It was a banner night in more ways than one for Carter King.
 
The evening began with the Denver Pioneers captain taking a lap around the ice and lifting the 2024 championship trophy in front of the Pio Pit student section before watching the NCAA-record 10th national title banner be raised to the Magness Arena rafters in a pregame ceremony. The memorable night for the senior continued once the puck finally dropped with an all-time personal performance.
 
King opened the scoring in the game for the second straight night against the No. 19 Northeastern Huskies on Saturday and went on to add another goal and added two assists to match a career high with four points. He also went 20-for-34 at the faceoff circle—the most draw wins by a Pioneer player since Tyson McLellan won 23-of-35 on Jan. 4, 2020 against Massachusetts.
 
The Calgary, Alberta, native's first tally came on a power play and during a scramble in front of the net with 2:22 left in the first period, and he then added a second man-advantage point at 10:20 of the second frame by delivering a perfect pass to Sam Harris, who easily tapped the puck into goal at the top of the crease. Both markers came just 15 seconds into each power-play opportunity.
 

REPLAY: Denver opens the scoring just 15 seconds into the power play in the first period. pic.twitter.com/rvqCiSWLaU

— Denver Hockey (@DU_Hockey) October 20, 2024

From the 2nd... Tic-Tac-Goal by Sam Harris as he tallies his team-leading 4th of the season.#GoPios pic.twitter.com/LHKRKizwVJ

— Denver Hockey (@DU_Hockey) October 20, 2024

 
"The two power-play goals, love the attack mentality that we had," said DU Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle. "It was quick off of the faceoff, we're attacking the paint. Obviously, a great play by King to Harris and the other one ends in a goal-mouth scramble as well in the first [period]."
 
King tallied his second of the night after receiving a fortunate bounce off a NU player's stick and having the puck lay right in front of him in the low slot just 12 seconds into the third period. He also won a faceoff in the last two minutes that directly resulted in Boston Buckberger's goal into an empty net to secure No. 1 Denver's 5-2 victory to stretch its season-opening win streak to four in a row.
 
The Pioneers have outshot their opponents in each outing this year, but the Huskies had a strong push in the series finale. They fired 14 pucks on net in the third period, with much of the attack coming after scoring a short-handed goal midway through the stanza to cut the Pioneers' lead to 4-2 at the time.
 
"We stuck together. I was really proud of our group and just keeping that good mindset throughout the whole game," King said. "It's games like that, that you're going to learn from, and you got to work together as a team to get through some tough times. Offensively, power play, we got it done, and we're able to hold them off there at the end."
 
King has developed into a key offensive performer in his time with the Pioneers, as he totaled 34 points a season ago and ranked fifth on the team with 15 goals. He has points in each of the first four contests in 2024-25 and leads the squad with four tallies while also adding three assists.
 
His first four-point game in nearly a year (one goal and three assists on Nov. 11, 2023 at Arizona State) was a perfect way to cap a celebratory weekend at Magness Arena. A record crowd packed the rink to watch the defending title-holders at home for the first time as a weekend-series record 13,888 total people watched the two games against Northeastern, including a single-game attendance record of 7,051 on Saturday on the championship banner-raising night.
 
"It's awesome, it's why you do it," King said of celebrating the 2024 national championship with the Pioneer faithful. "You come to Denver to win championships, that's part of it. It's a lot of fun to be able to share that with the fans, especially when it ended not here (in Denver). So to come back, share the trophy, and that experience with the fans was a lot of fun."


 
RAISING NO. 10 TO THE RAFTERS
 
There will certainly be more time to reflect on Denver's 2024 National Championship during the 75th Anniversary Weekend on Nov. 8-9 against Lindenwood, but the program's banner-raising ceremony for its 10th title prior to Saturday's game put a bow on a historic 2023-24 campaign for the Pioneers.
 
It addition to Carter King taking a lap with the trophy and watching No. 10 being lifted, Vice Chancellor of Athletics and Ritchie Center Operations Josh Berlo addressed the crowd of the significance of the milestone moment for the mid-major institution at the base of the Rocky Mountains. There was also a ceremonial faceoff prior to the real puck drop with 2022 and 2024 national champions McKade Webster and Sean Behrens.
 
"It was great. We did get a little emotional, just reflecting on it," said coach Carle. "To have Sean Behrens and McKade Webster there was special, and it was really cool, but obviously a lot of pride for the guys who hung the banner, but just for the program. Josh said it right with all of his words about honoring the history and university. We couldn't do it just by ourselves and there were a lot of people who helped put a banner like that up, so really fortunate."
 
Denver's roster now features 18 players with a championship on their resume and four with multiple title rings. That also means there seven skaters that have yet to feel what it's like at the top of the college hockey summit.
 
These types of celebrations should help fuel the newcomers to earn their own championship and build upon the Pioneers' legacy.
 
"Expectation but also just setting that culture. Just saying this is what you work for, and it's worth it at the end of the year," King said. "To put in that work throughout the year, grind it out, improve and you get to cherish moments like that after you win."
 
POHLKAMP SHOWS OFF THE ARTILLERY
 
Sophomore defenseman Eric Pohlkamp had been close to netting his first goal as a Pioneer several times through the first three games of the season. He fired a game-high seven shots in the season opener on Oct. 5 at Alaska Anchorage and had five on Friday against Northeastern.
 
The Baxter, Minnesota, native finally hit twine on Saturday as he took the puck off a carom at the right-wing boards and zipped it past Huskies netminder Cameron Whitehead at 6:36 of the second period.
 
"Obviously his shot is a weapon," Carle said. "We want him to shoot it, he loves to shoot it. He's had a few other looks. It's funny that one goes in–kind of a turn and bomb it to the net, surprised the goalie a little bit."
 
After making his Pioneer debut in the opener after transferring from Bemidji State, Pohlkamp now has points in three consecutive games (one goal, two assists) and owns a plus-7 rating in the young campaign. He also blocked three total shots this past weekend against Northeastern.
 
"I think the first couple weeks, it's so new. Everything is new. The systems are new, playing with these guys are new, but I've kind of settled into it a little bit now," Pohlkamp said. "I have four games under my belt, and I think it's going really well so far. Happy to get this thing going."
 

PK's blast and first goal as a Pio is tonight's @Safeway Goal of the Game! pic.twitter.com/ttEWZPrRXM

— Denver Hockey (@DU_Hockey) October 20, 2024

 
MORE NOTABLES

• The Pioneers have won their first four games of the season for the first time since 2021-22.
• Denver has outshot its opponents 151-83 in its first four games and has a 20-7 edge in total goals.
• The Pioneers scored multiple power-play goals for the second time this season on Saturday and has tallied with the man advantage in three of the four contests.
• Denver has won 13 straight games dating back to March 9 against Colorado College.
• DU improved to 8-0-1 in its last nine non-conference home games and have won 13 in a row against non-NCHC opponents dating back to Nov. 11, 2023 at Arizona State.
• Senior Jack Devine ranks first in the nation with nine assists/points—six of his helpers have come on the power play.
• Jack Devine now ranks tied for 65th in program history in scoring with 115 points (44g/71a) with Troy Terry (2015-2018) and George Morrison (1968-1970).
• Junior Aidan Thompson recorded a career high with four assists and points. His previous bests were three helpers on Jan. 14, 2023 against Miami and three points on Feb. 17, 2023 at Minnesota Duluth (1g/2a).
• Devine (0g/9a), Thompson (3g/5a) and King (4g/7a) are all on season-opening four-game point streaks. Pohlkamp is on a three-game run (1g/2a)—one shy of matching his career long—while Zeev Buium had his three-game point streak come to an end (0g/5a).
• Carter King's goal 12 seconds into the third period on Saturday was the fastest to begin a period this season and the fastest since Chris Knowlton tallied 11 seconds into the first period on Nov. 26, 2011 versus. Miami.
• King is also on a three-game goal streak and had the second four-point game by a Pioneer this season (Jack Devine, four assists, Oct. 5 at Alaska Anchorage).

 

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