The ice hockey club (21-3-3) will host Niagara College (8-9-3) at 9 tonight and 3:30 tomorrow at the Ice Pavilion.

Penn State still has a shot at the International Collegiate Hockey League's regular-season title but needs to take both games and have the Erie College Kats lose or tie. The Kats have one loss this season.

The last time Penn State played the Knights three months ago, the Icers prevailed, 8-3. Ross Cowan and Chris Cervellero each had two goals in that game.

"Penn State played a hard game -- we couldn't neutralize them," Niagara coach Fred Bassi said.

He said for Niagara to win either game the Knights must stay out of the penalty box and the must play a very physical game.

Niagara is locked in fourth place in the ICHL and has lost three games in a row. The Knights were crushed by Conestoga on Wednesday night, 11-2. This is the same team that lost to Erie by one goal earlier in the season.

"We expect to come out flying, but I don't know which team will show up," Bassi said.

"They have a different kind of rivalry against us, they come down here and the crowd doesn't antagonize them," said Cowan, who leads the Icers in scoring with 60 points.

But Penn State has had problems winning against relatively inferior opponents the last three Friday nights, tying Villanova and the University of Buffalo while beating Buffalo State by just one goal. On Saturdays the Icers fared better, annihilating their opponents by a combined, 27-5.

"It (a letdown) won't happen this Friday because Niagara is an opponent we always gear up for," forward Lance Riddile said.

"I think we've learned our lesson," senior defenseman Josh Brandwene said."The bottom line is not concentrating on the outcome but concentrating on the things we have to do to achieve that outcome. If we do that, the wins will fall into place."

Brandwene is only three points away from the defenseman scoring record at Penn State, currently held by Coach Joe Battista.

"I can't help but think about it (the record)," Brandwene said. "But at this point in the year, with the playoffs coming up, it has to take a back seat."

Penn State will try to defend its championship at the National Invitational Tournament Feb. 27-March 2 in Arizona. The Icers are currently ranked second in the country among the 72 club teams.

"If we were to pull off two wins this weekend, it would give us momentum going in to the NIT because Niagara is always a quality team," Riddile said.

Although Bassi said wins against Penn State and Buffalo State (next Saturday) would give his team momentum into the ICHL playoffs (March 9-10), he doesn't expect much.

"If you're a betting man, don't bet on Niagara to win the ICHL Championship," Bassi said.