Ice time should be plentiful at Magness Arena for the next week and a half.

After all, the main tenant – Denver’s No. 2- ranked hockey team – has embarked upon an unprecedented 10-day, multi-time zone roadie to start the program’s 70th season of hockey.

The Pioneers departed Thursday for Alaska, where they will play the Nanooks of Alaska Fairbanks on Saturday and Sunday nights (9 p.m. MDT face-offs for both). From there they will jet to Detroit Rock City for a three-day layover before heading to another distant outpost – Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., – to play their second series of the season at Lake Superior State.

2019-20 season preview

Part 1: DU’s roster by the numbers

Part 2: DU’s indispensable players

Part 3: Some emerging players

Part 4: Taking the show on the road

Also: Preseason podcast with alumni Josiah Didier and Tariq Hammond

“When we were building our schedule we felt like this year’s group would be an older team, so they could handle it,” DU coach David Carle said. “We’ve never stayed out between weekends, but just logistically with (the) Fairbanks (series) ending on Sunday and getting to Lake State is no easy task. So we likely would have left on Tuesday night or Wednesday morning to get up there, it just didn’t make a lot of sense to come back to Denver.

“We’ve chosen to go to Detroit. We’re going to practice there on Tuesday and Wednesday and tour the Red Wings’ facility. We’ll go to the Red Wings game on Tuesday night in Little Caesars Arena, where the Frozen Four is. Then we’ll bus up to Sault Ste. Marie to play Lake State (next weekend).”

For those of you keeping score at home, the three plane flights (to Fairbanks, to Detroit, then back to Denver) total almost 6,500 miles. Add on another 700 miles of round-trip bus travel to the top of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and the Pioneers will amass more than 7,200 miles (not counting in-town commutes) on the trip. To put that in perspective, NHL teams – on average – travel slightly less than 41,000 miles in a season.

We should change our car’s oil twice in the distance the Pioneers are going!

However, the trip affords the Pioneers plenty of benefits, senior assistant captain Tyson McLellan said.

“It’s probably the best thing that could happen to us at the beginning of the year,” he said. “We’re going to get closer and go through some adversity with all the travel. It’s good to get it out of the way so we’re ready for the rest of the year.”

Fellow assistant captain Michael Davies reiterated that the timing makes the journey more palatable.

“It’s a good time of the season for it. Guys aren’t going to be worn down,” the defenseman said. “It will be a good team-bonding trip. If we’re going to have to do it, it’s a good time.

“Our team is already close, but obviously being on the road that long will be good way to get to know each other better. Hopefully we won’t be sick of each other.”

@First Line Editorial 2019