No. 2 Denver Pioneers are set to open their 70^th Anniversary Season on the road at Alaska-Fairbanks for a Saturday-Sunday series on Oct. 5-6. The Pioneers finished last season in the national semifinal after going 24-12-5 (11-10-3-3) as the fourth-youngest team in the nation under first-year Richard and Kitzia Goodman Head Coach David Carle. Denver returns 19 players from the 2018-19 season, including four of its top five scorers. 
 
The season-opening series will mark the ninth and tenth meetings between Denver and Alaska Fairbanks with the Pioneers holding a 6-2-1 all-time record against the Nanooks. Denver went 1-0-1 against Alaska Fairbanks last season. This weekend  will serve as a homecoming for assistant coaches Tavis MacMillan and Dallas Ferguson who both played and coached for the Nanooks.
 
DENVER: SNAPSHOT
• Denver returns 19 players from the 2018-19 season, including 72% of its goal scoring and 81% of its point scoring. By comparison, the 2018-19 team entered last season returning 48% of its goal scoring and 46% of its point scoring
• Liam Finlay leads Denver skaters with 70 career points after posting a career-high 36 points last season
 
DENVER: LAST SEASON
24-12-5 (NCHC 11-10-3-3)
• Denver advanced to the Frozen Four for the third time in the last four years, made its 12^th-straight appearance in the NCAA tournament and recorded its 18th-consecutive 20-win season
• In his first season behind the bench, David Carle led the fourth-youngest team in college hockey with a group of 19 freshmen and sophomores
• The Pioneers were undefeated in their first six games, going 5-0-1. Denver went on a seven-game winning streak from Dec. 8 - Jan. 12
 
DENVER: UP NEXT
October 11-12, 2019 at Lake Superior State (Taffy Abel Arena)
• The Pioneers will travel to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan for the first time in program history. Denver is 3-0-1 all-time against the Lakers, last defeating Lake Superior State 5-1 on Oct. 21, 2017 in Magness Arena
 
ALASKA FAIRBANKS: SNAPSHOT
• The Nanooks return eight of their top nine scorers, 85% of their point scoring and 88% of their goal scoring from last season
• Junior Steven Jandric led the Blue & Gold in scoring last season, posting nine goals and 15 assists
• Alaska Fairbanks brings back two goalies from last season, including starter Anton Martinsson who recorded a 2.72 GAA and .910 SV% in 2018-19
• The Nanooks have only seven Americans on their roster, making the U.S. the second-most represented nationality behind Canada (12) and ahead of Latvia (5)
• Alaska Fairbanks has not posted a winning season since going 19-13-2 under Dallas Ferguson in 2014-15. The Nanooks have a combined record of 45-85-14 in the last four seasons for a .313 winning percentage
 
ALASKA FAIRBANKS: LAST SEASON
12-21-3, (WCHA 12-14-2-2)
• In their first season under head coach Erik Largen, the Nanooks went 12-21-3 (12-14-2-2) with three more conference wins than the previous year to finish seventh in the WCHA
• Alaska Fairbanks' highlights included a 3-3 tie against then-No. 10 Denver (Oct. 20) and a 1-0 win against then-No. 4 Minnesota State (Feb. 23)
 
ALASKA FAIRBANKS: UP NEXT
Oct. 11-12, 2019 at Michigan Tech (MacInnes Student Ice Arena)
• The Nanooks will open WCHA play when they travel to Houghton, Mich. after getting swept by the Huskies on the road last season
 
DENVER VS. ALASKA FAIRBANKS
• The Pioneers are 6-2-1 all-time against the Nanooks
• Denver's last loss to Alaska Fairbanks was on Oct. 18, 2013 (3-2)
 
ROOTED IN ALASKA
• Head Coach David Carle is from Anchorage, Alaska
• Assistant Coach Tavis MacMillan played at Alaska-Fairbanks from 1990-1994, recording 192 points in 135 games. He served as assistant coach of the Nanooks from 1996-2003 (7 seasons) and head coach from 2004-2007 (3 seasons)
• Assistant Coach Dallas Ferguson played at Alaska-Fairbanks from 1992-1996, recording 104 points in 138 games. He served as assistant coach of the Nanooks 2004-2008 (4 seasons) and head coach from 2008-2017 (9 seasons)
• Joe Howe was hired as assistant coach of Alaska-Fairbanks in August 2018 after serving two seasons as the Pioneers' volunteer assistant coach and one season as the director of hockey operations
 
70TH ANNIVERSARY SEASON
• The Pioneers are set for their 70th Anniversary Season. Since its inaugural season in 1949, Denver has made 30 appearances in the NCAA tournament, 17 appearances in the Frozen Four and won eight National Championships, tied for the second-most titles among any college hockey program
• More than 150 alumni representing more than 60 years of Denver Hockey are expected to attend the 70th Anniversary Weekend set for Nov. 1-2 vs. Niagara
 
SURGING SOPHOMORES
• The Pioneers return every skater from last year's freshmen class which accounted for 30% of the team's point scoring and 26% of the team's goal scoring
• Emilio Pettersen, Cole Guttman and Brett Stapley were among Denver's top six scorers last season
 
NCHC PRESEASON POLL
• Denver was ranked second in the NCHC preseason poll with 178 points and two-first place votes in a poll of 28 ballots submitted by local media members from each school, as well as select national media
• Minnesota Duluth ranked first with 218 points and 23-first place votes, Western Michigan ranked third with 156 points and three first-place votes and North Dakota rounded out the top-half of the conference with 143 points
 
2019-20 CAPTAINS
• Ian Mitchell was named captain for the 2019-20 season, while Tyson McLellan and Michael Davies will serve as alternates
• The last time the Pioneers had a junior captain was 2014-15 (Grant Arnold)
 
DEVELOPMENT CAMPS
• Thirteen Pioneers participated in NHL development camps last summer, joining three alumni and two prospects signed to National Letters of Intent
• Of the 13 players who participated in camps, six were invited as free agents and seven were invited as draft picks
 
THE NEXT LEADERS
• Three members of the freshmen class were captains or alternate captains of their junior teams: Jay Feiwell (C), Lane Krenzen (C) Brett Edwards (A). Incoming sophomore Hank Crone was also an alternate captain with his junior team
 
PUTTING THEIR HEADS TOGETHER
• With David Carle in his second season, Denver has three coaches with NCAA head coaching experience on its 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
 
CIRCLE YOUR CALENDAR
• Homecoming/Parent's Weekend: Oct. 18-19 vs. Boston College
• 70th Anniversary Weekend: Nov. 1-2 vs. Niagara
• Teddy Bear Toss with CBS4: Nov. 16 vs. North Dakota
 
TV TIME
• The Pioneers are slated to air three times on CBS Sports Network during the 2019-20 season: Feb. 14 at North Dakota, Feb. 28 at St. Cloud State and March 7 vs. Colorado College
• Denver will air 10 times on Altitude during the 2019-20 season
 
NCAA REGIONAL 2020 & 2021
• The Pioneers will host the 2020 & 2021 NCAA West Regional at the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland, Colo.
• 2020 will mark the first year in which an NCAA hockey tournament event has been held in Colorado since the 2008 Men's Frozen Four at the Pepsi Center in Denver
 
WOGTECH NAMED VOLUNTEER ASSISTANT COACH
• Corey Wogtech was named volunteer assistant coach in August 2019 after serving 11 seasons as a goaltending coach in the NAHL, NCAA and USHL
• As a player, Wogtech played two seasons at St. Scholastica (NCAA DIII) before starting his four-year professional career in 2005. The St. Louis, Mo. native spent time in eight different leagues during his career, playing in North America and Europe
 
EXTENDING THE STREAK
• On March 15, 2019, Denver became only the third team in NCAA history to compile 18-consecutive 20 win seasons. The last time the Pioneers missed the 20-game threshold was 2000-01 when the team finished 19-15-4 under George Gwozdecky
• The Pioneers' streak of 18 straight 20-win seasons is the longest active streak in the NCAA. The NCAA record for consecutive 20-win seasons is held by Michigan, which had 25 from 1987-2012
 
BACK TO SCHOOL
• Last season, the Pioneers placed the third-most student-athletes on the NCHC Academic All-Conference Team (21) and second-most student-athletes on the NCHC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete list (13)
• To be eligible for the NCHC Academic All-Conference Team, a student-athlete must compile a 3.0 cumulative grade-point average (or better) and have completed a full academic year at their current institution. Similarly, for NCHC Distinguished Scholar-Athletes, a student-athlete must attain a 3.5 cumulative GPA or better with a full year of academic studies
 
RON GRAHAME RETIRES
• Program alum and former Pioneer Athletic Director, Ron Grahame, retired on Sept. 1 after more than 30 years of combined athletic experience at DU. During his tenure, Grahame served as Athletics Director, Assistant Vice Chancellor/Senior Associate Athletics Director, Associate Athletics Director for Intercollegiate Sport Programs, Assistant Athletic Director for Operations and Compliance and Associate Head Hockey Coach (1982-1990)
• As a four-year goaltender for the Pioneers from 1969-1973, Grahame earned All-American honors, WCHA Player of the Year honors and helped Denver to a 1973 WCHA Championship. He played eight years of professional hockey in the WHA, AHL and NHL (114 GP) after his collegiate career
• Grahame is first in all-time saves in program history (3,565) and is tied for first in all-time wins in program history (82)
 
ALUMNI NEWS
• More than 150 alumni representing more than 60 years of Denver Hockey are expected to attend the 70th Anniversary Weekend on Nov. 1-2 vs. Niagara
• Alum Mike Christie passed away in July 2019 after a battle with chronic kidney disease. Christie had 15 goals, 63 assists and 78 penalty minutes in 105 games as a defenseman for the Pioneers from 1969-1972. The Big Springs, Texas native helped Denver to back-to-back Frozen Four appearances and WCHA tournament championships in 1971 and 1972, boosted the Pioneers to the 1972 WCHA regular season championship and served as captain for the 1971-72 season
• Longtime supporter Harold Beier passed away in September 2019 after more than 50 years of contributions to Denver Hockey as a billet for student-athletes, archivist for the DU Hockey Alumni Association and contributor to the Beier Family Endowed Hockey Scholarship. In 2006, Beier was installed to the DU Athletic Hall of Fame
• After capping an 11-year and 407-game NHL career by winning the 2019 Stanley Cup with the St. Louis Blues, Chris Butler retired in July 2019. Butler played three years with the Pioneers from 2005-2008. In 2008, Butler served as alternate captain, helping Denver to a WCHA tournament championship and berth in the NCAA tournament en route to being named Second-Team All-American
 
UP NEXT:
Denver will open its 70^th Anniversary Season on Oct. 5-6 at Alaska Fairbanks and Oct. 11-12 at Lake Superior State before returning to Magness Arena for its first home series of the season on Oct. 18-19 vs. Boston College.
 
2019-20 SEASON TICKETS:
Season tickets for the 2019-20 season are on sale now, and can be purc­­­hased here. Check out the complete 2019-20 schedule here. 
 
SHOP PIONEERS:
Get dressed for Game Day! Get your Pioneers gear at ShopPioneers.com, the official online store of University of Denver Athletics.
 
OUR JOURNEY:
Fans interested in making a donation to the men's hockey program can do so by clicking here. Your contribution will make a direct impact on the success of YOUR Pioneers. Thank you in advance for your unwavering support of our student-athletes and their quest for excellence.   

-OUR JOURNEY, OUR TIME- 
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