The annual college hockey season-opening Ice Break Tournament is officially returning to Denver for the first time since 2016 and, for the first time ever, there will be two hosts: Denver and Air Force. It will be the third time the tournament happens in Denver (1999 & 2016) and the fourth time in Colorado (2005 in Colorado Springs). Continue reading Denver Hockey to Co-Host 2022 Ice Breaker Tournament with Air Force →

The #12 Denver Pioneers (10-4-0, 4-2-0, 12 pts) had not won a road game outside of the state of Colorado in their four tries coming into this weekend. Along the way, they had scored a dismal combined eight goals in those four games, including just one goal in each of the final three games. That script completely flipped this weekend, though, as the Pioneers hung 13 goals on a struggling Arizona State Sun Devils (7-9-0) hockey team at Oceanside Arena (still trying to figure out where, exactly, the ocean is in Tempe). Brett Stapley recorded a hat trick on Friday, Magnus Chrona stopped 65 of ASU’s 68 shots (.955 SV%), and six different Pioneers scored on Saturday night. It was the kind of domination on the road that the Pios sorely needed and, while they were at it, they improved their already NCAA-best goals-per-game average from 4.42 to 4.71. Continue reading Denver Hockey Road Trip Recap: Pioneers’ Red Hot Offense Burns Sun Devils in First Road Sweep →

The #12 Denver Pioneers (10-4-0, 4-2-0, 12 pts) have the nation’s best offense, in case you didn’t read last night’s recap of the 6-2 win. Tonight, in their fourth game against the Arizona State Sun Devils (7-9-0), the Pios once again increased their goals per game average – 4.42 coming into the weekend – to 4.71 (crazy commenters, check my math). Brett Stapley added two more points to a weekend where he already recorded a hat trick, Sean Behrens scored his first career goal, and the Pios’ power play scored four (yes, four!) goals, including two from freshman Massimo Rizzo, in six tries. For the second night in a row, DU used the third period to step on ASU’s throats and put the game out of reach. Denver outscored Arizona State 13-3 this weekend and won all four games against the Sun Devils by a combined 25-9 score (again, check my math).

We will have a full weekend recap tomorrow morning with a more in-depth analysis of both games.

Photo of Cole Guttman courtesy of Denver Athletics

The #12 Denver Pioneers (9-4-0, 4-2-0, 12 pts) came into the night with the country’s best offense, averaging 4.42 goals per game. Thanks to a 6-2 domination at Arizona State (7-8-0) for the Pios’ first out of state victory of the season, that average is going to go up. Brett Stapley netted a hat trick, Jack Devine scored his first career NCAA goal amidst DU’s third-period four-goal onslaught, and the Pios survived a second period with 36 combined penalty minutes as they won their third straight against ASU. They’ve now scored 18 goals in their three games against the Sun Devils.

We will have a full recap of this game in our Denver Hockey Road Trip Recap on Sunday morning.

Photo of Brett Stapley: Cal Sport Media/Alamy Stock Photo