Colorado Teams Look To Play At Home In April

From: Rocky Mountain News
by Pat Rooney

(left) Denver's Pepsi center will host the Frozen Four in April

At the halfway mark of the college hockey season, all that is certain is there will be a thrilling second half along the Front Range.

Colorado will take center stage in the college hockey universe when the NCAA West Regional in Colorado Springs is followed by the Frozen Four at the Pepsi Center.

The local college hockey powers, the University of Denver and Colorado College, are doing their part to make sure every weekend will feature huge implications on the national stage and within the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

And Air Force has shown signs of being able to repeat the Cinderella run it made into the NCAA tournament last season.

By recording a sweep at Alaska Anchorage on Friday and Saturday, DU enters its holiday lull with 10 wins in its past 12 games and likely will move into the No. 3 slot when the updated national polls are released today.

CC, despite losing at St. Cloud State on Saturday and slipping into a first-place tie with the Pioneers in the WCHA, has received a tremendous boost from freshman goaltender Richard Bachman and likely will battle its state rival for WCHA supremacy and positioning in the NCAA tournament.

DU will be idle until it begins its annual Denver Cup tournament against Sacred Heart on Dec. 28. The Pioneers were released after their 6-2 win Saturday and will reconvene on Christmas to begin preparations for what should be a wild second half of the season.

"The coaches really emphasize all the guys bringing their gear home and trying to do some sort of physical activity," senior captain Andrew Thomas said. "We're really trying to emphasize that even more to the freshmen this year. It's a tough time, but it's a good time. It lets us get a little more rejuvenated and get a little life back in our legs."