With just 12 regular-season games remaining for the DU hockey team, now is the time to prove that it is a legitimate 5th-ranked national squad and WCHA Red Baron Title contender. And if the Pioneers can make it to the WCHA Final Five, let alone make it to the title game, then Denver hockey fans can start dreaming about a possible berth in the NCAA Championships Frozen Four, to be hosted by Denver.
Die-hard Pioneer fans are hoping that the third time is the charm, as the university’s hockey program seeks a return to national glory after two consecutive years of one-and-out playoff flameouts abruptly ending seasons that had started strongly. Last year the Pioneers raced out to an 18-7-2 start before going 3-6-2 in the final 11 games of the season and then getting swept at home in the first round of the WCHA playoffs by Wisconsin to knock DU out of any chance at the NCAA tournament.
Two years ago Denver started 18-10-2 before going 2-3-1 in the final six games of the regular season, and then losing at home to Minnesota-Duluth in the first round of the WCHA playoffs and missing the NCAA tournament.
Those two disappointing spring experiences followed the memorable pair of seasons when the Pioneers were the best of the best, capturing back-to-back national championships.
In case you assume that two championships, followed by two years not in the NCAA tournament, mean that now is the time for DU to return to the championship round, the outlook is far from certain.
“Having the past two years under our belt is kind of a reminder, but I think it is a learning experience. We have enough guys on the roster now that were a part of it that never want to feel that way again,” said senior captain Andrew Thomas about battle scars from the past two frustrating results.
Denver has a very young team, with six freshmen making regular appearances in the lineup and eight sophomores. The youth showed a bit in the last couple weeks when the Pioneers got thrashed 7-2 at home by Wisconsin, followed by a 5-2 loss at Air Force, their first to the Falcons since 1980. The Pioneers called a much-needed team meeting after the game to re-group and to identify what they want to accomplish this season.
“We talked about what guys want to get out of the season and all the work that we had put in so far this year,” said Thomas.
Peter Mannino has proven to be one of the best goalies in the country this season, but the two games against Wisconsin and Air Force revealed how his skill sometimes can make his teammates complacent on defense. Too often, Pioneer defenders seemed to count on Mannino making the save, at the cost of helping him out on defense.
As Head Coach George Gwozdecky said after the win last week against Bemidji, guys were getting too lazy, thinking that they could relax and Mannino would back them up. Mannino is ridiculously good at times, but neither he nor any goalie is good enough to carry the team on his back night in and night out.
In order for the Pioneers to be successful down the stretch, they will have to continue to maintain one of the best team chemistries that DU hockey has had in as many years, play solid defense in front of Mannino and fully exploit their considerable speed.
The final 12 regular-season games will include a tough road date this weekend at Minnesota State, followed by a home series versus an off-year but still very solid University of Minnesota squad.
Then the Pioneers will face a stiff challenge at perennial powerhouse North Dakota before hosting league-worst Alaska Anchorage and then heading back out for their final “real” road games at Michigan Tech. The final weekend of WCHA play for the Pioneers could prove to be one to remember as they will play a home-and-away series with arch-rival and No. 3 Colorado College.
Fans will have to wait until Friday if this bye week has helped the Pioneers focus on areas of improvement or if the time off will cause the Pioneers to be rusty again. Mankato has not proven to be a friendly host to the Pioneers in recent years. In the last six meetings there, DU is 1-3-2, with the one win coming during the 2004-05 campaign.
As the Frozen Four in Denver continues to creep closer and closer, so does the reality that this year’s hockey team has the talent and mindset to compete in it. As if the home venue of the national championships isn’t sufficient motivation, surely the quest to replace memories of two disappointing seasons promises to inspire the Pioneers to use the challenging closing weeks of the regular season to prepare to reclaim the trophy of hockey superiority.
