DENVER – The No. 1 Denver Pioneers hockey team scored six unanswered goals on Saturday night to defeat the No. 20 Wisconsin Badgers 6-1 at Magness Arena in the series finale.
 
DU sweeps the weekend set against its former WCHA foe and improved to 6-0-0 to start the season.
 
"I thought our D zone was good. I thought our forecheck was good. We managed pucks a little bit better coming out of our own end," said Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle. "Our puck possession game was better in the offensive zone. Any time you're playing offense you don't have to defend; I think that was a big part of it as well."
 
Senior Jack Devine had three points on a goal and two assist while juniors Samu Salminen and Aidan Thompson and freshman Jake Fisher all tallied and added a helper for multi-point contests each. Graduate student and Wisconsin native Connor Caponi and sophomore Sam Harris also scored for the Pioneers.
 
Goaltender Matt Davis made 25 saves, including stopping the final 18 shots he faced after Quinn Finley tallied on a power play at 7:41 of the first period to open the game's scoring for the Badgers (1-5-0, 0-2-0 Big Ten).
 
It was all Pioneers after that. DU responded 100 seconds later with Devine's first goal of the season, and Caponi scored nearly three minutes later to give the squad a lead it didn't relinquish.
 
Denver had a 3-1 advantage at the first intermission as Thompson was the recipient of a fortunate bounce that went off a UW player's stick and into the net at 18:19 of the opening period.
 
Wisconsin still stayed within striking distance of tying the contest for most the second period until Salminen and Fisher scored in the last 2:03 to give DU a 5-1 lead at the second break. Harris netted his team-leading sixth goal of the year with a wrist shot that went high, short-side at 4:53 of the third period.
 
Denver finished with a 30-26 edge in shots, as Badgers goaltender William Gramme made 24 saves.
 
Finley's goal for UW came seven seconds into the first-of-two man advantages for Wisconsin and ended the Pioneers' run of 17 consecutive penalty kills dating back to the season opener on Oct. 5 at Alaska Anchorage.
 
DU went 1-for-3 while a man-up, with Fisher netting the marker with 14 ticks left in the second stanza
 
UP NEXT: Denver makes its first of two road trips this season to the northeast as the team travels to New Haven, Connecticut, to play the Yale Bulldogs next Friday and Saturday. The games will be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
 
POSTGAME NOTES

• The Pioneers improved to 7-0-1 in the last eight meetings with the Badgers dating back to 2014.
• Jack Devine has assists in each of the first six games this season, setting a new career-best stretch (1g/13a). He now has 120 career points, moving into a tie for 55th all-time on DU's scoring list.
• Aidan Thompson extended his assist streak to a career-long four games and his season-opening point streak to six games (4g/7a).
• Carter King also pushed his season-opening point streak to six games (5g/4a)
• With Jake Fisher's goal in the final seconds of the second period, Jack Devine reached his 120 point with the University of Denver. 
• Eric Pohlkamp recorded an assist and is now on a career-long five-game point streak (2g/3a).
• Sam Harris is on a four-game goal streak, tying a career best from last season from Feb. 17-March 1, 2024.
• Freshman Jake Fisher registered his first power-play goal with the Pioneers.
• Sophomore Boston Buckberger played his 50th career game.
• Denver has now won 15 straight games dating back to March 9 against Colorado College. It is the team's longest winning streak since a run of 22 in a row from Jan. 5-March 16, 1968 en route to an NCAA Championship.
• The Pioneers' season-opening six-game winning streak is their longest since winning each of their first eight contests to start 2019-20.
• Denver honored the players' families as part of Parents Weekend during the first intermission.

GOAL SUMMARY
1st Period
7:41 UW (0-1) – PPG, Quinn Finley took a pass from Ben Dexheimer and scored with a wrist shot at the right side.
9:21 DU (1-1) – Aidan Thompson grabbed the puck after a Badgers' giveaway and passed it to Jack Devine, who buried a one-timer from the slot.
12:34 DU (2-1) – Connor Caponi whacked in the puck in front of the net off passes from Hagen Burrows and Samu Salminen following a strong Denver forecheck.
18:19 DU (3-1) – Aidan Thompson's pass to Carter King in front went off a Wisconsin player's stick and sailed into the goal.
 
2nd Period
17:57 DU (4-1) – Samu Salminen's shot from the right circle was redirected into the cage off a Wisconsin player.
19:46 DU (5-1) – PPG, Goaltender Matt Davis started the sequence with a stretch pass up the ice, and Jake Fisher fired buried wrist shot in the final seconds of the period.
 
3rd Period
4:53 DU (6-1) – Sam Harris scored with a wrist shot from the left circle that went high, short-side.
 
 
QUOTABLES
Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle
On coming into game after a chaotic matchup on Friday: "I think it's like trying to learn through a victory. We can all admit yesterday we weren't at our best. We found a way to win a hockey game, and that's a really good sign for our team, but we knew that we could play better. I thought we did that tonight. Our talk and communication through our puck support was better. We got out of our own end cleaner and didn't give up a 5-on-5 goal. We played more to who we are in the second period. With the shot count, outscoring them 2-0 in the second period, and obviously the power play was big in that period as well." 

On freshman forward Jake Fisher: "He's moving his feet, he's confident with and without the puck. He's a big kid, he's thick, and it makes him hard to handle. There's just a lot of confidence there."
 
Senior Forward Carter King
On their defensive recovery tonight: "We got a little disconnected yesterday, and it gave us some trouble. Tonight, making sure that we worked together, we knew we had more, and bringing it tonight."
 
On linemates Aiden Thompson and Jack Devine: "Those two, they are offensively so gifted. They play with their eyes up the entire time, looking for each other and helping each other. I am able to do what I can to support them but they've got a lot of talent." 
 
On the 3-1 goal late in the first period: "It was a good 3-on-3 play, kicked it up to Devo (Jack Devine), and they we were able to find each other. My job was to go to the net and follow-up there, so we got a bounce there." 
 
Junior Forward Samu Salminen
On his line's success: "Hard forecheck, trying to play on the goal line, so that you can get on the net and play hard and heavy over there."
 
On getting more consistent goal scoring: "I was just trying to shoot, get the pucks in the net, and then deliver it there. So, good things happen usually."
 
On the team's second-period changes: "Not really anything, just got to stick to our own game plan. Just trying to do things well. I think we did a pretty good job at that."
 

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