The No. 4 Denver Pioneers (8-3-2, 0-3-2-1) look to snap a five-game winless streak and earn their first conference win of the season as they close their season series with No. 20 Western Michigan (7-4-2, 3-1-1-1) on Saturday at Magness Arena. Puck drop is set for 7:07 p.m. MT.
 
DENVER: LAST GAME
WMU 2, DU 1 (Denver, Colo. - Magness Arena)
• With goals at 2:21 and 10:57 of the first period, the Broncos controlled the early portion of the game and built a lead they never relinquished. Jaakko Heikkinen's goal midway through second cut the Pioneers' deficit to 2-1, but Brandon Bussi's 35 save-performance helped preserve the Broncos' lead
• Mattias Samuelsson and Ethen Frank scored for Western Michigan, while Rhett Kingston had a pair of assists
• Magnus Chrona made 31 saves for Denver. The Pioneers outshot the Broncos, 36-33
• Denver went 0/4 on the power play and 2/2 on the penalty kill
 
DENVER: SNAPSHOT
• After an 8-0-0 start to the season, their second-best start in program history, the Pioneers are 0-3-2 in the last five games
• Liam Finlay leads Denver with 11 points, while Emilio Pettersen and Ian Mitchell each have 10 points
• The Pioneers' penalty kill is 47/52 (90.4%), 7th in the NCAA, and has scored three shorthanded goals, T-3rd in the NCAA
• Magnus Chrona is 7-3-2 with a 2.15 GAA, 3rd among NCAA freshmen, a .920 SV%, 2nd among NCAA freshmen, and two shutouts, 2nd among NCAA freshmen
• The Pioneers are 4th in the NCAA for shots on goal per game (34.31) and T-9th in the NCAA for goal margin (+13)
• In the last five games, Denver has been outscored 15-8 and has gone 1/21 (4.8%) on the power play. Through the first eight games, the Pioneers outscored opponents 33-13 and went 9/41 (22.0%) on the power play
 
DENVER: UP NEXT
Dec. 6-7, 2019 at Arizona State (Tempe & Glendale, Ariz.)
• The Pioneers are 2-0-0 all-time against ASU, sweeping the Sun Devils in a series at Magness Arena on Jan. 6-7, 2017 (5-1 W, 6-1 W)
 
WESTERN MICHIGAN: SNAPSHOT
• Paul Washe leads the Broncos with 14 points (7-7-14)
• Western Michigan is 5th in the NCAA for shots on goal per game (34.08)
• Wade Allison, Ronnie Attard, Josh Passolt and Drew Worrad missed games last weekend with injuries. The group accounts for 20% of the Broncos' point production. None of the aforementioned players played on Friday
 
WESTERN MICHIGAN: UP NEXT
Dec. 6-7, 2019 vs. North Dakota (Kalamazoo, Mich. - Lawson Arena)
• Western Michigan went 3-1-0 against North Dakota last weekend
 
DENVER VS. WESTERN MICHIGAN
• Denver is 17-10-1 all-time against Western Michigan, going 10-2-1 at home. Entering this weekend, the Pioneers' only home loss to the Broncos was on Nov. 8, 2014
• The Pioneers went 2-2-0 against the Broncos last season, sweeping their home series and losing both games on the road
• Denver is tied for having the 6th-shortest team and 4th-lighest team in the NCAA (5'11," 181 lbs). Western Michigan is tied for having the 3rd-tallest team and 3rd-heaviest team in the NCAA (6'1," 193 lbs)
 
NON-CONFERENCE STREAK
• The Pioneers are undefeated in 19 straight non-conference games with a 17-0-2 mark in that stretch
• Denver is 22-2-4 against non-conference opponents since the 2017-18 season
 
MITCHELL'S POINT
• Since last season, Denver is 19-2-4 when Ian Mitchell scores a point and 13-13-3 when he does not
• This season, the Pioneers are 7-0-0 when Ian Mitchell scores a point and 1-3-2 when he does not
 
HOME COOKIN'
• Denver is 29-10-8 at home since the 2017-18 season, posting a .617 winning percentage and taking points from 79% of its games
 
70TH ANNIVERSARY SEASON
• The Pioneers are playing in 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
 
UP NEXT: Denver men's hockey presented by Centura Health completes its series with Western Michigan on Saturday, Nov. 23 at Magness Arena

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