No. 5 Penn State men's hockey head coach Guy Gadowsky gave a saddening injury update on star forward Charlie Cerrato. During Tuesday's weekly press conference, Gadowsky informed media that Cerrato will miss the rest of the 2025-26 regular season, according to Nittany Sports Now.
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Cerrato's injury remains undisclosed, but Gadowsky added that he is hopeful the sophomore can return for the postseason, specifically in the NCAA Tournament after conference championships conclude. The forward sustained his injury four minutes into the Nittany Lions' contest against Minnesota on Jan. 9.
Guy Gadowsky announced today that Penn State Hockey star Charlie Cerrato will miss the remainder of the regular season.
— Basic Blues Nation (@BasicBlues) January 28, 2026
The sophomore forward has missed the past few games with an injury and is still currently 4th on the team with 24 points and tied for 1st with 1.3 points per… pic.twitter.com/RFdeCIoNdV
Forward Charlie Cerrato reportedly missing remainder of Penn State hockey's regular season due to injury
Cerrato logged 24 points on six goals and 18 assists over 19 games in 2025-26 and finished plus-three before being ruled out with injury. As a freshman in 2024-25, he had 15 goals and 27 assists for a total 42 points over 38 matchups. Over his two seasons, Cerrato has a 0.146 shooting percentage and 33 blocks as well (25 as a freshman, eight as a sophomore).
In 2025-26, he had his best performance on Oct. 3 at Arizona State. The Nittany Lions won 6-3 and Cerrato had five points on two goals and three assists. One of his goals came on a power play as well.
Penn State most recently upset No. 8 Wisconsin without Cerrato. The Badgers were ranked fifth in the country at the time and the Nittany Lions were eighth. The two teams swapped rankings after the blue and white's sweep.
Cerrato will miss the team's outdoor contest debut as well. On Saturday, Jan. 31, Penn State men's hockey takes the ice outside at Beaver Stadium. The women's team plays Friday afternoon at 1 p.m. and the men's team plays at the same time on the following day.
The Nittany Lions seek an upset over No. 2 Michigan State. They face the Spartans on Friday night for the opening game of the series, then hope to pull out a win at Beaver Stadium to finish the series off on a high note.