A new season always brings high expectations for and puts a target on a defending champion. The situation is no different for the Penn State men's ice hockey team.
The Icers, fresh off their second ACHA title in three years, will start this season atop the preseason polls and head coach Joe Battista knows his squad will be in the opponents' crosshairs all season.
"I think we all realize that, in a sense, every game we play will be a national championship game," he said. "Everybody wants to beat us because we are the defending national champions and because we are Penn State."
Mike Blevins, a senior forward, agrees with his coach.
"There's definitely a big bull's eye on our backs," he said. "Every team is going to get pumped up to come in and play us, whether it be here or on their rink. It would almost be a lot easier to be No. 2 or No. 3, but we like the idea of being No. 1. Someone's going to have to play really well to knock us off."
Battista is less concerned about his team's preseason ranking.
"The polls really don't mean anything this early in the season," he said. "We have high expectations for us, but that's all talk. We're going to find out right off the bat where we stand because we have a couple of tough road games."
Battista isn't kidding. Nearly every team on the Icers' schedule is ranked in the preseason top 20. The Icers also travel to Toronto to face York University, which is considered one of the top collegiate teams in Canada.
The Icers will start their season with the annual Blue-White scrimmage Friday night.
"I've been impressed with the attitude, and the guys seem really excited to defend the national championship," Battista said.
The team's first regular season contest will come just two nights after the Blue-White game at No. 20 Villanova. The Icers' first home contest is October 20 against No. 17 Mercyhurst.
Aside from the brutal schedule, the Icers face even bigger concerns. Superstar goaltender Mark Scally, the co-MVP from last year's ACHA national tournament, is gone.
For now, Battista plans to rotate all three of his current goalies (Scott Graham, Geoff Beauparlant and Yan Clermont) until one of them establishes himself as the right man for the job.
"I'm going to give them all a chance," he said. "In practice right now I'd say Beauparlant and Graham have been the top two, but Clermont has lots of skill, he just needs to find his focus out there."
Because of the loss of four other seniors, Battista needs some of his veterans to step in as leaders.
Greg Held, a senior forward, looks like a strong candidate to fill this role.
"As a senior, I think it's my job to step up and lead this team on and off the ice," he said.
Battista said this year's batch of seniors should have no problem providing guidance to this young squad since it could become the first class at any school to win three titles.
Battista will call upon Jamie Weston, Alon Eizenman and Blevins to lead this team. Eizenman, last season's ACHA player of the year, returns as the squad's leading scorer after posting 75 points (32 goals, 43 assists) last year.
Battista's optimism on his team's chances to win another title is boosted even more because of a wealth of new talent that has found its way to Happy Valley.
"We picked up some real solid hockey players," Battista said. "We brought in some skill players, some big physical players, and we have a good nucleus coming back to begin with."
Some of these newcomers include defensemen Curtiss Patrick, Glenn Zuck and Bobby Pate and forward Bill Downey. Pate is a transfer from the United States Air Force Academy.
If the new recruits can mesh with the championship-tested veterans of a year ago, the Icers could be in for another special season this year.
