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2025-26 Penn State Nittany Lions

ZedLeppellin

ZedLeppellin

Member
Looking ahead to 2025-26, the Penn State roster doesn't look a whole lot different from this year, as far as number of players by position. Three forwards (Alyssa Machado, Brianna Brooks, and Tiffany Hill) are gone, and two freshman forwards are coming in. On defense, two defenders (Karley Garcia and Lyndie Lobdell) are gone, and three freshman defenders are coming in.
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The defense will have four full lines, if everyone stays healthy. Seniors Kendall Butze and Leah Stecker will be leading a very young defense, so that's going to be something to really work on.

Leah Stecker
Kendall Butze
Karolina Hengelmuller
Grace Tullock
Taya Macdonald
(Freshman) Danica Maynard -- (Kelowna Prep/Team Canada U18)
(Freshman) Shelby Shane -- (Philly Jr. Flyers)
(Freshman) Sophie Morrow -- (Shattuck-St. Mary's)
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The offense will have three full lines plus two, and all returners except for two freshman forwards. They will be led by seniors Tessa Janecke, Maddy Christian, and Katelyn Roberts, and grad student Mya Vaslet. That's a solid core of forwards.

Tessa Janecke
Mya Vaslet
Katelyn Roberts
Maddy Christian
Grace Outwater
Abby Stonehouse
Mackenna Walsh
Stella Retrum
Nicole Hall
(Freshman) Mikah Keller -- (NAHA)
(Freshman) Matilde Fantin -- (HC Lugano/Italy U18/Italy National Team)
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At goalie, Annie Spring and Lauren Barbro are gone. For 2025-26, the goalies will be led by senior Katie DeSa, with two incoming freshman goalies.

Katie DeSa
Madison Campbell (Durham West Jr. Lightning)
Lauren Hernick (Philly Jr. Flyers)
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If there's a question mark, it would be at goalie. As long as senior Katie DeSa stays healthy, Penn State is fine; otherwise, it's a choice between two freshman goalies. Jeff Kampersal wouldn't be out recruiting practice goalies, so the two freshman must have shown him some talent.

Overall, I'm excited for 2025-26, and I really look forward to seeing what these freshmen bring to the Penn State program. It's a pretty international roster, too, with American, Canadian, Swedish, Austrian, and Italian players...that's kind of cool. Transfers are always a possibility, too, so I'm really looking forward to seeing what Penn State looks like five or six months from now.
 
Zed with a write up like that, you clearly were not ready for the season to be over. That is some in depth analysis! This is the end of an extra year of eligibility.
 
Reddington said:
Zed with a write up like that, you clearly were not ready for the season to be over. That is some in depth analysis! This is the end of an extra year of eligibility.
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I definitely wasn't ready for the season to be over, but you have to be happy with a 31-6-1 record and a three-peat of the conference championship. Jeff Kampersal has this program moving in the right direction.
 
Okay, this isn't Penn State-related, but it's AHA: Mercyhurst's Thea Johansson is now in the transfer portal going into her senior year, which is a big surprise. I wonder if she has a specific school she's wanting to end her career with, and why it isn't Mercyhurst.
 
Good question. Bouchard left to play UNH this year, but she had an extra year and Johansson does not. No one in the portal for PSU yet which is a good sign. PSU needs to up their social media game if they want the school to be a hot destination.
 
Penn State Men just clocked #1 seed Maine in Allentown 5-1 and the band was there. If the band can travel for hockey, they can travel for the gals too. Barbro is in the transfer portal. Desa had a nice year and Barbro had trouble getting on the ice. Some NFL coaches have a bellcow RB. Kampersal employs the bellcow goalie ideology.
 
Stella Retrum has now entered the transfer portal going into her junior year, which isn't a huge surprise, really. As a freshman, she was put on the top line with Tessa Janecke, which should've signaled that she was ready for prime time, but she hasn't put up the numbers that I think Jeff Kampersal was expecting from her. This past season saw her bouncing around on the line-up sheet, even as far down as being an extra player at times. If she gets picked up by somebody, it will be interesting to see who Kampersal can grab from the portal to fill Retrum's spot.
 
Retrum had a nice frosh year, I'm not sure what happened this year. Hopefully, she finds a spot somewhere where she can get back to the type of production she enjoyed as a frosh. It is tough to nitpick with 30 wins though. I'm sure other programs are hoping for a Maddy Christian type jump out of Retrum as a junior.
 
Jessica Ciarocchi, who spent two seasons at Penn State before transfering to Brown, has now transfered from Brown to Mercyhurst. That's kind of interesting from Mercyhurst, seeing as she only managed 15 points in three seasons at Brown.
 
She must have been injured for one of those years as she would not have another year of eligibility. Sisti must have a plan to utilize her in his various systems or maybe he looked at PSU's Dartmouth transfer that PSU found a steady role for this year and thought there might be some value in a six year player. She had a hot start to her career at Penn State.

Retrum entering the portal is bothersome. Of course Geno Auriema the UCONN women's basketball coach was talking about it and says it's everywhere now.

Meanwhile I am heading ads for Uline all the time on the radio lately. That is a player that could have a year of eligibility left.
 
Reddington said:
She must have been injured for one of those years as she would not have another year of eligibility. Sisti must have a plan to utilize her in his various systems or maybe he looked at PSU's Dartmouth transfer that PSU found a steady role for this year and thought there might be some value in a six year player. She had a hot start to her career at Penn State.

Retrum entering the portal is bothersome. Of course Geno Auriema the UCONN women's basketball coach was talking about it and says it's everywhere now.

Meanwhile I am heading ads for Uline all the time on the radio lately. That is a player that could have a year of eligibility left.
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Ciarocchi played in only ten games in 2022-23, all in October and November. Yes, quite likely a medical hardship year.
 
Stella Retrum got picked up by Vermont. As a freshman at Penn State, she showed enough promise to be put on a line with Tessa Janecke, but as a sophomore last season she slid down the chart, for whatever reason.
 
Retrum is a loss for sure and I'm sure she feels like something was askew with her lot this year or else she wouldn't have transferred. Mercyhurst has been busy in the portal and I think is up to five players. It's a relief Retrum did not sign with Mercyhurst like the BC player that transfered in conference.
 
From the Penn State Twitter feed: incoming Penn State freshman forward Matilde Fantin (Team Italy assistant captain) was named Best Forward for the IIHF Division 1 Group B, leading the tournament in points.
 
On paper it is looking good. I tried to find some tape on Fantin and no luck. Once again any transfers in will be apparently announced later than most teams. Retrum was on the watch list for Frosh of the year last year to transferring out after Soph year. The staff needs to take a closer look on these transfers on whether it is systemic or one offs as Retrum was a 10-15 goals a year scorer and that type of production comes in handy.

Small rosters keep all the girls happy.
 
Nice cap to the Women's Worlds in Cechia yesterday.... Tessa Janecke scores the Golden Goal (after forechecking Canada into a turnover) to give the United States the gold medal over Canada 4-3.
 
Karolina Hengelmuller just posted on Instagram that she's retiring from hockey for medical reasons (multiple concussions.). Absolutely the right call for her, I wish her the best in her future endeavors.
 
PSUfan said:
Karolina Hengelmuller just posted on Instagram that she's retiring from hockey for medical reasons (multiple concussions.). Absolutely the right call for her, I wish her the best in her future endeavors.
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Oh, man, that's tough, but I agree it's always the right move to put long-term health first. That's got to be a crushing choice to make.
 
Tough news for Hengelmuller and the program as the Austrian Defender was really good at keeping the puck in the offensive zone. The good news is that Tullock and MacDonald got lots of playing time this year. PSU has to have some money for transfers now. You would think someone would want to play with a 30 win team and a future Olympian.

Janecke's golden goal was a highlight of the high level forechecker she can be. Borque looked like a deer in the headlights. Is that a harbinger of a Janecke Vaslet monster forecheck combo when needed next season?
 
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