No. 4 Denver played a clean game for two periods, but a string of penalties in the third gave No. 3 Minnesota Duluth the opening it needed to rally for a 2-1 victory Wednesday night at the NCHC’s pod in Omaha, Neb.

Power-play goals 48 seconds apart by Jackson Cates and Kobe Roth in the final seven minutes did the trick for the Bulldogs (2-0), who also received a stellar performance from goaltender Ryan Fanti.

Grad transfer Bo Hanson scored DU’s goal 4 minutes into the second period and Magnus Chrona made 18 saves for the Pioneers (0-1).

Here are three observations from Wednesday’s game.

Saving grace

Just when you thought the Bulldogs might have a drop-off in net after Hunter Shepard‘s graduation, Fanti proved to be a difference-maker in this game. The sophomore made a couple of big stops in the first five minutes, when DU generated prime chances off the rush, and stood on his head in the second period. The Pioneers posted an 18-1 shots-on-goal edge in the middle 20 minutes yet had just one goal – Hanson’s blast from the left point – to show for it.

“Fanti was the best player in the second period,” DU coach David Carle said. “He made key saves at big moments. That was not the difference, but it was one of them.”

That performance and more engagement from the Bulldogs’ forwards in the third period ultimately led to opportunities to do exactly what the two-time defending national champs did – rally for a third-period pod win for the second night in a row.

Hanson’s goal for DU

🚨 Pios from the point!@DU_Hockey breaks the scoreless deadlock early in the 2nd

Watch on https://t.co/ZyUdpPrI2J or @MidcoSN #NCHCPod x #PioneerTogether pic.twitter.com/9qhUxPITld

— The NCHC (@TheNCHC) December 3, 2020

Nice to meet you

The Pioneers dressed seven newcomers – forwards Connor Caponi, Steven Jandric, Carter Savoie and McKade Webster and defensemen Mike Benning, Antti Tuomisto and Hanson. The group acquitted itself well by all accounts. The expected mix of speed and skill was a reality. Savoie picked up his first NCAA point on Hanson’s goal. Tuomisto and Benning played in the top four. Caponi and Webster brought excellent energy, and Webster was solid in the face-off circle. “It’s a tough first opponent for them,” Carle said. “Overall, they played well.”

Hanson was one of seven defensemen who dressed, and both he and Jandric played solid games as well. Jandric’s line with Brett Stapley and Kohen Olischefski created the most havoc in front of Fanti, firing eight shots on goal. Jandric had four of those.

Fatigue factor

Duluth was playing its second game in as many days, and after such an odd (and lengthy) offseason, no one would have faulted the Bulldogs if fatigue got the best of them vs. the speedy Pioneers. That certainly appeared to be a possibility in the second period, when DU went on its 18-shot blitzkrieg. However, after the Pioneers took all three of their penalties in the third (slashing, too many men and tripping), one wonders if perhaps they were more affected. Not so, said Olishefski. “I don’t think (fatigue) was a factor. We’re in great shape. … It’s the first game, we have a lot of time to fix things.”

The last word

“The great thing about the pod is we get a day off and then another game against a great team,” Carle said.

Up next: It doesn’t get any easier as Denver plays No. 1 North Dakota on Friday at 6:35 p.m.

How Duluth won it

A pair of power play goals from Jackson Cates in a 48-second span flipped the script and put @UMDMensHockey in front

Catch the end on https://t.co/ZyUdpPrI2J or @MidcoSN #NCHCPod x #BulldogCountry pic.twitter.com/dI5R5mSmSp

— The NCHC (@TheNCHC) December 3, 2020

©First Line Editorial 2020