The leading scorer on the Penn State ACHA Division I Icers has 22 points. The goaltender with the best goals-against average (GAA) is at 0.52 goals per game.
They are both freshmen.
Forward Tim O'Brien is tied for the points lead after gaining two assists and a goal over the weekend, while goaltender Teddy Hume continued to impress giving up one goal on 25 shots Saturday afternoon.
The Icers have been decimated this season by injuries affecting many veterans, but haven't faltered because of strong play from freshmen and sophomores.
This past weekend was a prime example of the younger players stepping up their games to counter the plethora of injuries.
O'Brien scored the first goal Friday night, which turned out to be the game-winner, and had two assists in Saturday's game. Hume pitched a shutout until the final minute Saturday to cap the weekend sweep of No. 6 Delaware, 4-1.
Hume also retained the ACHA lead in GAA for all goalies who have played more than two games.
With the injuries, other freshmen and sophomores saw more ice time and didn't waste the opportunity.
Freshman defenseman Carey Bell got his first collegiate goal Friday, freshman forward Chris Pronchik got his first point with an assist Saturday and sophomores John Conte and Dave Herel added to their point totals with a goal and an assist, respectively.
It would be easy to think the No. 2 Icers may struggle with veteran players injured, but in their last 12 games, the Icers are 11-0-1, outscoring their opponents 60-13. Penn State has four shutouts in that time, and in six other games, its opponents scored only once.
If the players didn't wear numbers on their backs it would be hard to tell who was a four-year starter and who was taking his first collegiate shift.
Despite being new to the team, the younger players haven't seemed confused with the way coach Scott Balboni runs things. They are all well-adjusted in the systems, and are in the right place at the right time.
Many younger players have been getting plenty of ice time because of their ability to adapt to the systems and play at the level of a veteran.
"We have a 90-page playbook and throw it at all the freshmen coming in," Balboni said. "I've been most impressed by their physical and mental ability to pick our systems up at the collegiate level."
But even when the freshmen and sophomores aren't scoring, their impact is being felt on the defensive end.
This past weekend saw the Icers play better on the penalty kill than in weeks past, as they scored a short-handed goal and gave up only one late power-play goal when the game was well in hand. Delaware ended the weekend 1-for-11 on the power play.
Balboni said he was pleased with how the young players stepped up and showed that they could play at the collegiate level.
"Other than the speed being a little faster it isn't that much different," O'Brien said of the differences between college and high school hockey. "With a bunch of older leadership guys down, it was important for us to play well, and after we got the flow of things down we didn't have a problem."
It's amazing that Penn State is deep enough to change lines around because of injuries and still have no problem beating the No. 6 team in the country. It allows them to rest those who are banged up and not worry about bringing them back until they are 100 percent.
Balboni has done a great recruiting job in the two years since taking over for Penn State coaching legend Joe Battista. In his first season as coach last year, Balboni and the Icers made the national championship game.
With all the youth and talent being assembled, the Icers will remain an ACHA powerhouse after their veteran leadership graduates.
Kevin Zitzman is a junior majoring in Journalism and is a Collegian Icers writer. His e-mail address is kmz5010@psu.edu
