NCAA Regional

Denver (27-9-1) vs. UMass-Lowell (21-10-3)

Thursday, 7 p.m., Budweiser Events Center, Loveland

How they got here

Denver: Won a share of the NCHC regular-season title and advanced to the conference semifinals, where it lost to Minnesota Duluth, 2-0

UML: Finished tied for second with defending national champion Massachusetts in Hockey East, one point behind Northeastern, and reached the HE semifinals, where it lost to UMass 3-1

Series: Denver leads, 8-2, last winning 4-1 on Dec. 29, 2018

Key stats

Offense: Denver leads Division I with 4.4 goals per game and is second in shots per game (37.8); Lowell scored 2.9 gpg, tied for 27th, and averages 30.2 shots, which is 25th

Defense: Lowell just 2.1 goals per game, tied for fifth; while Denver allowed 2.4, tied for 15th

Special teams: Denver’s power play (25.3 percent) is tied for eighth, while Lowell’s (23.1) is tied for 14th; Lowell’s penalty kill is 35th (79.7 percent), while Denver’s is 41st (78.6)

Top scorers: Denver – Bobby Brink’s 55 points lead the nation, Cole Guttman is tied for 10th with 43 points (18 goals), Carter Savoie is tied for 12th with 42 points (20 goals) and Brett Stapley is tied for 17th with 40 points (15 goals); Lowell does not have a scorer in the top 50. Junior forwards Carl Berglund and Andre Lee each have 28 points, and Lee has a team-high 16 goals.

Top goaltender: Denver – Magnus Chrona (24-8-1, 2.20 gaa -14th, .908 save% -t38th, six shutouts); Owen Savory (20-6-2, 1.89 gaa – 7th, .927 save% – 10th, five shutouts)

On-the-fly analysis

UMass-Lowell is bigger, heavier and older than DU. It also receives stellar goaltending. That sounds a lot like Minnesota Duluth, which gave DU fits on Friday and shut out the Pioneers for the first time in more than a year at the Frozen Faceoff. (The Bulldogs, incidentally, also are in the Loveland Regional and play Michigan Tech in the first game on Thursday at 1 p.m.) DU’s and Lowell’s special teams are a wash, and both are stingy defensively. This is an opportunity for Denver’s dynamic offense to get back on track. If it can, that might very well be the difference. Also, even though this isn’t a “home” game per se, the Pioneers went 20-1-1 in the state of Colorado this season and should enjoy a mild advantage at altitude.

©First Line Editorial 2022