📍 State College, Pennsylvania
🏒 Home of Penn State Nittany Lions hockey

The hockey scene at Penn State University has evolved tremendously over the last century, from the old pickup game days to the building of an incredibly successful club team to the reinstatement of the sport at the varsity level. Here in Happy Valley, hockey has always been something special, with some of the most passionate fans and nicest facilities around. Today, State College’s long and storied relationship with the game lives on at Pegula Ice Arena, one of Division I’s top tier barns.

Hockey Valley History

While the Nittany Lions’ first DI varsity season didn’t come until the 2012-13 campaign, hockey has been a part of the fabric of PSU since the late 19th century. Students initially played pickup games on frozen ponds and outdoor rinks in the State College area, and competed in their first intercollegiate game on Christmas Day 1909.

The fight to add hockey as a varsity sport didn’t meet much success over the next few decades, primarily due to the area’s lack of a suitable ice rink. In 1938, an independent hockey team was created at Penn State, but only lasted two years due to the team’s “home” being over 100 miles away in Hershey. The squad did play one true home contest in 1940, skating on a flooded tennis court in front of a tiny crowd crammed into temporary bleachers.

In the ’40s, hockey was finally made a varsity sport in the valley. With World War II raging – and the continued struggle to find available ice to play and practice on – the team didn’t fare too well during this period. Hockey, along with a few other sports, was temporarily dropped until the war concluded. After one final season in 1946-47, it was permanently suspended.

A quarter of a century later, the sport was revived at the club level by a small army of ardent Nittany Lions fans and students. Launched in 1971, the Icers played at the on-campus Ice Pavilion, a provisional facility that had been built 16 years earlier. The barn would hold occasionally enormous crowds, who would cram inside to catch even a glimpse of the nation’s most successful club program. The team moved into a newer venue in 1980 thanks to a generous gift from the Greenberg family.

For the next 30 years, the Icers would demolish their ACHA competition on their way to seven National Championships, including four straight from 2000-2003. They appeared in every ACHA Tournament since 1993 and even traveled to Sweden and Germany to become the first college hockey team to play overseas.

A New Era

The Icers’ monumental accomplishments did not go unnoticed. In 2010, a new chapter of hockey at Penn State began with transformational gifts from alum and longtime donor Terry Pegula. Thanks to his generosity, the university was able to finally establish Division I men’s and women’s varsity hockey programs and construct a brand-new on-campus venue to host them. The doors to Pegula Ice Arena opened in 2013, with a seating capacity of over 6,000.

The hallways of the arena are full of informational displays highlighting Penn State’s past, including a puck from the first goal in arena history and game-worn sweaters from some of the best players to ever dress for the Nittany Lions.

Attached to the venue is a full-size practice rink, also used for community events and occasionally open for public skating. Large bay windows on the main concourse give fans a birds-eye view of the ice sheet below. Truly a hockey arena of the future, Pegula is complete with sleek white marble walls and floor-to-ceiling windows that let in plenty of natural light during day games. Interactive touchscreens that allow visitors to browse concession stand menus and dive deep into team rosters are also available.

But no matter how glitzy or fresh the arena may be, it’s nothing without the Nittany Lion faithful. One fan in particular stands out above the rest: self-proclaimed “Blue Hair Guy” – aka, Richard Seifert – has been attending Penn State hockey games since their club days in the 1990s. Seifert, known for his thunderous yells and eye-catching bright blue locks, has been an icon in Hockey Valley for over 30 years and even has his own trading card! The students also bring amazing energy to each and every home game, packing out the “Roar Zone” and leading the entire crowd in night-long chants.

Despite being able to hold around 6,000 fans, the arena often has a season-long average that’s above normal capacity, thanks in part to the many standing room only tickets that are typically up for grabs. At the start of the 2nd period, the PA announcer notifies SRO ticket-holders that they may move into any empty seat in the arena bowl – a neat gesture which more venues across all sports should take note of and implement.

Game nights at Pegula Ice Arena just hit different, offering not just the best experience in the Big Ten but perhaps college hockey on the whole. The raucous sea of blue that packs the house serves as a constant reminder that you’re in the best defended barn in the north, where chants of “WE ARE …. PENN STATE” echo across Hockey Valley.

Info Invasion

Parking: Jordan East lot, $8; East Deck, $16
Nearby Venue(s): Bryce Jordan Center, Beaver Stadium
In the Area: Penn State All-Sports Museum