University of Denver
Boston University
Terriers Top Pioneers, 4-1, to Claim WFDC Title
1/3/2009 12:00:00 AM | Ice Hockey
The Terriers, appearing in their first-ever Wells Fargo Denver Cup, stopped the Pioneers’ bid for a third straight title at the event and also ended the club’s eight-game undefeated streak. Rhett Rakhshani (
“I was very impressed with BU. I thought they had a great start and that won them the game,”
The Terriers took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission. Vinny Saponari opened the scoring at 7:14 after streaking into the offensive zone and firing a wrister from the right circle that clanked off the far post before settling into the goal.
A tally from Rakhshani at 17:41 of the second period cut the Terriers’ lead in half. Rakhshani first stopped a clearing attempt by BU netminder Kieran Millan (33 saves) along the right boards before working a quick give-and-go with Anthony Maiani (
However, Yip answered back just 1:14 later by beating Cheverie (23 saves) on a quick shot following a faceoff win by Nick Bonino.
The only goal during a back-and-forth third period was an empty-net tally by Zach Cohen with 1:08 remaining in the contest.
“They had a comfortable lead in the third period and we had to throw a little more caution to the wind,” Gwozdecky added. “You saw us playing with a lot more urgency late in the game and we were able to create a lot more chances. But there’s no question that BU team deserves to be one of the top teams in the country.”
The Pioneers outshot the Terriers by a 34-27 margin. BU finished 1-of-5 on the power play, while the Pioneers were held scoreless in seven opportunities.
The tournament’s consolation game was held earlier in the day, with Holy Cross battling back from a two-goal deficit in the first period to top
Everett Sheen recorded a goal for Holy Cross his third of the tournament and Jordan Cyr added an empty-net tally at 18:54 of the third period to give Holy Cross a 4-2 lead.
2009 Wells
F
F Jason Lawrence,
F Anthony Maiani,
D Matt Gilroy,
D David Warsofsky,
G Kieran Millan,
MVP Matt Gilroy,
Notes: DU has claimed 13 titles in the 17-year history of the Denver Cup...The Pioneers own a 26-6-2 all-time record at the event...Maiani extended his point streak to 10 games (2-13--15) with an assist tonight...Maiani has tallied at least one point in 18 of DU’s 21 games this season...Jesse Martin (Edmonton, Alberta) had his five-game goal streak and six-game point streak (6-3--9) snapped tonight...Next up for the Pioneers will be a Jan. 9-10 weekend set with Michigan Tech University at Magness Arena.
