No. 17 Denver Hockey Sweeps Merrimack to Open Season

Box Score

DENVER – The No. 17 University of Denver hockey team had four different players score goals and posted back-to-back shutouts to open the season for the first time in the 65-year history of the program as it cruised to a 4-0 win over Merrimack on Saturday night at Magness Arena.

Senior goalie Sam Brittain (Calgary, Alberta) secured the shutout with 28 saves – consistently frustrating the Warriors’ offense, which matched Denver in shots 28-28 despite the loss.

The last time the Pioneers strung together consecutive shutouts at any point in a season was during the 2009-10 campaign, when they posted four straight from October 15-24 in series sweeps over Ohio State and Minnesota.

With the victory, Denver opens the season a perfect 2-0 and the ninth time since 1992-93.  The last time the Pioneers opened the season with consecutive wins in back-to-back years was in 2007-08 and 2008-09.

The two wins over Merrimack drop the Warriors to 0-2 on the season and give the Pioneers their first weekend sweep of 2013-14 after posting seven perfect weekends a year ago.

Just like in the opening game of the series, the Pioneers wasted no time in setting the tone.  Following a tripping call on a pair of Merrimack players that gave Denver a two-man advantage, junior Ty Loney (Pittsburgh, Pa.) drove hard to the net up the right side before setting up teammate Joey LaLeggia (Burnaby, B.C.) with a feed in the slot that LaLeggia put away after deking Merrimack goalie Sam Marotta and finishing glove side for the 1-0 advantage just 2:30 into regulation.

A pair of Denver freshmen teamed up on the Pioneers’ second power play goal of the contest to make the margin 2-0 at the 3:33 mark of the second.  Rookie Trevor Moore (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) found classmate Will Butcher (Sun Prairie, Wis.) with a cross-ice feed at the top of the left circle, which Butcher promptly placed in the back of the net for his first collegiate score.

Denver (2-0) increased the margin to 3-0 at 14:56 of the second period on an even strength tally by senior David Makowski (St. Louis, Mo.).  Sophomore Nolan Zajac (Winnipeg, Manitoba) found Makowski with a feed in the high slot that he blasted past Marotta’s glove side.

The Pioneers added a third power play goal at the 11:31 mark of the third as Quentin Shore (Denver, Colo.) slid a pass from the left wing to the stick of junior Daniel Doremus (Aspen, Colo.) just in front of the crease which was promptly tapped in for the score.

Special teams were on point all night long for the Pioneers as the Denver penalty kill unit shut down the Merrimack power play, limiting the Warriors to just six shots over six man advantages.  The Pioneers were 3-for-9 while playing a man up.

DU won 42-of-68 faceoff chances.  Doremus led the Pioneers on the draws, capturing 12-of-20.  Freshman Matt Marcinew (Calgary, Alberta) finished the game with a pair of assists.

The Pioneers hit the road for the first time this season as they head to Fairbanks, Alaska, for the Alaska Goal Rush Tournament.  Denver will face host-school Alaska on Friday, Oct. 18 (10 p.m.) and Anchorage on Saturday, Oct. 19 (6 p.m.). 

Denver hockey season tickets for 2013-14 are currently on sale.  Ticket packages begin at $198. Individual game tickets start at $19.  For more information, please call 303-871-2336 or visit at DenverPioneers.com/tickets for more information. 

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