Colorado College senior wing Brett Sterling leads the country with 16 goals and 27 points. At this pace, he is a shoo-in to become the Tigers’ second consecutive Hobey Baker Award winner, which goes to college hockey’s best player.
But Sterling still has a lot to prove to CC’s biggest rival, the University of Denver.
The Pioneers, who play the Tigers tonight at the Colorado Springs World Arena to begin a home-and-home weekend series, held Sterling to no points in six games last season. In his junior season, Sterling had an NCAA-high 34 goals, was second in points with 63 and was a finalist for the Hobey Baker, won by teammate Marty Sertich.
“That’s really remarkable,” CC coach Scott Owens said of Sterling’s struggles against DU. “I don’t have a way to explain it. In four of six games Denver had the last change, but still you’d think he’d pick something up on the power play.”
CC went 2-4 against DU last season and lost its final three games, the latter at the Frozen Four when Denver won its second consecutive NCAA title.
“I’m not going to say it’s a fluke thing,” Sterling said. “DU has played really good defensively against me. Their D-corps last year were big, lanky guys who got sticks on me and prevented me from getting good shots off. But a little of it was me. I need to play better in these games.”
DU’s defensive corps has four newcomers, but its best blue-liner, Matt Carle, and best defensive forward, Gabe Gauthier, returned. Carle and Gauthier took much of the credit for shutting out Sterling and limiting him to two goals last season, and zero points in the final three games.
The problem for DU is, Sterling and Sertich are pegged to play on different lines at even strength throughout the weekend. The Tigers are 3-1 since putting freshman center Chad Rau and senior Joey Crabb with Sterling and sophomore wingers Scott McCulloch and Derek Patrosso with Sertich.
“There’s positives and negatives to splitting us up,” Sterling said. “Obviously, Marty and I have great chemistry and have done some great things. But teams can’t match up as easily, and that’s been a real benefit to the team.”
DU coach George Gwozdecky said he could try to oppose only one of CC’s top lines with Gauthier’s line and have Paul Stastny’s line handle the other. The strategy will be easier Saturday at Magness Arena when DU has the last change.
“When you (oppose) a great player like Brett Sterling or Marty Sertich, you have to hold your breath at times,” Gwozdecky said. “You have to manage your game properly and be very smart defensively, knowing full well that they’re going to get their chances.
“That’s when you hope your goaltenders come up with big saves. I think that’s what happened last year.”
Mike Chambers can be reached at 303-820-5453 or mchambers@denverpost.com.
