ST. PAUL, Minn. – The University of Denver hockey team goes for its second-straight NCHC Frozen Faceoff Championship on Saturday night as the Pioneers face the Western Michigan Broncos in the conference final at Xcel Energy Center.
 
Game time is 6:30 p.m. MT, and it will be nationally televised on CBS Sports Network. The radio broadcast can be heard on Denver Sports 104.3 The Fan HD3.
 
The No. 3-seed and No. 6-ranked Pioneers won the 2024 Frozen Faceoff Championship and is aiming to be the first NCHC program to win consecutive conference titles. DU is the first team to reach the league final in back-to-back tournaments since St. Cloud State in 2019 and 2021 (no tournament in 2020), and the Pios are the first squad to return to the championship contest after winning the year before.
 
Denver punched its ticket to the title game after defeating Arizona State 4-2 on Friday in the semifinals at Xcel Energy Center. DU led 2-0 after the first period before ASU knotted the contest in the middle frame. Aidan Thompson scored the game-winning goal midway through the third and Connor Caponi sealed the outing with an empty-netter.
 
No. 3-ranked Western Michigan is the top seed in the Frozen Faceoff after claiming its first Penrose Cup as regular season champions. The Broncos are in the NCHC final for the second time in their history and are making their first trip since 2022 when they lost to Minnesota Duluth in the championship.
 
WMU defeated No. 5-seed North Dakota in the second semifinal on Friday also by a 4-2 score. Grant Slukynsky tallied the go-ahead marker in the third period to break a 1-1 tie and the Broncos added two empty-net goals in the final two minutes.
 
Denver and Western Michigan are meeting for the first time since the teams faced off in Kalamazoo on Dec. 6-7 in their only series of the season. The Broncos won 3-2 in the series opener before the Pios won 3-2 in overtime the next night in the finale.
 
DU is playing WMU for the first time in the NCHC Tournament since the 2017 Third Place Game. The teams' only other meeting in the conference tournament came in the 2014 semifinals en route to the Pios' winning the inaugural Frozen Faceoff at Target Center in Minneapolis.
 
The Pioneers and Broncos are the two highest-scoring teams in the NCAA, with WMU first at 4.1 goals per game and DU ranked second at 4.0 markers per contest.
 
Denver is going for its fourth Frozen Faceoff Championship (2014, 2018, 2024) and has won 18 previous conference tournament titles, winning 15 in the WCHA. The Pios are 3-0 all-time in NCHC Championship Games.
 
 
LAST TIME OUT: The No. 3-seed Pioneers secured their spot into the Frozen Faceoff Championship Game with a 4-2 victory against the No. 2-seed Sun Devils of Arizona State on Friday night.
 
Aidan Thompson scored the game-winning goal midway through the third period on a 2-on-1 with Carter King that was created by a stretch pass from Jack Devine. Thompson also added an assist, while King and Devine added a second helper apiece for multi-point performances as well.
 
Defenseman Boston Buckberger tallied the game-opening score just 89 seconds into the first period, and DU goaltender Matt Davis made 27 saves.
 
DEVIL DAGGER: Forward Aidan Thompson scored his second game-winning goal of the season against Arizona State on Friday night to end the Sun Devils' season. The junior also tallied in overtime on Feb. 7 in Tempe.  
 
Thompson totaled five goals and two assists in the five games this season against the Sun Devils, including totaling three goals on Feb. 7-8 in Arizona.
 
GOING 50-50: Junior Aidan Thompson had a goal and an assist on Friday night to reach 50 points this season and join linemate Jack Devine in reaching the half-century threshold.  Denver is the only program in the country with multiple 50-point scorers.
 
This is the second straight season that DU has had multiple players reach 50 points after Devine (56) and Zeev Buium (50) each reached the mark in 2023-24.
 
Devine leads the nation in scoring with 56 points, tying his career high from a season ago (27g/29a) in what was just the third 50-point campaign since 2012: Henrik Borgstrom in 2017-18 (52) and Bobby Brink in 2021-22 (57).  The last time DU had a player record consecutive 50-point seasons was nearly 35 years ago when Daryn McBride accomplished the feat in 1987-88 (58) and 1988-89 (51).
 
BUCKING THE TREND: Defenseman Boston Buckberger scored his third goal in the last five games on Friday night in the semifinals vs. Arizona State and has recorded 14 points in the last 13 games (5g/9a).  His eight goals and 30 points (8g/22a) on the year are both career highs.  He tied a personal best with three points (1g/2a) on Feb. 14 vs. North Dakota, marking his second career three-point game: Feb. 24, 2024 vs. Miami (0g/3a).
 
Buckberger was named the NCHC Defenseman of the Week on Feb. 24, marking his second career top defender honor and becoming the third Denver D-man to pick up the award this season (3x, Zeev Buium; 3x, Eric Pohlkamp).
 
NOTABLES

• Denver is now 4-7 all-time in the semifinal round of the NCHC Tournament and has a 31-10-1 overall record in the league playoffs. The Pioneers have won each of their last two semifinal games.
• The Pioneers are one win away from their four consecutive 30-win season, extending their longest such streak in program history.
• Denver has won three straight games, tied for its longest winning streak since the New Year (Feb. 21-28).
• DU is now 11-5-1 all-time vs. ASU and went 2-3-0 against the Sun Devils in five meetings during the year.
• Denver and Arizona State were meeting at a neutral site for the first time in the all-time series. The squads played once prior in an NHL venue as the teams faced off on Dec. 7, 2019 at Gila River Arena, the then-home of the Arizona Coyotes.
• Carter King stretched his point streak to four games (2g/4a).
• Boston Buckberger (2g/2a) and Aidan Thompson (2g/3a) have points in three straight games.
• Buckberger's goal at 1:29 of the first period was the fastest goal to begin a game this season for the team, surpassing the previous quickest of 2:20 set by Samu Salminen last Sunday in Game 3 of the NCHC Quarterfinals against Colorado College.
• Matt Davis leads the NCAA with a career-high 27 victories and is tied with George Kirkwood (1959-60) for the fifth-most in a campaign in school history.
• DU improved to 7-1-0 on the season when tied after the second period.
• Carter King had two assists and now has 20 on the season, a new career high.
• Aidan Thompson scored his third game-winning goal of the year, a personal best for a single campaign.
• Sam Harris is now tied for first in the nation in power-play goals (10).
• David Carle has a 33-13-3 all-time record in games in March, his most victories in any single month on the calendar. 

FACING WMU IN THE NCHC TOURNAMENT: DU and Western Michigan have met twice previously in the Frozen Faceoff Tournament, with the Pioneers winning both outings.  The teams will be playing their first contest against one another since March 18, 2017 in the Third Place Game where the Pioneers won 3-1 at Target Center in Minneapolis.
 
The squads' first meeting came in the semifinal round of the first NCHC Tournament on March 21, 2014, where Ty Loney tallied the game-winner with 4:53 left in regulation to secure Denver a 4-3 victory and send them to the championship final. The Pios went on to win the inaugural tournament and advance to the NCAA Tournament in Jim Montgomery's first year as head coach.
 
All-time, the Pioneers are 4-0-1 against the Broncos in neutral-site contests as the DU won 3-2 in the 2011 NCAA Midwest Regional Semifinal in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and also went 1-0-1 in the NCHC Pod in Omaha, Nebraska, in December 2020.
 
HISTORY VS. WMU: The Pioneers and Broncos are meeting for the third time this season and the first time since early December. The teams split their only series of the year on Dec. 6-7 in Kalamazoo, Michigan, with a pair of one-goal games. The Broncos won 3-2 in the series opener at Lawson Arena before Carter King scored in overtime to lift the Pioneers to their own 3-2 win in the Saturday finale. DU has a 10-4-1 record in its last 15 meetings against WMU and owns a 27-14-2 all-time record in the series. The Pios sport a 22-11-2 mark in conference play against the Broncos and are 14-3-1 at home and 9-11 in road contests. DU is 4-0-1 in neutral-site games against WMU and are meeting in the NCHC Tournament for the first time since the 2017 Third Place Game.
 
SCOUTING THE BRONCOS: Western Michigan is ranked No. 3 in the country in both national polls with a 29-7-1 record and is the top seed in the NCHC Tournament for the first time.  The Broncos won their first-ever Penrose Cup as conference regular-season champions with 57 points and a 19-4-1 record in league play in 2024-25.  WMU is on a five-game winning streak and is 7-1-0 in its last eight games. The Broncos swept St. Cloud State in the quarterfinal round with a pair of 6-2 wins and defeated No. 5-seed North Dakota 4-2 in the semifinals on Friday night. Grant Slukynsky broke a 1-1 tie in the third period versus UND and the Broncos added two empty-net goals in the final two minutes. Western Michigan is 2-1-0 in neutral-site contests this year as it beat Michigan Tech 4-3 in the Great Lakes Invitational first round before falling to then-No. 1 Michigan State 3-1 in the championship contest on Dec. 29-30.  Pat Ferschweiler was named the NCHC Coach of the Year and Alex Bump was selected as the league's Forward of the Year. Bump leads the team with 21 goals and 44 points and is third on the squad with 23 assists. Grant Slukynsky is second in scoring with 34 points and paces the squad with 25 assists. WMU is the highest scoring team in the NCAA at 4.1 goals per game and has six players with 12 or more markers this season. The team has split their goaltenders for most the year. Hampton Slukynsky has started his 20th game of the year on Friday vs. North Dakota and owns a 14-5-1 record, 2.03 goals-against average, .919 save percentage and one shutout this year. Cameron Rowe has played 17 outings this year in net, posting a 15-2-0 record, 2.00 goals-against average and .924 save percentage.
 
PREVIOUS MEETING (DEC. 7, 2024): Then-No. 2 ranked Denver hockey team rallied for a 3-2 overtime victory to earn a series split against the No. 7 Western Michigan Broncos at Lawson Arena.  Junior Samu Salminen scored the game-tying goal with 1:06 remaining in the third period and senior captain Carter King tallied at 2:11 of the extra period to help the Pioneers break a three-game losing streak. WMU won 3-2 in the series opener on Friday.  Sophomore defenseman Zeev Buium had a goal and an assist and fellow blueliner Boston Buckberger registered two helpers.  Senior Jack Devine and freshman Jake Fisher also recorded an assist each in the win.  Senior goaltender Matt Davis made 19 saves for the Pioneers and stopped all 12 shots he faced in a scoreless first period.  King ended the night with his second career overtime goal after winning a neutral-zone faceoff, regaining possession from Buium and then skating around the three Broncos players on the ice before depositing the puck five-hole on goaltender Hampton Slukynsky.
 
CONNECTIONS: Western Michigan's Tristan Lemyre played the previous two seasons at Denver (2022-2024) and helped the Pioneers capture their NCAA-record 10th national championship in April … DU Director of Hockey Operations Travis Culhane is from Kalamazoo and graduated from WMU in 2017. Culhane is the son of former Broncos head coach Jim Culhane and served as Western's Director of Hockey Ops during the 2018-19 season … Equipment Manager Nick Meldrum is from Warren, Mich., graduated from Lake Superior State in Sault Ste. Marie in 2007 and spent two years with the U.S. NTDP when it was in Ann Arbor prior to coming to DU … Jack Devine (2019-2021) and Zeev Buium (2021-2023) both played at the U.S. National Team Development Program in Plymouth, Mich. … Paxton Geisel began the 2023-24 season with the USHL Muskegon Lumberjacks and was a teammate that year with WMU's Ty Henricks … Geisel was also teammates on the USHL Dubuque Fighting Saints with Tristan Lemyre and Samuel Sjolund in 2021-22 and with Owen Michaels in 2022-23 … Owen Michaels briefly played with Peter LaJoy on the NAHL Bismarck Bobcats in 2020-21 … Jared Wright and Alex Bump played together with the USHL Omaha Lancers in 2021-22 … Bump was also teammates with Cale Ashcroft and Kieran Cebrian with the USHL Tri-City Storm at the end of the 2022-23 season … Jake Fisher won the USHL Clark Cup championship with Iiro Hakkarainen and Hampton Slukynsky on the Fargo Force in 2023-24 … Connor Caponi played with Wyatt Schingoethe with the USHL Waterloo Black Hawks from 2018-2020, while Garrett Brown played with Zach Bade and Connor Brown on Waterloo at the end of the 2022-23 season … Boston Buckberger was a teammate of Cole Crusberg-Roseen with the USHL Lincoln Stars in 2022-23 … Zach Sharp skated with Sam Harris with the USHL Sioux Falls Stampede to begin 2022-23 before finishing the campaign with Cedar Rapids RoughRiders and was a teammate with Eric Pohlkamp … DU's Samu Salminen (Helsinki) and WMU's Iiro Hakkarainen (Espoo) and Joona Vaisanen (Kirkkonummi) are all from Finland.
 
PIONEERS IN THE NCHC FROZEN FACEOFF TOURNAMENT: Denver has a 31-10-1 all-time record in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff and is the only squad to reach the conference's semifinals in each of the 11-held tournament.  The Pioneers are looking to become the first school to repeat as NCHC Tournament champions.
 
DU won last year's NCHC Frozen Faceoff to claim its third such title and 18th overall conference tournament championship (15 with 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; 2018 vs. St. Cloud State at the first iteration of the event at Xcel Energy Center and 2024 vs. Omaha at the X.  Overall, the Pios are 6-0-1 in Saturday games for the championship or third place in Frozen Faceoff history.
 
Denver improved to 4-7 in the semifinals of the bracket and have won each of their last two such games, beating Arizona State this year and defeating St. Cloud State in overtime ln 2024. 
 
The Pioneers had won 11 straight quarterfinal games before their loss in Game 1 to Colorado College this year. Denver had swept Minnesota Duluth (2024), Miami twice (2023, 2022) and North Dakota (2019) and won a one-game quarterfinal matchup against Omaha (2021) in the previous five-held tournaments.  Overall, DU is 21-3 all-time in the opening round of the NCHC Tournament and own seven series sweeps.
 
DEVINE AMONG THE PIONEERS' BEST ALL-TIME: Senior Jack Devine is the highest-scoring Pioneer in the modern era is part of a select group of players with 50 goals, 100 assists and 150 points in their career.
 
Devine reached 100 career assists on March 8 at Colorado College, becoming the 12th Denver player to reach the mark.  By hitting the milestone, he also became just the 10th Pioneer in the school's 50-100-150 point club and the first to join that group since Dave Shields from 1986-1990 (71g/108a).
 
The Glencoe, Illinois, native is 12th on the school's all-time scoring list with 162 points (57g/105a) and the most by a DU player since Rick Berens had 180 points (94g/86a) from 1987-1991.
 
Devine scored his 50th career goal on Feb. 1 against Omaha to become the 61st player in school history to reach the half-century mark.  Devine's former teammate Cole Guttman was the previous Pioneer to tally 50 career goals on Feb. 11, 2022 against Minnesota Duluth.
 
AND THE AWARD GOES TO: The Pioneers picked up three awards on Thursday, March 20 at the annual NCHC awards celebration prior to the Frozen Faceoff in St. Paul: Zeev Buium as both Player and Offensive Defenseman of the Year and Matt Davis as the Senior Scholar-Athlete Award winner.
 
Buium repeats as the top offensive defenseman in the league and becomes the fifth Pioneer and third DU defenseman to be named NCHC Player of the Year.  Forward Bobby Brink was the last DU skater to win the award in 2022.  Davis is the first Denver player to pick up the Senior Scholar-Athlete Award since Gabe Levin in 2016.
 
DU had three finalists for additional awards: Jack Devine for Forward of the Year, Carter King for Defensive Forward of the Year and Jared Wright for the Sportsmanship Award.
 
HOBEY BAKER AWARD FINALIST: Sophomore defenseman Zeev Buium and senior forward Jack Devine were both named on Wednesday a top-10 finalist for the 2025 Hobey Baker Award, given annually to the top men's college hockey player in the country.  Devine was also a top-10 finalist a year ago.
 
A second round of fan voting is underway and takes into account a percentage of the total ballot.  Three Hobey Hat Trick finalists will be named on April 3, and the award will be presented on April 11 at the Frozen Four.
 
Junior forward Aidan Thompson was also a nominee for this year's award. The Pioneers trio were among 21 players from the NCHC and 91 nationally up for this year's honor.  DU has had two previous winners: Matt Carle (2006) and Will Butcher (2017).

 

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