The DU hockey team continued its refusal to lose this past weekend, coming back twice to notch a win and a tie against conference foe Minnesota State.
On Friday night, senior Kyle Ostrow scored a game-tying goal with less than 90 seconds left in the third period, which resulted in a 4-4 tie.
The following night the Pioneers were resilient once again, overcoming a 3-0 deficit in the second period to win 4-3 in overtime behind Dustin Jackson’s game-winning shot.
The Pioneers (14-5-5, 10-3-3) are unbeaten in the last six games, posting a 3-0-3 record, following the team’s Dec. 4 loss to Minnesota Duluth. Before that loss, DU had won seven games in a row.
With 12 games remaining on the regular season schedule, the team currently is ranked No. 4 and has been playing its best hockey of the year in the past month.
Head coach George Gwozdecky believes that the season has gone well considering their tough schedule, new talent and unexpected injuries.
“We lost a lot of great talent last year, including Patrick Wiercioch and Joe Colborne. Jason Zucker and Drew Shore have carried a great deal of weight on their shoulders,” said Gwozdecky. “This season, we needed guys offensively, and we filled the shoes.”
The final six regular season series begins with a home series against Alaska Anchorage on Friday at Magness Arena.
Last month, the Pioneers beat the Seawolves 5-3 and then tied them 2-2 behind solid performances from their top line players, including Zucker, Drew Shore and Luke Salazer.
In the victory, the Pioneers used sophomore Adam Murray in net following a long stretch of games where freshman Sam Brittain played goalie.
According to Gwozdecky, replacing Marc Cheverie was a difficult task, but Gwozdecky is happy with the results.
Though they have both pushed each other competitively throughout the year, they both have confidence in each other’s performance, said Gwozdecky.
Brittain has started 19 of 24 games this season, posting a solid 10-4-5 record, while Murray has won four of the five games he has started.
Leading DU in scoringis sophomore Drew Shore, who says he is satisfied about the progress of the season and believes the team will continue to “get better and better”.
Shore’s expectations for the team are to finish the national tournament in first. As for his own expectations, he is working to stay consistent offensively and improve his overall performance.
“The team has really started to come together,” senior captain Kyle Ostrow said last week. “We have new guys who have been consistent and strong throughout the season.”
The DU hockey team came into this season as the “underdogs” and Ostrow is pleased with that because he said it gives the team an opportunity to prove itself.
Ostrow commented that rankings do not matter and it all boils down to the national tournament.
The Pioneers have struggled the last three seasons in the national tournament, losing in the first round every season.
