"We expect everyone out there to be very competitive," he said. "We expect a good game out of everybody. There are a lot of evenly matched teams, five or six teams can realistically win it."

Despite a challenging group of opponents ahead of them, coach Joe Battista believes in his players.

"I think we go into every game believing we can win," Battista said. "We have a philosophy that going into every game, we expect to win. If we play the way we're capable of, we have as good a chance as anyone."

Battista said his group of guys was both excited and healthy. And since the tournament will be played on an Olympic-sized rink, Penn State will need as much enthusiasm and speed as it can muster.

Delaware's Fred Rust Arena, the host venue, is 15 feet wider than a NHL-sized rink. So at a grandiose 200 feet by 100 feet, the Rust Arena rink seems quite large to Penn State.

"It's going to be a totally different game out there because we're playing on an Olympic-sized rink," senior defenseman Jason Zivkovic said. "The ice is wider so we have to play more defensively and set things up better."

Zivkovic, who is usually very offensive-oriented, said he will have to stay in the defensive zone more often to compensate for the larger rink. But Zivkovic doesn't think the bigger surface should change Penn State's goal.

"Since we won it all last year and have such a strong nucleus, if we don't win it's going to be a disappointment," he said. "We know what we have to do and what it takes to win."

Goaltender Anthony Annexy said all of the teams in the field pose a threat to the Icers, but that still doesn't change anything.

"Anything can happen because it's the playoffs," he said. "But it will be a huge level of disappointment if we don't come back with the championship. If everybody on our team plays their role and steps up at the right time, we'll be on all cylinders and a pretty tough team to beat."