LOVELAND, Colo. – The University of Denver hockey team punched its ticket to the 2026 Frozen Four on Sunday afternoon with a 6-2 victory against the Western Michigan Broncos in the NCAA West Regional Final at Blue Arena.
 
Denver (27-11-3, 17-6-1 NCHC) used a fiery start by scoring four goals in the first period to down the defending NCAA champion and top-regional seed Broncos (27-11-1, 16-7-1 NCHC). The Pioneers are in the Frozen Four for the 21st time in program history and have now reached the national semifinals in four of the last five seasons.
 
"Congratulations to Western Michigan for their spectacular season, and we've been in their shoes before," said Denver Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle. "It's really hard with a target on your back while you're being the defending champions. They lost two key [defensemen] early in the year and the way they developed the coaching staff—the respect we have for them, with an excellent team and excellent program.
 
"For our team, seven of that last 10 Frozen Fours we've been to, really proud of our program. I think our guys really bought into each other and played the right way. Any given night, anybody can step up, and I think it's a true testament to the three guys here. Certainly, Kent [Anderson] in our leadership group, he brought the group along, and we're really excited to be able to continue to keep playing in what we will know will be an excellent Frozen Four—four teams from either the old WCHA or the old, old WCHA. It will be very fun event for everybody in Vegas. We're looking forward to getting out there."
 
Freshman Kyle Chyzowski recorded a career-high three points (two goals, one assist), and the Pioneers were led by a 26-save performance in net by rookie goaltender Johnny Hicks, who was voted the most outstanding player of the Loveland Regional.
 
Juniors Kieran Cebrian and Eric Pohlkamp and freshman Brendan McMorrow each had a goal and assist, while senior center Samu Salminen and junior left wing Sam Harris also scored.
 
DU was the No. 2 seed in the region and matched a team season high for goals in a period with four with its offensive blitz in the opening frame. Harris opened the scoring just two minutes in after the puck pinballed off of him, and Chyzowski tallied 3:24 later on a breakaway. Zach Bookman got Western Michigan on the board 67 seconds later after Chyzowksi, but Salminen and McMorrow added markers for the Pios before the first intermission.
 
The score held at 4-1 until WMU's Theo Wahlberg tallied through traffic midway through the third frame, but Cebrian's goal with 6:02 remaining extended DU's lead back to three before Pohlkamp put the exclamation point on the victory with an empty-netter in the final two minutes.
 
The Pioneers outshot the Broncos 32-28, with Western goalie Hampton Slukynski finishing with 26 saves.
 
DU went 1-for-3 on the power play, with Pohlkamp's marker coming while the team had a man advantage from a late high-sticking penalty by WMU. The Pios took only one penalty, marking the second-straight game they only had one infraction.
 
Denver has now made it to the Frozen Four in seven of the last 10 held tournaments, with the squad only missing in 2018, 2021 and 2023 (was not played in 2020 due to the COVID-19 Pandemic). The Pioneers have also booked its trip to the final weekend in now three straight seasons, marking the first time the program has done so since 1971-1973.
 
UP NEXT: The Pioneers will play No. 1 overall seed Michigan in the Frozen Four on Thursday, April 9 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. North Dakota and Wisconsin are set to face-off in the other national semifinal with the winners meeting in the NCAA Championship Game on Saturday, April 11.
 
 
POSTGAME NOTES

• Goaltender Johnny Hicks stretched his unbeaten streak to 14 games (13-0-1) and was named the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA West Regional in Loveland.
• Hicks was joined on the All-Tournament Team with forwards Clarke Caswell, Kieran Cebrian and Sam Harris and defenseman Cale Ashcroft. WMU's Zach Bookman also earned All-Tournament Team honors.
• Denver's six goals scored were its most in an NCAA Tournament game since defeating Notre Dame 6-1 in the 2017 Frozen Four Semifinals.
• The Pioneers outscored their opponents 11-2 in the two-game West Regionals, their most goals in the first two rounds of the tournament since also scoring 11 in 2017 in games vs. Michigan Tech (5-2) and Penn State (6-1).
• The nine-goal margin of victory in the first two rounds is the largest for Denver since 1961 (15) when only four teams made the tournament and the Pioneers outscored Minnesota 6-1 and St. Lawrence 12-2 en route to the national title.
• The last time the University of Denver hosted an NCAA Regional in Loveland was in 2022 with the Pioneers beating UMass Lowell and Minnesota Duluth en route to a national title.
• DU will also serve as the host institution for the 2027 NCAA West Regionals at Loveland's Blue Arena next season.
• Denver advanced to its 21st Frozen Four and third in a row. The team last made the national semifinals in three straight years from 1971-1973.
• The Pioneers have now made it to the Frozen Four in four of the last five seasons and seven times in the last 10 held tournaments.
• Denver's four goals in the first period were the most in a single frame in an NCAA Tournament game since the Pioneers did it themselves in the third period of the 2022 NCAA Championship Game vs. Minnesota State.
• DU's four goals in the first period matched a season high (fourth time, last: March 7 vs. Miami) and were the most in an opening frame this season by the team.
• The NCHC has two of the four team in the Frozen Four after North Dakota clinched on Saturday night in Sioux Falls, S.D. UND is also the host of this year's Frozen Four in Las Vegas.
• Denver's 15-game unbeaten streak (14-0-1) is tied for the fourth-longest in a single season in DU history and tied for the longest since the 2016-17 national championship squad went on a 15-game run (12-0-3) from Oct. 14-Dec. 9, 2016.
• DU's 11 straight victories are its most in a row since winning 11 consecutive contests to start the 2024-25 season.
• The Pioneers finished with nine straight wins in Colorado and a 12-0-1 mark in their last 13 games in the state.
• Denver improved to 12-2 all-time in NCAA Tournament games in the state of Colorado and is 4-0 in contests played at Blue Arena in Loveland.
• Rieger Lorenz played in his 167th career game to tie Ed Cristofoli for third place on the Pioneers' all-time games list and for the most by a four-year player in program history.
• Lorenz had his career-long 12-game point streak come to an end (8g/8a). The streak that began on Jan. 31 was tied for the fifth-longest by a DU skater since 2005 and the longest since Fort Collins native Aidan Thompson had points in each of the first 14 contests to start the 2024-25 campaign (Oct. 5-Nov. 23, 2024).
• Clarke Caswell is on a three-game assist/point streak (2g/3a).
• The Pioneers took only one penalty for the seventh time this season and second straight contest after also doing so in the Regional Semifinal vs. Cornell on Friday.
• Denver improved to 18-1-0 when scoring four or more goals in a game and 22-1-2 when holding opponents to two or fewer markers. DU is 19-3-0 when scoring first.
• DU finished 4-2-0 during the year against Western Michigan and 2-0 in the postseason after also beating the Broncos in the NCHC Semifinals on March 14 at Magness Arena.

 
GOAL SUMMARY
1st Period
2:00 DU (1-0) – Kristian Epperson's shot ricocheted around the front of the net and went off Clarke Caswell and Sam Harris before settling inside the cage.
5:24 DU (2-0) – Kyle Chyzowski skated past a Broncos defender and beat goalie Hampton Slukynsky glove-side with a backhand shot on a rush up the ice.
6:31 WMU (2-1) – Western Michigan dug out the puck on a rebound and Zach Bookman knocked it in at the edge of the crease.
11:48 DU (3-1) – Samu Salminen tallied by beating Slukynsky's diving save attempt on a one-time snap-shot from the right circle after taking a cross pass from James Reeder.
15:13 DU (4-1) – Brendan McMorrow knocked in the rebound after Kyle Chyzowski's initial shot was stopped while he was driving toward the net.
 
2nd Period
No Scoring
 
3rd Period
11:14 WMU (4-1) – Theo Wahlberg's shot from the blue line got through traffic and ended in the back of the net.
13:58 DU (5-2) – Kieran Cebrian buried a wrist shot from the middle of the zone that went top shelf and tickled the twine.
18:02 DU (6-2) – PPG/ENG, Eric Pohlkamp scored into an empty net from his own faceoff circle.


QUOTABLES
Richard and Kitzia Goodman Hockey Head Coach David Carle
On each line contributing: "We're playing single-elimination hockey, so to rely on just one line is really challenging. So to have depth, and obviously, the [Jake] Fisher line got us going two days ago for the first goal of the night, and I thought they were pretty self-enforcing tonight. So again, our depth is the story of it. You don't know who's going to step up on any given night. Everybody gets one tonight, so to be a team like that—that's what you need this time here."
 
On the team "unlocking a new" gear during regionals: "Right now, there's a lot of confidence and belief. We've played really good teams, you know, through league play down the stretch, and in the second half we played North Dakota, we played Western, we played Duluth, we played St. Cloud, rivalry games against CC, and then coming into this weekend, and through the Frozen Faceoff—you know, two really tight games against Western and Duluth. I just think we're battle tested and prepared to play to the level that you need to have success this time of year. And certainly they were fully bought in and very dialed in, physically and mentally all weekend long here."
 
Senior Captain Kent Anderson
On the atmosphere at Blue Arena: "Starts are huge. Credit to the fans, and it was just an unreal atmosphere the whole weekend, especially tonight—giving us good energy from the get-go. All the four forwards [lines] and all six [defensemen], and especially Hicksy (goaltender Johnny Hicks) being back there. The buy-in from the group and being ready to go right away."
 
On Denver's success during his time as a Pioneer: "It's amazing. The people that come through this program instill a winning culture. Obviously, there is a high standard for success at Denver and just to go there (the Frozen Four) three times in a row feels really good."
 
On what is special about this year's group: "I think it's just buy-in from everyone in the group and everyone on the team. It doesn't matter who it is, we have four lines contributing. It doesn't matter if you're a freshman, junior, senior, sophomore. We're playing to win right now."
 
Junior Forward Sam Harris
On winning the national championship in 2024: "Yeah, it feels great the last three years, this is our third Frozen Four in a row. There's nothing better than winning. The culture at this program is incredible. We have the freshmen coming in from day one knowing we want to win here. Like there's no option to lose. So it's an amazing feeling to come up on top of this regional and punch our ticket to Vegas."
 
On production from the entire roster: "It's incredible. We're a lineup full with a bunch of skill and grit, so it's incredible that we're able to score all the way up and down the lineup. All four lines, all the pairings, it's incredible, and when it comes to this time of year, goals aren't pretty. They just bounce off things, and for them to bounce in the net for us today, it was great."
 
Junior Defenseman Cale Ashcroft
On this regional final being such a fast-paced game: "Yeah, you know, we played them in the NCHC Semifinals. That was an insanely fast game. So we were expecting that, and I think that was definitely one of the fastest games I've played. Two great teams, so as DC (David Carle) said, a lot of credit to them, they played great. Definitely one of the fastest games I've been in, for sure."
 
On getting four goals in the first period: "That was huge. We kind of preached our start going into the game. Gave us a lot of momentum to go into that period and get four goals and settle down for the rest of the game was big for us."