Denver Pioneers and Minnesota State Mavericks advance to Frozen Four final
BOSTON -- Denver and Minnesota State will face each other in the Frozen Four final after wins on Thursday night.
Denver defeated Michigan 3-2 in overtime and Minnesota State prevailed over Minnesota, 5-1, in the second semifinal.
The championship game is on Saturday.
For Michigan, Carter Savoie's goal with 5:07 remaining in the first overtime won the game for the Pioneers.
"It was a really good hockey game. We're obviously excited to be on the positive end," said Denver coach David Carle. "Our guys stuck with it, got the job done and we're still in Boston through Saturday."
Denver, the No. 4 seed in the tournament, is seeking its ninth men's hockey championship in program history, which would tie Michigan for the most in NCAA Division I history.
The overtime winner came as a result of a sloppy play by Michigan in its own zone. The Wolverines tried to transition to offense before securing the puck. Denver collected the turnover, and leading scorer Bobby Brink's pass from the right corner was converted by Savoie at the front of the net, sending the Pioneers into a celebration and the top-seeded Wolverines home.
"They turned the puck over at the blue line there. I tried passing it down to Bob [Brink], it hit a stake and then he obviously ended up getting it back. That pass was unbelievable. I got the first shot and then got the rebound," said Savoie. "No words to describe it. Best feeling ever."
The game between the Pioneers and Wolverines wasn't the offensive shootout many expected. Instead, it was an intense battle between two talented and deep teams that extended past regulation.
Denver took a 1-0 lead with 8:38 left in the first period on a goal by Brett Stapley, his 17th of the season. Defenseman Justin Lee shot the puck from the point. With a Pioneers player on his doorstep, goalie Erik Portillo deflected the shot to the slot. That's where Stapley collected it, and with Portillo colliding with his center Matty Beniers, tucked into the open net for the Denver lead.
The Pioneers scored a goal before Michigan recorded a shot on goal, with the Wolverines finally putting a puck on Denver goalie Magnus Chrona with 3:56 left in the first.
Michigan head coach Mel Pearson's message to his players after practice on Wednesday was "focus on the start and be ready." The first period ended with Denver having the advantage, and the Pioneers were 20-1-1 when scoring first and 15-0-1 when leading after the first period.
The Wolverines knotted the game at 1-1 with 15:57 left in the second period on a Jimmy Lambert goal. Right wing Nolan Moyle made a nifty play to control the puck on a zone entry, sparking a Michigan cycle with senior linemates Garrett Van Wyhe and Lambert. The puck eventually returned to Nolan behind the Denver net, and he fed Lambert in front for the game-tying goal, his 6th of the season.
Michigan pushed for the next few minutes of the period but had trouble executing, including four offside plays and an odd-man rush negated when Portillo lost his helmet after making a save. Denver finished the period with a 16-9 shot advantage, as the Pioneers didn't convert on the teams' lone power play opportunity of the period.
The Pioneers took the lead with 14:24 left in the third period. The puck was cycled back to defenseman Mike Benning at the right point, who floated a wrist shot that was deflected by Wright past Portillo. It was the senior winger's 22 goal of the season in 40 games.
But Michigan tied the game at 2-2 with 10:51 left in the third. The play started with a sprawling shot block by Mark Estapa on a shot by Denver defenseman Antti Tuomisto. Michigan's Michael Pastujov sped down the wing. His pass to the middle of the ice was deflected, but sophomore forward Thomas Bordeleau smartly slowed his progress in order to tap home the bouncing puck for the tying tally.
The Wolverines killed off a Denver power play after forward Brendan Brisson's boarding penalty. With 5:31 left in the game, freshman forward Mackie Samoskevich was whistled for holding, drawing boos from the considerable number of Michigan fans in the stands. But the Wolverines killed that off as well.
The loss sends Michigan into an offseason of uncertainty. The Wolverines have seven players who were selected in the first round of the NHL draft, including four of the first five picks in the 2021 draft. Defenseman Owen Power, the No. 1 overall pick, is expected to sign with the Buffalo Sabres after the NCAA tournament. Pearson also does not have a contract beyond this season.
Michigan coach Mel Pearson's contract expires on April 30. When asked if he would be the head coach of the Wolverines next season, Pearson said: "I'm just going to talk about the game and our team tonight."
The Ann Arbor News reported last month that Michigan's program is under investigation by the school for attempting to hide COVID-19 cases ahead of last year's NCAA tournament. The Michigan Daily, the school's student newspaper, also reported that Pearson and director of hockey operations Rick Bancroft are alleged to have created a toxic work environment for female staff and that Pearson had retaliated against a player who raised issues with the program.
Pearson has denied all the reported allegations. "The truth will come true at the end of the investigation and I feel very confident that the allegations will be proved wrong," he told the Michigan Daily.
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