Who could forget last season’s exhibition when UNLV tied Denver in regulation and won the shootout last December? Rarely does an exhibition game receive such attention, nor does a fan base gloat so much about an official tie. The UNLV club team and their fans took to the airwaves and discussion boards and touted their ‘victory’ over the defending national champions.

Think Appalachian State over Michigan in football, the Jets over Colts in Super Bowl III, and, of course, the Miracle on Ice. However, none of those were exhibitions.

The 6-6 draw saw DU fall behind 5-1 before drawing even in regulation, before a scoreless overtime and the shootout. Denver outshot the Rebels 64-17, but give the scrappy Rebels credit.

The result understandably got the attention of Sports Illustrated (yes, they still exist), Flo Hockey, Twitter, Reddit, USCHO, and a host of other media outlets. We can recognize how big a deal it was for UNLV to pull off the shootout exhibition upset. The accomplishment also made many hockey fans feel all puffed up in our comments. Take Jon, for example:

Yes, David Carle and all-world defenseman Zeev Buium were away from the team while winning the second of their two straight World Junior Championships. And yes, it was an exhibition game right before the New Year…not exactly a time when Division I hockey teams are most focused.

Regardless, it was not DU hockey’s finest hour. The Rebels went on to win their first American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) Division I national club championship against Adrian College (7-3) while DU went to its 3rd Frozen Four in four seasons, falling to eventual champion Western Michigan in overtime in the national semifinal.

DU can return the favor Saturday night when the Rebels return to Magness Arena in what is sure to be one of the more highly anticipated exhibition games in recent memory.

Do you believe in miracles? Nope – not Saturday night.