ST. CLOUD, Minn. – The No. 6 University of Denver hockey team fell 4-3 to the St. Cloud State Huskies on Saturday night in the series finale at Herb Brooks National Hockey Center.
 
SCSU (8-10-0, 3-7-0 NCHC) used nearly seven continuous minutes of power play time in the third period to build momentum and rally for the victory. Denver (12-6-1, 8-2-0 NCHC) dropped its first game in regulation since Oct. 25 at Northeastern, ending a run of 12 straight outings with either a win or an overtime loss (9-3-0).
 
The Pioneers received goals from freshmen Kyle Chyzowski and Reid Varkonyi and senior captain Kent Anderson while senior Rieger Lorenz recorded a multi-point evening with two assists. Goaltender Quentin Miller made 28 saves.
 
Denver led 3-2 entering the third period, but back-to-back penalties gave St. Cloud State an additional boost on the ice. Among those infraction were a two by separate Denver players at 9:37 of the frame that handed the Huskies a five-minute major power play that began with two minutes of a 5-on-3 advantage.
 
DU killed off the initial two minutes, but Tyson Gross scored the tying goal 11 seconds after the first foul expired. That was the only marker during the major penalty, but the Huskies struck again nine seconds after all the Pioneers were released from the penalty box, with Barrett Hall netting the eventual game-winer with 5:14 remaining in regulation.
 
Denver had looks in the final minutes but couldn't get any other shots past goalie Patriks Bezins, who made 24 saves.
 
Max Smolinski opened the scoring for SCSU at 2:33 of the first, but DU led 2-1 after the first period on markers from Anderson and Chyzowski 2:36 apart in the middle of the frame. Varkonyi scored his first career goal with 4:17 left in the second stanza, but Gross made it a one-goal contest going into the third with his first of the evening at 19:46.
 
The Pioneers finished 1-for-2 on the power play while the Huskies officially ended 1-for-6 with the extra man. Twelve of St. Cloud's 32 shots came during power plays.
 
UP NEXT: The Pioneers are now off for three weeks for the holiday break as they next play on Jan. 2-3 against Maine to begin a four-game homestand at Magness Arena.
 
 
POSTGAME NOTES

• Denver is now 62-54-7 all-time against St. Cloud State and is 6-2-1 in the last nine games of the series
• DU had its three-game winning streak against the Huskies in St. Cloud come to an end, with the program 25-25-4 on the road in the series.
• Defenseman Cale Ashcroft played in his 100th career game, becoming the third member of the team's junior class to reach the century mark.
• Senior forward Samu Salminen skated in his 125th career NCAA contest.
• Rookie Kyle Chyzowski scored for the third time in the last four games and stretched his season-long point streak to four games (3g/1a).
• Defenseman Kent Anderson scored his first goal of the season.
• Freshman Reid Varkonyi tallied his first career goal.
• Sam Harris career-long point streak (tied) came to an end at nine games (5g/5a)
• Boston Buckberger's (2g/3a) and Clarke Caswell's (1g/4a) four-game point streaks also ended.

 
GOAL SUMMARY
1st Period
2:33 SCSU (0-1) – Max Smolinski tallied on a wrist shot that went far-side while streaking up the ice on a rush.
10:14 DU (1-1) – Kent Anderson went short-side with a snap shot at the right circle after taking passes from Samu Salminen and Brendan McMorrow from behind the goal line.
12:50 DU (2-1) – PPG, Kyle Chyzowski knocked in a loose puck in the crease after Rieger Lorenz's initial deflection off an Eric Pohlkamp shot got through the SCSU goalie.
 
2nd Period
15:13 DU (3-1) – Reid Varkonyi fired a shot high, far-side from the low left circle after taking a pass from Hagen Burrows.
19:46 SCSU (3-2) – Tyson Gross tallied in front off a pass from Max Smolinski.
 
3rd Period
11:48 SCSU (3-3) – PPG, Tyson Gross scored from the tough angle from the left side 11 seconds after the first penalty of an initial 5-on-3 expired.
5:14 SCSU (3-4) – Barrett Hall tallied on a wrist shot nine seconds after St. Cloud State's major power play expired.
 
 
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