KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The No. 2 University of Denver hockey team's comeback bid in the third period fell one goal short on Friday night as the Pioneers lost 3-2 to the No. 7 Western Michigan Broncos at Lawson Arena.
 
"I thought we did a lot of good things throughout the game," said Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle. "We didn't cash in and get it into the net until the third period, but I think probably what I was most proud of is guys sticking to the plan and staying together. We gave ourselves a chance in the third … Good hockey game—they cashed in on their chances early, we cashed in on some late. I just thought it could have gone either way. Again, what we're proud of is the youth of the team and sticking to the script. Giving ourselves a chance in a tight-checking hockey game should give us a lot of belief. We play that way most nights, I think we'll get the right result. I'm proud of how we played tonight."
 
Denver (12-3-0, 2-3-0 NCHC) goes for a weekend split against Western Michigan (10-2-1, 6-0-1 NCHC) on Saturday at 4 p.m. MT as the teams wrap up their series in Kalamazoo. The game will be broadcast exclusively on NCHC.tv.
 
Freshmen Jake Fisher and James Reeder scored in the third period for the Pioneers, while fellow rookie forward Hagen Burrows, sophomore defenseman Cale Ashcroft and senior forward Jack Devine each registered assists.
 
DU had a 10-6 edge in shots in the final frame and had a quality chance to tie the contest in the final 13 seconds, but Broncos goaltender Cameron Rowe made a sprawling save on Eric Pohlkamp's shot from the backside to keep WMU in front.
 
Rowe finished with 29 saves in the victory, as Denver outshot Western Michigan 31-27 overall.
 
The Pioneers led 14-9 in shots in the opening period, but WMU held a 1-0 lead heading into the intermission as Tim Washe chased down a puck and scored on a breakaway with 34 seconds left in the stanza. The Broncos tallied twice in a matter of 55 seconds in the middle of the second period on markers from Matteo Costantini and Zach Sharp to take 3-0 advantage.
 
Fisher scored his fifth goal of the year off a cross pass from Devine at 10:29 of the third, and Reeder registered his fifth as well with 3:11 left after his shot caromed off and over Rowe and the puck just crossed the goal line before a Western Michigan player was able to swat it away.
 
Goaltender Matt Davis started in net for the Pioneers and made 18 saves in the first two periods. Freddie Halyk entered in relief for the third stanza and stopped all six shots he faced.
 
DU went 0-for-3 on the power play but was perfect on the penalty kill for the 11th game this year, as it was successful in its lone man disadvantage late in the first period.
 
UP NEXT: The Pioneers continue their season-long three game road swing on Saturday against Western Michigan before opening a home-and-home series versus in-state rival Colorado College next Friday, Dec. 13 in Colorado Springs.
 
 
POSTGAME NOTES

• Jack Devine stretched his assist/point streak to six games (0g/8a). He continues to lead the nation in assists with 23.
• Devine now has 130 career points (45 goals, 85 assists) in 133 career games and is tied for 40th place on the school's all-time scoring list with Eric Murano (1986-90).
• Aidan Thompson was held off the scoresheet for the first time this season, as his career-long point streak ended at 14 games (10g/12a). His run was tied for the second-longest streak by a Pioneer in the last 20 years (Bobby Brink, 2021-22) and was the longest season-opening stretch by a DU player in the last decade.
• The Pioneers went 1-for-1 on the penalty kill and have been perfect in 11-of-15 games this season.
• DU's streak of scoring a power-play goal came to an end after 11 straight games—the longest such run by the program in the last 10 years (since 2015-16).
• Denver challenged for offsides on Zach Sharp's first career goal at 12:13, but the marker was upheld after video review by the on-ice officials. WMU challenged to disallow James Reeder's goal at 16:49 of the third and that tally was also upheld.
• Connor Caponi missed his first game of the season with a lower-body injury (day-to-day). He had played in 62 straight games dating back to the 2022-23 season and entered the weekend having dressed in 157-of-163 games in his career since joining as a freshman in 2020-21.
• Denver is now 9-3-1 in the last 13 games vs. Western Michigan and is 8-11-0 all-time at Lawson Arena.
• DU and WMU conclude their regular-season series on Saturday in Kalamazoo, as Western Michigan and Minnesota Duluth are the only two NCHC squads that won't visit Magness Arena in 2024-25.

 
GOAL SUMMARY
1st Period
19:26 WMU (0-1) – Tim Washe chased down a loose puck in the neutral zone and scored on a breakaway.
 
2nd Period
11:18 WMU (0-2) – Matteo Costantini tallied in the crease after Brian Kramer's shot rebounded to his stick.
12:13 WMU (0-3) – Zack Sharp scored short-side from the left circle. Denver challenged for offsides but was unsuccessful.
 
3rd Period
10:29 DU (1-3) – Jack Devine skated around the WMU zone before sending a cross-ice pass to Jake Fisher, who whipped a wrist shot into the top shelf from the right circle.
16:49 DU (2-3) – James Reeder skated through the Western Michigan defense, drove toward the net and fired a shot that saw the puck carom off and over the goaltender and land just across the goal line before a WMU player was able to knock it away. The Broncos challenged the goal, but the score was upheld.
 
 
QUOTABLES
Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle
On the team's effort: "We had a lot of different people step up. We rolled 11 forwards for most of the night. There were different line combinations and for the most part guys were engaged into it the whole night. Obviously we blinked a few times, made some errors, it ended up in the back of our net, but we didn't get down on it. We just kind of got back to work. Was it a perfect game? No, but certainly a step in the right direction from where we were two weeks ago at home against Arizona State. We'll continue to learn, teach and grow. It sucks to lose; I get it, nobody likes it in our room, I can tell you that. We're process orientated, and I thought we did a lot of good things tonight to build on and showed some growth."
 
On special teams: "It feels like to win in this building, you have to outdraw them (in power plays). You have to be disciplined, keep them off the power play. We win the penalty battle 3-1, and I think if we get one (on the power play) it's a different story. You look at the recipe of success that we've had in this building, it's going 2-for-5 or 3-for-7 (on the power play) on a night and keeping them 0-for-3 or 0-for-2. That part of the recipe was there with our discipline. Their goalie made saves; he was really good. They were desperate, they blocked a lot of shots as well. It's an excellent hockey team over there."
 

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