DENVER Peter Mannino (Farmington Hills, Mich.) made 25 saves en route to his 10th-career shutout as the No. 10 Denver Pioneers blanked No. 12 University of Maine, 2-0, tonight before 6,040 fans at Magness Arena. Tyler Ruegsegger (Lakewood, Colo.) recorded a goal and an assist and Kyle Ostrow (Calgary, Alberta) recorded his first-career goal, while Chris Butler (St. Louis, Mo.) chipped in two assists for the Pioneers.
“Both goaltenders played phenomenally at times tonight,” said Denver Head Coach George Gwozdecky. “I thought it was a good first effort. It was a very important win for us against a quality team.”
The Pioneers outshot the Black Bears by a 16-7 margin during a scoreless first period.
Ruegsegger then opened the scoring at 5:46 of the second period with a power-play goal off a blast from the top of the right circle. Before the conclusion of the middle frame, Ostrow also notched a power-play goal to give the Pioneers a 2-0 advantage they would not relinquish.
Mannino made seven stops in the third period to seal the victory for the Pioneers. Ben Bishop stopped 46-of-48 shots for the Black Bears. DU finished 2-of-8 on the power play, while Maine went 0-for-4.
The teams will meet again on Saturday at Magness Arena to finish off the weekend series. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:07 p.m. MT.
Notes: Mannino’s 10 career shutouts currently ranks third on DU’s all-time list, trailing only Gerry Powers (13) and Adam Berkhoel (12)...The Pioneers last won their season-opener during the 2003-04 campaign when the squad topped Ohio State by a 5-2 margin at the Lefty McFadden Invitational in Dayton, Ohio...DU last started the season with a shutout victory during the 2002-03 campaign, when Wade Dubielewicz blanked Michigan State University, 5-0...Tonight’s game marked the beginning of the 59th season of Denver Pioneer varsity hockey...DU has posted a 1,180-808-108 all-time record...This weekend’s series marks a rematch of the teams that played for the 2004 NCAA National Championship... DU defeated Maine, 1-0, for its sixth NCAA title in 2004...Tonight marked the 58th consecutive regular season sellout at Magness Arena.
