The fact that you’re reading this preview means that the Denver Pioneers advanced to the semifinals of the Frozen Faceoff with a win over Omaha. Indeed that happened when senior Bo Hanson scored the game-winning goal late in the third period to lead Denver to a 5-4 victory, further extending their season. If you didn’t catch the game, make sure to check out our recap here.
So what happens next? With Minnesota Duluth defeating Western Michigan in dramatic fashion Saturday night, Denver will face longtime foe North Dakota for the chance to advance to the NCHC Championship to play the winner of UMD vs St. Cloud State.
Following a couple weeks off, it’s “North Dakota week” as the No. 18 Pioneers host the No. 2 Fighting Hawks this weekend in a rare Sunday-Monday series at Magness Arena. These teams met in the bubble twice just a month ago and split two nail-biting games that concluded with a Jordan Kawaguchi OT goal and a Carter Savoie go-ahead power play goal. This series shouldn’t be any different as DU is coming off a 6-1 game vs Colorado College and North Dakota is riding a six-game winning streak. Cue the fireworks.
It’s early. There have only been three games played. The #4 Denver Pioneers (0-3-0, 1 pt) have shown flashes of brilliance, especially from their freshmen. But after another closely contested game, this time against the St. Cloud State Huskies (2-0-0, 6 pts), the Pioneers remain winless three games into the season. If there is a silver lining to this, DU, perhaps more than any other team in the NCHC, is proving themselves to be already battle-tested after hotly contested games against Minnesota Duluth, North Dakota, and now St. Cloud State. But silver linings don’t win games. No matter what positives you can take from these three games in the first four days of the Pod, the Crimson & Gold are still 0-3-0. Continue reading Pioneers’ Nightmare Start Continues They Fall 4-3 to Huskies→
We are supposed to be in Detroit preparing for Denver’s matchup with Worcester Regional champion (probably North Dakota) right now. We were supposed to fly out yesterday morning, bring you all the pre-Frozen Four content that you’ve grown accustomed to over the past five years – three Frozen Fours in that span make for a pretty great habit. Instead, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, the season was canceled last month and we haven’t had any hockey – college or professional – since. We didn’t get conference tournaments, we didn’t get NCAA Regionals, and now, probably the most painful of all, there is no Frozen Four. Continue reading DU, NCHC release schedules as temporary salve ahead of would-have-been Frozen Four→
Editor’s Note: This post has been updated and includes information from yesterday’s news and be sure to keep returning to this post as it will continue to be updated with more information as it becomes available.
The same day the World Health Organization (WHO) announced the Coronavirus (COVID-19) a ‘pandemic’, the NCAA sprung into action Wednesday afternoon. The NCAA basketball and hockey tournaments will be played without fans. And, this announcement further impacts other NCAA sports which Denver plays in the spring. Denver is scheduled to host Omaha in NCHC first-round hockey action this upcoming weekend, Denver hockey is hosting the Loveland NCAA Hockey Regionals March 27th and 28th and Denver Gymnastics is hosting NCAA Regionals April 2-4th at Magness Arena. Continue reading NCHC cancels Tournament, NCAAs still on without fans – for now→
DENVER – It’s becoming a bit of a pattern now for the #11 Denver Pioneers men’s lacrosse team (3-2). Go down big early, force the defense and goaltenders to up their games, come back late but fall just short against the country’s best teams. It happened against Duke two weeks ago after Denver fell behind 7-2 after the first quarter and it happened again today against #4 North Carolina (5-0) as the Tar Heels raced out to a 9-3 halftime lead. The Pioneers would outscore UNC 10-6 in the second half and 8-2 in the fourth quarter alone but it wasn’t enough as the Pios still fell 15-13, the same score by which they fell to Duke. Continue reading Denver’s fourth-quarter rally falls short against UNC as they fall 15-13→
DU held a kick-off party at Attimo Wine for Crimson and Gold Trail Saturday night, a program designed to support Denver area business owned and operated by DU Alumni. With businesses in coffee, drinks, food hospitality, and retail operations in the greater metro area (see map), patrons will receive special discounts at these DU-run businesses when they sign-up for the Passport.
It was quite the vibe last weekend at Magness Arena when the Pioneers swept the St. Cloud State Huskies in their biggest offensive explosion since early November against Niagara. Denver has now put together an impressive six-game winning streak heading into their first road series of 2020 against Omaha. It seems like each year it takes some time for the Pioneers to find their identity and the new year gives them the fresh slate they need to come out stronger. This seems to be the case as they’re red hot and climbing the USCHO ranks now as the No. 4 team in the country.
After the #8 Denver Pioneers failed to earn a win last weekend on the road against Arizona State, the Pioneers are now 1-4-3 in their last eight games following an 8-0-0 start to the season. But with the unranked rival Colorado College Tigers up next on the schedule, Denver has a prime opportunity to get back on track with a couple of NCHC wins. The Tigers return to Denver on Friday as keepers of the Gold Pan trophy for the first time since 2014.
As I write this on March 13, 2020, the past 48 hours have seen the entire sports world come crashing down.
