PREVIEW: No. 3 Pioneers Host Lindenwood on Military Appreciation Weekend

Friday, November 13

Denver, Colo.

7 p.m. MT

University of Denver

Lindenwood

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Ryan Miller during Denver hockey's game against Omaha on October 29, 2026

Photo by: Tyler Schank/Clarkson Creative Photography

11/12/2026 10:30:00 AM | #3 Ice Hockey

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Denver hockey also celebrating hockey alumni weekend to begin a four-game homestand

By: Christopher Kae & Ron Knabenbauer

DENVER – The No. 3 University of Denver hockey team returns home after a two-game road trip to host the Lindenwood Lions in a non-conference matchup this weekend at Magness Arena.

DU will be celebrating Military Appreciation and Hockey Alumni Weekend during the Pioneers' series against the Lions. Friday's start time is at 7 p.m. MT and Saturday's game is at 6 p.m. MT. Both contests will be broadcast on NCHC.tv, with Friday's game also televised regionally on Altitude Sports. Limited tickets are still available.

During the first intermission on Saturday is also Denver's annual Teddy Bear Toss. Fans are encouraged to bring teddy bears and plush toys that will then be collected and donated to the Boys & Girls Club of Metro Denver.

Denver (7-2-1, 4-0-0 NCHC) is starting a four-game homestand and continues a stretch where it is playing 10-of-12 regular-season games at home. The Pios are coming off a road sweep of conference foe Arizona State last weekend, winning 6-3 on Friday and 1-0 in overtime on Sunday.

DU put up a season-high 52 shots on net in Friday's victory at Mullett Arena and saw five Pioneers have multi-point efforts. Freshman defenseman Daxon Rudolph netted two goals on the power play, sophomore Clarke Caswell logged a personal best with a marker and three assists and fellow classmate Kristian Epperson also registered a career night with three points (1g/2a). Senior Sam Harris added a goal and an assist for his 100th career point.

Sophomore Kyle Chyzowski dished out two assists and junior James Reeder also found the back of the net as the Pioneers scored four goals in the third period to pull away from the Sun Devils.

Goaltender Johnny Hicks started both contests, and the sophomore turned away 21 shots in Friday's win before stopping all 28 shots for his first shutout of the year on Sunday.

The weekend closed was a defensive stalemate that needed extra time before the deadlock was finally broken in a 1-0 finish. Rudolph picked up his second game-winner of the weekend at 1:27 of the 3-on-3 stanza by burying a rocket off a feed from Harris, netting his first career overtime goal and third marker of the series.

Rudolph and Hicks earned NCHC Defenseman of the Week and Goaltender of the Week awards, respectively, and Harris was a finalist for this week's Forward of the Week.

Lindenwood spent last weekend down in Colorado Springs, falling 4-2 on Friday before battling to a 4-4 draw on Saturday against Colorado College. The Lions will arrive in Denver with a 3-6-1 record this season and will be making their third trip to Colorado in a four-week span after playing at the Air Force Academy on Oct. 16-17.

Denver is meeting Lindenwood for a third straight season and holds a 5-1-0 record in the all-time series that dates back to Dec. 16, 2022. The Pioneers split the series against the Lions last season on Oct. 17-18, 2025 when the two clubs faced off in Maryland Heights, Missouri, with LU winning 4-3 and DU picking up a 4-0 shutout victory.

The Pios are on a six-game unbeaten streak (5-0-1) and are 3-0-1 in their last four home outings.

DU returns briefly to conference play next weekend when the squad meets the St. Thomas Tommies for the first time in program history. UST is in its inaugural season as a member of the NCHC.

RARE WIN: The Pioneers won a 1-0 game in overtime for the second consecutive season and played in just their third such contest in the program's 78-year history following their victory on Sunday at Arizona State.

DU earned its first 1-0 OT win on Jan. 31, 2026 vs. Minnesota Duluth—a game that Johnny Hicks made his first career start. That was the squad's first 1-0 OT outing in 60 years, as its previous came in a loss at Michigan Tech on Jan. 21, 1966.

Overall, Denver has a 23-12 all-time record in games that have ended 1-0. The program also played another 1-0 game last season with a loss at Northeastern on Oct. 25, 2025.

RUDOLPH FLYING HIGH: Defenseman Daxon Rudolph picked up his second consecutive NCHC weekly honor on Tuesday, as he earned his first Defenseman of the Week award after totaling three goals in the series sweep of ASU. He was named NCHC Rookie of the Week the previous week on Nov. 3 and earned the same accolade on Oct. 6.

The freshman recorded the game-winning goal in both outings in Tempe—bringing his season total to three—and tallied his first career overtime marker on Saturday in the 1-0 win. He registered his first career multi-goal outing in Friday's win and tied a season high with seven shots on Saturday, which matched a team best for the campaign as well.

Rudolph's six goals lead all NCAA freshmen and rank second among defensemen, while his 12 points are second-most among rookies and fourth among blueliners in the country at this point of the season. He is on a three-game goal/point streak (4g/1a) and owns four multi-point outings on the campaign.

THE DEVIL HUNTER HITS 100: Senior forward Sam Harris totaled three points in last weekend's series at Arizona State and now owns 18 points (12g/6a) in 13 career contests against the Sun Devils. He had two points (1g/1a) on Friday and the primary assist on Daxon Rudolph's overtime-winning tally on Sunday.

Harris reached 100 career points with his multi-point night on Friday to become the 106th Denver player to reach the century mark and the first since Carter King on Feb. 21, 2025 vs. Miami.

Achieving major moments vs. ASU isn't anything new for Harris. He recorded his first career hat trick on Feb. 8, 2025 in Tempe and became the 63rd Pioneer to score 50 career goals when he did it last season on Feb. 26, 2026 on home ice against the Sun Devils. The San Diego, Calif., native was the first DU skater to reach the half-century mark in tallies since Jack Devine in 2024-25 and was the fifth active player in the NCAA to hit the milestone last season. He is the nation's active leader in goals.

JOHNNY BE GOOD, JOHNNY BE GREAT: Goaltender Johnny Hicks has picked up where he left off last season when he went on a historic run to help lead the Pioneers to the national title as a freshman.

The now-sophomore is 5-0-0 to start the season and has stretched his unbeaten streak to begin his collegiate career to 22 decisions (21-0-1), a run that began with him entering early in the first period on Jan. 24 of last season vs. St. Cloud State following an injury to starter Quentin Miller. It is the longest unbeaten streak to begin a college career in Denver history, and Hicks has also won 18 straight contests since Feb. 7 vs. Colorado College.

After making 21-of-24 saves in Friday's victory, Hicks posted his first shutout of the season on Saturday by denying all 28 shots in a 1-0 overtime win. He picked up his first NCHC Goaltender of the Week award of the season and third career weekly honor from the conference on Tuesday; he earned one top goalie accolade and was named Rookie of the Week once last year.

DEFENDING DENVER: The Pioneers have held opponents to two or fewer goals in seven of their 10 outings this season and rank 11th in the country at 2.0 goals against per game.

Denver is also among the league leaders in shots against, as the squad presently ranks tied for ninth by allowing just 22.9 shots per outing. The Pios have yet to give up 30 shots on goal in any of their 10 contests and are outshooting opponents by a 12.3 margin per outing. DU fired a season-high 52 shots on net in Friday's win in Tempe.

Last season, DU tied for fourth in the nation by allowing 2.1 goals per game, and the team held opponents to one goal or fewer in 19-of-43 contests during the year. Of the Pioneers' 25 losses since 2024-25, 16 have been by a single goal while five other games featured empty-net markers by the opponent.

NOTABLES

Denver has now won four straight games against ASU in the all-time series and is 6-1-0 in the last seven meetings, with its lone loss coming in overtime.
The Pioneers improved to 5-3-0 all-time at Mullett Arena and played their fifth overtime game in their history at the venue. DU improved to 2-3 in OT contests in Tempe, with the Pios also winning on Feb. 7, 2025.
DU's six goals scored on Friday matched a season high (Oct. 2 at Alaska Anchorage, 6-1) while the nine total goals scored in the outing was the highest combined total in a contest this year for the Pios. The four goals in the third period also tied a season best (Oct. 2 at UAA, 2nd period).
The Pioneers' 52 shots on goal on Friday were a season high and the most since the team also had 52 on Nov. 29, 2025 vs. Minnesota in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game at Ball Arena. Their plus-27 shot differential (52-25) was also the most in a contest this year by the squad.
Denver fired 19 shots in the third period on Sunday for its most for a single frame this season. The team's plus-12 shot differential in the period matched a season best for the team (twice prior).
Denver played its second overtime game of the season on Sunday and earned its first win after tying Boston College 2-2 on Oct. 24. It was the Pioneers' first OT victory since defeating Michigan in double-overtime in the 2026 NCAA Frozen Four Semifinals in Las Vegas on April 9.
DU recorded its first shutout since beating Cornell 5-0 on March 27, 2026 in the NCAA West Regional Semifinals in Loveland, Colorado.
Clarke Caswell tallied his first goal of the season and added three assists for a career-high four points (1g/3a) on Friday. It was his ninth career multi-point outing and marked his first game where he recorded three or more points in a contest.
Caswell recorded multiple points in both the second and third periods on Friday.
Daxon Rudolph scored twice for his first career multi-goal game and the first such game by a defenseman since Eric Pohlkamp tallied twice on Jan. 24 vs. St. Cloud State. It was the third multi-goal game of the campaign by a DU player.
Rudolph (7), Max Heise (4) and Ben MacBeath (3) each matched individual season highs for shots on goal on Sunday.
Goaltender Johnny Hicks recorded an assist on Rudolph's second goal on Friday for his second career point.
Kristian Epperson recorded a career-best three points (1g/2a) on Friday but had his career-long goal and point streak end at four games on Sunday (4g/3a).
Ryan Lin went on a three-game assist/point streak from Oct. 30-Nov. 6, the longest of his career.
Lin finished Friday's game with a +3 plus/minus rating, tying Daxon Rudolph (Oct. 2 vs. Alaska Anchorage) for the highest mark of the season by a Pioneer.
Junior goaltender Tyler Krivtsov played in his 50th career game after entering in relief late in the third period.
The Pioneers took just three total penalties on the weekend, including a single minor infraction on Sunday.
DU has had at least four power-play chances in each of their 10 games this season.
The Pios tallied multiple power-play goals in a game for the third time this year on Friday. Both scores came in the third period, the first time this year that DU scored twice on the man advantage in the same frame.

EPPERSON ON A ROLL: Sophomore forward Kristian Epperson went on a career-long, four-game goal streak from Oct. 24-Nov. 6, totaling four goals and three assists in that time. He recorded a career-best three points last Friday at Arizona State, tallying and adding two helpers.

Epperson's 12 points on the season (5g/7a) are tied for second on the team with Daxon Rudolph (6g/6a) while his five markers are second-most behind Rudolph. The Mequon, Wisconsin, native has picked up points in seven of the 10 games this year.

His previous long point streak of three games came at the end of the 2025-26 campaign, as he registered assists in each of the last three outings of the NCAA Tournament (0g/3a, March 29-April 11, 2026).

A HANDFUL OF HELPERS: Forward Clarke Caswell leads the team in scoring through 10 games with 13 points and ranks tied for second in the nation with 12 assists. The sophomore owns four multi-assist/point outings on the season, including recording a career-high four points (1g/3a) in Friday's victory at ASU.

The previous four-point game by a Pioneer was by Samu Salminen on Jan. 21, 2025 at Arizona State (1g/3a) and the last time a DU player had three assists was Feb. 13, 2026 when both Eric Pohlkamp and Salminen each did it at Omaha.

Caswell went on a five-game assist streak from Oct. 16-30 (0g/7a), which marked the longest such run of his career and matched his career-long point streak. He also recorded points in his first five career games last season from Oct. 10-24, 2025 (2g/4a).

The Brandon, Manitoba, native led the Pioneers in helpers (26) and ranked first among rookies in scoring with 34 points last season.

HISTORY VS. LU: Denver and Lindenwood are meeting for the third straight season, and the Lions are making their third trip to the Mile High City in the last five years. The teams met last year in the St. Louis area for the first time at Maryland Heights, with DU falling 4-3 and winning 4-0 on Oct. 17-18, 2025. The Pioneers own a 5-1-0 all-time record against the Lions, which includes home sweeps on Dec. 16-17, 2023 and Nov. 8-9, 2025, with the latter coming during the program's 75th Anniversary Weekend celebration. DU has outscored LU 18-6 in the four games on home ice. Denver also played Lindenwood when the Lions were an ACHA squad in an exhibition prior to start the 2021-22 season, with the Pioneers winning 9-1.

CONNECTIONS: Denver's Max Heise, Eric Jamieson and Ben MacBeath and Lindenwood's Ethan Zielke are all from Calgary, Alberta … The Pios' Blake Fiddler and the Lions' Chase LaPinta are both from Frisco, Texas … LaPinta played with Paxton Geisel on the Dallas Stars Elite 13U, 14U and 16U AAA teams from 2017-2020, and he was also a teammate on the USHL Dubuque Fighting Saints with James Reeder to start the 2023-24 campaign …. Ty Nash played with Fiddler on the WHL Edmonton Oil Kings in 2023-24 … Liam Beerman was at Shattuck-St. Mary's prep school at the same time as the Pioneers' Sam Harris (2020-21), Tyler Krivtsov (2020-21) and Kristian Epperson (2020-2022), while Epperson and LaPinta were at Shattuck together in 2021-22 … Anselmo Rego was a teammate of Denver's Jack Pridham at St. Andrew's College prep school in Ontario from 2021-2023 and Max Heise on the BCHL Penticton Vees from 2023-2025 … Denver director of sports performance Matt Shaw is from St. Louis, Missouri … DU's James Reeder (Glenview) and LU's Will Winemaster (Chicago) are both from the Chicagoland area … Lindenwood's Klayton Knapp (Minnesota Duluth), Chase LaPinta (Omaha) and Ty Nash (Arizona State) all previously played in the NCHC.

PREVIOUS MEETING (OCT. 18, 2025): The No. 5 Denver hockey team had four different goal scorers and freshman netminder Quentin Miller stopped every shot he faced as the Pioneers won 4-0 over the Lindenwood Lions at Centene Community Ice Center on Saturday night in Maryland Heights, Mo. All four of DU's classes found the back of the net in the series finale, as senior Samu Salminen, junior Sam Harris, sophomore Jake Fisher and freshman Clarke Caswell all netted markers. Harris also added an assist in the contest for the Pioneers, who earned a weekend split after falling 4-3 to the Lions on Friday. Sophomore forward Hagen Burrows recorded his second straight multi-point outing with two assists, and junior defenseman Eric Pohlkamp recorded a pair of helpers as well. Miller stopped all 19 shots he faced for his first career win and shutout. The last Denver goalie to post a clean sheet in their first collegiate victory was Freddie Halyk against Air Force on Oct. 28, 2023 (24 saves).

SCOUTING THE LIONS: Lindenwood is off to a 3-6-1 start to the season, as the squad split its first three weekend series before going winless in the last four games. LU is coming to Colorado for the third time in a four-week span, as it split at Air Force on Oct. 15-16 and lost 4-2 and tied 2-2 at Colorado College last weekend. The Lions opened the campaign with home splits against Arizona State and Lake Superior State. Adam Raesler leads the team with five goals and is tied for first in scoring with eight points (5g/3a) with Caden Brown (2g/6a) and Michael Bevilacqua (1g/7a), who paces the squad with seven assists. Ethan Zielke (2g/5a) and Brady McIsaac (4g/3a) are one off the scoring lead with seven points apiece. Liam Beerman has started six games in goal and owns a 1-4-1 record, 3.78 goals-against average and .896 save percentage. Klayton Knapp has started the other four contests, going 2-2-0 with a 5.27 GAA and .848 save percentage.

PIONEERS IN THE POLLS: Denver moved up one spot and back to No. 3 in the latest USCHO.com and USA Hockey media polls that were released on Monday. DU was the top team in the country in each of the first three polls after winning the national title last season.

TICKETS: Single-game tickets as well as mini plans and group packages for the DU hockey's championship-defense campaign in 2026-27 are on sale now. Click here for more information.

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