Penn State flips for Chase Berger’s scoring this season

Chase Berger already has eight goals this season.

But it would be hard to find one prettier than his last one.

In the second period of last Saturday’s win against Sacred Heart, the freshman skated through a faceoff circle to the side of the net, spun and, seeing the Pioneer goalie had gone low, lifted a shot over Brett Magnus’ shoulder, just inside the post.

“That was just a beautiful goal,” coach Guy Gadowsky said. “A beautiful, beautiful shot.”

With the way the start of Berger’s career has gone, it likely will not be the last highlight-worthy goals for him.

The St. Louis product is already making an impact as the teams get set for a pair of games this weekend a long way from home. The Nittany Lions (6-2-2) visit Alaska-Anchorage (6-3-1) at 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday at Sullivan Arena.

It will be Berger’s first trip to the 49th state, and farthest west he has ventured.

The Nittany Lions would like it if he keeps scoring away from home the way he has through the first 10 games of the season.

His eight goals leads Penn State, the Big Ten and all freshmen in Division I, and is tied for second overall in the nation. It also matches the total for Casey Bailey last season through 10 games, on his way to 22 goals before he departed for the NHL.

Berger said he didn’t always have such scoring prowess.

“I had a really bad shot in high school,” he said. “I couldn’t score.”

So, by the time he got to his senior year, he was working hard on it, firing pucks at targets in his family’s basement.

He still spends a lot of time on it at Penn State, staying after practice to work with the goalies, or using the synthetic ice shooting room down the hall from their locker room.

The goal is to have a shot as good as one of his teammates.

“Look at Zach Saar — the guy’s got an absolute bomb,” Berger said. “You can keep going up. I think accuracy, you can always work on accuracy and quick release.”

He also was in top condition well before he got to State College. His older brother, Jack, played for Gadowsky at Princeton, and brought home some workout routines. When Chase Berger was a high school freshman, he was already doing college-level workouts.

“He’s a big, strong kid,” Gadowsky said. “He should shoot the puck well, and he does, and it makes a big difference.”

While the scoring has been drawing attention and praise from outside, his play away from the puck has also drawn smiles from teammates and the coaches.

“A goal-scorer is a tremendous thing,” Gadowsky said. “But he does a lot more. He does a lot, lot more. His habits away from the puck are excellent, and his commitment to defensive hockey is really good.”

This story was originally published November 19, 2015 at 10:11 PM with the headline "Penn State flips for Chase Berger’s scoring this season."