When the No. 3 Penn State ACHA Division I Icers honor their seniors at their last home game this Friday, there will be another man sharing the spotlight.
Assistant Matt Bertani will be leaving Penn State at the conclusion of the season to pursue "other opportunities." This Friday will mark the last home game of his tenure.
"It was a real tough decision to leave the team after seeing the freshmen I came in with grow up and mature," Bertani said. "I've developed so many relationships with people on the road recruiting to where they call me with information about who to look for. I'd like to talk to the coach stepping in for me and help smooth the transition."
Bertani has been a member of the Icers' staff for the past three seasons and has helped lead the team to consecutive national championship game appearances.
"He heads up our recruiting effort and he is out on the road quite a bit, but he's still at practice every single day," head coach Scott Balboni said. "He mainly deals with the defense during the game, but he does an awful lot for us on and off the ice."
Bertani's first recruiting class includes 12 current juniors that have played an integral part in the team's success this season.
Junior Nick Signet is the Icers' No. 1 goaltender and six of the nine Icer defensemen are juniors.
Balboni said that Bertani was an "irreplaceable member of his staff" and no decision has been made to who will take his position. He added the team won't begin looking until after nationals, and that it was going to recognize him at the game Friday night.
The defense under Bertani has been stifling, as the Icers have allowed only 61 goals in 38 games this season.
While defense has been his specialty, Bertani has also impacted the Icers' leading scorer Luke DeLorenzo.
"I've known coach Bertani since I was 12 because he worked at the rink I used to skate at," DeLorenzo said. "He gave me free lessons at stick time when I was younger, and he's been a big influence on different skills I've been able to develop."
After legendary Penn State coach Joe Battista retired two years ago, Balboni said he couldn't have asked for a better assistant in his first year at the helm.
