DENVER – Each member of the No. 4 Denver Pioneers' (9-3-2, 1-3-2-1) newly-formed top line had multi-point games as Denver trounced No. 20 Western Michigan (7-5-2, 3-2-1-1) 6-1 on Saturday at Magness Arena.
 
Tyler Ward paced the Pioneers with one goal and three assists, Jaakko Heikkinen tallied one goal and two assists and Bobby Brink had two goals and one assist. Jack Doremus, Ian Mitchell and Emilio Pettersen also registered two points each in Denver's dominant performance.
 
"We had everyone going tonight," Richard and Kitzia Goodman Head Coach David Carle said. "There weren't any passengers. I thought all four lines and all six defensemen were on their toes all night and playing the game the right way. That's our identity."
 
The Pioneers built their lead gradually, taking a 1-0 lead after the first, 3-1 lead after the second and scoring three times on the power play in the third period to secure their first conference win of the season.
 
"It was overall a really good effort by our team," Carle said. "I loved our start. We talked a lot about it and I think it says a lot about our group and what we've been through with the adversity we've been facing, to come out and start the game like we did and impose our will was really impressive."
 
Denver pressured Western Michigan from the outset, breaking through at 10:33 of the first as Brink received a pass from Heikkinen through the neutral zone, then glided toward the net selling the return pass before rifling a wrist shot over Brandon Bussi's glove.
 
The Pioneers continued to push in the second period where Ward, who had the secondary assist on Brink's goal, scored and set up a goal to make it 3-1 by the second intermission. With bodies at the net at 13:07 of the second, Brink slid a pass to Ward who fired a shot past a floundering Bussi for the eventual game-winner. Less than two minutes later, Ward collected the puck from a dump in, wired a shot toward the net and created a rebound for Jake Durflinger to score.
 
Denver cushioned its lead on the man advantage, going 3/3 on the power play in the third period. Hekkinen shelfed a shot from the front of the net to extend Denver's lead at 2:31, Brink scored his second goal of the night at 8:50 on a one-timer off Emilio Pettersen's pass and Jack Doremus capped the scoring with his first goal of the season at 16:37.
 
"Obviously we made some finishing pays tonight," Carle said. "We were on our toes for most of the night. It was good all around."

Western Michigan failed to muster much offense after the second period. The Broncos managed only six shots in the third after firing 15 in the second. Devin Cooley made 24 saves in his first start of the season.
 
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Denver went 3/5 on the power play and 2/2 on the penalty kill…Jaakko Heikkinen had two goals and two assists in the series… The Pioneers outshot the Broncos, 38-25…

UP NEXT: Denver men's hockey presented by Centura Health encounters a bye week before traveling to face Arizona State in a non-conference matchup on Dec. 6-7

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