Who wants it more?

That’s essentially what it came down to Saturday night at Magness Arena. Colorado College’s Nick Halloran scored late in the first period and that held up for a 1-0 victory that ended No. 3 Denver’s 17-game unbeaten streak against the Tigers and snapped DU’s eight-game overall unbeaten streak.

“We weren’t hard enough offensively,” DU coach Jim Montgomery said. “Our effort was great, we skated well, we protected pucks well. We weren’t very clean as far as our passing, but a lot of that was them. They played with more desperation. They blocked more shots, they won more wall battles, they won more net-front battles. If you look at our process, those are big areas for us.

“Although we outshot them 40-22, I bet the grade A chances were a lot closer.”

The loss – DU’s first to CC since Feb. 22, 2014, left a bad taste in the mouth of DU’s seniors, who saw an opportunity to stay unbeaten against their bitter rivals to the south go out the window. Two of them – captain Tariq Hammond and goaltender Tanner Jaillet cautioned against checking for falling pieces of the sky, however.

“It’s a good lesson (to remember) when we’re playing elimination games,” Jaillet said. “A hot goalie and me looking at the wrong angle or guys missing reads could end your season. We’ll learn from this and hopefully be able to move forward.”

Hammond said the Pioneers’ effort was solid, but they might have suffered some short-term memory loss after Friday’s 5-1 victory, a win that clinched The Gold Pan for the Pioneers (17-7-6, 11-5-4-3 NCHC) for the fourth consecutive season.

“The biggest difference was we had desperation in our game last night and came out on top, and we didn’t have enough tonight and that’s why we came out on the losing end,” Hammond said. “Credit their goalie, he played awesome. We couldn’t get one past him. We had a good effort tonight we just couldn’t find the back of the net.”

Alex Leclerc made 40 stops to keep the Pioneers off the scoreboard for the first time since North Dakota did it in the NCHC Frozen Faceoff semifinals last March. It marked the third time this season the sophomore turned in a strong performance against DU. He stopped 37 shots in a pair of 1-1 ties on Dec. 8 and 9.

Halloran scored 17 seconds into the first power play for Colorado College (13-13-4, 7-10-3-2 NCHC) when he carried the puck around the left circle into the slot and fired a shot back toward the left post that caught Jaillet (21 saves) moving.

“They were screening me,” Jaillet said. “I had it and I went to switch lanes. He shot it back to where I was coming from. I should have stayed there. It was a bad goal.”

Nonetheless, the senior played well when called upon and kept the margin to one goal on a couple of occasions.

“We pressing and they get a couple of breakaways, 2 on 1s, he just makes the saves, gives us an opportunity,” Montgomery said. “That 3 on 1 the guy held the puck, held the puck. Most goalies would have gone down when he made a move but he just stood tall. He’s been incredible.”

Denver’s place in the NCHC’s high-rent district seems secure and it almost certainly will play host to an NCHC quarterfinal in three weeks. Last season’s first-round foe was … CC. The Tigers are vying to host a home series of their own, and this win helps that cause. It also demonstrated something Hammond said the Pioneers have kept in mind regardless of win streaks.

“We’ve always had good games with them regardless if they’re first place or last place,” Hammond said. “We’re going to get their best. We’ve never underestimated them. This just shows the rivalry is back on and they’ve improved a lot.”

124 and counting

Saturday’s game marked Jaillet’s 124 for the Pioneers, tying him with Stephen Wagner for the school record. By now you’re familiar with Jaillet’s body of work, but what about Wagner?

He played for DU from 1996-2000, winning 59 games (sixth in program history) and earning seven shutouts (tied for eighth). His durability wasn’t limited to games, however. His 2,953 saves stand as second most in program history.

Wagner came to Denver shortly after the St. Louis Blues made him a sixth-round draft pick (159th overall) in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft. He played three seasons of pro hockey, mostly in the now-defunct Central Hockey League before retiring in 2003.

When it’s all said and done, Jaillet has a chance to claim several more DU records. He stands five/six wins away from Ron Grahame‘s 82, and his 2.04 goals-against average is just .02 behind former teammate Evan Cowley‘s 2.02 mark. Jaillet has a ways to go to catch Cowley’s .930 save percentage mark. His .924 save percentage is tied for third,

Up next

The Pioneers travel to St. Cloud State for a series matching the top two teams in the NCHC. Friday’s game is at 6:37 p.m. MST and will be televised on CBS Sports Network. Saturday’s game faces off at 6:07 p.m. MST