These are the nights the program was created for.
Sure, the Nittany Lions have yet to reach the NCAA tournament, play as a ranked team, or even come close to the long term goal of a national title. But to host a ranked team in Hockey Valley for the first time ever is why the program was built — to compete against some of the best teams in the nation.
UMass-Lowell, the opponent for the next two nights was ranked the No. 1 team in the nation to start the season and is now ranked No.13 or No. 16 depending on your poll of choice. Penn State will host more highly-ranked teams like now No.1 Minnesota and No.2 Michigan later in the year, but for now it’s the biggest game of Penn State’s brief two year history.