DENVER – Junior Massimo Rizzo scored twice and freshman goaltender Freddie Halyk posted a shutout in his first career start on Saturday as the No. 2 Denver Pioneers hockey team defeated the Air Force Falcons 4-0 at Magness Arena.
 
Halyk stopped all 24 shots he faced in his first start and second career game; he played at the end of the third period on Oct. 8 at Alaska Fairbanks. The last DU goalie to register a clean sheet in his first career start was teammate Matt Davis, who did it on Oct. 15, 2021 vs. Air Force.
 
"I am very happy with how he played. He's been putting in the work," said Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle of Halyk. "I think just from when [assistant coach] Ryan [Massa] first started working with him to where he is now, I have seen a lot of improvement. He was big and boring. That's what he needed to be. A lot of pucks stuck to him. When things did break down like they do in every game, he was there to make some real big saves for us. I liked how he got out of the net as well to set pucks for our D-men to queue breakouts and things like that. You couldn't have scripted it much better for him for his first start."
 
Rizzo opened the scoring midway through the first period on a redirection and then registered his fifth career multi-goal game by sliding the puck past the right pad of AFA goalie Guy Blessing while falling to the ice with 5:44 remaining in regulation.
 
Freshman Cale Ashcroft scored his first career goal with 1:29 remaining the first period, and Carter King sealed the win for Denver with an empty-net marker with two minutes left. King added an assist and freshman defenseman Boston Buckberger had a pair of helpers as Denver had three players with multi-point performances.
 
Both teams went 0-for-5 on the power play, which featured DU killing a 5-on-3 for 1:23 with 6:23 remaining in the second period while leading by only one goal. Ashcroft tallied four minutes later to double Denver's lead heading into the second break.
 
The Pioneers outshot the Falcons 27-24. Blessing finished with 30 saves in for Air Force.
 
UP NEXT: DU faces another in-state foe next weekend as the program begins the Gold Pan series with a home-and-home set against Colorado College. The Pioneers conclude their three-game homestand on Friday at 7 p.m. MT before traveling to Colorado Springs to play the Tigers on Saturday at 6 p.m. MT.
 
 
POSTGAME NOTES

• Denver won its seventh straight game vs. Air Force and improved to 14-1-1 in the last 16 games and 41-4-1 all-time.
• The Pioneers picked up their second consecutive shutout and owns 160:01 shutout streak dating back to Oct. 15, 2021. DU has shutout Air Force in nearly four full games at Magness Arena, with a streak of 238:17; Dylan Abood at 1:43 of the first period on Oct. 10, 2015 was the last Falcon to score in Denver's home rink.
• Freshman goaltender Freddie Halyk made his first career start and was playing his second career game after coming late in the third period on Oct. 8 at Alaska Fairbanks.
• Matt Davis (25 saves) was the last DU netminder to post a shutout in their first career start on Oct. 16, 2021.
• Massimo Rizzo recorded his fifth career multi-goal game. He has a point in all six games to begin the season and has scored a goal in four straight games, tying his career long (Nov. 26-Dec. 9, 2022).
• Sean Behrens registered an assist to push his assist/point streak to five games, tying a career high from Oct. 8-22, 2021.
• Freshman Cale Ashcroft scored his first career goal.
• Freshman Alex Weiermair made his NCAA debut.

 
 
GOAL SUMMARY
1st Period
11:00 DU (1-0) – Massimo Rizzo redirected Boston Buckbergers's shot from the slot past the Air Force goalie and into the net.
 
2nd Period
18:31 DU (2-0) – Cale Ashcroft snuck the puck in short side between the pads and right post.
 
3rd Period
14:16 DU (3-0) – From the neutral zone, Rizzo skated up the ice cut to the inside of the slot before sliding the puck past the Air Force netminder while falling to the ice.
18:00 DU (4-0) – ENG, Carter King buried a long shot from his own blue line into the open net.
 
 
QUOTABLES
Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle
On Freddie Halyk making his first career start and shutout: "I am very happy with how he played. He's been putting in the work. I think just from when [assistant coach] Ryan [Massa] first started working with him to where he is now, I have seen a lot of improvement. He was big and boring. That's what he needed to be. A lot of pucks stuck to him. When things did break down like they do in every game, he was there to make some real big saves for us. I liked how he got out of the net as well to set pucks for our D-men to queue breakouts and things like that. You couldn't have scripted it much better for him for his first start.
 
On the defense's play: "PK was good. We got some big blocks. The 5-on-3 was excellent. I thought our level of urgency to defend was better and more consistent throughout the night. That's what you need to do to beat anybody in college hockey."
 
On Massimo Rizzo: "He's been doing it for a while here now and certainly has elevated his game into his junior year. Three-nothing ices the game in our opinion, and for him to do that was a big-time moment for him. Like I said, not surprising, given what he's showed here early on, but proud of him and his effort to be able to do that."
 
Junior Forward Massimo Rizzo
On improvement from last game: "I think that it was a great response from the team, we brought the intensity throughout the whole game. We played as a team; we played the right way. So that was big to build off that."
 
On his second goal: "Yeah ,drove through and opened up a lane for me. I drove in and was able to cut back, fortunately got it in."
 
On goaltender Freddie Halyk: "Everyone's super happy for him. Really good start, he made some really big saves for us. He looked confident and comfortable; he played great. Really big for our team, really happy for him."
 

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