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University of Denver Athletics

Jake Durflinger
Maddie MacFarlane

Men's Ice Hockey Niko Blankenship

Game Preview: Denver vs. Alabama-Huntsville

DENVER: SNAPSHOT
• Denver returns 55% of its point scoring and 48% of its goal scoring from 2017-18
• Jarid Lukosevicius leads the returners with 76 points (43-33-76) in 118 career games
• Returners/Lost: 15/11 (Total), 9/5 (Forwards), 5/4 (Defenseman), 1/2 (Goalies)
• Last season, the Pioneers made their 11th consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament and became the first two-time winners of the NCHC Frozen Faceoff

DENVER: LAST GAME
Denver 4, Air Force 1
• Cole Guttman and Emilio Pettersen both scored goals in their collegiate debuts. Pettersen added two assists to co-lead Denver (Lukosevicius)
• Devin Cooley made 22 saves on 23 shots, including 12 in the second period
• All four of Denver's goals came from underclassmen, two (2) from freshmen and two (2) from sophomores

DENVER: UP NEXT
Denver vs. Alaska-Fairbanks – Oct. 19-20, 2018
• The Pioneers will face Alaska-Fairbanks for the first time since Jan. 28-29, 1994
• Denver is 7-1-0 all-time against Alaska-Fairbanks
• Pioneers assistant coaches Tavis MacMillan and Dallas Ferguson each served as assistant and head coaches with Alaska-Fairbanks. Denver's former Director of Hockey Operations Joe Howe was recently hired as an assistant coach with the Nanooks. Pioneers head coach David Carle is an Anchorage, Alaska native

OPENING NIGHT
• Denver's 4-1 win at Air Force on Oct. 12 was its first in a season opener since the 2014-15 campaign when the Pioneers beat RPI 3-0 (0-2-1 in-between)
• Emilio Pettersen had a goal and two assists to lead the Pioneers with three points
• Pettersen recorded the first three-point game for a Pioneer in a season-opener since then-junior Trevor Moore (0-3-3) on Oct. 9, 2015 at Air Force.
• Friday night also marked the first three-point game by a Denver freshman on opening night since Luke Salazar led the Pioneers with two goals and an assist against Notre Dame on Oct. 11, 2008.

ALABAMA-HUNTSVILLE: SNAPSHOT
• Alabama-Huntsville will play its fourth game against an NCHC opponent to start its season, arriving to Magness Arena on a three-game losing streak
• The Chargers return 56% of their point scoring and 43% of their goal scoring from 2017-18
• Last season, the Chargers posted a 12-23-2 (10-16-2 WCHA) record, marking their best season since joining the WCHA in the 2013-14 season 
• Chargers head coach Mike Corbett played at Denver from 1993-97

ALABAMA-HUNTSVILLE: LAST GAME
Colorado College 1, Alabama-Huntsville 0
• Christiano Versich scored the only goal of the game at the 7:26 mark of the second period in Colorado Springs
• Alabama-Huntsville was out-shot 47-18 in the loss
• Chargers goalie Mark Sinclair made 46 saves in the one-goal game

ALABAMA-HUNTSVILLE: UP NEXT
Alabama-Huntsville vs. Arizona State – Oct. 19-20, 2018
• The Chargers will host the Sun Devils for a two-game series in Huntsville, Ala.
• Last season, Alabama-Huntsville split a series with Arizona State on Nov. 3-4, 2017 in Tempe, Ariz.

YOUNG PIONEERS
• At 28, David Carle is the youngest coach in Division I college hockey
• The Pioneers have the fourth-youngest team in college hockey with an average age of 20 years/8 months
• Colin Staub (24), Denver's oldest player, is more than six years older than Brendan Budy (18), the Pioneers' youngest player
• The Pioneers 20 freshmen and sophomores, the most since the 2007-08 season when Tyler Bozak was a freshman

EXPERIENCED STAFF
• Assistant Coach Tavis MacMillan served as head coach of Alaska-Fairbanks from 2004-07
• Assistant Coach Dallas Ferguson served as head coach of Alaska-Fairbanks from 2008-17
• Volunteer Assistant Coach Steven Reinprecht played 663 NHL games over 11 NHL seasons, winning a Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in 2001
• Team Manager Ben Scrivens played 144 NHL games over five NHL seasons in addition to representing Canada at the 2018 Winter Olympics
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Players Mentioned

Devin Cooley

#1 Devin Cooley

Goaltender
6' 4"
Sophomore
Wenatchee Wild - BCHL
Jarid Lukosevicius

#14 Jarid Lukosevicius

Forward
5' 10"
Senior
Powell River Kings - BCHL
Colin Staub

#24 Colin Staub

Forward
6' 0"
Senior
Wichita Falls Wildcats - NAHL
Cole Guttman

#19 Cole Guttman

Forward
5' 9"
Freshman
Dubuque Fighting Saints - USHL
Emilio Pettersen

#20 Emilio Pettersen

Forward
5' 10"
Freshman
Muskegon Lumberjacks - USHL

Players Mentioned

Devin Cooley

#1 Devin Cooley

6' 4"
Sophomore
Wenatchee Wild - BCHL
Goaltender
Jarid Lukosevicius

#14 Jarid Lukosevicius

5' 10"
Senior
Powell River Kings - BCHL
Forward
Colin Staub

#24 Colin Staub

6' 0"
Senior
Wichita Falls Wildcats - NAHL
Forward
Cole Guttman

#19 Cole Guttman

5' 9"
Freshman
Dubuque Fighting Saints - USHL
Forward
Emilio Pettersen

#20 Emilio Pettersen

5' 10"
Freshman
Muskegon Lumberjacks - USHL
Forward