DENVER – The University of Denver hockey program  won its 10th national title during the 2023-24 season, breaking a tie with Michigan for the most by an NCAA squad.  The Pioneers captured their second championship in three years and their fifth in the past 20 completed seasons, the most among any program in that time (2004-present).  DU's five NCAA titles are the most by any school since the turn of the century (2000-present).
 
The Pioneers were previously tied with Boston College for the most titles since 2000, as the Eagles had won four championships in that time (2001, 2008, 2010, 2012).  DU became the first team since BC to win three titles in a span of seven tournaments (not contested in 2019-20 due to COVID-19 Pandemic).
 
DU THE KINGS OF COLLEGE HOCKEY: The Pioneers have been among the top programs since the turn of the century, and they continued to solidify that spot this past season by winning their NCAA-record 10th national championship.  Since 2000, Denver's seven Frozen Four are tied for the fourth-most while its now five national titles broke a tie with Boston College for the most in that time.
 
In the last 20 years since 2004, DU's seven Frozen Four appearances are the third-most while its now five NCAA Championships lead college hockey.  BC reached nine Frozen Fours and won two titles in the past two decades.
 
SHUTOUT PARTY: Goaltender Matt Davis posted a 35-save shutout in the National Championship Game on April 13 vs. Boston College, becoming the eighth goalie in NCAA history to post a clean sheet in the title game.  Three DU goaltenders have now been perfect in title games, as Davis joins fellow Pioneers Gerry Powers (1968 vs. North Dakota) and Adam Berkhoel (2004 vs. Maine) on the list.
 
DAVIS IS DOMINANT: Matt Davis was recognized as both the NCAA Frozen Four and Northeast Regional Most Outstanding Player after finishing the four-game national tournament with a 0.63 goals-against average, .979 save percentage and one shutout in 283:32 of playing time. 
 
Two of Davis' wins came in overtime, as he posted career highs with 46 saves on 47 shots faced in double-overtime vs. Massachusetts on March 28 in the Northeast Regional Semifinals—the longest game in program history (92:28).  The Calgary, Alberta, native also stopped 33-of-34 shots in an OT win vs. Boston University on April 11 in the national semifinals and finished the Frozen Four by making 69-of-70 saves in the two contests.  His .986 save percentage in the Frozen Four tied Hockey Hall of Famer Ken Dryden (Cornell, 1967, 71/72) for the NCAA record.
 
After missing most of the first half of the season with a lower-boy injury, Davis started each of the final 26 games after the holiday break, recording a 20-4-2 overall mark, 2.17 goals-against average, .925 save percentage and two shutouts in a stretch that began on Jan. 5 vs. Niagara.  It was the longest games-started streak by a DU goalie since Tanner Jaillet also had a 26-game run from Nov. 4, 2017-March 2, 2018.
 
Overall, Davis' 23 wins in 2023-24 were the 14th-most in a season in school history and his .790 winning percentage was the best mark by a Pioneer keeper since Jaillet in 2016-17 (.811). He finished the year on a nine-game winning streak, the longest since Magnus Chrona's nine-game run in 2021-22.
 
BROZ IS OT CLUTCH: Junior forward Tristan Broz became the first player in NCAA history to score multiple overtime goals in the same national tournament after scoring the game-winners vs. Massachusetts in the Northeast Regional Semifinals on March 28 and Boston University in the Frozen Four Semifinals on April 11.
 
Broz tallied his third career OT goal at 11:09 of the extra frame in the semis vs. BU in St. Paul, Minnesota, just down the road from his hometown of Bloomington.  He ended the longest game in DU history two weeks earlier by scoring in double-overtime vs. UMass (92:28).
 
It was also the first time in Denver hockey history that the program won multiple overtime games in the national tournament, with the squad improving to 5-2 all-time in the extra session in the Big Dance.
 
CARLE THE YOUNGEST TO WIN TWO: Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle guided the Pioneers to their second NCAA Championship in the past three seasons and DU's third Frozen Four appearance since taking over in 2018 (2019, 2022, 2024).
 
After being the fourth-youngest coach in history to win an NCAA D-I national title in 2022 (32 years, 5 months, 0 days), Carle became the youngest ever to win two national championships following the Pioneers' victory in 2024 (34 years, 5 months, 4 days).  Overall, the Anchorage, Alaska, native is the 20th coach in NCAA history to win multiple national championships and the first to do so since Scott Sandelin of Minnesota Duluth (2011, 2018, 2019).
 
STREAKING: The Pioneers finished 2023-24 on a season-long nine-game winning streak that dated back to March 9 in the regular-season finale vs. Colorado College.  It was also the team's longest unbeaten stretch of the season and the longest run since previously winning nine contests in a row from Jan. 15-Feb. 11, 2022.
 
Overall, Denver went 9-1-0 in its last 10 games and 15-2-1 in the 18 contests since the start of February.  DU finished its home slate on a four-game winning streak (Feb. 24-March 16), tying a season long (Dec. 2-Jan. 12).
 
GOOD TIME FOR 2-1 WINS: The Pioneers won their third consecutive game by a 2-1 score with its overtime victory against Boston University on April 11, marking the first time in the program's 75-season history it has won three straight games by that score.
 
Denver went 10-4 in one-goal games this season and won each of its last four such contests.
 
The last time that DU won three-straight contests in the NCAA Tournament by a single score was during its 2022 title run when it beat UMass Lowell 3-2 and Minnesota Duluth 2-1 in Regionals before winning 3-2 in overtime against Michigan in the Frozen Four.
 
30 FOR 30 FOR 30: Denver picked up its 30th win of the season on March 30 against Cornell in NCAA Regional Final, becoming the second team in college hockey to reach the 30-win threshold this year (Boston College).  This is the third consecutive campaign that DU has reached the 30-victory mark and the ninth time in program's 75-season history; 34 wins in 1985-86 is the school record.  The Pios had never recorded consecutive 30 win seasons until the previous two campaigns.
 
DU senior class is among the winningest group in school history, owning 103 victories and a .708 winning percentage (103-41-5) in 149 career games since 2020-21.
 
THE "TENZER" STREAK: Denver picked up its 20th victory of the season on Feb. 17 at Minnesota Duluth, stretching the program's "Tenzer" Streak of earning 20 or more wins to 22 consecutive full seasons dating back to 2001-02--the longest active streak in the country.  The Pioneers were the ninth squad in the country and the second in the NCHC to reach the 20-win mark this season.
 
The "Tenzer" Streak is named after former DU Director of Hockey Operations David Tenzer, who spent 16 seasons with the program from 2001-02 (the start of the streak) until retiring in 2017.  The program only played 24 total contests in the COVID-shortened 2020-21 campaign.
 
PIONEERING OFFENSE: Denver led the country in offense by averaging 4.59 goals per game, including by a 4.89 rate during the regular season.  Boston College was second at 4.46 goals per contest.  The Pioneers ranked third in the NCAA in scoring margin, winning by 1.86 goals per game; Boston College was first at 2.29 goals and Quinnipiac was second at 2.08.
 
The Pios have tallied six or more goals in 12 games this season, their most in a single campaign since also have 12 such contests in 1987-88.
DU also led the nation in shooting percentage at 14.4% during the season, with Boston College being the next closet team at 14.0%.  On special teams, the Pios had the 12th-best power play in the regular season at 24.0% (18th overall, 22.3%) and scored the sixth-most man-advantage goals in the NCAA (39).
 
BALANCED SCORING: The Pioneers had 11 players that scored 10 or more goals during the season and also had 11 skaters that registered 30 or more points, both by far the most by a program in college hockey in 2023-24.  DU also had the most 20-plus point players (14) and was tied with Michigan State for the highest amount of skaters with 10 or more points (16).
 
Boston College, Quinnipiac and Wisconsin were the next teams on the list with the most 10-plus goal scorers with seven each, while Michigan was second behind Denver with seven players that had registered 30 or more points.  Among NCHC teams, North Dakota was tied for fifth with six players with 10-plus goals while Western Michigan was second among league members with five players with 30-plus points.
 
TWENTY SOMETHINGS: DU was one of five teams in the country with multiple players with 20 or more goals this season, as junior Jack Devine tallied 27 times and freshman Miko Matikka reached the threshold with his 20th of the season in the Regional Final on March 30 vs. Cornell.
 
The last time that the Pioneers had multiple players with 20 or more goals was in 2021-22 during their previous championship season when Carter Savoie and Cameron Wright both had 23 markers.
 
Boston College (three), Michigan, North Dakota and Western Michigan also had two or more skaters that hit the 20-goal mark.
 
KILLER PENALTY KILL: Denver killed off 89.7 percent of its penalties over the final 13 games dating back to Feb. 24 vs. Miami, going 26-for-28 in that stretch.  DU was perfect in nine of those games, including going 4-for-4 on the PK on three occasions and seven straight in the final five outings of the season en route to a championship.
 
SECOND PERIOD SUCCESS: Denver outscored opponents 82-39 in the second period, including scoring twice in the frame during the national championship game. DU's plus-413 margin in the second was its best in any of the three stanzas.  In shots on goal, DU has a 498-385 edge in the second frame.
 
The Pioneers also buried the puck plenty in the third period, outscoring opponents 64-41.  DU outscored the opposition by a 146-80 margin in the final two regulation periods and 202-120 overall in games.  The Pioneers' 202 goals scored were by far the most in the NCAA this season (2. Boston College, 183).
 
PIONEERS IN THE POLLS: Denver finished the season No. 1 in both the USCHO.com and USA Hockey/The Rink Live Polls.  It was the first time that DU had been ranked No. 1 since Jan. 2, 2023.  The Pioneers were the No. 1 seed in the Northeast Region and No. 3 overall in this year's NCAA Tournament after finishing in that third spot in the final Pairwise computer rankings. 
 
The NCHC's six ranked teams are tied for the most among all conferences with Hockey East, and its five schools in the top 15 lead all leagues.  The other conference squads in the polls are North Dakota (8/8), Omaha (12/13), Western Michigan (14/14), Colorado College (15/15) and St. Cloud State (18/18).
 
ALL-AMERICAN MEN: Denver had three players named All-Americans for the second straight season as Zeev Buium and Jack Devine were selected to the West First Team while Massimo Rizzo was chosen as a Second-Team member.  This is Buium and Devine's first career honor, with Zeev being the first freshman since Henrik Borgstrom (first team) in 2017 and the first ever DU defenseman to be recognized as an All-American.
 
Rizzo was one of three players of the overall 25 All-Americans to repeat with the honor, and he is the first Pioneer since Borgstrom in 2016-17 and 2017-18 and 12th overall to earn multiple All-American titles.  Denver now has 54 All-Americans in program history.
 
ALL-AMERICAN SCHOLARS: Denver had five players named National All-American scholars for posting a 3.75 grade-point average in each of the school's three quarters during the 2023-24 academic year.  Juniors Matt Davis and Carter King earned the honor for the third straight season, while sophomore Kent Anderson also repeated with the accolade.  Boston Buckberger and Alex Weiermair were also recognized as freshmen to reach the threshold.
 
Anderson earned additional honors this past season as also being named the College Sports Communicators' Academic All-American Second Team while Davis and King were selected to the CSC Academic All-District Team.
 
CARLE FINALIST FOR COACH OF THE YEAR: Denver head coach David Carle was a finalist for the Spencer Penrose Award, which is given annually to the Men's D-I Coach of the Year by the American Hockey Coaches Association.  Boston College's Greg Brown was announced as this year's winner on Wednesday prior to the Frozen Four
 
This is the 34-year-old's third time up for the accolade, as he was also a finalist in 2019 and 2022 during DU's previous two trips to the Frozen Four.  Pioneers have won the award four times in program history: Murray Armstrong (1961), Ralph Backstrom (1986), George Gwozdecky (2005) and Jim Montgomery (2017).
 
He was named Coach of the Year by both USCHO.com and Everything College Hockey.
 
WINNING TIME: The Pioneers' senior class finished as one of the winningest groups in school history, owning 103 victories and a .708 winning percentage (103-41-5) in 149 career games since 2020-21 and only three graduating classes have recorded more wins (2005, 112 wins; 2019, 105 wins; 2018, 105 wins).  Denver's junior class could break the all-time wins mark next season in 2024-25, as the third-years already have 93 wins in three seasons.
 
MAGNESS MADNESS: The Pioneers set a home attendance record during the 2023-24 campaign by averaging 6,130 fans at Magness Arena across 20 games, besting their previous high mark of 6,022 over the course of 24 contests in 2006-07.  DU's average attendance last season at Magness Arena (2022-23) was 5,788 (23 games), which at the time was the second-highest for the team since the building first opened for the 1999-2000 season. 
 
Denver had a sold-out crowd of 7,033 for its regular-season finale against Colorado College on March 9 for the highest-attended hockey game at Magness Arena in program history.  DU had set its last high mark for attendance in its previous game against CC on Nov. 3 at Magness with a crowd of 7,021.
 
Overall, 122,594 people watched the Pioneers at Magness Arena in 2023-24 (20 games) after 133,117 people visited DU's home rink in 23 games in 2022-23 (the second-highest attended season in the rink's history).  If the 17,952 that witnessed Denver defeat Colorado College at Ball Arena on Jan. 27, 2023 are included in the data (it officially counted as a DU home game), then 151,069 people watched Pioneer home games last season—the highest total attendance for the team since 1999.
 
TRENDS: Denver was...

• 26-2-2 when scoring four or more goals.
• 27-0-0 when holding an opponent to three goals or fewer.
• 15-4-2 when the opponent scores first and 17-4-1 when scoring first.
• 14-1-1 when leading after the first period & 26-1-2 when leading after the second.
• 21-3-3 when outshooting an opponent.
• 8-1-0 following a loss.
• 18-2-1 on Saturdays.

 
CAREER HIGHS: The following Pioneers set or matched their previous single-season career highs in 2023-24:

• Kent Anderson: Goals (3), Assists (4), Points (7)
• Sean Behrens: Goals (4), Assists (27) Points (31)
• Tristan Broz: Goals (16), Assists (24), Points (40)
• Shai Buium: Goals (7), Assists (29), Points (36)
• Connor Caponi: Goals (5) Assists (9), Points (14)
• Matt Davis: Games (27), Starts (27), Wins (19)
• Jack Devine: Goals (27), Assists (29), Points (56), PPG (9)
• Carter King: Goals (15), Assists (19), Points (34), PPG (5), SHG (4), GWG (2-tied)
• Tristan Lemyre: Assists (4)
• Rieger Lorenz: Goals (16), Assists (14), Points (30)
• Lucas Olvestad: Assists (6), Points (6)
• Massimo Rizzo: Assists (34)
• Aidan Thompson: Goals (11)
• McKade Webster: Goals (14), Assists (18), Point (32)
• Jared Wright: Goals (15), Assists (10), Points (25)

 
EVERY NIGHT: Seven Denver players skated in all 44 games this season: senior forward Connor Caponi, junior defenseman Sean Behrens, junior forward Jack Devine, sophomore forwards Rieger Lorenz, Aidan Thompson and Jared Wright, and freshman defenseman Boston Buckberger.
 
STRONG FINISHES        

• Tristan Broz had 19 points (7g/12a) in the last 17 games.
• Zeev Buium had 16 points (4g/12a) in the last 15 games.
• Jack Devine had 16 points (6g/10a) in the last 17 games.
• Sam Harris had 14 points (9g/5a) in the last 16 games.
• Rieger Lorenz had 13 points (8g/5a) in the last 15 games.

 
EXTRA, EXTRA TIME: The Pioneers played their longest NCAA Tournament game in program history in their 2-1 double-overtime win vs. Massachusetts in the Regional Semifinals on March 28, and it is believed to be the longest contest in school history.
 
Tristan Broz tallied the game-winner midway through the second OT, ending the game after 92:28 of playing time and three hours and 58 minutes overall.  The outing surpassed DU's previous longest postseason game of 91:14 on March 26, 2011 in a 3-2 double-OT victory versus Western Michigan in the Midwest Regional in Green Bay, Wisconsin.  The game vs. UMass was the sixth-longest overall NCAA Regional game in tournament history and the first multi-overtime game since Minnesota Duluth defeated North Dakota in a five-OT thriller in the 2021 West Regional Semifinals.
 
The Pioneers have had five different players score in OT this season: Carter King (2:06, Dec. 2 vs. North Dakota), Massimo Rizzo (1:02, Dec. 9 at Western Michigan), Aidan Thompson (1:46, Feb. 16 at Minnesota Duluth), Zeev Buium (6:21, March 22 vs. St. Cloud State), Tristan Broz (32:28, March 28 vs. Massachusetts; 11:09, April 11 vs. Boston University).
 
The Regional Semifinal victory was Denver's first overtime game in the NCAA Tournament since Carter Savoie scored the winner in the 2022 Frozen Faceoff Semifinals vs. Michigan in Boston, Massachusetts.  DU is 5-1-3 in overtime this season and has played the most OT games among teams in this year's Frozen Four.
 
REGIONAL HONORS: Denver goaltender Matt Davis was voted by the media as the Most Outstanding Player of the Northeast Regional in Springfield, Massachusetts, and was joined on the All-Tournament Team by teammates Tristan Broz, Boston Buckberger and Miko Matikka.  Davis stopped 70-of-72 shots in the two wins.  Buckberger led the Pios at Regionals with three points (1g/2a) while Broz scored the game-winner in double-overtime vs. UMass in the semifinals and Matikka tallied the tying goal against Cornell.
 
FRESHMEN PHENOMS: Denver rookies scored three of the team's four goals and combined for six of its 12 points over the two games in the NCAA Regionals on March 28-30.  Boston Buckberger, Sam Harris and Miko Matikka all tallied in the first and second rounds of the national tournament.
 
Including both games at the NCHC Frozen Faceoff, freshmen totaled seven of the Pioneers' 13 goals and 13-of-35 points over a four-game stretch (March 22-30).  DU's first-year players scored four goals and had 11-of-23 points at the NCHC Frozen Faceoff on March 22-23 against St. Cloud State and Omaha.
 
PIONEERS WIN THIRD NCHC FROZEN FACEOFF: Denver won its third NCHC Frozen Faceoff as the conference's tournament champions with its 4-1 victory vs. Omaha in the final on March 23.  Overall, it was DU's 18th conference tournament title after winning 15 previously while a member of the WCHA.  The Pioneers have won each of their three appearances in the NCHC Final, as they also won the inaugural tournament in 2014 over Miami at Target Center in Minneapolis and 2018 vs. St. Cloud State at the first iteration of the event at Xcel Energy Center.
 
Denver is 28-9-1 all-time in the NCHC Tournament and is the only squad to reach the conference's final four in all 10-held tournaments.  The Pios earned their seventh quarterfinal sweep on March 15-16 after dispatching Minnesota Duluth in two games; DU has won 11 straight quarterfinal games and improved to 19-2 all-time in the opening round.  The Pioneers defeated St. Cloud State in the semifinals on March 22 and are now to 3-7 all-time in the NCHC round of four.
 
CAPTAIN LEADS PIONEERS IN FROZEN FACEOFF: Senior captain McKade Webster recorded his second career two-goal game in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff Championship vs. Omaha on March 23, as he tallied twice in the second period to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead in what was the eventual game-winner (also Nov. 27, 2023 vs. Yale).  He also had a career-high seven shots on goal and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament, joining Daniel Doremus (2014) and Tanner Jaillet (2018) as Pioneers to earn the award.
 
Webster also scored in the semifinals against St. Cloud State and was joined on the All-Tournament Team by freshmen teammates Miko Matikka (3g/1a) and Zeev Buium (2g/2a).
 
ZEEV IN THE RECORD BOOKS: Defenseman Zeev Buium produced one of the best rookie campaigns in Denver program history as he led the team with 39 assists and was second in scoring with 50 points.
 
His 50 points were the 10th most by a freshman player in school history and were the most by a rookie since John McMillan had 57 and Dwight Mathiasen had 51 in 1983-84.  Overall, only two frosh defensemen have recorded more points in a single campaign than Buium: Craig Redmond's 54 in 1982-83 and Greg Woods' 52 in 1975-76.
 
The San Diego, California, native's 39 assists are the most-ever by a freshman defenseman and the second-most by a rookie (forward Dallas Gaume owns the record with 47 assists in his rookie campaign in 1982-83).  Among defensemen all-time, Buium's 39 helpers are fourth-best in Pioneer history.
 
Buium's 11 goals on the season were the most by a first-year rear guard since Joey LaLeggia also had 11 in 2011-12.
 
AUTO-MATIKKA: Forward Miko Matikka scored his 20th goal of the season on March 30 in the NCAA Regional Final vs. Cornell, joining Jack Devine as the team's two 20-goal scorers.  Overall, he ranked fourth among all freshmen in the NCAA in goals, and it was the most goals by a Denver freshman since 2016-17 when Henrik Borgstrom had 22 markers.
 
Matikka registered his fourth multi-goal game of the season on March 22 in the NCHC Semifinals vs. St. Cloud State and had a goal and an assist on March 23 in the NCHC Championship Game vs. Omaha.  He totaled nine multi-point outings this season.
 
The Helsinki, Finland, native scored 14 of his goals during a 14-game stretch from Nov. 4-Jan. 13.  He recorded a career-long 11-game point streak from Nov. 3-Dec. 9 (11g/4a) and had a six-game goal streak from Nov. 4-24, which was the longest goal streak at DU since Dylan Gambrell went on a seven-game run with a goal from Feb. 13-March 5, 2016 (8g/14a).
 
Matikka was named the NCHC Rookie of the Week four times during the season, including picking up consecutive awards on Nov. 13 and Nov. 20 to become the first Denver player to repeat as a weekly conference winner since Magnus Chrona did it with Goaltender of the Week on Jan. 17 and 24, 2022.  Matikka was named the NCHC Rookie of the Month for November after leading all conference freshmen with seven goals and his 10 points ranking second among rookies behind teammate Zeev Buium (14).
 
RIZZO CLIMBING THE LEADERBOARD: Forward Massimo Rizzo tied for eighth the nation with 34 assists and tied for 22nd with 44 points.  He recorded at least a point in 22-of-30 games he played this season; he missed 14 games late in the year with a lower-body injury (Feb. 16-March 30).  The junior, who became the 102nd member of the DU's 100-point club on Nov. 11 at Arizona State, has 126 points in 107 career games, tied for 44th in program history in all-time scoring.
 
The Denver center began 2023-24 on an eight-game point streak from Oct. 7-Nov. 4 (5g/12a), the longest season-opening point stretch since Jarid Lukosevicius had points in each of his first nine contests in 2018-19 (8g/5a).  Rizzo also matched a personal best with a four-game goal streak from Oct. 20-28 and had a career-long seven-game assist streak end from Nov. 24-Jan. 5.
 
WELCOME TO THE CENTURY CLUB: Junior Jack Devine became the 103rd Pioneer to reach 100 career points by scoring just 16 seconds into the March 8 game at Colorado College (109 games).  He was the second Denver player to reach the century mark this season, joining junior Massimo Rizzo (Nov. 11 at Arizona State).  The forwards are two of just nine players to reach 100 career points in the last 10 years, and Rizzo was the first DU player to reach the milestone since Cole Guttman on Jan. 22, 2022 vs. Colorado College.
 
Rizzo recorded 100 points in just 87 games, the second-quickest Pioneer in the last decade.  Only Dylan Gambrell made the century club sooner, doing so in his 86th contest in 2018.  Rizzo's 1.18 career points-per-game average was the most among DU 100-point getters in the modern era (since 1990) and is tied for 34th all-time among club members.
 
MILESTONE MEN: Eight players reached major games-played milestones during the season, with Connor Caponi hitting the 125-games mark on Jan. 27 at North Dakota and McKade Webster eclipsing the same threshold on March 8 vs. Colorado College.
 
Caponi (Oct. 7 at Alaska Fairbanks) and Webster (Nov. 10 at Arizona State) joined six of their teammates by also appearing in their 100th career game during the campaign, as Carter King (Jan. 13 vs. St. Cloud State), Massimo Rizzo (Jan. 19 at Omaha), Shai Buium (Jan. 20 at Omaha), Tristan Broz (Jan. 26 at North Dakota), Jack Devine (Jan. 27 at North Dakota) and Sean Behrens (Feb. 24 vs. Miami) all reached the century mark as well.
 
SHAI'S SCORING TOUCH: Junior defenseman Shai Buium recorded 21 points (3g/18a) in the final 24 games of the season starting on Jan. 12 vs. St. Cloud State.  That stretch included matching a career long with a six-game point streak from Jan. 20 to Feb. 16 (3g/5a) and scoring in consecutive games for the first time in his career on Feb. 2-3 vs. Western Michigan.
 
Buium, who also had a six-game point streak earlier this year from No. 3-19 (2g/6a), posted career bests this season in all three scoring categories.  He finished the year ranked fifth on the team with 36 points, tied for third with 29 assists and his seven goals were the second-most by a Denver defenseman behind his brother, Zeev Buium (11).  In addition, his plus-33 rating was tied for the highest on DU with his brother Zeev and the highest ever by a Pioneer since the statistical first began being tracked in 2005-06.
 
DEVINE INTERVENTION: Junior Jack Devine led the team and ranked fourth in the nation with 27 goals during the season, the most tallies by a Pioneer since Ryan Dingle also had 27 in 2005-06.  Devine recorded his ninth multi-goal game of the season in Game 1 of the NCHC Quarterfinals on March 15 vs. Minnesota Duluth and owned 18 multi-point outings of 2023-24. 
 
The forward was the first player in the country to reach the 20-goal threshold on Jan. 19 at Omaha.  He accomplished the feat in just 23 games to become the quickest Pioneer in recent history to hit the mark.
 
The Glencoe, Illinois, native ranked seventh in the NCAA in overall scoring with 56 points.  He had a career-long five-game assist streak from Feb. 3-24, which also matched his longest point streak of his collegiate tenure from the start of this season on Oct. 7-27 (6g/7a).  That streak in October featured two or more points in each contest, the longest multi-point streak by a Pioneer since Massimo Rizzo also had a five-game stretch from Oct. 21-Nov. 4, 2022 (4g/9a).
 
TOUGH PLACE TO SWEEP: The Pioneers won both road games at St. Cloud State on March 1-2 for the first time in more than 16 years.  The last time that DU won both games in a series at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center was Dec. 7-8, 2007 when it had a pair of 3-2 victories—back when head coach David Carle was still and undecided college recruit.  Denver's victory in the Friday night contest was its first series-opening victory in St. Cloud since March 6, 2015 (3-2 win).
 
EIGHT AND MORE: Denver recorded its fourth game of the season where it scored at least eight goals on Feb. 24 vs. Miami.  It is the most eight-plus goal games in a season by the Pioneers since 1989-90 when the team had six such contests.  DU has 12 games this season where it has scored six or more goals.
 
The Pioneers recorded consecutive 8-4 wins on Nov. 11 at Arizona State and Nov. 17 vs. Omaha, which was the first time they tallied eight goals in back-to-back games since in 1989-90 when they did it three contests in a row (12-5 and 8-1 wins on Nov. 3-4, 1989 at Alaska Fairbanks; 8-6 win on Nov. 10, 1989 at Michigan Tech).
 
Denver scored a season-high nine goals in its shutout victory on Nov. 25 vs. Yale.  It was the program's most goals scored in a game since winning 10-2 in a WCHA regular-season outing against Minnesota State on Oct. 22, 2011, and the 9-0 win was the school's largest margin of victory since defeating Air Force 11-1 on Dec. 27, 1995.
 
MASS-IVE PERFORMANCE: Forward Massimo Rizzo combined for eight points on Jan. 19-20 at Omaha, recording four each night to match a career best for a single game (now five times).  He had a goal and three assists on Jan. 19 before tying a personal high with four assists on Jan. 20; he also had that many helpers during opening weekend this year on Oct. 8, 2023 at Alaska Fairbanks.
 
Rizzo is the first Pioneer to record back-to-back four-point games and finish a weekend set with eight total points in games going back to the start of the 2015-16 season.  His seven combined assists in the two contests marked the second time in his career that he's accomplished the feat, as he also had that many helpers earlier this season on Oct. 7-8, 2023 at Alaska Fairbanks.
 
ZEEV'S HISTORIC POINT STREAK: Denver rookie Zeev Buium produced a career-long 12-game point streak (4g/17a) from Nov. 3-Dan. 9 (ended on Jan. 12 vs. St. Cloud State).  Courtesy of College Hockey News, it was the longest point streak by a freshman defenseman in the NCAA in more than 21 years (online databases presently do not go back further than 2002). 
 
Boston University's Lane Hutson, who Buium played with on Team USA at the 2024 World Juniors, previously had the longest with an 11-game run last season from Dec. 11, 2022-Feb. 6, 2023 (3g/16a).
 
Buium's stretch, which began on Nov. 3, was the longest by a Denver player since Bobby Brink had a 14-game point streak from Dec. 31, 2021-Feb. 19, 2022 (7g/21a).  During the streak, Buium also produced a personal-best five-game assist streak, with him totaling 10 helpers from Nov. 25-Dec. 9.
 
GENERATION Z-EEV: Freshman Zeev Buium tied a career high with four points on one goal and three assists on Jan. 20 at Omaha.  He also had four points—all assists—on Nov. 25 vs. Yale, which were the most by a DU freshman blueliner since 2002 (online databases presently don't go back any further) and marked just the third instance since 2016 by a rookie D-man in the NCAA (Boston University's Lane Hutson, Feb. 3, 2023 vs. Maine; Minnesota's Brock Faber, 5, March 27, 2021 vs. Omaha), courtesy of College Hockey News.
 
His four assists on Nov. 25 vs. Yale are tied for the most in a game this season by a Pioneer and were also tied for the third-most in a game in program history by a defenseman (12th time)—last accomplished by Kyle Mayhew on March 11, 2023 against Miami in the NCHC Quarterfinals.  Courtesy of College Hockey News, Buium's four assists were also the most by a DU freshman blueliner since 2002 and marked just the third instance since 2016 by a rookie D-man in college hockey (Boston University's Lane Hutson, Feb. 3, 2023 vs. Maine; Minnesota's Brock Faber, 5, March 27, 2021 vs. Omaha).
 
GOOD TO BE THE KING: Junior Carter King went on a career-long 11-game point streak from Nov. 25-Jan. 20 (7g/6a) and had a stretch where he produced points in 20-of-21 games (13g/14a) from Oct. 21-Jan. 20—which included a then-personal-best nine-game point streak from Oct. 21-Nov. 19 (7g/9a).
 
The DU alternate captain's previous nine-game point streak was at the time the longest of the season by a Pioneer and the longest since Carter Mazur's 10-game stretch (5g/9a) last season from Feb. 10-March 11, 2023 (later surpassed by Zeev Buium).  The Calgary, Alberta, native also had a five-game goal streak from Oct. 28-Nov. 11, which at the time was the longest by a Denver player since Cole Guttman's five-game run (6g/2a) from Dec. 7, 2019 to Jan. 4, 2020 (later surpassed by Miko Matikka).
 
KING OF THE SHORTY: Junior Carter King tied for the NCAA lead in short-handed goals during the season with four with him tallying his last on Jan. 6 vs. Niagara.  That man-disadvantage goal gave him sole possession of fifth place for the most in a single campaign in program history, and it was the most "shorties" by a Pioneer since Tyler Bozak had five in 2007-08. 
 
King now has five career short-handed goals, breaking a tie with Logan O'Connor for 11th place and moving him into a tie for sixth place in school history (with five others).
 
The Calgary, Alberta, native scored two short-handed goals on Nov. 10 at Arizona State, becoming just the fifth Pioneer to tally multiple short-handed goals in the same game and the first to do so since Bozak on Nov. 4, 2007 vs. Minnesota
 
DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK: The Pioneers erased a three-goal deficit on Nov. 11 to win 8-4 at Arizona State. It was the team's largest comeback victory and the most goals it has scored since also rallying from a 3-0 deficit in an 8-5 win against St. Cloud State at home on Feb. 4, 2022.
 
Denver scored four times in both the second and third periods—at the time was the most in a single frame this season (since surpassed by five goals on two occasions).
 
Overall during the season, DU went 15-4-2 when the opponent scored first and posted an 8-3-1 record when the other team has the lead at the first intermission.
 
NO FLY ZONE: Denver won its seventh straight game vs. Air Force with a 4-0 win on Oct. 28 and improved to 14-1-1 in the last 16 matchups.  DU leads the all-time series 41-4-1.
 
The Pioneers also shutout the Falcons in their previous meeting with an 8-0 win on Oct. 16, 2021 at Magness Arena and owns a 160:01 shutout streak dating back to Oct. 15, 2021 at the Academy.  DU has shutout Air Force in nearly four full games at Magness Arena, as the Pios haven't allowed a goal on their home ice vs. the Falcons in 238:17—Dylan Abood scored the last Air Force goal at DU's home rink at 1:43 of the first period on Oct. 10, 2015.
 
RIZZO'S HELPING HAND: Junior Massimo Rizzo finished the opening weekend in Alaska with seven combined assists, recording three on Oct. 7 before setting career high with four on Oct. 8.
 
It was the most assists he's had in a two-game stretch in his career and tied his personal best for points in a weekend.  His previous career high for assists came in back-to-back games last season on Oct. 28-29, 2022 at Miami, recording three apples in the opener before four points (1g/3a) the next night.  He also had seven assists and added a goal in on Jan. 19-20 at Omaha. 
 
WEEKEND OF FIRSTS: Several Pios picked up their first career goals and points in Alaska on Oct. 7-8, as sophomore Kent Anderson and freshman Boston Buckberger both tallied on Oct. 7.  Rookies Zeev Buium and Kieran Cebrian scored their first NCAA markers the next night on Oct. 8.  Freshman Sam Harris picked up his first career points with two assists in the Saturday's opener.
 
Overall, eight different players made their collegiate debuts, with Cale Ashcroft, Garrett Brown, Buckberger, Zeev Buium, Cebrian, Harris and Miko Matikka skating in their first contests on Oct. 7.  Freddie Halyk served as the backup goalie both nights and saw his first game action late in the third period on Oct. 8.