The Denver Pioneers shut out Big Ten regular season champion Ohio State and Atlantic Hockey regular-season champion AIC in the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament to clinch their third Frozen Four berth in four years. And this will be their first since winning the national title in 2017. Denver will face Colorado Avalanche draftee Cale Makar and the UMass-Amherst Minutemen in the national semifinal next Thursday night (4/11).
Denver was supposed to have a down year this year and despite all of the factors (that we’ve discussed ad nauseam to this point) that contributed to that supposition, the Pioneers are one of the final four hockey teams still playing hockey. Click to listen below as Chris Bayee of Magness Mayhem and I discuss the upcoming Frozen Four:
Good podcast.
If you had told me last summer that DU would be back in the Frozen Four in 2019, I would have smiled widely and said “I like your optimism but it’s highly doubtful.” Well, here we are. It’s been a hell of a ride so far and an outstanding season, far surpassing my expectations.
This certainly isn’t the most talented DU team I’ve ever seen, but they seem to have plenty of “it,” whatever that may be. Poise, grit, character, leadership, chemistry, etc, and they are led by a 29-year old coach who seems mature beyond his years and hasn’t blinked one bit in his first season. I remember listening to Monty last year in an interview and he was adamant that David Carle was the right man for the job. Not surprisingly, Monty was 100% accurate.
Can’t wait for next Thursday.
Couldn’t agree more, Twister. This team has flat-out overachieved, and just getting to Buffalo is a towering achievement for this group. So many Blue Blood programs are golfing right now, and the Pios are still dancing…The “it” factor you describe seems to be primarily fueled by those who don’t believe in them, and that ‘chip on the shoulder’ is powerful thing. As a famous area football coach once said: “Half the fun of life is proving other people wrong.” And if that motivates the Pios, more power to ’em. As a realistic Pio fan, I’ll keep fueling that fire if it means they keep winning. Keep the doubts flowing, I say 🙂
While DU may be young and lacks the scoring prowess of other teams, Denver does have strong goaltending – which in a short tournament like this, can get you in a position to win. They also have seniors who have upped their game in recent weeks – Staub, Luko and Lancaster are leading this team right now with stellar performances and critical goals.
Drop the puck!