What was supposed to be the dream-come-true Frozen Four for the DU hockey team will instead be a weekend of hosting and watching for the Pioneers at the Pepsi Center this week.
Denver fell at Wisconsin 6-2 on March 29 in the first round of the NCAA tournament to end DU’s dreams of playing in front of a home crowd for the national championship.
“We feel that we really didn’t get the bounces against Wisconsin and that is the difficult part of the national tournament, that no matter how well your team is playing you have to get a little lucky and we didn’t have much luck in our regional,” said senior defenseman Andrew Thomas. “It would have been a blast playing in front of a home crowd at the Pepsi Center.”
Thomas and senior goaltender Peter Mannino will be two of 32 male and female hockey players that will compete in the third annual NCAA skills competition on Friday at the Pepsi Center. Thomas and Mannino were originally two of 33 athletes that were finalists for the 16 west team spots and were voted in by fans from around the country.
“It means a lot to me, not only because so few seniors are selected annually but also because I have never been looked upon for flashy skills. I am very proud to represent the University of Denver along with Peter Mannino, especially because it is being held here at the Pepsi Center and the Frozen Four is always a first class venue,” said Thomas.
The first semi-final game will take place on Thursday at 4 p.m. between Boston College and North Dakota, with the second at 7 p.m. between Notre Dame and Michigan. The Hobey Baker Award, given annually to the best college hockey player, will be given out at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, with the skills challenge following at 7 p.m.
Notre Dame will be making the 40-year programs first ever appearance in the Frozen Four after defeating New Hampshire and Michigan State in the West Regional. Michigan and the Irish have met 114 times and both hail from the CCHA conference. The Wolverines won both games between the teams this season, 3-2 and 5-1, back in January. By winning the West Regional, Notre Dame became the first No. 4 seed to advance to the Frozen Four since the tournament went to four regional’s in 2003.
In the other semi-final, North Dakota is headed to its fourth straight Frozen Four and 18th overall and will face Boston College for the third straight year in the national semi-final. The Fighting Sioux last won a national title back in 2000 and are the only team from the WCHA in the Frozen Four. The Eagles make their 21st overall trip to the Frozen Four after defeating Minnesota and Miami (Ohio) in the Northeast Regional. In 2001, Boston College defeated North Dakota 3-2 in overtime to win the national championship.
The Frozen Four returns to Denver for the first time since 1976, and DU hosts the event along with the Metro Denver Sports Commission.
“In terms of the city of Denver it means a great deal.
“It shows off the beauty of Colorado and the quality and appreciation that the city has for athletics, especially hockey. In terms of the university, it is also something to be very proud of because of the amount of preparation which has gone into hosting such an event and the publicity it gives a school that is certainly not known for its size. It should be a terrific weekend,” said Thomas.
Both semi-final games on Thursday will be shown on ESPN2. The skills challenge and Hobey Baker Award will be broadcast on ESPNU, and the championship game on Saturday will be aired on ESPN.
As the DU hockey players sit and watch the Frozen Four this weekend there will be some disappointment in the air, but also excitement for what should be a very bright future for the Denver hockey program.
