For anyone that’s attended a hockey game at Magness Arena recently, it’s no secret that the DU student section is not particularly fond of Colorado College. Regardless of Denver’s opponent on any given night, the student section frequently chants vulgar taunts directed toward CC all throughout the game. However, it was not until Friday night when the Tigers came to town that the Pioneers truly got the chance to prove themselves for the first time this season against their long-standing in-state rival in what was this year’s start of the “Battle for the Gold Pan.” Denver blanked CC 3-0 on Friday night at Magness Arena and won again 3-1 on Saturday night in Colorado Springs to improve to 11-4-3. The Pioneers now sit in third place in the NCHC behind North Dakota and Minnesota-Duluth.
Friday’s game got off to a slow start offensively for both teams, with no scoring occurring during the first two periods. Junior goaltender Devin Cooley (Los Gatos, Calif.) was perfect the entire game in what was the fifth shutout of his career, with 24 saves. Perhaps his biggest moment of the night was a flashy slide across the length of the goalpost to deny the Tigers’ Brian Yoon towards the end of the second period.
Denver had fourteen shots in the first period to CC’s six. Although neither team got on the scoreboard, the Pioneers outhustled the Tigers on all fronts with fewer penalties, a more aggressive display of offense and better overall control of the puck.
The second period had a lack of offensive vitality with only 13 shots between both teams. Yoon accounted for three out of the Tigers’ seven shots in the period.
In the third period, sophomore forward Emilio Pettersen (Manglerud, Norway) finally put the Pioneers on the scoreboard less than two and a half minutes into the period. Denver never looked back, with sophomore forward Cole Guttman (Los Angeles, Calif.) scoring his fifth goal of the season at 6:57 with an assist from Pettersen. After the Tigers benched their goalie late in the period, freshman forward Brett Edwards (Grande Prairie, Alberta) iced the game with under a minute remaining in the game to secure the Pioneers a 3-0 victory.
On Saturday, the Pioneers found their groove much earlier in the game than they did the previous night. In the second period, Denver put up 18 shots to CC’s six. In the same period, freshman forward Bobby Brink (Minnetonka, Minn.) and sophomore defensemen Kyle Mayhew (Anaheim Hills, Calif.) scored at 10:07 and 16:23, respectively. Denver’s 2-0 lead was cut when the Tigers’ Alex Berardinelli responded with a rebound off the rush at 18:26.
Guttman extended the Pioneers’ lead on a power play at 2:11 of the third period, with the puck blowing through a group of Tigers and sneaking past CC goaltender Matt Vernon. The play marked the third game in a row that the Pioneers have scored on a power play.
The 2-0 sweep of the Tigers is the first that Denver has accomplished since Nov. 1 and 2 against Niagara. DU moved up two spots in the NCAA hockey rankings with their wins and currently hold the no. 6 spot. The Pioneers will have nearly three week break before returning to action Jan. 3 and 4 against the University of Massachusetts-Amherst at Magness Arena.
