Penn State was a one trick pony that got exposed in the NCAA Hockey Tournament

No. 10/9 Penn State men's hockey's 2025-26 season ended in a desperate last-ditch effort to overcome a one-goal deficit versus No. 6/8 Minnesota-Duluth on Friday night.

The Nittany Lions pulled goaltender Josh Fleming from his net, adding an extra skater on the ice for nearly the final 1.5 minutes of regulation. With star freshman forward Gavin McKenna out there and his teammates fighting to get the puck on his stick, the seconds ticking down seemed like an inevitable death sentence.

Ultimately, the Bulldogs sunk in an empty-netter to seal Penn State's fate. Minnesota-Duluth beat the Nittany Lions 3-1.

The Bulldogs were all over the blue and white throughout Friday's game. The physical battle tested both teams and exhausted Penn State in particular. By the end of regulation, forward Aiden Fink hobbled over to the bench and the rest of the Nittany Lions ran out of gas.

As for Minnesota-Duluth goaltender Adam Gajan, losing steam wasn't an option.

The only goal Gajan allowed was nearly halfway through the first period. Forward Shea Van Olm put the first point on the board from either team, slinging the puck between Gajan's right shoulder and the post.

From thereon out, he played lights out for his Bulldogs while Fleming kept Penn State alive in the battle for as long as possible. Since Minnesota-Duluth had a slight edge in terms of aggressiveness and togetherness, though, it was only a matter of time before one of them found Fleming's weak spot or caught him off guard.

Forward Hunter Anderson did just that with roughly five minutes left in the third period.

Off a lucky bounce that allowed Anderson to keep the Bulldogs in possession of the puck in the offensive zone, he took a quick shot at Fleming. The young goaltender was a split second too late reacting to it and the puck swept right past him in the air and into the back of the net.

It wasn't game over until the final seconds ticked down, but it seemed like a pipe dream with such little time left on the clock and such little juice left in Penn State's cup.

It was clear that Minnesota-Duluth fed off Penn State's dying momentum even if it just meant keeping the Nittany Lions out of the offensive zone. The Bulldogs allowed just 13 shots on net combined in the second and third periods while putting up 30 in that same 40-minute time frame.

As energy dipped for one team, Minnesota-Duluth powered through. Penn State could not solely rely on McKenna to get the job done. By the time Fleming came out of the net at the end of the third period, feeding McKenna over and over was tiresome and it was clear no lucky bounce was coming the Nittany Lions' way.