DU's Future Schedules Include Pleasant Surprises

Next season will be the University of Denver's final season in the WCHA. The DU hockey staff has been been busy working on next year's schedule and the complexities of forming the National Collegiate Hockey Association in 2013 and beyond.

The Presidential Debate at Magness Arena [Oct. 3rd] may impact the hockey practice and exhibition schedule, but it remains to be seen if any regular season games have to be juggled.

Boston University will visit the Pioneers next season for in the U.S. Hall of Fame Game. DU hosted this event in 2008 against Notre Dame and the Hall of Fame Dinner the night before featured Bret Hull and several other USA hockey legends inductions. The dinner was hosted at on the floor of Magness Arena and it was an epic evening.

Cornell will visit DU for a two game series next season. This will be a rematch of the incredible 1969 National Championship Game played in the Broadmoor Arena in Colorado Springs featuring future NHL legends Ken Dryden, Keith Magnuson, Craig Patrick & George Morrison. DU won 4-3 on Tom Miller's goal with less than 10 minutes to play.

The University of New Hampshire will be the marquee program visiting Magness Arena for the Denver Cup.

In a surprising development, Minnesota and Wisconsin are negotiating with DU to visit Denver every other season, while the Pioneers will return the visits in alternating years. It is exciting to hear that these rivalries will continue despite the departures from the WCHA. Minnesota and Wisconsin alums in Colorado will be thrilled to hear of this development.

Starting in 2013-14 DU will play the Air Force twice per season.  This great rivalry has become very popular recently, so doubling the number of games against Air Force will be another positive scheduling move.

DU is in conversations with the Boston schools about continuing the cross-country rivalries.

With NCHC league play against Miami, North Dakota, Colorado College, Minnesota-Duluth and an emerging rivalry with road-trip potential against Nebraska-Omaha there are exciting times ahead for DU hockey fans.

DU Today: Miracle On Ice's DU Connection

(above) Craig Patrick, Tom Miller, Keith Magnuson & Murray Armstrong with the 1969 National Championship trophy won in World Arena against Cornell

From: DU Today
by Nathan Solheim

On Feb. 22, 1980, the United States Olympic hockey team — which consisted of amateur players from the college hockey ranks — upset what was considered the world’s greatest hockey power, the Soviet Union, in Winter Olympic competition in Lake Placid, N.Y. The victory, now known as the “Miracle on Ice,” resonates across the sports landscape to this day because of its worldwide political ramifications and a David-beats-Goliath quality.

The University of Denver didn’t have a player on the team, but alum Craig Patrick (BA economics ’69) was behind the bench for the Miracle on Ice. Patrick played four years of hockey at DU and then played professional hockey for a decade. As his playing days wound down, the head coach for the 1980 team, Herb Brooks, asked him to serve as the assistant coach. Patrick would go on to work as DU’s athletic director from 1987–89 and as a general manager with the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers (read rest of story).

Boone Helped DU Win 1969 National Championship

(above left) One of greatest photos of DU hockey is this famous photo of Keith Magnuson and the 1969 National Championship trophy. (above right) Boone on Tim Gould's helmet

Thanks to an alert LetsGoDU's reader, we found Boone in this photo. Boone is on the helmet of DU player Tim Gould. Gould is photographed with Craig Patrick, Keith Magnuson and Tom Miller. These players formed the nucleus of DU's 1968 and 1969 National Championship teams.

Sadly, Magnuson passed away in a 2004 in a tragic auto accident. He will be missed this weekend at the 60th Anniversary celebration but not forgotten.

Craig Patrick would go on to help the USA win a gold medal in the 1980 Olympic Games (Miracle on Ice) as an assistant coach. Later he would be the General Manager for the Pittsburgh Penguins when the team won two Stanley Cups.

DU 11 Hodgepodge Elite 0 at Snoopy Tourney

The Denver Pioneers vs. The Hodgepodge Elite

Special to Lets Go DU

By DJ Powers

The second game of the Snoopy Tournament for the Denver Pioneers became a one-sided affair against the Hodgepodge Elite. Bill Pettinger and Pat Halas each tallied four goals as the Pioneers crushed the Elite11-0 in the early Saturday morning contest.

The Hodgepodge Elite, made up of a mish-mash of players from other teams in the tournament, had a somewhat different lineup versus Denver than they did in their contest against the University of Michigan 60s on Wednesday.

While the slow pace to start the game was not unexpected, considering the 6am start time, the Pioneers would get things going quickly. It also didn’t take long before the Pioneers got on the board. Just 3:24 in, Halas would get Denver on the board going top-shelf on the Elite goaltender for the score. Norm Kvern drew the lone assist.

Throughout the game, the Pioneers got great goaltending from Tom Jones. While Jones did not see as much rubber as his counterpart at the other end, he did make a number of quality saves when he had to.

Denver’s next goal came at the 7:17 mark, when Pettinger’s shot snuck in underneath the Elite netminder to extend their lead. Tom Miller drew the lone assist.

One of the things that frustrated the Elite throughout the game was the Pioneers’ control of the neutral zone and the blueline. While the Elite did manage to get into Denver’s zone at various times throughout the game, they weren’t able to sustain any real pressure for an extended period of time the way the Pioneers were able to do.

Pettinger and Miller would figure once again on Denver’s next goal at the 15:06 mark. The goal was the result of a nice two-on-one play between the two linemates with Pettinger finishing the play by tucking the puck behind the Elite netminder. Miller and defenseman Bob Peers drew the assists.

One of the few quality opportunities for the Elite came about two minutes after Denver’s third goal on a two-on-one play that was stopped by Jones.

The second period proved to be slightly better for the Elite, but they had nothing to show for it. Denver, meanwhile, came out of the gate strong and notched their next goal just one minute in when Halas got his second of the game. He banged home the loose puck that the Elite goaltender had trouble corralling with traffic in front of him. The goal was unassisted.

Halas would complete the hat trick on Denver’s next goal at the 4:17 mark when his shot went in just inside the post for the score. Miller and John “Johnny Mac” MacMillan would draw the assists.

The Pioneers continued to apply good pressure in the offensive zone, but the Elite would get their chances.

The first came at the 7:20 mark when defenseman Peter McEwen was called for interference, giving the Elite the game’s first man-advantage. However, they wouldn’t get the full power play time as one of their players was called for a hold at the 9:43 mark.

Both teams successfully killed of their penalties and Denver was back to business and controlling the game.

At the 14:52 mark, defenseman Wayne Smith would push the Pioneers’ lead to 6-0. Smith jumped into the play to create an odd-man situation with Halas and with the Elite goaltender out of position, Smith tucked home the shot into the empty side for the score. Halas and defenseman Blake Emery would draw the assists.

Around the 16-minute mark, the Elite would have a partial breakaway opportunity, but Emery did an excellent of job of staying with the puck carrier and prevented him from getting a shot on goal.

The Elite however, would get another crack at the Pioneers at the 16:17 mark when Don Cameron would be sent off for a trip.

Denver once again successfully killed off the penalty, but the Elite managed to get a few quality chances, only to have Jones shut the door on them.

The final stanza became the Denver Pioneers show and the fatigue factor began to really set in on the Elite. The Pioneers dictated nearly every facet of the game and area of the ice.

In the five-goal outburst of the period, Halas got things started at the 9:13 mark with his fourth tally of the game. Halas tapped in a rebound just inside the post for the score. Smith and Bill Goodacre drew the assists.

Just under two minutes later at the 11:54 mark, Pettinger completed Denver’s second hat trick after slipping the loose puck underneath the Elite netminder for the score. Miller drew the lone assist.

The Pioneers would score again under a minute later at the 12:36 mark off of the stick of MacMillan and Pettinger would make it 10-0 at the 18:26 mark.

Perhaps the best goal of the game came on Denver’s final tally at the 18:42 mark. Miller posted his first goal of the Tournament on a beautiful wraparound to put the frosting on the cake for the Pioneers. Pettinger and MacMillan drew the assists.

Tom Miller led Denver in scoring in the contest with six points (one goal, five assists). Pat Halas and Bill Pettinger each posted five points (four goals, one assist) and John MacMillan posted four points (one goal, three assists).

The Pioneers went 0-for-1 on the power play while the Elite went 0-for-2 on the power play.

Next up: “The Clash of the Titans II” versus the University of Michigan Wolverines 60s on Sunday.

- DJ Powers Staff Writer - NCAA

Hockey's Future (http://www.hockeysfuture,com/)

Future Considerations (http://www.futureconsiderations.ca/)

[And your humble DU Snoopy Tournament correspondent]

DU Beats Reno Aces In OT In Snoopy Tourney

Denver Pioneers 5 Reno Aces 4 OT

Special to LetsGoDU by DJ Powers

The opening game for the Denver Pioneers in the Snoopy’s Senior World Hockey Tournament on Thursday night needed overtime to be decided. Jim Wiste tallied two goals, including the game winner.

The Pioneers were without regulars Cliff Koroll and Ron Grahame this year due to prior commitments.

While the game started off a bit slow for Denver, they quickly established some good pressure in the Reno end.

At the 3:28, the Pioneers would draw the first penalty of the game when defenseman Wayne Smith was called for a hold. Denver successfully killed off the penalty.

At about the six and a half minutes into the period, Tom Miller gave Denver a glorious scoring opportunity when he went in on a breakaway but lost control of the puck by the time he had the chance to shoot.

The Pioneers continued to pressure and another great scoring opportunity came again about a minute later when Bill Goodacre was unable to get the puck by the Aces netminder.

While Denver had most of the scoring opportunities approaching the halfway point of the period, it would be Reno that would get on the board first. The Aces scored at the 9:50 mark when with a shot fired from the slot beat Pioneers goaltender Tom Jones.

Denver would continue to get some excellent scoring opportunities, but were unable to capitalize on them.

At the 13:45 mark, the Aces would be called for a hook, giving the Pioneers their first power play of the game. Exactly one minute into Reno’s penalty, defenseman Blake Emery would tally the unassisted equalizer for Denver when his shot bounced off of the Aces netminder’s pad and into the net.

As the period progressed the game began to open up a bit as Denver continued to dictate the tempo of the game.

At the 18:01 mark, Reno would once again take the lead when a high shot beat Jones for the score.

Denver came out with some good pressure to start the second period. About a minute and a half into the middle stanza, John MacMillan’s relentless drive to the net would draw Reno’s next penalty. The holding call came at the 1:53 mark, giving the Pioneers their second power play of the game.

Denver did an excellent job in moving the puck during this power play and it would pay off at the 5:08 mark. Jim Wiste tied the game after poking home the loose puck amid the mass of humanity in front of the Reno netminder. Don Cameron and defenseman Bob Peers would be credited with the assists.

One of the things that the Pioneers did very well throughout the game was having their defensemen involved in the offensive play. After Wiste’s goal, Denver continued to dominate both territorially and in puck possession.

At the 9:01 mark, Reno would once again regain the lead when a rebound was shot past Jones from just inside the right faceoff circle. The score was now 3-2 Reno.

The Aces nearly extended their lead at about the 10-minute mark when a bad Pioneers turnover led to a two-on-none situation. Fortunately for Denver, the puck looked to have rolled off of the stick of the Reno puck carrier before he could get a shot off.

At the 14:22 mark, Denver would once again knot things up with a goal by Pat Halas. The goal came as a result of a beautiful feed by Goodacre, who found Halas in the slot. Halas’ shot beat the Aces netminder just inside the near post for the score. Goodacre drew the lone assist.

At the 17:12 mark, Smith made his second trip to the penalty box when he was called for hold. One of the best power play opportunities came in the waning seconds of the period when a Reno player was attempting to fight off the coverage by Bill Pettinger. Pettinger did an outstanding job of tying up the stick of the Reno player to prevent him from getting at the loose puck.

The third period opened with Denver short-handed for the remaining 51 seconds of Smith’s holding call. While still shorthanded, the Pioneers generated a couple of good scoring chances. The best of which came just as the penalty was about to expire. Tom Miller fired a low shot through traffic that ended up going off of the post.

Denver stepped their pressure in the Reno zone after killing off the penalty. And their efforts would once again be rewarded at the 2:51. Wayne Wiste gave the Pioneers their first lead of the game when he tipped home Peter McEwen’s shot from the slot for the score, making it 4-3 Denver.

The Pioneers did an excellent job of maintaining puck control and in their forechecking in this period. And it would be two things that would frustrate the Aces for much of the remainder of the game.

At the 8:21 mark, Denver would get the opportunity to extend their lead when Reno was called for a trip. After successfully cashing in on their previous two opportunities, this time around the Pioneers had trouble getting their power play working, mainly due to passes not quite connecting.

The remaining 17 seconds of Denver’s power play would be negated when Pettinger would be called for a hook at the 11:32 mark.

The penalty would prove to be costly for the Pioneers. At the 14:04 mark, Reno tallied their first and only power play goal of the game off of a shot flipped up and over Jones for the score.

The Aces were given a chance to take the lead once again when Halas was called for a hook at the 15:04 mark. Denver would once again successfully kill of the Aces power play.

As the period and regulation time winded down, both team had some glorious opportunities that came in odd-man situation but neither was successful in finishing the plays.

At the 19:35 mark, McEwen nearly gave the Pioneers win but couldn’t beat the sprawling Reno netminder.

With the score tied a 4-4; the game went to overtime with no penalties carried over.

Denver came out as hard as they had finished regulation time. The Reno goaltender was clearly the busier of the two netminders in the extra session.

Jim Wiste would become the hero of the game at the 2:05 mark when he picked up the rebound and proceeded to flip a backhanded over the Aces netminder for the game-winner. Halas drew the lone assist.

Denver went 2-for-3 on the power play, while Reno went 1-for-4 on the power play.

Next up: Denver Pioneers vs. the Hodgepodge Elite on Saturday.


Official 2008 Denver Pioneers Roster (revised and updated)

Goaltender
#1 Tom Jones

Defensemen
#2 Wayne Smith (DU 1963-66)
#3 Bob Peers (DU 1963-66)
#4 Blake Emery
#5 Bob Brawley (Michigan State 1964-67)
#6 Peter McEwen

Forwards
#8 Tom Miller (DU 1967-69)
#9 Bill Goodacre (Colorado College 1958-62)
#11 Wayne Wiste (DU 1965-67)
#12 Don Cameron (DU 1964-67)
#14 Jim Wiste (DU 1966-68)
#15 Pat Halas
#16 John MacMillan (DU 1957-60)
#18 Bill Pettinger (DU 1969-71)
#19 Norm Kvern (DU 1964-65)

- DJ Powers Staff Writer - NCAA

Hockey's Future (http://www.hockeysfuture,com/)

Future Considerations (http://www.futureconsiderations.ca/)

[And your humble DU Snoopy Tournament correspondent]

DU Snoopy Roster

2008 University of Denver Pioneers roster for the 32nd annual Snoopy’s Senior World Hockey Tournament

Special to LetsGoDU
By DJ Powers

The Denver Pioneers are expected to field a complete team at this year’s Snoopy’s Senior World Hockey Tournament that is already underway in Santa Rosa, CA. Last year, the Pioneers captured the Silver Medal in the 60A “Marcie” Division with a depleted lineup. They will be looking to capture their division’s gold medal when they make their first tournament appearance of the year on Thursday evening against the Reno Aces.

Below is the expected roster for this year’s tournament. 10 of the 15 players on the announced squad are University of Denver alumni. At press time, the goaltending information was not available, and it is not presently known if Ron Grahame (DU 1969-73) will be participating with the team this year.

The notable returnees to the DU lineup after last year’s absence are Jim Wiste, Wayne Wiste and John MacMillan. The three players were unavailable for last year’s tournament due to injury or prior commitments.

Defensemen
#1 Blake Emery*
#2 Wayne Smith* (DU 1963-66)
#3 Bob Peers* (DU 1963-66)
#4 Peter McEwen*
#5 Bob Brawley* (Michigan State University 1964-67)
#6 Pat Halas

Forwards
#7 Jim Wiste (DU 1966-68)
#8 John MacMillan (DU 1957-60)
#9 Bill Goodacre* (Colorado College 1958-62)
#10 Cliff Koroll* (DU 1965-68)
#11 Wayne Wiste (DU 1965-67)
#12 Don Cameron* (DU 1964-67)
#14 Tom Miller (DU 1967-69)
#15 Norm Kvern (DU 1964-65)
#16 Bill Pettinger (DU 1969-71)

Goaltenders
TBA

* - Indicates member of the 2007 tournament team

DJ Powers cover the NCAA for two online hockey prospects magazines. In the United States DJ covers Hockey's Future (http://www.hockeysfuture.com/). DJ also covers NCAA hockey for the Canadian-based publication called Future Considerations (http://www.futureconsiderations.ca/).

A Winning Legacy
DU Claims 1969 National Championship

From: University of Denver Magazine
by Mike Flanagan

By 1969, DU owned college hockey. From Boston to the deep frozen ground of Minnesota, from the proud Ivy League to the barren landscape of North Dakota, the Pioneers were anticipated with appropriate dread. The Pioneers were coming for you.

Wonder coach Murray Armstrong was at the top of his game, his message resounding with authority and experience: As an individual player you might match up to your opponent, and then again, you might not. As a team, a true team, you could beat anyone.

Heading into the 1969 season, Armstrong was aiming for his ninth 20-win season.

"We had a great nucleus," recalls Tom Miller, BSCE '69, who played center. "Ten guys came in as freshmen and played all the way through. We went into games thinking we were going to win."

As juniors in 1967-68, they posted a 28-5-1 record, finishing first in the WCHA. From there, they were off to the NCAA tournament in Duluth, Minn., where they socked Boston College (4-1) and North Dakota (4-0) to win the national championship.

Repeating seemed a bit of a reach at the opening of the 1968-69 season, with the Pioneers dropping their first two encounters with North Dakota. Still, with standouts Keith Magnuson (defenseman), George Morrison (wing), Craig Patrick (wing), and goalie Gerry Powers, losing didn't become a habit.

In January, February and March of '69, the team went 19-3. The Pioneers finished second in the WCHA with a 14-6 conference record.

With four teams left in the final weekend of the NCAA tournament, Harvard shocked DU with a goal in the first thirty seconds, but in the second period DU unleashed hell on the Harvard goalie. The final score: DU 9, Harvard 2.

DU moved to the final battle for the NCAA title on March 15, facing Cornell, which had just beat Michigan Tech 4-3 in overtime.

DU wing Tom Gilmore popped one past Cornell's goalie in the first two minutes. The game was 1-1 after the first period. The second period quickly evolved into a contest of goaltending heroics. On a DU power play, Morrison pushed one into the corner of the goal. But, Cornell snuck one past Powers during a two-on-one break.

It was tied again (2-2) until the third period when center Bob Trembecky scored. Then, Miller delivered the knockout on a rebound. With less than two minutes left in the contest, Cornell scooted another goal past Powers. A Tim Gould rebound shot squirted past the Cornell defense, missing the empty net by inches. Denver was called for icing, the final ten seconds ticked off, and the game was over: DU 4, Cornell 3.

The victory fell on page seven of The Clarion, while draft-card burners made the front page. Another DU hockey championship was as normal as the Yankees in the World Series.

At 26-6, Armstrong had his 20 games and a few to spare.