Winning consecutive NCAA hockey championships is never easy for any number of reasons.

In No. 3 Denver’s case, a perfect storm of attrition, injury and a surprising lack of scoring at the worst possible time sunk the Pioneers’ 2022-23 season.

Four-seeded Cornell scored twice in the first 11:28 of the game, and goaltender Ian Shane made that stand up in a 2-0 victory over top-seeded Denver at Manchester, N.H., on Thursday night.

The first-round NCAA Tournament loss was DU’s first since 2014, when Boston College defeated it, 6-2. That capped a stretch of six first-round losses in seven seasons before the program built up to national titles in 2017 and 2022.

Denver’s scoring depth didn’t deliver

The Pioneers faced a tall order in replacing their top four scorers and six of their top 10 from the 2022 title team. However, the emergence of sophomore forwards Carter Mazur and Massimo Rizzo into nationally ranked scorers, improvement from fellow second-year man Jack Devine and the addition of transfers Casey Dornbach and Tristan Broz eventually mitigated much of that.

Yet, when DU needed a clutch goal in one-and-done playoff situations it could not get one. Not only did the Pioneers not score Thursday, but they also could not dent Colorado College’s Kaidan Mbereko last Friday in a Frozen Face-off semifinal. For a team that averaged almost four goals per game, that’s a bit unbelievable.

One of the constants for Denver was goaltender Magnus Chrona (25 saves), as he has been for four seasons. But Chrona, as well as a handful of teammates, missed multiple games at the end of the regular season and the start of the postseason because of injuries and illness. That had to play a role in why the offense, which typically generates 33 shots per game, could not get in sync during the season-ending shutouts.

Before launching 27 shots on Shane – 16 of which came in the third period – the Pioneers managed just 23 against the Tigers. That’s an average of eight shots per game fewer than normal, and many of them were from the perimeter. And think about this: DU had a total of 34 shots in five periods (fewer than seven per) before Thursday’s third period.

The shutouts were Denver’s fourth and fifth of the season, another remarkable statistic given this is a roster that has 12 NHL draft picks on it.

What’s next for the Pioneers and who’s part of it?

So now the question becomes what’s next?

What we know is the Pioneers will have a new starting goaltender next season, most likely Matt Davis, who went 8-1 in his sophomore season. Davis should slide seamlessly into regular duty. Chrona should be signed immediately by the San Jose Sharks.

The defense probably will lose half of its membership.

Kyle Mayhew is a grad student who has played five seasons. Justin Lee and Lane Krenzen are seniors, and the guess here is junior Mike Benning will be signed by the Florida Panthers in fairly short order. Benning has piled up 72 points in the past two seasons and has demonstrated he’s ready to take the next step.

If sophomore Sean Behrens signs with the Colorado Avalanche, a move I don’t see happening until after his junior season, it would devastate the Pioneers’ back end and likely force them into the transfer portal.

Up front, the carnage shouldn’t anywhere near as bad as last season’s, when Ryan Barrow, Cole Guttman, Brett Stapley and Cam Wright graduated, and Bobby Brink signed with Philadelphia after his junior season and Carter Savoie opted to do the same with Edmonton after his sophomore campaign.

Still, one has to think Carter Mazur’s 22-goal season and physical style of play hold plenty of appeal to the rebuilding Detroit Red Wings. Dornbach is a grad transfer, and Brett Edwards is the team’s lone senior forward. One wonders if Edwards hits the portal and plays a fifth season in a larger role elsewhere.

It’s possible the prospect-poor Pittsburgh Penguins might try to lure Broz to sign after his sophomore season. His production jumped from 11 to 28 points. But he grew a tremendous amount over the course of the season, as did Devine, a Florida pick. It would be a surprise if they didn’t return for their junior campaigns.

Rizzo presents an interesting case. Carolina, which owns his draft rights, is a patient and fairly deep organization. Most years a 46-point season would have a player on the first train to the pros, but I get a sense that Rizzo will be back. In fact, if I were placing bets, I’d guess he or McKade Webster is DU’s next captain.

Again, the early departures are speculation, but given how NHL teams prefer to sign players after their junior seasons rather than risk having them walk for nothing the summer after their senior seasons, next offseason is the one Pioneers fans should be sweating.

In the meantime, we’re left wondering if this is what this edition of the Pioneers was – a very good team that won 30 games and a tough league but no more. Denver went 8-6 vs. ranked teams, but five of the six losses came away from Magness Arena. Or was it one that could have had a deeper run had it not encountered injuries and poor timing for its offense to disappear?

©First Line Editorial 2023