DENVER – Three University of Denver hockey players were recognized on Monday as National Collegiate Hockey Players of the Week. Sophomore
Tristan Broz was named Forward of the Week, sophomore
Sean Behrens was chosen as Defenseman of the Week and senior
Magnus Chrona earned Goaltender of the Week accolades.
Denver is coming off a home sweep of its weekend conference series against Miami, winning 7-0 on both Friday and Saturday night. It is the first time that the Pioneers posted shutouts in both games of a weekend set since Jan. 21-22, 2022 against Colorado College, and last week marked the first time they scored goals in both games since also doing it versus the MU RedHawks on Feb. 21-22, 2020 in Denver.
Broz recorded six points (4g/2a) in the two games versus Miami. He started the weekend with a pair of assists on Friday before scoring a career-high four goals on Saturday for his first hat trick. Broz tallied on each of his four shots in the game and became just the 31st Pioneer to record four or more goals in a contest and the first nearly 20 years, as Kevin Doell was the last to accomplish the feat on Feb. 21, 2003 vs. Michigan Tech.
The Bloomington, Minnesota, native's four goals matched his personal best for points in a contest (1g/3a. Dec. 17 vs. Lindenwood), and his final three markers of the game came consecutively in the third period. It was the most points in a period by a Denver player this season, and he scored each of his final three tallies in a matter of 6:57—the second-fastest three goals by a Pioneer since 1999, with only Rhett Rakhshani's three in 5:21 on Dec. 8, 2007 vs. St. Cloud State being faster in the last 24 years.
This is Broz's first career conference weekly honor, and he is the fourth different Denver player to earn the accolade this season, joining
Carter Mazur (Oct. 31),
Jared Wright (Nov. 14) and
Massimo Rizzo last week (Jan. 9). He ranks fifth on the team in scoring with 20 points and is fourth in goals with nine.
Chrona earned his second Goaltender of the Week award of the season and the sixth of his career after he posted consecutive shutouts against the RedHawks. He stopped 20 shots each night and now has 12 shutouts in his career, sharing third place all-time in school history with
Adam Berkhoel (2000-2004). The 12 career clean sheets are tied for the second-most in NCHC history, and all three of his perfect games this season have come against Miami (also Oct. 28).
The Stockholm, Sweden, native is on a season-long 126:01 shutout streak, the 15th longest in the school record book. This is the second time in his career that he's recorded back-to-back shutouts, as he also accomplished the feat last year when he did it three games in a row. Chrona owns the third-longest streak in the program annals after going on a 198:10 run last year, and he is one of three netminders in DU history to register multiple shutout streaks of at least 120 minutes in length (Wade Dubielewicz, 3; Peter Mannino, 2).
Chrona now has a 15-5-0 record on the season and posted a 2.07 goals-against average and .918 save percentage. He made his 100th career start in Friday's game and is one of eight goalies to reach the century mark in games played in program history.
Behrens recorded three points (1g/2a) in the two outings against Miami to pick up his first Defenseman of the Week honor of the year. He contributed an assist, two shots, and one block in Friday's game while posting a plus-4 rating—tied for the highest mark of the year on the team. Behrens tallied and had a helper in Saturday's contest while adding three blocks and five shots.
This is the Barrington, Illinois, native's fourth Defenseman of the Week award of his career after winning it three times as a freshman last season. Behrens ranks second among Denver defenders this year in scoring with 13 points (2g/11a) in 19 games and is third overall on the squad in blocked shots (35).
Omaha's Ray Fust was chosen as the NCHC Rookie of the Week. Denver freshman
Aidan Thompson was a finalist for the top rookie award after combining for four points (1g/3a) in the two outings against Miami, including registering a career-high three assists/points in Saturday's game.
UP NEXT: No. 3 Denver heads to Minnesota this weekend for a top-five showdown as the Pioneers face the No. 4 St. Cloud State Huskies. Friday's game starts at 6:30 p.m. MT and Saturday's contest begins at 5 p.m. MT, with both being broadcasted on NCHC.tv.
TICKETS: Single-game tickets and five-game packs are available by clicking here.
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