Coming off an out-of-this-world weekend against St. Cloud State, DU men’s hockey was sent back down to earth, settling for a split in their series with Minnesota Duluth. The Crimson and Gold took the first game 5-3, but they dropped the second in a highly competitive 3-2 affair. 

DU picked up where they left off last weekend, firing off the first eight shots early in game one against a Minnesota Duluth team that looked overwhelmed. The game changed when Duluth received a power play thanks to a tripping penalty by senior forward Brett Stapley (Campbell River, B.C.). However, Duluth wouldn’t be the first to strike on this power play; after DU cleared the puck down the ice, the hustle of freshman forward Carter King (Calgary, Alberta) caused Duluth goaltender Ryan Fanti (Thunder Bay, Ontario) to panic and misplay the puck, which led to a King goal. 

King, who scored his first goal in the St. Cloud State series now has goals in back-to-back games. Coach David Carle said that King “is a guy who does everything right, and for him to get rewarded again tonight was a huge part of the victory.” 

Despite the King goal, the Duluth power play continued and they took advantage when sophomore forward Blake Biondi (Hermantown, Minn.) fired a shot past junior goalie Magnus Chrona (Stockholm, Sweden) to make it a 1-1 game. Despite largely controlling the play following the Duluth goal, Denver could not find the back of the net, and the game went into the intermission tied 1-1.

To start the second period, the DU penalty kill was put to the test when Brett Stapley committed a major penalty, sending Duluth on the power play for the next five minutes. However, the Crimson and Gold caught a break when Minnesota Duluth committed a penalty 1:23 into their power play to make it 4-on-4 hockey for the next two minutes. Nothing would come out of the 4-on-4 as DU killed off the remaining minute and 40 seconds of the major penalty, in which Chrona made some impressive saves.

After killing off the penalty, DU began one of its patented second-period offensive explosions, scoring three goals in just over seven minutes. The first one would come after a Duluth penalty when freshman defenseman Shai Buium (San Diego, Calif.) fed sophomore defenseman Mike Benning (St. Albert, Alberta) who hammered a one-timer into the back of the net. 

The next goal came when senior captain Cole Guttman (Los Angeles, Calif.) put the puck in the back of the net after he was set up beautifully by junior forward Bobby Brink (Minnetonka, Minn.). This was the 50th goal of Guttman’s decorated career, making him the 60th person in school history to hit that mark. 

“It’s an honor to get that achievement, but every year we have had a lot of really good players I have been fortunate enough to play with, and I think that plays a big role,” Guttman said. 

The next goal came thanks to a fortunate bounce of which sophomore forward Mckade Webster (St. Louis, Mo.) took advantage. Webster, who is normally on the fourth line, was moved up to the second line for this game, and he took advantage of that opportunity. When asked about Webster’s move, Coach Carle said, “we’re obviously looking at different things with our forward group and trying to make sure we’re balanced within our attack.” 

Duluth would cut the deficit late in the period on a goal by graduate senior forward Casey Gilling (Gaylord, MI), but the damage was already done. DU has outscored teams 56-16 in second periods this season, and Friday night added to the trend.

After a back and forth third period, Bobby Brink would ice the game with an empty-net goal. While Duluth would add a late goal to make it 5-3, DU would hang on and win by that score. 

However, the second game would not be as fruitful for Denver. Duluth made a statement early when fifth-year forward Kobe Roth (Warroad, Minn.) opened the scoring 31 seconds into the game, which quieted down a raucous crowd. 

Duluth would continue this momentum for the next couple of minutes, but eventually, DU settled down and got themselves back into the game. Despite having several quality chances, DU was unable to break through, largely thanks to the stellar efforts of Duluth goalie Ryan Fanti. Denver’s best opportunity would come when freshman forward Carter Mazur (Jackson, Mich.) was awarded a penalty shot after he was penalized on a breakaway. Mazur would have his attempt stuffed by Fanti to keep it a 1-0 game.

After the first period, Fanti would leave the game with an injury and be replaced by backup Zach Stejskal (Cohasset, Minn.). Stejskal would be tested early thanks to a Duluth penalty, but Denver’s power play could not score.

The DU power play was off all weekend, the team going one-for-nine, including a zero-for-five display in game two. Coach Carle said, “not only did we not score on the power play, but I don’t think it generated a lot of momentum for us either.” 

Despite the power play struggles, DU’s second-period magic would continue when junior defenseman Justin Lee (Waskada, Manitoba) fired a shot past Stejskal. However, DU would not be able to find the back of the net for the rest of the period. 

Denver found the net again at the beginning of the third when defenseman Shai Buium fired a shot past Stejskal that looked quite similar to Lee’s goal, making it a 2-1 game.

The lead would not hold. On a Duluth power play, Kobe Roth would tap the puck out of the air and beat Chrona to tie the game. The officials checked the goal to make sure it wasn’t tapped in by a high stick, and they determined that the goal was good.

Seconds after a Justin Lee penalty had expired, Duluth struck again when sophomore defenseman Darian Gotz (Hermantown, Minn.) gathered a rebound from a Chrona save and took advantage of an out-of-position Chrona.

DU had a spirited rally late and put a lot of pressure on Duluth, but the team could not find the equalizer. Despite the loss, senior defenseman Kyle Mayhew (Anaheim Hills, Calif.) thought there were positives to take out of the game, saying, “I think these games are crucial for playoff hockey. It makes us take care of the small details going into the playoffs.”

DU returns to Magness Arena one more time this year for a showdown with rival Colorado College on Saturday, March 5 at 7 p.m.