how much I struggled, from whatever the process was post-op to getting back on the ice, and then going back to juniors last year,” Kuzma said.

“It wasn’t easy, but they were with me the whole time, so I think they’re just really proud of me. And obviously, they give me a lot of courage to keep pushing.”

Kuzma wasn’t the only one waiting for a night like Friday.

Before taking a single question during his postgame press conference, Gadowsky made sure to recognize what his forward had accomplished.

“I tell you what, to watch Andrew Kuzma score his first goal after everything that guy had been through was really, really cool to see,” Gadowsky said. “He and his family could not have handled his situation better, and so we cheer for guys like that so much.”

But Gadowsky wasn’t finished. He wanted to make sure someone else got credit.

Penn State men’s hockey athletic trainer Karlie Tronolone played a significant role in Kuzma’s recovery, helping him work his way back to the ice after undergoing surgery.

“There’s another person on staff that deserves a lot of credit for his goal tonight, or his couple goals tonight,” Gadowsky said. “And that’s our athletic trainer, Karlie. She put in so much to this.”

Gadowsky also praised Penn State’s medical staff and the university’s support throughout the process, making it clear that Friday’s milestone meant something to the whole program.

“This is a pretty cool night. It’s a really cool night for Andrew, for the Kuzma family, and for Karlie, and also the medical staff,” Gadowsky said.

After the game, Penn State men’s hockey shared a photo of Kuzma and Tronolone standing together in the locker room.

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Both smiled, each holding half of a puck split between them to commemorate Kuzma’s first collegiate goal.

Nearly two years ago, Kuzma was recovering from open-heart surgery instead of playing his first season of college hockey. A year later, he returned to junior hockey, still working to find his game.

On Friday, he was back at The Peg, celebrating his first two collegiate goals with the people who had helped him get there.

“It was a long road, a lot of adversity,” Kuzma said. “So it’s just a lot of enjoyment right now.”