Category Archives: Hockey

Hockey

AIC Upsets St. Cloud 2-1, Pioneers to Face Yellowjackets for Frozen Four Berth

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In one of the most, if not the most, stunning upsets in the history of NCAA college hockey, #16th Seeded American International College (AIC) of Springfield, Mass. and Atlantic Hockey, upset top seeded and top-ranked St. Cloud State in the NCAA West Regional in Fargo, N.D., 2-1.

The upset means that Denver will face AIC on Saturday Night, March 30 for the Regional Crown (7 pm MT, ESPNU), with the winner advancing to April’s NCAA Frozen Four in Buffalo.

AIC built a 2-0 second period lead on a couple of soft goals through SCSU netminder David Hrenak, and St. Cloud scored a third period power play goal to cut the AIC lead to 2-1. Despite a barrage of SCSU shots (34-13 for the game), AIC held on for the upset.

AIC, with 1700 undergrads,  has only been Division I for 22 years, and has never had a winning season until this year.

North Dakota fans in Fargo are expected to cheer for AIC tomorrow against the Pioneers.

 

 

Hockey

Stodgy Denver Squad Prevails 2-0 Over Buckeyes

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Photo: Courtesy of Denver Twitter

It was classic playoff hockey and Ohio State blinked first when Les Lancaster scored the the first goal of the game with only 39 seconds left in the 2nd Period. An empty net tally by Colin Staub with 58 seconds left in the game sealed the deal as DU moves into the round of eight.

Photo: Courtesy of Ohio State Athletics

Continue reading Stodgy Denver Squad Prevails 2-0 Over Buckeyes →

Hockey

Denver to Face Ohio State in NCAA Regional Hockey Rematch

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DU faces Ohio State in the West Regional, a rematch of last year’s DU NCAA 5-1 loss to the Buckeyes. Photo: DU athletics.

As expected, the NCAA Division I Ice Hockey Committee assigned the eighth-seeded University of Denver Pioneers with a trip to the West Regional in Fargo, North Dakota, where DU will host a first-round rematch with ninth-seeded Ohio State University from the Big 10, the school that ended DU’s 2018 season with a 5-1 NCAA second round regional drubbing in Allentown, Pa.  

DU, the third-place team in the NCHC, will face OSU at 2 pm MT on Friday, March 29th .  The game can be seen live on ESPNU. As the eighth-seed, DU will be the home team in Fargo and will have last line change. Continue reading Denver to Face Ohio State in NCAA Regional Hockey Rematch →

Hockey, Men's Sports

Pioneers exact revenge on Tigers for lost Gold Pan & take 3rd place at Frozen Faceoff

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Photo courtesy Maddie MacFarlane

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Just a day after the #5 Denver Pioneers could not find the back of the net in the Frozen Faceoff semifinals, the offense erupted in a 6-1 rout of the Colorado College Tigers in the Frozen Faceoff Third Place Game at the Xcel Energy Center. While it won’t reverse the results from the regular season matchups that saw the Pioneers lose the Gold Pan for the first time in five years, the Pioneers will enter the NCAA Tournament as a #2 seed and on a very high note. Continue reading Pioneers exact revenge on Tigers for lost Gold Pan & take 3rd place at Frozen Faceoff →

Hockey, Men's Sports

Pioneers bitten by Bulldogs in Frozen Faceoff semis, will not defend 2018 title

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Photo courtesy Maddie MacFarlane

ST. PAUL, Minn – Hunter Shepard showed the NCHC why he was named the conference goaltender of the year as he and the #4 Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs shut out the #5 Denver Pioneers 3-0 on Friday Night at the Xcel Energy Center in the Frozen Faceoff semifinal. For the Pioneers, it was a tough outcome after sweeping North Dakota to get to this point but in a tight game with a number of weird bounces, the game really could have gone either way, despite what the score indicated. It just so happened that the Bulldogs got the bounces and the Pioneers did not. Continue reading Pioneers bitten by Bulldogs in Frozen Faceoff semis, will not defend 2018 title →

Hockey, Men's Sports

Denver Hockey Frozen Faceoff Semifinal Preview: Minnesota Duluth

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The No. 5 Denver Pioneers will battle the defending national champion Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs for a chance to defend their 2017-18 NCHC title

It was a wild weekend of hockey last Friday and Saturday when the Pioneers closed the door on the North Dakota Fighting Hawks’ season.  There wasn’t much room to skate and it seemed like players were getting hit immediately after they touched the puck.  But persistence and a little puck luck propelled the Pioneers to their sixth straight Frozen Faceoff appearance.  Denver will play the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs Friday night for the opportunity to meet either St. Cloud State or Colorado College in the final.  Yes, you read that right…Colorado College.

Continue reading Denver Hockey Frozen Faceoff Semifinal Preview: Minnesota Duluth →

Hockey, Men's Sports

#5 Pioneers return to St. Paul determined to defend 2018 NCHC title

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ST. PAUL, Minn. – In a year that has been defined by change – both behind the bench with new head coach David Carle and on the ice replacing three of the most dominant players in college hockey – the #5 Denver Pioneers find themselves in somewhat unexpected familiar territory in St. Paul. The Pios are back in St. Paul at the NCHC Frozen Faceoff with a chance to defend their conference tournament title from a year ago. Continue reading #5 Pioneers return to St. Paul determined to defend 2018 NCHC title →

Hockey, Men's Sports

North Dakota fans get a jump-start on spring cleaning

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Photo: Students try to scrub away the memory of the 2018-2019 season

GRAND FORKS, NORTH DAKOTA – With an uncharacteristic early exit this season at the hands of the Denver Pioneers, North Dakota hockey fans got a jump-start on spring cleaning.

Gretta Speaks near downtown Grand Forks used the day to organize her living room. Speaks refused to be pictured because she was not wearing her make-up.

Continue reading North Dakota fans get a jump-start on spring cleaning →

Hockey, Men's Sports

Crimson & Gold Show Episode 6: Recapping a NoDak sweep and previewing the Frozen Faceoff

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Until this weekend, North Dakota and Denver were the only programs to have been at every Frozen Faceoff. Thanks to 2-0 and 4-2 wins over North Dakota in the best-of-three NCHC Quarterfinals, Denver is returning to St. Paul and North Dakota is not (what a great sentence). A week after the DU Hockey prognosis was decidedly bleak thanks to a sweep at the hands of CC, the mood has completely changed. Denver has a shot, albeit a long one, to go to St. Paul and defend their 2017-18 NCHC title. They will either play Minnesota Duluth or St. Cloud State depending on what happens in the CC-Western Michigan series that was postponed by a day thanks to that Bomb Cyclone. Continue reading Crimson & Gold Show Episode 6: Recapping a NoDak sweep and previewing the Frozen Faceoff →