FAIRBANKS, Alaska – The No. 4 Denver Pioneers hockey team began the 2023-24 campaign with a two-game series sweep against the Alaska Nanooks after winning 5-2 victory on Sunday night at Carlson Center.
 
Forward Massimo Rizzo had a career high with four assists, while linemate Jack Devine buried two power-play goals for the Pioneers. Rizzo finished the two-game set with seven helpers while Devine finished with six points (four goals, two assists) over the weekend set.
 
Appearing in their second NCAA contests, defenseman Zeev Buium and forward Kieran Cebrian both tallied their first career goals, with Buium also adding a helper and Cebrian's marker coming shorthanded.
 
Cebrian's first tally was also the first short-handed goal in more than a season. Cole Guttman was the last Pioneer to tally during a man disadvantage on March 12, 2022 against Miami in the NCHC Quarterfinals.
 
Goaltender Matt Davis made 24-of-25 saves in the start, including stopping consecutive short-handed breakaways in the third period. Freshman Freddie Halyk made his collegiate debut in the third period, guarding the pipes for the final 3:29 and stopping 3-of-4 shots.
 
Junior defenseman Sean Behrens matched a personal best with three assists and junior Tristan Broz also scored. Senior captain McKade Webster added an assist as well.
 
Denver used five unanswered goals after Alaska Fairbanks led 1-0 for most of the first period. Broz knotted the contest at one-all with 54 seconds remaining in the opening frame and Buium and Devine tallied in a matter of 99 seconds of one another in the second.
 
Both of Devine's tallies came on the power play, with him also connecting at 11:33 of the middle frame. Cebrian extended DU's lead to 5-1 with 6:08 to play in the third before UAF's Chase Dubois recorded his second tally of the night at 17:25.
 
UP NEXT: Denver now goes on a bye week, as the Pioneers' next games are Oct. 20-21 when they travel to New England to play single contests against Providence College and Boston College. DU's first games at Magness Arena are Oct. 27-28 as it hosts NCAA-newcomer Augustana in the home opener before taking on in-state foe Air Force the next night to wrap up Homecoming Weekend.
 
POSTGAME NOTES

• Freshmen Zeev Buium and Kieran Cebrian both scored their first career goals.
• Jack Devine tallied twice on the power play and recorded the game-winning tally in both games in Fairbanks.
• Massimo Rizzo registered a with a career-high four assists, breaking his previous mark of three helpers in a game (three times) and matching his personal best for points (Oct. 29, 2022 at Miami). Rizzo finished the weekend with seven assists, the most in a two-game set of his career and tied for the most points as he six had assists and seven points on Oct. 28-29, 2022 at Miami.
• DU was playing regular-season games on college hockey's opening weekend for the first time since last visiting Fairbanks to play the Nanooks on Oct. 5-6, 2019.
• The Pioneers are now 12-3-2 all-time against Alaska Fairbanks and are 7-2-0 as the road team.
• DU played its first Sunday game since taking on Omaha on Jan. 16, 2021 at Magness Arena in a game that was rescheduled due to COVID-19.
• Denver didn't make any changes to its lineup and continued to use a 12-forward, seven-defensemen combination.
• Head Coach David Carle was not on the bench as he was back in Denver with his wife Mellissa awaiting the birth of their second child.

GOAL SUMMARY
1st Period
6:47 UAF (0-1) – Payton Matsui sent a centering pass from behind the net to Chase Dubois, who knocked it in from the top of the crease.
19:06 DU (1-1) – Sean Behrens fed a cross-ice pass to Tristan Broz in the neutral zone, and Broz went far-side with his wrist shot from the right circle.
 
2nd Period
3:31 DU (2-1) – Zeev Buium tallied his first career goal with a shot from the slot.
5:10 DU (3-1) – PPG, Jack Devine attacked from the left wing boards and scored on a wrist shot from the circle.
11:43 DU (4-1) – PPG, Massimo Rizzo fed a puck across the zone to Jack Devine, who tallied on a snap-shot at the circle during a 5-on-3.
 
3rd Period
13:52 DU (5-1) – SHG, Kieran Cebrian tallied on a 2-on-1 off a pass from Zeev Buium.
17:25 UAF (5-2) – Chase Dubois scored with a one-timer from the slot.
 

TICKETS: Single-game tickets, as well as five-game packs are on sale now. Full and half-season ticket packages are also available. Click here for more.
 
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