When push comes to shove a hockey team needs players who can elevate their game and those of their teammates.

Denver had plenty of those last season, and the result was the program’s NCAA record-tying ninth championship. But seven key members of that team, including six of the top nine forwards, moved on to pro hockey. So who steps into that Grand Canyon-sized void?

As part of our season preview series, MagnessMayhem.com has identified a group of Denver’s players who will consistently have to provide that spark for the Pioneers as impact players.

Goaltender Magnus Chrona

There isn’t any question the senior is going to be the Pioneers’ most important component this season. He was spectacular down the stretch last season, particularly in the NCAA Tournament. He allowed just 10 goals in seven NCHC and NCAA playoff games, never more than two in one game. Because DU has the puck so much of the time in most games, he doesn’t see many shots, making his task more challenging. But he’s used to that by now and has demonstrated an ability to stay locked in.

“I think this is the most confidence I’ve seen in him,” fifth-year defenseman Kyle Mayhew said. “When I went home (over the summer), everyone asked me about the (NCAA title) game, and I said, ‘If Magnus didn’t keep us in it, we would have lost.’ He’s still riding that. I think he now knows he’s one of the top goaltenders in the country. Before there might have been a little self-doubt, but now he’s on top of the world.”

Left wing Carter Mazur

The sophomore assistant captain was voted one of the three top players on the U.S. World Junior team this summer on the heels of being selected the NCHC’s top rookie after a 14-goal, 38-point freshman campaign. Given that the four players who scored more points than him have moved on to pro hockey, the Detroit Red Wings pick will have even more opportunities to build his scoring resume.

He didn’t sound like a player taking anything for granted, however, when we spoke recently.

“I feel like I still have a lot to learn from guys who’ve been (at DU) longer than I have,” Mazur said. “A guy like (captain) Justin Lee has been here four years. He knows it all. I’m still learning, and there’s always something I can work on, learning more about this team and the systems so I can teach the young guys coming in.”

That said, he knows his strengths, and he has been willing to work on areas he’s felt needed shoring up.

“My net-front game is key,” he said. “That’s somewhere I always find myself around. That’s where you score goals, and that’s what I like to do the most. Another big part of my game I’ve been working on is my skating. I feel like skating can always improve.”

Defenseman Mike Benning

Ordinarily you’d consider throwing a parade for a point-per-game defenseman in college hockey, but DU’s offense was so powerful last season that Benning was tied with Mazur for fifth in scoring at 38 points, and he actually had one more goal (15) than the forward. The question now is where can Benning take his game when he’s going to be one of the focal points of opponents’ game plans? He tends to score in bunches (10 multi-point games last season).

The guess here is he elevates it further. Not only is he going to be an every-situation player, but he just always seems to be around the puck. His combination of instincts and abilities are rare, and one has to imagine the Florida Panthers are elated he lasted until the fourth round in the 2020 draft.

Center Massimo Rizzo

The sophomore finds himself slotted as the top center, and it will be interesting to see how he progresses in this role. He quietly (if that’s possible) had 36 points as a freshman, and like Mazur and defensemen Sean Behrens and Shai Buium was an NCHC all-rookie team pick. He again will be a power-play fixture.

Rizzo started his DU career fast and also was a very streaky scorer, having 12 multi-point games. If there is a concern it’s that he only had seven points in the final 14 games. Possessing an excellent work ethic, you can bet that only served to motivate the Carolina Hurricanes pick.

Defensemen Sean Behrens and Shai Buium

The sophomore tag team took different paths to their respective 29- and 18- point campaigns. Behrens seemed ready made right out of the gate, picking up points in his first five games. He and Mayhew were the top pairing, and they complemented each other well. A second-round pick of the Colorado Avalanche in 2021, his  production trailed off over the final 10 games (two points), but his intensity didn’t.

Buium settled in as the season progressed and emerged as a strong defender, one who has size (6-3), mobility and good vision. It’s an enticing package, and one that should be highlighted more this season. He, too, didn’t produce a lot of offense in the final 10 games (two points), but the 2021 Detroit pick also was cast in more of a shutdown role.

The ceilings for both are high.

Someone new

With so many openings in the top nine forward spots it figures someone (or someones) from the group of transfers Tristan Broz and Casey Dornbach and freshmen Tyler Haskins, Tristan Lemyre, Rieger Lorenz, Aidan Thompson and Jared Wright will have to step up in a big way.

If you’re going on draft pedigree, NHL second-round draft picks such as Broz (Pittsburgh) or Lorenz (Minnesota) would be your guys. Both skate well, and Lorenz has a terrific release. However, Thompson (when he’s recovered from an offseason injury, which could be in a month or so) impressed at the U.S. World Junior Evaluation Camp. The Chicago pick and Wright, a Los Angeles pick who is most likely the fastest of a fleet group of Pioneers, will play key roles as well. Then you have Dornbach, an established 30-point-plus per season college scorer whose vision and hands have impressed.

“The kids coming in are really good players,” coach David Carle said. “We need some people internally to take on more minutes, take on bigger roles. And we need the new guys to assimilate themselves quickly into how we play and into college hockey quickly.”

MORE PREVIEWS

DU’s roster by the numbers

Candidates to emerge

©First Line Editorial 2022