Playoff hockey can be a war of attrition.

While the former began for third-ranked Denver on Friday night, the latter is well underway, and how well the Pioneers can overcome that may well dictate their postseason staying power.

Sophomore Jack Devine did his part, scoring the Pioneers’ first four goals in a 6-2 victory over Miami in an NCHC quarterfinal opener at Magness Arena. Three of Devine’s goals came on the power play – one in each period. The total was nearly half of his total of nine in his first 34 games of the 2022-23 season.

Freshman Tristan Lemyre extended DU’s lead to 5-2 midway through the third period, and Connor Caponi, back in the lineup after missing last Saturday’s game against Colorado College, added an empty-net goal.

Forwards Aidan Thompson and Tristan Broz each had two assists, and reigning NCHC Goalie of the Week Matt Davis made 29 saves. Broz had a four-goal game earlier this season vs. you guessed it, Miami.

Davis was especially sharp in the third period when the Redhawks outshot the hosts 12-7.

Jack Devine with the second 4-goal game of the season for the Pioneers.

Tristan Broz also had 4 vs. Miami on Jan. 14. pic.twitter.com/NnP4y2tmMa

— Denver Hockey (@DU_Hockey) March 11, 2023

PJ Fletcher staked Miami (8-23-4) to an early 1-0 lead and Joe Cassetti drew it to 3-2 late in the second. Ludvig Persson stopped 27 shots.

Pioneers’ roster on thin ice

Denver (29-8) was without five regulars against the Redhawks, and all of them play key roles. Start with No. 1 goaltender Magnus Chrona, who last was seen wearing a walking boot last weekend on senior night when he missed the first of what has increased to a three-game absence.

He was joined on the sidelines by leading scorer Massimo Rizzo, whose 46 points are the sixth most in Division I. The sophomore center missed his first game of the season. Chrona and Rizzo were two of DU’s three first-team All-NCHC picks.

The Pioneers also were without defenseman Sean Behrens, an honorable mention all-league pick who has 21 points, Behrens missed his third game in a row due to an upper-body injury. Additionally forward McKade Wester missed his second consecutive game and forward Jared Wright (lower body) was out for the fifth game in a row. The latter two are first-call penalty killers and have chipped in 14 and 12 points, respectively.

Around the NCHC

In other NCHC quarterfinal openers, seventh-seeded Colorado College defeated No. 2 seed Western Michigan, 3-1, at Kalamazoo, Mich., on the strength of third-period goals by Logan Will, Tyler Coffey and Hunter McKown. … Davis Pennington’s first goal of the season proved to be the winner for third-seeded Omaha in a 2-1 victory over No. 6 seed North Dakota. … Micah Miller scored 4-on-4 and empty-net goals in St. Cloud State’s 3-1 victory over Minnesota Duluth.

Notes: Senior defenseman Kyle Mayhew played in his 150th career game, becoming the 69th Pioneer ever to reach that milestone. … Chrona was selected as one of nine semifinalists for the Mike Richter Award, given to NCAA hockey’s top Division I goalie. … Benning joined Rizzo and Chrona on the All-NCHC first team, while Mazur was on the second team. … Game 2 of the best-of-3 series is Saturday at 6 p.m.

©First Line Editorial 2023