LetsGoDU

NHL.com Reviews The Pioneers

The University of Denver unveiled a new jersey last weekend in the Wells Fargo Denver Cup. The Nike Swift Hockey Jersey, first unveiled to the global stage in Torino, Italy last February, made its college hockey debut last weekend as several NCAA teams pulled on the revolutionary uniform for the first time.
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But after winning back-to-back National Championships in 2004 and 2005, the Pioneers learned last season that jerseys and prior successes don’t equal future success. Denver failed to make the NCAA tournament last season and not playing late March and April left a bad taste in the mouth of the returnees this season.

“Last year was a wake-up call for sure,” admitted junior goaltender Peter Mannino. “Not making the tournament was new to a lot of us and we learned a lot every night. You can’t take anything for granted and expect to make it back each year. It takes a lot of hard work.”

Based on the first half of this season and the way Denver is approaching the stretch run here in 2007, the Pioneers have learned that history, recognition and even skill doesn’t guarantee success and championships in Division 1 college hockey. But rather hard work and taking nothing for granted is what leads a team to the Promised Land.

Heading into a two-game set with defending National Champion Wisconsin, the Pioneers appeared to have learned those lessons. After winning the Wells Fargo Denver Cup, Denver has won five in a row and is 5-0-1 in their last six games.

The emergence of a talented freshman class and the leadership of upper classmen like Peter Mannino and Glenn Fisher, has helped the Pioneers climb back into the Nation’s elite and the latest polls, including NHL.com’s below which has them ranked No. 8, with a 14-6-2 record overall and 8-4-2 mark in the always tough WCHA.

After winning the Frozen Four MVP in 2005, Mannino did not have the season he was hoping for last year, going 12-8-1 with a 2.71 goals-against average and .904 save percentage. He and now senior goalie Glenn Fisher (9-7-2, 2.72 goals-against average, .898 save percentage), both struggled, and according to Mannino, both approached this season with a sense of redemption.

“We both knew we had something to prove and we along with the whole team really worked hard in the off-season to prepare for this season,” Mannino said.

That feeling of “something to prove” may have come from a conversation each netminder had with coach George Gwozdecky at the conclusion of last spring.

“They had a mediocre season last year and maybe a bit of complacency set-in,” Gwozdecky acknowledged. “So I told them that this season rather than going with the platoon we had used the past two seasons, I would go with the hot hand. I also let them know that they would be needed even more on and off the ice with the large freshman class coming in. They both needed to have good years.”

Well both Fisher and Mannino have answered the bell and are making it difficult for Gwozdecky to choose just who that “hot hand” is. Fisher is 9-3-1 with a 2.05 goals-against average and .933 save percentage, while Mannino is 5-3-1 with a 2.09 goals-against average and .927 save percentage. Fisher and Mannino have limited opponents to three goals or less in 17 of the last 18 games. They are also ranked first and second, respectively in save percentage in the WCHA.

“I think they definitely used that talk and last season as motivation,” Gwozdecky said. “Glenn had a solid start and took the role first, but Peter has come on lately and both are playing great. I don’t like to use the term one-two as it applies to a goaltending tandem because I really believe right now we have a one-one combination.

”There have only been one or two occasions recently where I’ve used one or the other back-to-back. We’re not necessarily using a platoon, but both are giving me the opportunity to use either.”

Mannino’s and Fisher’s approach has apparently rubbed off on the freshmen as they are repaying the stingy goaltending by combining for 49 percent of the Pioneers’ scoring. The Denver freshmen class is ranked second in scoring behind only Minnesota’s. Freshman forward Brock Trotter leads the team with 24 points and after junior forward Ryan Dingle who has 22 points, freshmen Rhett Rakhshani (21 points), and Tyler Ruegsegger (20 points), sit third and fourth respectively in team scoring.

Gwozdecky was an assistant coach on the 1985-86 Michigan St. National Champion team, which won a National Title with nine freshmen on their roster. Ironically, the season before, the senior-laden Spartans were upset in the quarterfinals after being ranked No. 1 all season. So Gwozdecky knows that the potential is there for a freshmen class to succeed, but a coach can’t count on that coming into a season.

“It’s always great when your freshmen class can contribute and this class has been huge for us so far,” Gwozdecky said. “They have come in and maintained a level of competition, taking on responsibilities and primary roles. But that doesn’t always happen, so that’s why it was important for our upper classmen to set an example and they’ve done that.”

That being said, Denver and as Gwozdecky pointed out, the WCHA, have done a phenomenal job integrating their freshmen players into the line-up and getting them to play pivotal roles to the teams’ successes.

“Part of recruiting them is to fine the players that want to play in the big games,” Gwozdecky said. “Our team is an example of that this season. Knowing we had lost key players like Matt Carle and Paul Stastny, we needed them to develop quickly. They’ve done that. I guess you could call it baptism under fire and while that isn’t always good, these players have used it as a luxury and embraced playing so much.”

So as the college hockey world gears up for the stretch run, the Pioneers are back where they feel they belong, but they have gotten there and intend on staying there, not simply by the jerseys they wear, but with consistent hard work from throughout their lineup.

“We learned our lesson last season and I think we’ve carried that over to this season and to the new faces,” Mannino said. “We know the Regionals are at the Pepsi Center here in Denver this year and we plan on doing our best to get there.”