The No. 2 DU Pioneers will open the second half of their 2016-17 schedule on Friday, Dec. 30 (puck drop - 5pm MT) and Saturday, Dec. 31 (puck drop - 3pm MT) against unranked Providence at Schneider Arena. Both of this weekend's games will air live on ESPN Denver 1600 AM and PioneerVision with veteran sports broadcaster Bill Rogan on the call.

Denver went 12-3-3 in the first half of its 2016-17 schedule, going 12-0-3 from Oct. 14-Dec. 9 to register the fourth-longest unbeaten streak in program history, while Providence went 7-6-3, sweeping RIT in its last series to get back above .500 for the season. On the special teams front, DU ranks 38^th in the nation in PP% (16.3) and 24^th in PK% (84.4) while PRO ranks 25^th (18.4) and T-21^st (84.7).

The Pioneers are led in scoring this season by Colorado Avalanche prospect Will Butcher, who has tallied 17P (3G-14A) in 18 games played to rank T-4th in the nation in points by a defenseman, as well as Anaheim Ducks prospect Troy Terry (18GP-9G-8A-17P), who is currently competing at the 2017 IIHF World Junior Championships in Canada as a member of Team USA. Freshman forward Henrik Borgström (14GP-5G-11A-16P) is also taking part in the tournament as a member of Team Finland. Between the pipes, junior netminder Tanner Jaillet has started 16 of Denver's 18 games thus far on the 2016-17 campaign, going 11-2-3 with a 1.99 GAA and .922 SV%.

Providence's leading scorer thus far in 2016-17 is Winnipeg Jets prospect Erik Foley (16GP-7G-8A-15P) while Montreal Canadiens prospect Hayden Hawkey has started all 16 of the Friars' games thus far this season, amassing a 2.42 GAA and .904 SV% to go along with his seven victories.

Denver is 6-8-1 all-time versus Providence, a record which includes a 3-3-0 mark in games played at Schneider Arena. The teams' last meeting came in the quarterfinals of the 2015 NCAA Tournament at Providence's Dunkin' Donuts Center; the Friars won the game 4-1 and went on to win their first national championship. It was the first Denver-Providence game in 14 years. The Pioneers' last visit to Schneider Arena was on November 27, 1999, a game won by the Friars 7-3.

The Pioneers will open their 2017 schedule at Magness Arena on Jan. 6-7 versus Arizona State. Special $10 tickets are available for this series and can be obtained by clicking HERE.