LetsGoDU

DU Looks For 2nd Half Surge

From: Rocky Mountain News
by Pat Rooney

(left) Geoff Paukovich will need to maintain his current scoring run to land DU in the NCAA Tournament

Thanks to a solid first half, a berth in the NCAA West Regional at the Pepsi Center is well within the reach of the University of Denver hockey team.
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The Pioneers, with a new goal in tow, just have to avoid the second-half miscues that ruined last year's tournament bid.

Fresh off a championship victory at the Wells Fargo Denver Cup, the Pioneers resume Western Collegiate Hockey Association play Friday and Saturday at Magness Arena against Wisconsin in a battle between the winners of the past three national championships.

While DU (14-6-2, 8-4-2 WCHA) will look to continue its recent dominance over the Badgers, the Pioneers are more focused on Wisconsin's neighbors to the west, at least in the WCHA standings. Minnesota, the top-ranked team in the nation, has played two fewer league games than the Pioneers but still leads second-place DU by three points atop the WCHA.

After playing Wisconsin, DU hosts a nonconference series against Niagara before visiting Minnesota on Jan. 19 and 20.

"We know we're right behind the Gophers," DU junior Geoff Paukovich said. "We want to catch the Gophers. That's our goal - catch the Gophers by the end of the year. That all starts next weekend. We need two big wins. After last year, everyone knows we can't take a game off in the second half of the year."

After capturing the national title last season, the Badgers have been one of the most disappointing teams in college hockey through the first half of the season. Wisconsin (8-10-2, 5-6-1 WCHA) was swept at home by DU in November but has won four of its past five games.

"They didn't win the national championship last year for nothing," Paukovich said. "They are going to be angry about their first half of the year, so they obviously are going to try to turn it around and make a run. We have to be ready for that."

POWER KILLERS: A big factor behind DU's six-game unbeaten streak, which includes five consecutive victories, has been the work of DU's penalty killers. Led by goalies Peter Mannino and Glenn Fisher, the Pioneers have killed 30 of 31 penalties during the six-game streak and have limited their opponents to a .118 success rate on power plays this season.

"Peter and Glenn give us such confidence as a defensive corps," DU defenseman Andrew Thomas said. "With our defensive forwards, that gives us a chance to do what we feel is necessary to block shots for them."