No. 7 Michigan hockey completes two-game sweep of No. 6 Penn State

On Friday and Saturday, No. 7 Michigan hockey (16-9-1, 8-8-0 Big Ten) welcomed the 6th-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions (18-9-1, 8-9-1 Big Ten) to Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor, MI. After splitting the first season series in State College earlier this season, the Wolverines swept Penn State and took the season series 3-1.

Wolverines take game one, 7-3

On Friday night, Michigan hockey returned to Ann Arbor for the first time since splitting its road series with No. 2 Minnesota a week ago. The Wolverines needed to get the season back on track after seeing injuries, illness, the World Juniors, and more derail the season early on.

Despite its setbacks, Michigan hockey managed to stay in the top 10 and boast impressive wins to this point. Over the weekend, the Wolverines strengthened their resume with two more top-10 wins in a sweep of No. 6 Penn State.

In game one of the series, Michigan hockey put the pedal to the metal with a blowout victory. A garbage time goal made the score look closer than it was; Michigan still left game one with a 7-3 victory over the Nittany lions.

Michigan hockey takes game two, 5-4

In game two, Michigan hockey has seen one of its worst starts of the 2022-23 season. Within the first 44 seconds of the game (yes, less than a minute into the 1st period), Penn State buried quick shots to take a 2-0 lead.

It wasn’t until the following period that the Wolverines managed to get on the board themselves, though Michigan’s first goal was called back, and the Wolverines were assessed a 5-minute major and a game ejection. Soon after, the Nittany Lions made it a 3-0 hockey game.

Fast forward to the third period, Michigan hockey managed to cut Penn State’s lead to 1 goal behind a pair of goals by Luke Hughes. That changed when the Nittany Lions netted their fourth and final goal of the night. Somehow, the Wolverines battled back and scored two more — a 5-4 lead that lasted the remainder of the game.

Michigan’s night two performance was led by none other than Luke Hughes — he finished the game with four of Michigan’s five goals and made a huge play at the end of the game to prevent a tying goal for Penn State.

This weekend was the first time all season than No. 6 Penn State saw back-to-back losses, and established Michigan hockey as a bona fide top-5 squad.

What’s next for Michigan hockey?

Next weekend, the Wolverines will remain in Ann Arbor to host unranked Wisconsin (10-15-0, 3-12-0 Big Ten) in its second-to-last home series of the season. Following the Wisconsin series, Michigan hockey will face No. 15 Michigan State, No. 8 Ohio State, and finally, unranked Notre Dame to close out the regular season. Of its remaining eight games, only Notre Dame and Wisconsin (four games total) will be at Yost Ice Arena.

The Wolverines are likely out of the regular season Big Ten title picture; however, Michigan still has other major goals in front of it, such as a Big Ten tournament title and perhaps a Frozen Four berth. With a little luck, the Wolverines could make a run to the National Championship later this year.

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