There will be a Penn State team in Arizona during the first week of January after all.

The Penn State ACHA Division I Icers will be looking to give head coach Joe Battista his 500th career win while extending their eight-game win streak during the Desert Classic, held Jan. 5-8 at the Alltell Ice Den in Scottsdale, Ariz.

The No. 4 Icers will face Arizona State on at 9 p.m. on Jan. 5, meet Arizona at 6 p.m. the next day and play some early hockey with Iowa State at 12:40 p.m. on Jan. 8.

"This is going to be a fun tournament," Battista said.

"It's a chance to play some teams we don't normally get to play during the regular season."

Penn State (14-4-2) has not faced No. 12 Arizona (10-3-0) since the 2001 national tournament and No. 5 Iowa State since the 2004 postseason.

However, the Icers have seen No. 11 Arizona State this season, splitting two games with the Sun Devils (6-8-0) on their home rink in State College in mid-October.

Battista currently has 499 career wins at Penn State, by far the most all-time, but said he hasn't been thinking about the approach to No. 500, preferring to remain low-key.

"It's probably a good thing it's going to happen on the road where it's not going to be a big deal," he said.

But the Icers players certainly believe the accomplishment is something worth noting.

"Yeah, we've talked about it. That's just a huge number," freshman Andrew Magulick said.

"I can't even imagine coaching a team for that long and getting that many wins. It's just an unbelievable thing that he has going."

While Battista maintains he has not given thought to the milestone win, he can't help but remember win No. 300, which ironically came in Arizona against Arizona State in 1999.

"I can't forget it. That was quite a night," Battista said.

During pregame warmups, Icers goalie John Sixt began to have trouble breathing.

With a rodeo being held in the convention center near where the ice rink was located, the Penn State coaching staff realized the connection. Sixt had an allergy to horsehair.

"Our goalie was allergic to horsehair, and he couldn't come into the locker room because it is right next to the convention hall," Battista said. "The whole warm-up, even between periods, he had to stay on the ice. He sat on the bench. Never came off. It was pretty funny."

The Icers would go on to win the game, 5-0, with Sixt getting the win in net despite his allergic reaction. But he would have to spend the next two days in the hospital.

Current Icers goalies Chris Matteo, Paul Mammola and Nick Signet can only hope that the situation does not repeat itself, other than for the win, which would give Battista the benchmark victory.

The Icers will also face the Cyclones (22-3-1) and head coach Al Murdoch, whose 837 wins are the most in ACHA history.

"I'm catching up to him," Battista said half-jokingly.

While win No. 800 may be several years down the line, current Penn State players have had No. 500 in sight for some time -- enough to ensure that they have something special planned for their coach should the win come.

"We have a couple of surprises," Magulick said, not revealing any secrets.

"We definitely have some surprises for him."

Slap Shots

A forward, a defenseman and a goalie will return to game action for the Desert Classic. Freshman forward Luke DeLorenzo (concussion) and defenseman Luke Walker (arm), both of whom have been practicing without contact for several weeks, have been cleared to play.

Walker had a cast removed from his arm this week and according to Battista, "DeLorenzo's vacation is over."

Mammola has also been cleared after an infected wart in his foot was successfully removed.

Forward Justin DePretis' status with the team remains uncertain after missing last weekend's series against Delaware as a result of what Battista called "team rules violations."