Box Score Denver Takes Over Second Place in the WCHA Standings
DENVER - The University of Denver had to come from behind, but increased its unbeaten streak to nine games with a 2-1 victory against the University of Minnesota-Duluth, Saturday night. With the victory, Denver earned two points in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association standings, vaulting the Pioneers from fifth all the way to second place in the league.
"I am real proud of our team," said Denver head coach George Gwozdecky. "That was as tough a game as we played all year. This team has every right to be proud of themselves because of tonight's effort."
Both teams had their chances in the first period, but were unable to put the puck in the net as the opening stanza ended in a scoreless tie. Denver sophomore goaltender Wade Dubielewicz (Invermere, British Columbia) stopped all eight Bulldog shots, while the Pioneers managed just five shots on UDM's Rob Anderson.
Minnesota-Duluth tallied the first goal of the game at the 8:03 mark of the second period when Derek Derow beat Dubielewicz on the Bulldogs' 11th shot of the game. Despite outshooting Minnesota-Duluth in the second stanza by a count of 15-8, the Pioneers could not slip the puck past Anderson.
Denver opened the second period with a jump in their step and tied the contest at the 1:32 mark. After a save by Anderson on sophomore J.J. Hartmann (Colodaro Springs, Colo.), senior Kelly Popadynetz (Calgary, Alberta) controlled the puck and beat Anderson high to his glove side. Junior defenseman Erik Adams (Thunder Bay, Ontario) was also credited with an assist.
Less than three minutes later, the Pioneers took their first lead of the game as junior David Neale (Victoria, British Columbia) gathered a rebound in front of Anderson and stuck the puck in the net. Sophomore Greg Barber (Kelowna, British Columbia) assisted on the go-ahead goal. With 1:53 left to play, the Bulldogs called a timeout and pulled their goaltender with the ensuing face off coming to the right of Dubielewicz. Denver picked up the intensity, finished its checks and survived the barrage of Duluth shots in the final two minutes to earn the 2-1 victory.
"It was a physical game at times," continued Gwozdecky. "One things we did tonight was we did a much better job taking care of the puck. I believe Duluth is a team that is going to be heard from in a big way in the second half of the season. They work hard and Rob Anderson played very well in goal."
Junior Chris Paradise (St. Paul, Minn.) saw his career-best 10-game scoring streak come to an end as he was held scoreless in the game. Dubielewicz finished the game with 22 saves and helped the Pioneers hold UMD scoreless on six power play opportunities.
Denver (9-7-2, 8-5-1 WCHA) will take a two-week break for the holidays before returning to action on December 29 and 30 at the Denver Cup at Magness Arena. On Friday (December 29) the Pioneers will face Air Force in game two of the Denver Cup in a 7:35 p.m. contest (following Providence vs. Ferris State at 4:35 p.m.). The Denver Cup will conclude Saturday (Dec. 30) with the consolation game at 4:05 p.m. and the championship game following at 7:05 p.m.
