Say this for Denver, it put it’s best foot forward in the third period Saturday, but in the end the Pioneers came up short against Boston College, 3-1, in a battle of top-5 teams in the consolation final of the Ice Breaker Tournament at Magness Arena.

Austin Cangelosi‘s second goal of the game, an empty-netter in the closing minute, ended any Pioneers hopes of comeback after the Pioneers fired 23 shots in the third period (two more than the Eagles generated the entire game) at freshman goalie Joe Woll.

“Woll was incredible,” DU coach Jim Montgomery said. “I was really happy with the third period. The results were very disappointing this weekend but we try to not get fixated on that early in the year.”

Cangelosi’s first goal came after Evan Cowley made one save on Ryan McInnis but McInnis’ second shot went between the senior’s pads but not over the goal line. Cangelosi was at the left corner of the net and poked in the loose change.

Will Butcher tied the score in the second period after ripping a feed from Dylan Gambrell past Woll from above the right circle. However, the lead only lasted 4:21 before David Cotton (a former Colorado Thunderbird) made a beautiful redirection for a shot by Chris Brown in front of Cowley to give BC a lead with 5:55 left in the frame.

The Pioneers, particularly freshman Henrik Borgstrom, brought everything but the kitchen sink in the third period but Woll had every answer.

Chasing the game again

It wasn’t as bad as Friday’s loss to Ohio State, when DU had to play from behind in from 29 seconds in, and then agin for the final 42:34, but the Pioneers still found themselves playing from behind. Given the amount of freshmen and sophomores DU is relying on, particularly in its top six, and it’s a recipe for struggle. “It’s tough anytime, but especially when you’re a young team,” Montgomery said. “You go away from the process. I saw that a lot last night but I saw more of a team game tonight.”

The finishing move

The Pioneers’ skill is undeniable, but they have been denied plenty in their first two games. What will it take to finish some of the eye-popping plays that Gambrell, Borgstrom and Troy Terry in particular are making. “We shot the puck and were looking to attack more,” Montgomery said. “It started with Butcher’s goal. It seemed like we had them on their heels every power play after that.”

Don’t blame the masked men

If there was one consistently encouraging sign over the weekend it’s that the projected strength in net has been as advertised. Just as Tanner Jaillet did Friday, Evan Cowley gave the Pioneers a chance to win Saturday. The senior stopped 20 of 22 shots he faced, and he basically had no chance on Cotton’s redirection. Meanwhile, Woll made 40 saves and was particularly superlative in the third period, turning aside all 23 shots.

Hello Henrik

Borgstrom was dynamic Saturday, more so as the game progressed. “I was happy to see Henrik start to play that way,” Montgomery said. “He missed three glorious scoring opportunities but the good news is he had them. He was looking at me like, ‘Put me over the the boards.’ ”

Flying high

Air Force won the Ice Breaker title, edging Ohio State in a sudden-death shootout, 4-3. Tyler Ledford scored on the Falcons’ first shootout attempt after teammate Shane Starrett made a beautiful toe save on OSU’s Nick Schilkey. Starrett made 50 saves, giving him 87 for the weekend, and was selected the tournament’s MVP. Falcons forward Ben Kucera, who scored a power-play goal for the second night in a row, also made the all-tournament team. Other members of the team included Butcher and OSU defenseman Josh Healey, OSU’s John Wiitala and BC’s Cangelosi.

Looking ahead

The Pioneers face an electrifying opponent in No. 2 Boston University next weekend, and topping the list of areas of improvement for the Pioneers is puck support and the transition game. “Our puck support offensively and defensively was just nonexistent,” Montgomery said.