Mile High Championship

I'll be honest in telling you that I didn't think the University of Denver was going to be victorious. I knew a little bit about the Pioneers' roster based on the fact that they have ten Canadians, four Californians, and two Europeans skating for them this season, but they didn't have the big names that the other three schools seemed to boast as they entered the Frozen Four weekend. Perhaps, though, that was their strength because this Denver team played four lines with the same consistent effort and had a goaltender who simply went supernova while making stops in his crease. In the end, the Pioneers showed that it didn't really matter what names were on the roster as long as the school's name appeared on the trophy.

Calgary-born netminder Matt Davis might have rewrote the NCAA Frozen Four goaltending books with his performance. The former Edge School and AJHL's Spruce Grove Saints netminder spent one season with the Green Bay Gamblers in the USHL before landing in Denver where he's been nothing short of spectacular statistically with a 34-7-3 record over three seasons with a 2.19 GAA and a .919 save percentage. In his first full season as a start this year, the junior goaltender went 23-5-3 with a 2.34 GAA and a .917 save percentage.

What he did in the Frozen Four makes those stats look like a lazy beer league game. In four games, Davis stopped 139 of 142 shots he faced for a .979 save percentage, and was the first goaltender to shut out Boston College this season with Denver's magical 2-0 win today. And he showed off some of that magic with saves like this.
ESPN's John Buccigross may have said it best when he exclaimed that "Matt Davis is out of his mind" after watching him deny Ryan Leonard of what looked like a guaranteed power-play goal. That was a ridiculous save, and it's one of the reasons that the Denver Pioneers are the NCAA Men's Hockey Champions today.

In the four games that Denver played in the NCAA Tournament, they never scored more than two goals in any game. Tristan Broz was the hero in the 2-1 overtime win over Massachusetts, Sam Harris scored the game-winner in Denver's 2-1 win over Cornell, Broz was once again the hero as he scored his second overtime winner in Denver's 2-1 overtime win over Boston University, and Jared Wright had the opening goal and game-winner for Denver in their 2-0 win over Boston College in the championship final. In total, 13 players recorded points on the eight goals the Pioneers scored.

Head coach David Carle built his team well, and he'll only lose forward Connor Caponi and defence McKade Webster, Denver's captain, through graduation this year. With virtually his entire roster returning for next season assuming there are no players who transfer out, there's a strong belief that Denver may be poised for back-to-back championships following their NCAA-record tenth national championship. Freshman defender Zeev Buium will be drafted in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft this season, but it seems almost assured that he'll return for one more season with the Pioneers.

Take nothing away from Boston College's run to the final as they beat some very good teams to reach the final game. Sometimes, good teams run into hot goaltenders, and it was pretty clear from the stats and the highlight above that the Eagles run into a goalie who was on a completely different level in this tournament. With the likes of Will Smith, Cutter Gauthier, and the aforementioned Leonard looking at NHL careers once they leave Boston College, there will be other big games in which they'll play. Today, though, the Pioneers were the better team for sixty minutes when it mattered.

Congratulations go out to the Denver Pioneers on their incredible run to the NCAA National Men's Hockey Championship! While there may be a target on your backs next year after winning this title, everyone wants a shot at the champs. That's part of being the best, and to the victors, go the spoils!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!