Penn State men’s hockey set for Thanksgiving week series at St. Thomas

When folks travel for Thanksgiving, they often try to make the most it and do as much or see as many people as possible. If you’re already there, why not?

That’s pretty much the approach for the Penn State hockey team this week.

After splitting a two-game series against seventh-ranked Minnesota last weekend, the Nittany Lions stayed in the Twin Cities for a two-game series against St. Thomas that begins Tuesday night.

It’s the first meeting for the two programs and it was made possible in part because of a Penn State connection. St. Thomas athletic director Phil Esten served as deputy director of athletics at Penn State from 2014 to 2018.

It was also made possible because of St. Thomas’s move to Division I hockey this season. St. Thomas, which played its first varsity hockey game in 1920, became the sixth D-I program in the state of Minnesota, jumping all the way from Division III — something it did in all its varsity sports (eight for men, nine for women).

Penn State, which made its Division I move for the 2012-13 season, knows it can be difficult to find games in such a situation, so some scheduling support was also a reason for the rare midweek series.

St. Thomas has struggled mightily this season. Its only victory was a 5-2 decision against Ferris State in the second of a two-game series on Oct. 23. The Tommies have lost six in a row since then, including three consecutive shutouts. They have not scored a goal since Nov. 5.

Penn State is 6-1 in nonconference games this season.

Penn State (7-6-0) at St. Thomas (1-12-1)

Series: 8 p.m. Tuesday, 8 p.m. Wednesday

Radio/TV: 103.1 FM and GoPSUsports.com

Notable: Junior forward Kevin Wall leads Penn State with 13 points and eight goals. … Sophomore defenseman Chrisian Berger has a team-high 23 blocks for the Nittany Lions. … St. Thomas freshman forward Kyler Grundy leads his team with four goals. … Three different goalies have been in net for St. Thomas this season, allowing a combined 4.69 goals-against average. … The Tommies play their home games in the 1,000-seat St. Thomas Ice Arena.