The Icer players and coaches called it their worst period of hockey all season. In the first stanza of the game last Saturday against Michigan State, the Icers trailed 3-0.

After the period ended and the teams retreated to their locker rooms, senior forward Cliff Graziano had a talk with his teammates.

"Basically, we needed a big kick in the ass," he said. "Nobody was showing any kind of emotion, and I went in there and let my feelings be known. And it seemed to fire the guys up."

With 11 freshmen on the team, veteran leadership has been necessary for the Icers this year. Freshman forward Mike Pietrangelo has benefited from Graziano's experience.

"He's a good leader for the team," Pietrangelo said. "He gets us motivated."

Even though he's not a captain, Graziano has demonstrated his experience with the Icers this year whether it's on the ice or in the locker room.

"I've always said you don't have to have a letter on your jersey to be a captain," Graziano said. "I try to talk the talk, and when I get out on the ice, I try my hardest to walk the walk."

This season, he has done just that. Although Graziano struggled a bit at the beginning of the season, he has recently hit a hot streak.

In the first 24 games, Graziano recorded 15 goals and 28 assists for 43 points, already double last season's point production. Scoring goals in six of the last seven games, he also leads the team in assists.

With the firepower present on his line -- sophomore Rich Martha has 20 goals and junior Rob Keegan has 18 -- Graziano has started to play the role of the center.

He changed his playing style somewhat this year, dishing out the puck more often to his linemates rather than doing the shooting himself. The most assists he has had in one season during his first three years with the Icers was 12.

"I think I spread my game out," he said. "I felt like I was a one-dimensional player, only scoring goals. I just knew that on our line, we couldn't just have a goal scorer at center."

Graziano began scoring goals for the New Jersey Junior Devils in his sophomore year of high school. He then attended the College of Morris County in New Jersey for one year before returning to the Junior Devils.

Graziano got his start with Penn State when his Junior Devils team made a trip to State College for a November 1990 tournament. He was chosen as the tournament's most valuable player by Icer Coach Joe Battista. He convinced Graziano to come to Penn State.

In his first three years as an Icer, Graziano scored 68 points in 77 games. This season has been different. His off-season conditioning has brought noticeable results.

Graziano attributes his success to all of the preseason training he underwent. He started over this past summer by putting on 15 pounds to bulk himself up. He said he became faster and stronger from all of his working out.

"This summer, I knew I would be a big factor in the team's success," Graziano said.

And his dedication to his team and sport can also be seen in his very artistic tattoo. On Graziano's left shoulder, his own depiction of Calvin from the Calvin & Hobbes comic strip is holding a hockey stick.

"I'm a big Calvin and Hobbes fan," he said. "I feel like it's a symbol of me."