W: Penn State 3 at Vermont 3

Box score // Penn State recap // Vermont recap

Victory Bell Rings recap // Vermont highlights // Penn State photos

An opening tie this year matched up against an opening win last year? Please don't think of it that way.

The simple reality of the situation is this: that historic NCAA-era opening win against Vermont was an outlier. Penn State managed five goals in that contest, then didn't score more than three in a game over the rest of the season other than against NCAA Division III Chatham and Sacred Heart, a DI team in name only.

While it's impossible to project things over all of 2013-2014 based on a single evening, right now, the Nittany Lions look like a much better team than a year ago. The signs are everywhere.

After a scoreless first period, Penn State took a 1-0 lead 6:28 into the second period just nine seconds into Sarah Kelly's hooking penalty. On the play, Shannon Yoxheimer threw the puck up to Jordin Pardoski at the point. The newly-minted alternate captain bombed UVM goalie Roxanne Douville with her heavy shot, and while Douville did make the save, the puck wound up behind her and just in front of the goal line for several agonizing seconds. Enter freshman defender Kelly Seward, the first to see the loose biscuit, and therefore the first goal scorer for Penn State this year.

It was a rather important power play goal for a team that only scored 17 of them all last season.

On the other side of the ledger, a PSU penalty kill that allowed opposing tallies 23.4 percent of the time last season went into lockdown mode. An early too many players on the ice call against the Lions went unpunished. As did two tripping calls, two checking calls, an interference call and an elbowing call over the first 40 minutes. The Catamounts did eventually solve the PK unit, on a Brittany Zuback rebound goal off of Amanda Pelkey's hybrid centering pass-shot that gave UVM a 3-2 lead with 4:04 remaining in regulation. Nevertheless, things could have gone much worse in that department.

But that leads us to something else that feels different this season. The Nittany Lions were always a resilient bunch, but didn't always have the horsepower to make that trait pay off with goals. It looks as if they do now. Just 27 seconds after Zuback scored that go-ahead goal, Yoxheimer took Lindsay Reihl's pass, powered down left wing, then sniped over Douville's shoulder. Earlier, after Pelkey's spectacular one-on-one goal gave Vermont a 2-1 lead a couple minutes into the third period, Gross provided a quick answer. Yoxheimer again started that play down left wing, and centered to the blue paint. Douville stopped Gross' initial shot, but after some persistence and a survived video review, the score was tied for the third of four times.

There was plenty of the familiar. Yoxheimer had a three-point evening and tied for the team high with four shots. Gross also had four shots and was perpetually dangerous. Nicole Paniccia was her usual spectacular self in making 35 stops. Emily Laurenzi, Sarah Wilkie and Birdie Shaw all played their roles particularly well this time out.

At the same time and as expected, freshmen Laura Bowman and Amy Petersen paired up to play in just about every situation and offered the promise of a second consistent scoring line. Sarah Nielsen, another first-year player, stepped in between Yoxheimer and Gross seamlessly. Seward had her goal, but also showed how her length will limit the opposition's trips to the middle of the ice this season.

So yeah, it was a tie. But right now, it feels like a win, because it looks like plenty of the sort of victories that count towards the season record are about to follow.

Here's the live blog from a wild evening in Burlington:

 

Women's Jersey Countdown: #12 Sarah Nielsen

Freshman - Forward - 5'6" - Edina, MN

While Penn State's 2013-14 freshman class, which numbers only four, isn't nearly as massive as the 2011-12 and 2012-13 transitional groups, it's tough to beat on excitement and potential. Unexpectedly, Minnesota has become rich territory for the Nittany Lions, as some of the best players on the best high school teams in the state are making their way to Hockey Valley. One such player is Sarah Nielsen from Edina, who will join former rivals Laura Bowman and Amy Petersen of Minnetonka (as well as sophomore Paige Jahnke, who won a state title at Roseville) on this year's squad. Nielsen, in all four years of high school, was one of the top scorers on a Hornets team that was twice the state big-school runners-up (2010 and 2011) and thrice the Section 2AA champs (2010, 2011 and 2012), but she has also received raves for her two-way play. The four-time all-conference selection and 2011 state all-tournament selection may be a key contributor from day one.

Career Statistics (with Edina High School):
Season	GP	G	A	Pts.	PIM	PP	SH	GW	GT
2009-10	30	13	19	32	6	-	0	-	-
2010-11	31	17	33	50	20	-	1	5	-
2011-12	31	14	30	44	20	-	0	5	-
2012-13	28	14	23	37	38	0	2	4	-
HS Career	120	58	105	163	84	0	3	14	-

2013-14 Women's Roster Released

Blueliner Lindsay Reihl, now a graduate student, returns to help lead PSU into Pegula Ice Arena

Penn State has posted its 2013-2014 women's roster on GoPSUSports.com. Without further delay, here it is:

No	Name	Pos	Yr	Ht	Hometown	Last Team
2	Jeanette Bateman	D	So.	5'6"	Greeley, CO	Colorado Select
3	Cara Mendelson	F	Jr.	5'6"	Pittsburgh, PA	Steel City Selects
4	Jordin Pardoski	D	So.	5'5"	Rochester Hills, MI	Honeybaked
5	Stephanie Walkom	D	So.	5'7"	Moon Twp., PA	Pgh. Penguins Elite
6	Lindsay Reihl	D	Gr.	5'4"	Cheshire, CT	CT Polar Bears
9	Amy Petersen	F	Fr.	5'4"	Minnetonka, MN	Minnetonka HS
10	Micayla Catanzariti	F	So.	5'4"	Rancho Santa Margarita, CA	Gilmour Academy
12	Sarah Nielsen	F	Fr.	5'6"	Edina, MN	Edina HS
13	Kendra Rasmussen	F	So.	5'5"	Sartell, MN	Sartell/Sauk Rapids HS
14	Darby Kern	F	So.	5'11"	Venetia, PA	Pgh. Penguins Elite
15	Jess Desorcie	F	Jr.	5'4"	Westford, VT	Connecticut College
16	Hannah Hoenshell	F	So.	5'3"	Plano, TX	Alliance Bulldogs
17	Paige Jahnke	D	So.	5'6"	Oakdale, MN	Roseville HS
18	Laura Bowman	F	Fr.	5'7"	Minnetonka, MN	Minnetonka HS
19	Jill Holdcroft	F	So.	5'1"	Pa. Furnace, PA	Pgh. Penguins Elite
20	Emily Laurenzi	F	So.	5'2"	Townsend, DE	Nat'l Sports Academy
21	Sarah Wilkie	D	So.	5'6"	Ashby, MA	Williston N'hampton
22	Jenna Welch	F	Sr.	5'8"	Austin, TX	Connecticut
23	Birdie Shaw	F	So.	5'2"	Troy, MI	Honeybaked
24	Taylor Gross	F	Sr.	5'1"	Colorado Springs, CO	Connecticut
25	Katie Murphy	F	Jr.	5'4"	Novi, MI	Honeybaked
27	Kelly Seward	D	Fr.	5'9"	Williamsville, NY	Nichols School
30	Celine Whitlinger	G	So.	5'8"	Garden Grove, CA	Gilmour Academy
31	Brooke Meyer	G	So.	5'7"	Naperville, IL	Chicago Huskies
33	Madison Smiddy	D	Jr.	5'7"	Grand Rapids, MI	Honeybaked
36	Tess Weaver	F	Jr.	5'5"	Windber, PA	Pgh. Penguins Elite
37	Nicole Paniccia	G	Sr.	5'5"	Oakville, ON	Connecticut
40	Shannon Yoxheimer	F	So.	5'7"	Jackson, MI	NAHA

The primary news items with any roster release, of course, are the comings and goings and this roster confirms that forward Katie Zinn and defender Taylor McGee have both left the program after their freshman seasons. McGee, who arrived at PSU from Taft School, was sidelined with a concussion for a chunk of the season but was still generally a solid regular when healthy, playing in 23 games and collecting a pair of assists. Zinn, a Coquitlam, BC native, is probably the less surprising of the two departures. She played in 12 games and scored once with three assists, but ended the season on an undisclosed suspension and last played in a 2-1 loss at Union on January 12th, missing PSU's final 13 games.

Josh Brandwene's recruiting class remains at the four - Kelly Seward, Sarah Nielsen, and Minnetonka High School linemates and three-time state champions Laura Bowman and Amy Petersen - officially announced back in November and tracked here over the last year-plus. Just to refresh things, here is a post including observations on Seward after watching her at USA Hockey nationals with the Buffalo Bisons in April, another covering Bowman and Petersen's most recent Minnesota AA title in February, and one reporting Nielsen's initial commitment last August.

Buffalo-area native Kelly Seward is a key part of an outstanding freshman class

Also, here are the quotes from PSU's fall National Letter of Intent signing release, including Brandwene on each player, and each player on Penn State.

Bowman on PSU: "I chose Penn State because I was impressed with the school of science and research opportunities. I love the atmosphere that I feel there and the campus is exactly what I imagined my college would look like. I can't wait to become part of the Penn State family and I'm looking forward to making history in the new Pegula Ice Arena."

Brandwene on Bowman: "Laura is the total package of skill, speed, height and tenacity. She is equal parts scorer, play-maker and outstanding penalty killer. Laura plays terrific hockey at both ends of the ice and she will have immediate impact."

Petersen on PSU: "I chose Penn State for both the athletic and academic options that it has to offer."

Brandwene on Petersen: "Amy defines what it means to be a clutch scorer. Her consistent play, her intensity, and her knack for big game performances are what caught our eye. She's fun to watch and will be an immediate presence in our lineup next year."

Seward on PSU: "After visiting many college campuses, I feel that Penn State is a great school to attend. Even though it is a huge campus, it has a small-school feel. It is the perfect fit for me."

Brandwene on Seward: "I am very impressed with Kelly's consistency and well-rounded game. She possesses great height, strength, foot speed, on-ice vision and puck distribution skills, complemented by a terrific point shot. She'll be a defensive force for us."

Nielsen on PSU: "I fell in love with Penn State because of the coaching staff, their team-first philosophy and type of hockey tradition they're trying to build. I also loved the beautiful campus and college town feel."

Brandwene on Nielsen: "Sarah is a fantastic two-way forward with an outstanding hockey IQ, and impressive maturity and poise. She has skill, strength, a positive attitude, and tremendous work ethic. Sarah will be a difference-maker for us at both ends of the ice."

With the four freshmen and three departures (outgoing senior Kate Christoffersen being the third, of course), the Nittany Lions' roster for the inaugural season at Pegula Ice Arena now sits at 28: 17 forwards, eight defenders and three goaltenders.

Three Stars: January 21-27

Laura Bowman (white) is part of a rapidly-growing Minnesota pipeline.

3. Weekend Recap: Spartans split with Penn State
(The Munn Minute)

I occasionally break my "no recap-ish stuff" rule for stuff from FoTYT IcersGuy and Mary Clarke, so I figured I could do it for The Munn Minute as well. Sometimes it's interesting to get an opposing perspective on your big moments, like Saturday's win at Michigan State.

Some people might call it the low point in the season, but I guess we'll have to see. You can't really sugarcoat this, MSU shouldn't lose to Penn State - even with the season the Spartans have been having this year. Heck, the Spartans won Friday without two of their three leading scorers. With that said, Penn State wasn't going to make it easy. They did beat Ohio State earlier in the year, and they rallied a couple of times this weekend to make MSU work for it. The Spartans had a 2-0 lead disappear on Friday as well as a 3-2 lead.

2. Trio Flourishing for Nittany Lions
(PSU ComMedia)

The latest in a series of outstanding Ross Insana features on the women's team - this one hits on the team's top line of Yox, Descoresie and... Gross. I need to come up with a nickname for her.

1. Lake Conference girls' hockey rivals to unite
(Minneapolis Star Tribune)

Because I missed Women's Commit Cycle last week (the latest of about 60 plans is to get it out this week, then stagger them going forward to spread out the agony of doing them), I didn't get to share this great piece on women's signees Amy Petersen, Laura Bowman and Sarah Nielsen. So I'm fixing that.

"Laura and I knew of each others' [college] options, but we came to our decision to go to Penn State on our own," Petersen said. "It was pretty cool when we told each other that we had decided to go there. We'll have the chance to make our own traditions and write our own history."

The independent decisions of Petersen and Bowman weren't lost on Nielsen.

"I had been thinking about Penn State and a few other schools, but when I heard that they committed there, I thought, 'This could be a really good thing,'" Nielsen said. "I respect them so much that I knew I wanted to be a part of it when I heard they were going there."

Best of the Rest



Bo Pellah Goal on Jan 16th 2013
(YouTube)

Speaking of Commit Cycle, this goal by 2014 defenseman Bo Pellah was mentioned in last week's men's post, but before we had the available video to go with it.

Club teams faring well against NCAA hockey this year
(Arizona Daily Wildcat)

The ACHA is a respectable 4-5-0 against the NCAA, according to this article. I'm not entirely sure that's accurate: Alabama-Huntsville beat Alabama twice, Vanderbilt once and Oklahoma twice, while PSU beat Arizona State once. So that's six NCAA-over-ACHA games right off the top of my head. Fair to include ACHA D3s in that calculation? Not really, but I didn't come up with the parameters. Regardless, ACHA hockey is good hockey, remember that kids.

Jack Ham on Tomahawks: ‘I’m glad to be involved’
(Johnstown Tribune-Democrat)

PSU football legend Jack Ham is a minority owner of the NAHL's first-year Johnstown Tomahawks (as is Shane Conlan, another product of Linebacker U). Here's a nice story on the former Pittsburgh Steeler's ties to the junior hockey team, which will honor him with a bobblehead on Thursday night.

@BattistaJoseph
(Twitter)

Joe Battista has had this Twitter account for a while, but he finally started using it this past weekend, in order, among other things, toss up a photo of himself with former Icers player and assistant coach Andrew Strasser in front of the Munn Ice Arena scoreboard.

VIDEO: Soldier Field Begins Transition to Hockey Rink
(Bucky's 5th Quarter)

Remember obsessing over a similar video taken at Citizens Bank Park about 13.5 months ago? Those were good times. The Miami-Notre Dame, Minnesota-Wisconsin doubleheader at Soldier Field will be played on February 17th.

LVC ice hockey survives the conditions, but fall to Delaware 6-2 in Outdoor Classic
(Stack the Pads)

Speaking of outdoor hockey, ACHA D1's Lebanon Valley College and Delaware took advantage of the ice installed at HersheyPark Stadium for an AHL game between Hershey and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last week.

Williamsport minor league hockey team folds
(PennLive)

Finally, one of the more intriguing stories in Pennsylvania hockey came to a premature end as the Williamsport Outlaws of the Federal Hockey League suspended operations about six weeks before the end of their first season in the Little League capital. The "intriguing" part stems from the fact that they attempted to play all of their home games outside at Bowman Field, which usually hosts baseball's Williamsport Crosscutters. As it turned out, they made it through all but one of those games, which were frontloaded relative to the season as a whole to account for the start of baseball season.

Three Stars: November 12-18

While Heather Rossi (30) is out of eligibility and Allie Rothman (20) will join her by the time it happens (if it happens), it's possible that we haven't seen the last of the heated PSU-URI women's rivalry.

3. Zamboni driver Chuck VanDyke earns respect
(The Daily Collegian)

Hey, it's Chuck. No further explanation needed.

2. @Buccigross
(Twitter)

While John Buccigross and Tim Horton's are easily the two most overrated things in the hockey world, I'm a big fan of this tweet:

#cawlidgehawkey players come from 39 states. Top 7 Minnesota 182 Michigan – 131 Mass– 103 NY – 86 PA – 69 Illinois – 66 California – 59

Yep, the Big Three, New York (which I believe should apply for provisional membership in a Big Four for reasons beyond player counts), then Pennsylvania.

1. College Hockey: Atlantic Hockey Association expansion talks targeting pair of New England schools
(SB Nation Boston)

Arguably the biggest news in college hockey this week was the discovery that Atlantic Hockey has held at least preliminary discussions with four schools about joining. One, somewhat obviously, is NCAA Division I independent Alabama-Huntsville. The others are ACHA D1ers Rhode Island and Navy, and NCAA DIII's St. Anselm.

Other than the nostalgia involved with two former ESCHL rivals of the Icers potentially making the jump, there's actually a very significant Penn State tie-in, related to the presence of women's programs at a couple of the schools, and their likely conference destination should this all play out.

"We have met and the ball is in their court right now," said conference commissioner Bob DeGregorio [about St. Anselm]. "They would make a great addition to the league. They have a great facility and tradition. The women’s program would also be a great addition to [College Hockey America]."

URI, based in Kingston, has formed a committee to look at costs associated with moving both genders of hockey to the Division I level and is interested in the move, despite understanding the commitment that would be needed financially. The Rams currently run one of the finest American Collegiate Hockey Association club teams in the nation and would a very formidable contender.

Tip of the hat to Joshua Kummins, the only writer (of those I read) to pick up on the women's angle to the story. While his focus is New England (see the "Boston" part of "SB Nation Boston"), it should be noted that Navy could also elevate a women's program. UAH, on the other hand, already has its men's program in DI, is (I'm assuming) Title IX compliant, and can barely afford to keep things going as is. So...yeah, they probably won't be adding a women's program and joining the CHA.

Of course, then there's the whole Maryland/Rutgers thing...see you next week for that, if the rumors are in fact true.

Best of the Rest

11 Edina Seniors Ink College Letters of Intent
(Edina Patch)

Something pretty cool about this photo from an NLI signing event at Edina High School in Minnesota last Wednesday: not only is new women's hockey signee Sarah Nielsen included (far left), but so is Nittany Lions basketball recruit Graham Woodward (the other PSU shirt, obviously).

Hockey People are Just a Different Breed
(statecollege.com)

Joe Battista's column once again took a hockey angle and once again is a solid read. Also, Rob Freaking Shaner.

Alaska losing scholarship in ’13 and ’14 due to NCAA infractions
(USCHO)

Fairbanks self-reported and self-punished on a not-all-that-serious infraction that wasn't even specific to hockey. So...nothing to see here? Not so fast.

The issue, it's reported, is still open with the NCAA, so look for Mark Emmert to pin the whole thing on Guy Gadowsky, due to the coach's previous tenure at UAF. While Gadowsky left for Princeton in 2004, three years before the period in question, it takes 15 seconds to look that up on the internet and the NCAA doesn't conduct investigations anymore. The result: Penn State hockey will be hit with a postseason ban and a loss of scholarships.

Western Collegiate Hockey League To Begin Play In 2013-2014 With Six Teams
(achahockey.org)

Scheduling is always an issue for the ACHA teams based in the western United States, so it's nice to see the D1s out there band together now that there are enough of them to do so. Arizona, Arizona State, Oklahoma and Central Oklahoma will join newly-promoted Colorado and Colorado State in the WCHL next year.

I was going to drop in a #nofilter, but it looks like Mr. Insana used one.

rinsana11
(Instagram)

As the parade of people who aren't me continues through the PIA, I'll dial back the bitter and share what they share whenever it pops up.

Comment Corner: College hockey at the quarter pole
(Jamestown Sun)

A writer based in North Dakota said:

The fledgling Penn State men’s hockey program also deserves some credit. Playing this year as an independent and preparing to join the new Big 10 Hockey Conference next season, PSU has put together a 6-3 record while playing a decent schedule.

What's the news there? Re-read the first six words of the entry.

Stopping Predators - Its All of Our Responsibilities
(juniorhockey.com)

The name of Jerry Sandusky is all to familiar to the public following the trail and downfall of one of the most respected football programs in America. Sandusky's predatory behavior has forever changed the way we think about Penn State and Joe Paterno. Organizations like Penn State and their administration were so intent and embarrassed about what allegations of sexual inappropriate behavior would do to their programs that they either looked the other way or even shielded Sandusky. The program and reputations are tarnished.

Thoughts, Coach Serratore?

Two CHA Newcomers Meet This Weekend At Lindenwood Ice Arena
(lindenwoodlions.com)

For all of their scorekeeping and broadcast production issues over the weekend, I was a big fan of Lindenwood's game notes ahead of the series with the women's team.

Lindenwood and Penn State are meeting for the first time as NCAA members. The two teams met six times during their time in the ACHA, and Lindenwood won all six contests.

How did the Penn State side handle that information?

The Nittany Lions and Lindenwood meet for the first time in women's hockey

This would be hilarious, but for the fact that it really isn't.

The contrasts between PSU and Lindenwood are striking in that department, despite the similarities in the transitions of the two programs. LU's ACHA results are available on their official website. Their media guide has an all-time game-by-game for the ACHA years, ACHA record holders, ACHA All-Americans, team photos of their ACHA national champions and, for their current players who played in the ACHA, an appropriate level of biographical information for those seasons.

In Penn State's version, the "club team" - remember when we used to hate that label? - is grudgingly mentioned on the player pages of those who played for the Lady Icers (curiously, under the heading "Before Penn State," as if the ACHA doesn't even count as playing for Penn State). And really, it only appears at all because it's impossible to explain what Lindsay Reihl's been doing for the three years previous to the current season without including it. Once the Lady Icers have graduated, I wouldn't be surprised if they take every media guide mention with them.

Who's to blame? I wish I knew, so that I could yell at them directly. In the meantime, all I can do is keep complaining while hoping it resonates with someone who has the ability to do something about it.

Women's Signing Class Announced

New PSU signees Amy Petersen (second from left) and Laura Bowman (fourth from left) at a signing event at Minnetonka High School Wednesday morning as the NCAA's early NLI period opened.

With the NCAA's early National Letter of Intent signing period opening today, Penn State has made official the second-ever NCAA signing class for the women's progam.

Given that we've already been tracking three of the four announced players for months, the release is more confirmation than news, so I'll direct you to previous posts written at the time of commitment for more on those players.

Minnetonka (MN) HS F Amy Petersen
Minnetonka (MN) HS F Laura Bowman
Edina (MN) HS F Sarah Nielsen

The fourth player is Buffalo-area native Kelly Seward, a blueliner who looks to add some much-needed presence to the Nittany Lions' back end. Here's what the PSU release said about her:

---

Kelly Seward
Defense // 5-9 // Left // Williamsville, N.Y. // Nichols School/Buffalo Bisons

Before Penn State: Has played for the Nichols School since 2009 and the Buffalo Bisons club team since 2010...With Nichols, helped lead the team to the 2009-10 and 2011-12 North American Prep Hockey Association league titles, while also leading the 2011-12 squad to the Conference of Independent Schools Athletic Association title...Served as team captain in 2011-12 and 2012-13...Invited to two USA Hockey Developmental camps in 2009 and 2011...Guided the Bisons to the New York state championships in 2010 as 14U, 2011 as 19U and 2012 as 16U...The 2011-12 16U squad earned runner-up honors at the national tournament.

Personal: Kelly Cecelia Seward was born June 7, 1995 in Buffalo, N.Y. to Mark and Jacqueline Seward...Has two older siblings, Meghan and David, who plays for the Buffalo Junior Sabres of the Ontario Junior Hockey League.

Quoting Seward on Penn State: "After visiting many college campuses, I feel that Penn State is a great school to attend. Even though it is a huge campus, it has a small-school feel. It is the perfect fit for me."

Quoting Coach Brandwene on Seward: "I am very impressed with Kelly's consistency and well-rounded game. She possesses great height, strength, foot speed, on-ice vision and puck distribution skills, complemented by a terrific point shot. She'll be a defensive force for us."

---

The "W Current Commitments" page has been updated to include Seward, as well as signing date and new biographical information for all four players. Of course, all will be tracked throughout this season via the Commit Cycle series.

Nielsen Joins Rivals in Women's 2013 Class

According to USCHO poster "Hux", who maintains the only comprehensive women's commit list out there to the best of my knowledge, Edina High School senior Sarah Nielsen will be Penn State-bound in 2013. While I'm not thrilled about pinning my credibility to something from a message board, given the nature of the "coverage" of women's recruiting, this might be the last anyone hears of it until PSU's signing-period press release. So I'm running with it, and asking for forgiveness in advance if it blows up.

Sarah Nielsen

Forward
Edina (MN) High School
Height unknown
Edina, MN
DOB unknown

MNgirlshockeyhub.com Edina HS page

Season   Team                   Lge    GP    G    A  Pts  PIM
-------------------------------------------------------------
2009-10  Edina HS               MN-HS  30   13   19   32    6  
2010-11  Edina HS               MN-HS  31   17   33   50   20
2011-12  Edina HS               MN-HS  31   14   30   44   20

The prolific scorer has been one of the offensive leaders for one of the giants of Minnesota hockey for the last three seasons - she was fourth on the team in points as a freshman before jumping to third as a sophomore and first as a junior. Not bad, considering the 2011-2012 version of Edina had commits to New Hampshire (Megan Armstrong), Yale (Ali Austin) and Union (Lizzy Otten and Maddie Dahl...okay, Dahl is a goalie...still).

While it would easy to talk about five-point efforts against overmatched opponents like Eastview and Blake, the more important takeaway from Nielsen's game log is that she consistently produces against top-flight competition and in big games. Through three section playoff games and one state tournament game last year, she had 10 points in the four Edina wins, and never had less than two in any one game. The Hornets' offense ground to a screeching halt at that point in a semifinal loss, although Nielsen did manage three of her team's 19 shots on goal and won 19 of her 27 faceoffs. In the 2011 state tournament, Nielsen had 11 points in 6 games as Edina made the championship game.

In June, she was picked for the Minnesota High School Junior Festival, helping her team to wins in four of its five games.

Here's video of Nielsen calmly depositing a breakaway winner against Warroad on December 4, 2010. Undoubtedly, if Zac Efron saw that, he'd be impressed. While another video out there is labeled "Buzzer beater goal for Edina's Sarah Nielsen," it appears as if it's actually Armstrong scoring the goal with Nielsen winning the draw to make it possible. Faceoffs, of course, are a vital part of the game, and from the available data (the stat is only kept for state tournament games), all indications are that she is an ace on the dot.

Edina's Nielsen (left) and fellow 2013 commit Bowman (right), of Minnetonka, frequently face off in important games.

Connections between recruits are inevitable, especially in tight-knit women's hockey circles and especially when recruiting in the same areas. But Nielsen shares a rather unfortunate - from her point of view, anyway - connection with three current and future Penn Staters, as they've helped to end her last three seasons short of a state title. In the 2011 Minnesota AA championship game, Nielsen assisted on both Edina goals, but she was outdone by fellow 2013 commits Amy Petersen (two goals, one assist, including the late winning tally) and Laura Bowman (two assists) in a 3-2 Minnetonka win. One year later, and one round earlier, PSU freshman Paige Jahnke and her Roseville teammates executed a shut-down defensive effort in a 4-1 defeat of the Hornets. In 2010, Roseville defeated Edina in the state title game, but Jahnke didn't play in that one, according to a box score.

If you can't beat them, join them, as the saying goes. Then again, before joining them, I'm sure Nielsen wouldn't mind finally getting the best of Minnetonka and her two future teammates in a state tournament game as a senior this year.

To be sure though, Nielsen had already joined players like Bowman, Petersen and freshman forward Kendra Rasmussen a while ago in many respects. They're all big-time forwards from the Minnesota high school circuit with big-time numbers. Nielsen, Bowman, Petersen and Jahnke were also all selections to the Upper Midwest High School Elite League last year. Now, they'll team up to form a key part of Penn State's early NCAA teams.