Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/797655
E very successful team needs players to help break the ice and lay the foundation for a winning culture. For the Penn State men's ice hockey team, David Goodwin has been one of those players. When Goodwin visited University Park as a recruit, there was no Pegula Ice Arena. There were no state-of-the-art training facilities. There was only a club hockey team and a dream. "I remember meeting with the coaches over in the BJC where their offices were, and I was very convinced that they were going to build a strong program," Good- win said. "They offered me the opportu- nity to be a part of that building and be a part of the foundation." This season, Goodwin is a senior cap- tain and is getting set to lead the Nittany Lions into the Big Ten tournament. The team was ranked 11th in the country heading into its final home series of the year against Wisconsin and was in the midst of its best season to date – thanks in large part to Goodwin's contributions on the ice. Through 32 games, he was second on the team in both assists (25) and points (35), trailing only freshman phenom Denis Smirnov in those cate- gories. But perhaps even more important than his own production has been the effect that Goodwin has had on young players like Smirnov. It's no coincidence that since Goodwin was placed on a forward line with Smirnov and freshman Nate Sucese, the two underclassmen have seen a massive rise in their productivity. In the first six games after becoming linemates with Goodwin, Smirnov and Sucese combined for an impressive 18 points. In the five previous games, they totaled just two. Goodwin attributed the trio's success to chemistry, noting that they are all very offense-minded players who use their speed and skill with the puck to make up for a lack of height. The captain also said that he makes a conscious effort to mentor Smirnov and Sucese on the fly. "There are a handful of times through- out each game that I'm trying to pat them on the back or lift them up a little bit, kind of keep them focused," Goodwin said. "I think back to my freshman year when Taylor Holstrom and Michael Mc- Donagh were doing that stuff for me. I think it's just kind of the nature of being the captain and being one of the senior leaders." But Goodwin's leadership isn't limited to his contributions inside the rink. He is also one of 10 ice hockey finalists for the Senior CLASS Award, which is given out annually to seniors in a variety of sports who display excellence in the classroom and in the community. In ad- dition, the St. Louis, Mo., native is Penn State's first-ever finalist for the Hockey Humanitarian Award, in recognition of his time spent in Latin America teaching English to schoolchildren. Head coach Guy Gadowsky under- stands what Goodwin means to his team and to the Penn State community. "He serves his community literally every day, whether he's here during the season, in State College out of the sea- son, at home in St. Louis. That's the way he lives his life," Gadowsky said. "He ob- viously takes hockey 100 percent seri- ously and does everything he can to be the best hockey player he [can be], and the results I think prove that. Look what he's done on the ice – his results are phe- nomenal. Guys like that, we're extremely proud of." While Goodwin's Penn State career will soon come to an end, there is still much that he and the Nittany Lions can accom- plish. As of early March, Penn State was ninth in the Division I PairWise rankings, a for- mula that predicts the 16 NCAA tourna- ment qualifiers and their seeds with relative accuracy. Heading into their final LEAVING A LEGACY Senior David Goodwin plays an important role in the Lions' steady ascent I C E H O C K E Y | FAST FORWARD Goodwin has been one of the Nittany Lions' offensive cornerstones this season, ranking among the team leaders in assists and points. Photo by Mark Selders/Penn State Athletics