Fairbanks, Alaska – Cole Guttman's goal with 1:03 remaining lifted the No. 2 Denver Pioneers men's hockey team (1-0-0, 0-0-0-0) over the Alaska Fairbanks Nanooks (0-1-0, 0-0-0-0) 4-3 in their season opener on Saturday at the Carlson Center.
The game-winning goal bookended a game the Pioneers struggled to start, but controlled as the night continued. After surrendering a goal only 16 seconds into the game, Denver showed resolve to leave the first period down 2-1, respond with a two-goal second and outshoot Alaska 36-33.
"We certainly didn't start the game the way we wanted," Richard and Kitzia Goodman Head Coach
David Carle said. "They had us on our heels early. A lot of it was what they were doing, some it was what we were doing, but once we got into the second I thought we simplified our game with the puck a little bit, used our speed, and spent less time in our own end because we broke the puck out cleaner and it led to some more chances for us."
The Nanooks outshot the Pioneers 12-0 to start the night before
Ryan Barrow's goal tempered the onslaught. At 7:10 of the first,
Liam Finlay exited the penalty box, caught
Kohen Olischefski's pass off the glass and flipped the puck to
Ryan Barrow who went backhand-forehand to slip a shot by the left pad of Anton Martinsson.
Denver went on the offensive midway through the second period when Kyle Marino's hit on
Bobby Brink resulted in a Pioneer power play. With time winding down on the man advantage,
Hank Crone waited for a passing lane before slipping a cross-crease feed to Olischefski. Brink's revenge came minutes later as he slinked toward the net and benefited from goal-mouth chaos to bury his first NCAA goal from close range. The Crimson & Gold's 3-2 advantage held until 12:00 of the third period when Steven Jandric swept the rebound from Roberts Kalkis' shot past
Magnus Chrona.
Tied 3-3 late in regulation,
Emilio Pettersen carried the puck into the offensive zone and around the net before feeding Guttman for a one-timer from the bottom of the left circle.
Guttman, Finlay and Olischefksi had multi-point games with Guttman contributing on both of Denver's go-ahead goals…Denver finished 1/4 on the power play and 4/4 on the penalty kill…
Magnus Chrona made 30 saves in his first NCAA win…
UP NEXT:
Denver will close its series with Alaska Fairbanks on Oct. 6 before traveling to Lake Superior State for a series on Oct. 11-12. The Pioneers return to Magness Arena for their 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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