Penn State will enter the midseason break ranked No.18 in the USCHO.com poll and currently 11th in the PairWise rankings as they stand on Monday. The PairWise ranking is likely the change over the next few weeks as teams play, the Nittany Lions will hit the ice again in early January against Wisconsin.

Nevertheless after a bumpy start to the season that coupled new faces, injuries and tough opponents together, Penn State finds itself very much in the thick of postseason hopes.

Even better for fans, nine of Penn State's final 14 games will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network, eight of those games at Pegula Ice Arena.

Of course the road won't be easy for the Nittany Lions, the vast majority of the final stretch will feature games against currently ranked teams as Ohio State, Notre Dame and Wisconsin sit in the Top 13 in the nation.

But at the end of the tunnel is a tempting prize for Penn State's budding program, the Nittany Lions are slated to host a regional site this year in Allentown at the PPL Center. A postseason berth would mean playing postseason games in the heart of Penn State country at an arena that holds nearly 10,000 for hockey.

That is a long ways away, but as the Nittany Lions heal over the next few weeks and rest on an eight game unbeaten streak, it's not hard to picture things falling into place sooner rather than later.