DU’s hockey team will be returning to the NCAA Frozen Four for the first time in 11 years April 7. The team’s last appearance was in 2005, when they won their seventh national title. The tournament begins on April 7 in Tampa Bay, Florida where DU will battle the Fighting Hawks from the University of North Dakota (UND).
During the regular season, DU split the season series 2-2, losing to UND on Dec. 4 and 5, but defeating UND when they visited Magness Arena on Feb. 12 and 13.
“I’m expecting a ton of great skill, a ton of good coaching and good goaltending. It will be everything elite college hockey is supposed to be; there’s great everything up and down the lines. I think the biggest part of the game will be who can control their emotions and who can control the momentum swings,” said senior captain Grant Arnold (Centennial, Colorado).
Likewise, head coach Jim Montgomery is expecting nothing short of a fantastic contest.
“It’s going to be a great college hockey game. You have two great teams that compete at a high level. It’s going to be the team that executes the best and the players that make plays that will come out on top,” said Montgomery.
Despite the challenge ahead, the feeling in the locker room heading into this weekend is a positive one. Sophomore forward and member of the prolific Pacific Rim Line, Trevor Moore (Thousand Oaks, California) is ready for whatever UND might bring.
“They’re a lot like us. They’ve got a lot of skill and a lot of speed and they’re good on defense. I think we just have to match their speed and try to play faster than them. It’s all about the work we put in during practice. We’ve got to be prepared,” said Moore.
Looking back on the regular season, there was skepticism surrounding DU’s odds of making it this far in the NCAA tournament. A four game losing streak could have been a major setback for the Pioneers, but resiliency led to an incredible 2016 run that landed the Pioneers in the Frozen Four.
“We always look at getting better throughout the year. In October and November, you could see a team that was building towards something. We got away from it, but then we got back to it and we’ve clicked on all levels. We keep getting better and we have evolved into a great team,” said Montgomery.
Thankfully, 2016 brought some great things to DU hockey. Since the first day of the new year, DU has only lost one game, tying three times. Between Jan. 30 and March 12, DU did not lose any of the 11 games played. This impressive winning streak led the Pioneers all the way to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff on the weekend of March 18 and 19. The St. Cloud State Huskies snapped the win streak by defeating the Pioneers 4-2 in the conference tournament. DU saw UND again in the NCHC third place game, where the teams earned a shared third place title after the game ended with the score tied at one.
“I think the NCHC was a valuable lesson we learned going into the NCAA tournament. We can’t afford to have a period off and that is why our creed has been no regrets. We’re trying to play so that we don’t have a shift where we have any regrets,” said Montgomery of the team’s third place finish.
The Pioneers clearly have the skills to win against UND and to walk away with a championship title, but at this point in the season, the physical game is not the only part that matters.
“All four teams are unbelievable. These are the best four teams in the country. The mental game and what’s between the ears is often times the difference with this many close teams. I’ve been preaching to just stay focused on ourselves. Stay focused, stay within the moment, stay within yourself,” said Arnold.
The team is in agreement that focusing on the task at hand is the most important thing.
“We’re just trying to stay level headed, work hard and change nothing, really,” said Moore.
Senior alternate captain and recent Harvard Law School admit Gabe Levin agrees that the mental game will be the key to making it to the championship game.
“I think that playing our game and playing as fast and physical as possible, playing with our highest intensity and our attention to detail was really important [the weekend we swept UND]. But, we have to bring that same mentality and focus this weekend. They’re a great team and if you have a mental lapse for a second, they can make you pay,” he said.
The other teams competing in the Frozen Four are Boston College and Quinnipiac University.
DU will play UND on April 7 at 6:30 p.m. MT. Both games are airing on ESPN2.
The winners of these games will compete on April 9 at 6 p.m. MT for the NCAA Championship title. You can watch the championship live on ESPN.
