The Penn State hockey team will have a chance to gain some national recognition in the first game of the 2024-25 season schedule, announced Wednesday. Nittany Lions On Thursday, December 12th, the team will take part in the inaugural Capital Hockey Classic in Washington, DC, along with the United States Military Academy at West Point and the United States Naval Academy.
Who will be taking part in the Capital Hockey Classic?
The Capital Hockey Classic is part of a packed weekend in the Washington, DC area, culminating with the Army vs. Navy football game on Saturday, Dec. 14 at Commander's Field.
The first game of the doubleheader event will be between the Army and Navy club hockey teams, followed by Penn State's hockey team taking on the Nittany Lions and Army's D1 programs to headline the evening's action.
The Penn State hockey team will face Army for the second straight year. A stunning comeback victory of 7-6 The game took place at Pegula Ice Arena last season, and the Nittany Lions have a 4-0-0 record all-time against the Black Knights.
“It's truly an honor to be a part of the inaugural Capital Hockey Classic. The Army-Navy football game is an annual highlight and adding a hockey component to this special weekend is a great opportunity,” said head coach Guy Gadowsky. Wednesday's announcement.
Penn State is looking to rely on its alumni support
© John Melshitz/USA TODAY Network
Penn State has a history of drawing large fanbases in every major city on the East Coast, and no matter the sport, Penn State alumni always draw large crowds in New York, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. Head coach Guy Gadowsky has invited his extensive network of Penn State alumni to come out and cheer on the team for a special weekend.
“We're excited to expand the Hockey Valley community into the DMV area, an area we haven't visited in our short history but where we have a large alumni base,” Gadowsky said. “We know there's a lot of support for the Blue and White in D.C., and we are!”
This won't be the first time the Penn State team has played a neutral-site game in the Washington, D.C., area. In 2010, Nittany Lions Football The program took on the Indiana University Hoosiers at FedExField, and while the game was technically a compensation for Indiana University moving to a neutral site, the crowd reaction made it a Penn State home game.
Penn State's hockey team already has a history of playing games at neutral sites in major cities. The Nittany Lions have participated in multiple games in Philadelphia against teams like Vermont and Princeton. The team also traveled to Nashville in 2021, where it defeated No. 6-ranked North Dakota, 6-4, in the USA Hockey Hall of Fame Game.
Pennsylvania State University also Traveled to nearby Allentown for the NCAA Tournament.Regional tournaments will be held this season as well.
These types of games are crucial for a young program. Gadowsky wants to continue expanding Penn State hockey's influence along the East Coast. The growing brand needs neutral-site games like this to gain exposure for future recruiting efforts. Southern Pennsylvania does not have a single NCAA D1 hockey team.
So a game like this in the DMV could give the Penn State hockey team an edge over some of the area's top newcomers. With hockey's popularity growing in the South, this could be the next step for the Nittany Lions to reach the next level and finally make it to the Frozen Four.
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