This season's Penn State men's ice hockey senior class will be remembered as the most storied in Icer history.

It also may be remembered as the smallest in school history.

Alon Eizenman, Greg Held and Mike Blevins have just wrapped up collegiate athletic careers that would make most any athlete envious.

Especially Eizenman and Held, who are the only two Icers in school history to have played on three national championship teams. Blevins transferred to Penn State from SUNY-Canton before last season but has since been a big contributor to the last two title teams.

"Their legacy will be that they've won more championships than any other class," Penn State coach Joe Battista said. "Their the first ever to win two, the first ever to win back to back and the first ever to win three national championships."

Held said this is the most fitting way he could've imagined finishing his collegiate career.

"It's always nice to win but it's even better to be put in a class all of your own," Held, an assistant captain, said. "But it's kind of bittersweet because I know I'll never play competitive hockey again."

The class actually began with five members, including Eizenman and Held.

Jamie Weston was a member of two Icer title teams until deciding to leave the program this season to become a faculty assistant in the university's engineering department.

Mike Beightol was a member of the 1998 title club and also decided to hang up the skates to concentrate on academics.

Jordan Wolfson was also on the '98 squad but transferred to Ohio State the following year.

Battista said replacing these seniors will be a tall order because of what both of them brought to the table.

"Those guys have been big parts to our success since they got here," Battista said. "The best way to describe both of them is that they were totally complete players. They had it all. They both centered one of our top lines and they both were guys I could put out to kill penalties."

"The hole they leave is a big one."

Eizenman's career numbers and achievements are nothing short of amazing. In 126 career games, the Toronto native netted 95 goals and shelled out 165 assists — second in school history — for a total of 260 points, good for fourth in the Penn State record book.

This season, Eizenman scored 19 goals and dished out 34 assists while missing 8 games due to a shoulder injury and a mysterious illness that has still gone undiagnosed.

"It's been a difficult year," Eizenman said before the ACHA tournament. "It sort of played with my mind for a while but I just tried to stay positive."

As for Eizenman's career awards, the list is endless.

He was named the ACHA rookie of the year in 1998. He has garnered first team ACHA All-American honors the past two seasons. He was also named the ACHA National Championship Tournament MVP for the second time this season.

Eizenman has also been voted the Icers' captain for two consecutive seasons.

He was also named last season's ACHA Player of the Year and won the Bob Johnson Award in recognition of his academic, athletic and extracurricular activities.

He also won a gold medal on the Israeli National Team in the 1997 Under-20 World Championships.

"Certainly Alon will be remembered as arguably the best player we've ever had," Battista said. "I certainly would put him at the top as the best all-around player we've had here."

Held's statistics may not be as impressive as his classmate's, but he still managed to average over a point a game for his career.

"Greg is no slouch of his own," Battista said. "He primarily played on the checking line his first few years and led our team in shorthanded goals a few times. He's an extraordinary penalty killer."

Held played in 120 career games, knocking in 46 goals and 80 assists.

Held was also one of four Icers to play for Team U.S.A. in the World University Games in Poland. While Held said representing your country is a once in lifetime experience, it's pales in comparison to competing with his best friends.

"I would say that winning the title was better," Held said. "Playing overseas was great but playing these last six or seven months with the guys here at Penn State was a lot better."

With their collegiate careers now over Eizenman and Held are preparing for a future that may not include hockey.

Held is on schedule to graduate after this fall's semester with a degree in psychology. He plans to either enroll in grad school to pursue a career in education or take some time off before hunting for a job.

Eizenman said while playing professional hockey has always been a dream of his, he is ready for life without skates and a stick.

"If I get the chance to play pro hockey I'll jump at it," Eizenman said. "But if not, I've already been accepted to the University of Toronto Faculty of Law Program and I plan to practice law in Toronto one day."