No. 5 ranked Denver defeated University of Miami Ohio RedHawks 6-3 on March 2 at Magness Arena. Junior Troy Terry (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) had four assists, and the team had two power play goals in the first period.
“There are a lot of pieces of our game where we want it to be,” Denver Head Coach Jim Montgomery said following the game. “Being hard offensively is something we have to strive for if we hope to have success ultimately.”
Junior Dylan Gambrell (Bonney Lake, Wash.) opened scoring for the Pioneers in the second minute of the first period off an assist from Terry, slipping a backhand shot past the RedHawks goalie. Gambrell had an assist at 14:14, shooting a shot that bounced off of junior Jarid Lukosevicius (Squamish, B.C.). At the end of the first period, the Pioneers finished with two goals, both of which came during power plays.
In the second period, the Pioneers scored early when senior Rudy Junda (Denver, Colo.) scored a minute in, off an assist from freshman Kohen Olishefsk (Abbotsford, B.C.) and freshman Ryan Barrow (Banff, Alta.). Although Miami scored once to bring the game to 3-1, a pass from junior Logan O’Connor (Calgary, Alberta) bounced off the skate of sophomore Henrik Borgstrom (Helskini, Finland) to bring the score to 4-1. Although Miami would score twice, those were the last two goals of the game for Miami. Senior Adam Plant (Penticton, B.C.) scored off an assist from Terry in the 17th minute, followed by an empty net goal from junior Colin Staub (Colorado Springs, Colo.), leaving the final score at 6-3, Denver.
Saturday night, Denver tied Miami 3-3, but Miami gained the extra point in overtime.
Seniors Plant, Tanner Jaillet (Red Deer, Alberta), Junda and Tariq Hammond (Calgary, Alberta) were honored before the game on March 3 in their senior night game. All four have contributed to the Pioneers throughout their years, and were a part of the national championship team last year. Jaillet set a school record in all-time games played by a goalie on Feb. 23 after playing in his 125th game, as well as 77 career wins, five away from tying the school record. Plant has become a staple in the defensive end and was named the Bauer NCHC Defenseman of the Week in November. Junda has been named to the Academic All-Conference Team for the NCHC for the last four years. Hammond was a staple in the defensive end last year, appearing in all 44 games during the championship campaign.
Denver will host Colorado College for the first round of the NCHC playoffs beginning March 9, at Magness.
