A game that felt like No. 9 Denver could have won comfortably instead came with plenty of intrigue on Friday night at Magness Arena.

The Pioneers (3-0) overcame a sluggish start and a couple third-period runs by Alaska Fairbanks to defeat the Nanooks, 4-1. Liam Finlay scored twice, giving him five goals in the past two games, and the top line of Emilio Pettersen, Cole Guttman and Jarid Lukosevicius combined for five points.

Goaltender Devin Cooley stopped 25 shots, including the final 20 he saw, including a rare penalty shot with 7:10 left in the game.

“It was nice to see us be able to take a few punches early and deliver a few back and counterpunch and get back at them with our speed,” DU coach David Carle said. “We simplified our game around the 8-10-minute mark. We tried to put more pucks to space, we tried to take advantage of our speed more. The guys were hungry and they made some plays in space.”

Another goal outburst

After Fairbanks assumed a 1-0 lead on Colton Leiter‘s power-play goal 8:21 into the game from the right dot on a rebound that Max Newton tipped back to him, the Pioneers dug in.

DU cashed in on its second of seven power plays, with Lukosevicus sending a nice touch pass to Pettersen from left to right across Anton Martinsson‘s slot that the freshman wasted no time burying with 3:26 go in the period.

Less than 2 mintues later defenseman Michael Davies tipped Guttman’s backhand shot from the left circle, and Finlay scored just 29 seconds later, with 1:10 to go. Two minutes and 16 seconds, three goals.

“We don’t want to get satisfied. We want to play our game, go out there every shift and try to score,” Pettersen said. “That’s what happened there. We were out-battling guys, and there were three battles in a row we won and the puck’s in the net.”

Power outage

That’s how it stayed for almost 40 more minutes, despite the Pioneers building what would eventually be a 43-26 shots on goal edge.

Whether it was missed opportunities on the power play (DU had seven) or not finishing scoring chances near the net, a bit of frustration crept in.

“We didn’t come out very strong and we were a little inconsistent throughout the game,” Davies said. “We didn’t bury our chances enough in front of the net. We had our chances, but that’s an area we’ve got to bear down on. We let them hang around a little bit too much. … We didn’t take it to them the way we should have the whole 60 minutes.”

Denver had three consecutive power plays in the second period and five of six during one stretch, but it couldn’t put the Nanooks (0-5) away.

“We need to work more on the power play,” Carle said. “We need to trust our spots, we need to get to our spots. We have to trust the puck to get there. When people go off on their own page, that’s usually when things fall apart.

“We saw some glimpses that were good, but we saw too many times when people tried to do things on their own.”

Ace in net

When things did break down defensively, which happened a few times in the third period, Cooley was there to bar the door, stopping several chances through traffic and one important chance where he had a clear view – Tyler Cline‘s penalty shot with 7:10 left.

The rangy sophomore stopped the stick-side attempt with his right pad.

“Devin Cooley played unbelievably well, especially in the third period,” Carle said. “A couple times he made some really big saves down the stretch. It’s nice to see him do that. But as a team it’s too much to ask him to have to do that.

“We should have been able to execute a little better and keep our foot on the gas. It’s a credit to Fairbanks. They’re a hungry team, they’re determined and they’re a competitive team, and we knew that coming in.”

The Finisher

Just as he did last Saturday, Finlay was in the middle of slamming the door on an opponent that had a chance to get back in the game. This time he finished a break into the Nanooks zone with linemate Colin Staub and into the foe’s net empty to make it 4-1 with 1:44 to go.

“I think he’s a confidant player right now, he’s moving his feet and he’s getting inside the dots,” Carle said. “If Liam Finlay’s inside the dots, he’s putting people on their heels, and he has the skating, the stick skills and the brain to take over. I think that’s what you’re seeing with Liam.”

And taking over is something a youthful Pioneers squad is learning to do, even when its start isn’t what it hoped for.

Notes

Freshman left wing Brendan Budy, who joined DU after Logan O’Connor signed with the Colorado Avalanche in July, made his NCAA debut on a line with junior Tyson McLellan and sophomore Jake Durflinger. … The Pioneers were dominant in the circle on Friday, winning 46 of 73 draws (63 percent). Jaakko Heikkinen won 10 of 11, Guttman took 13 of 17 and Brett Stapley won 9 of 13.

Denver’s three stars

1. Michael Davies. The sophomore defenseman time and again moved pucks out of trouble with his stick and his skating, and he scored his first goal of the season.
2. Emilio Pettersen. The freshman started DU’s late first-period rally with a goal and an assist.
3. Devin Cooley. The tall goalie stood taller in the third period than at any time yet this season, making 12 of his 25 stops then, including on a penalty shot.

Up next

The Pioneers and Nanooks finish the two-game series Saturday (7:07 p.m. face-off) at Magness Arena.

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