From: Duluth News Tribuneby Kevin Pates
(left) UMD standout Alex Stalock and the Bulldogs blanked Denver 3-0 the last time they visited the Mile High City back in late October
Denver is assured of being in the 2008 NCAA Division I men’s hockey tournament and has a goal of getting to the Frozen Four, which takes place in Denver for the first time since 1976.
So when the No. 6-ranked Pioneers (22-13-1) are home this weekend against No. 14 Minnesota Duluth (13-15-6) in the first round of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association playoffs, exactly what’s on the line?
“The last two years we lost in the first round of the playoffs and didn’t get to the WCHA Final Five, and didn’t get to the NCAA tournament. That’s something I haven’t liked,’’ said coach George Gwozdecky, in his 14th year at Denver. “For our own confidence, we certainly need to get to the Final Five.”
The Pioneers are high enough in the PairWise Rankings to have a lock on one of 16 Division I tournament entries even if they lose in the WCHA’s opening round. That would mean having a week off before being named to the NCAA field March 23, which happened in 2004 when Colorado College beat Denver in the league playoffs and the Pioneers rested, then won the NCAA title in Boston.
UMD has only one option — win. The Bulldogs are in contention for an NCAA berth, so claiming the WCHA Final Five championship March 22 in St. Paul for an automatic entry is the only sure path. However, advancing through the first round would get the Bulldogs close.
Closing the WCHA regular season with a 3-2 win at Minnesota on Saturday broke a five-game losing streak and gave UMD some bounce, coach Scott Sandelin said.
“First and foremost, we’ll have to continue to play with that kind of intensity every minute,’’ he said. “You have to do all of the other things — be good defensively, be good with the puck, limit the other team’s chances. But the main thing is to play aggressively; intensity, intensity, intensity from the drop of the puck.”
The Bulldogs are 5-4 the last nine games against Denver and 4-3 the last seven at Magness Arena, including a three-game series victory to open the 2006 WCHA playoffs. That eliminated the two-time defending Division I champion Pioneers from NCAA consideration.
Last season, Denver began the WCHA playoffs at home by losing two straight games to Wisconsin, while UMD lost an epic three-game, multiple-overtime series at St. Cloud State.
This season, Denver started 17-4 through 21 games and has been 5-9-1 the last 15, finishing with consecutive losses to in-state rival Colorado College, 5-2 and 3-1. The Pioneers were hurt by the loss of sophomore winger Brock Trotter, who left the program the first week of February to sign with the Montreal Canadiens, yet he still leads the team in scoring. Star sophomore center Tyler Ruegsegger missed eight games with an abdominal injury, but returned last weekend.
“When we lost those two guys it changed the dynamics of our team,” Gwozdecky said. “Other guys tried to play the roles of Trotter and Ruegsegger and weren’t talented enough, and we struggled offensively.
“We’re not the same team as we were in January, but we’re still a very good team. We’re certainly more competitive now than we were four weeks ago.”
So when the No. 6-ranked Pioneers (22-13-1) are home this weekend against No. 14 Minnesota Duluth (13-15-6) in the first round of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association playoffs, exactly what’s on the line?
“The last two years we lost in the first round of the playoffs and didn’t get to the WCHA Final Five, and didn’t get to the NCAA tournament. That’s something I haven’t liked,’’ said coach George Gwozdecky, in his 14th year at Denver. “For our own confidence, we certainly need to get to the Final Five.”
The Pioneers are high enough in the PairWise Rankings to have a lock on one of 16 Division I tournament entries even if they lose in the WCHA’s opening round. That would mean having a week off before being named to the NCAA field March 23, which happened in 2004 when Colorado College beat Denver in the league playoffs and the Pioneers rested, then won the NCAA title in Boston.
UMD has only one option — win. The Bulldogs are in contention for an NCAA berth, so claiming the WCHA Final Five championship March 22 in St. Paul for an automatic entry is the only sure path. However, advancing through the first round would get the Bulldogs close.
Closing the WCHA regular season with a 3-2 win at Minnesota on Saturday broke a five-game losing streak and gave UMD some bounce, coach Scott Sandelin said.
“First and foremost, we’ll have to continue to play with that kind of intensity every minute,’’ he said. “You have to do all of the other things — be good defensively, be good with the puck, limit the other team’s chances. But the main thing is to play aggressively; intensity, intensity, intensity from the drop of the puck.”
The Bulldogs are 5-4 the last nine games against Denver and 4-3 the last seven at Magness Arena, including a three-game series victory to open the 2006 WCHA playoffs. That eliminated the two-time defending Division I champion Pioneers from NCAA consideration.
Last season, Denver began the WCHA playoffs at home by losing two straight games to Wisconsin, while UMD lost an epic three-game, multiple-overtime series at St. Cloud State.
This season, Denver started 17-4 through 21 games and has been 5-9-1 the last 15, finishing with consecutive losses to in-state rival Colorado College, 5-2 and 3-1. The Pioneers were hurt by the loss of sophomore winger Brock Trotter, who left the program the first week of February to sign with the Montreal Canadiens, yet he still leads the team in scoring. Star sophomore center Tyler Ruegsegger missed eight games with an abdominal injury, but returned last weekend.
“When we lost those two guys it changed the dynamics of our team,” Gwozdecky said. “Other guys tried to play the roles of Trotter and Ruegsegger and weren’t talented enough, and we struggled offensively.
“We’re not the same team as we were in January, but we’re still a very good team. We’re certainly more competitive now than we were four weeks ago.”
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