Denver, Davis Zero In On Record 10th NCAA Hockey Title

TOPICS:

Posted By: Mayhem April 13, 2024

What was the magic number for Denver’s 10th NCAA hockey title? It’s two.

The Pioneers scored two goals for the fourth time in four 2024 NCAA Tournament games. That was more than enough because goaltender Matt Davis raised his already high bar even higher in a 2-0 shutout of Boston College on Saturday night at St. Paul, Minn.

Davis made 35 saves, including an unreal 23 in the third period, to lift DU (32-9-3) to its record 10th NCAA championship, one more than Michigan, second in three seasons and third since 2017.

Third-line wings Jared Wright and Reiger Lorenz scored second-period goals 5:34 apart, and that was all the Pioneers needed to hold off the high-flying Eagles (34-6-1), who entered the tournament as its top seed.

“What an effort by our team. I thought they executed unbelievably well,” DU coach David Carle said. “These guys up here, everybody laid it all on the line. And we’re national champions. So proud of them. They’ll walk together forever.”

Denver’s Defense Clamps Down

Denver’s defensive strategy took away time and space from a BC lineup that included four NHL first-round draft picks in its top two lines.

“They’re dangerous,” Carle said. “A lot of it was how we angled, how we tried to control the middle of the rink, try and make them play through us. We trusted that if we did that, we have good sticks on our end as well, and if we get transition going the other way from good defense that we’d get our opportunities and our chances.

“I thought both goalies were the two best players on the ice.”

The Eagles managed just 12 shots before their third-period barrage.

Davis was ready for all of it, making several more highlight-reel saves, none bigger than his diving third-period stop on Ryan Leonard (the 2023 No. 8 overall pick) while DU was killing a penalty.

“I just saw it on the JumboTron. I just thought, ‘Sweet’,” Davis said. “As long as it’s not in the back of the net, ‘That’s sweet’.”

Davis’ 23 saves tied a Frozen Four record for stops in a period. That mark was established by DU’s Peter Mannino vs. North Dakota in the 2005 title game.

Just as he did Thursday against Boston University’s Hobey Baker-winning Macklin Celebrini, Davis made a key stop in the first period against a star player on Saturday. With 12:15 left, he stopped 2023 fourth-overall pick Will Smith on a breakaway.

Voted the most outstanding player of both the Frozen Four and the Springfield Regional, Davis stopped an otherworldly 138 of 141 shots. His save percentage in the NCAAs? .979. How many of us do anything that well 98 percent of the time?

Factor in the seven goals Davis allowed in four NCHC tournament games, and he gave up 10 goals on 229 shots in eight postseason games, a .956 save percentage.

“I’m so happy for him,” captain McKade Webster said “And I don’t want to say I called it, but I said he’ll win a national championship one day here. If I’m not here, he’ll still do it. So, like, we all knew this in the back room, how good he was, and he would carry us to a national championship.”

State of Euphoria in the State of Hockey

In keeping with the night’s — and the tournament’s — defensive theme, two workmanlike players known for their defensive reliability scored for the Pioneers. Both also have connections to Minnesota.

Wright, a native of the State of Hockey, scored his off and over the right shoulder of Jacob Fowler 9:42 into the second period. It was the sophomore speedster’s 15th of the season.

Lorenz, a 2022 Minnesota Wild draft pick, got his 16th with 4:44 to go in the second after freshman Zeev Buium skated into the left circle, drew two defenders, then made a spinning backhand pass to the suddenly-alone Lorenz. Lorenz also shot high blocker side.

“Zeev’s been doing it all year,” Lorenz said. “He climbed up the ice, beat a few of guys. I was lucky enough to find open ice, and he found me. And I was lucky enough to put it in.”

The assist gave Buium his 50th point of the season, a high for NCAA defensemen. Buium, who undoubtedly will be a first-round pick in June’s NHL Entry Draft, led a hardy defense that held the Eagles’ first-round line of Smith, Leonard and Gabe Perreault off the scoresheet for the first time this season.

But the back line had plenty of help. There was total buy-in from the Pioneers in the postseason, Lorenz noted.

“It was in the prep work,” the sophomore said. “We have the best coach in college hockey. He prepares us through the weeks and in the pre-scout as well. He’s helped me and our teams so much and through all of our careers. We’re incredibly blessed to have him, and, yeah, couldn’t do it without him.”

Buium had plenty of help, including from his older brother Shai and Sean Behrens, each of whom won their second NCAA title. They were joined by Webster, Connor Caponi, Jack Caruso, Jack Devine, Carter King, Massimo Rizzo and, of course, Davis, in lifting NCAA hardware a second time.

What Happens Next?

The final matched NCAA hockey’s two youngest teams, which should bode well for both programs. Unquestionably, there will be players leaving school early to commence pro careers, but both lineups can absorb some defections.

Denver’s seniors were Webster, Caponi and Caruso. It figures some from the group of juniors who are NHL draft picks — Shai Buium, Behrens, Tristan Broz, Devine and Rizzo — could take their games to the pros. King and especially Davis also should draw interest from teams after their performances this season.

That will be one storyline to follow.

Another could be the coach. In six seasons, the 34-year-old Carle has stamped himself as the pre-eminent young coach in hockey. Not just college hockey but hockey period.

Consider this: Not only does he have two NCAA titles in three seasons under his belt, but he led Team USA to the World Junior Championship, a team that included seven BC players plus Zeev Buium, in January. And in his first season, he guided DU to the Frozen Four in 2019 after its roster was gutted by early departures. The Pioneers very well could have gone in 2020 had there been a Frozen Four.

A track record like that will draw attention from the highest levels, and it should.

“It’s a far cry from six years ago when everybody said I was too young to do this,” Carle said.

“I think we’ve got great people. I’ve been extremely blessed to have great mentors, be supported by an unbelievable wife and family. And it’s a total team effort to do what we do at Denver. And just really proud of the whole program. I think the run we’re on is a reflection of the people that we have.”

Add it all up and Denver has a winning combination that appears primed for a sustained run of success.

©First Line Editorial 2024

SHARE TWEET PIN

About the Author

Mayhem
Longtime journalist with more than two decades of experience writing about every level of amateur and pro hockey. Almost as longtime of an adult league player.

Related Articles

Be the first to comment on "Denver, Davis Zero In On Record 10th NCAA Hockey Title"

Leave a Reply