Colorado Springs – Paul Stastny scored the first and the last goals Thursday night in near identical fashion, the latter in overtime to give the University of Denver a 5-4 victory over Colorado College before an overflow crowd of 7,732 at the World Arena.
Stastny’s second tap-in in front of the left post came with 1:27 remaining in OT and completed a come-from-behind victory that clinched a top-three finish in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association for the Pioneers, who are a point away from clinching second.
More important, DU’s second consecutive late, game-winning rally likely put the 2004 and 2005 NCAA champions in position to make a run for a third consecutive national crown. The win vaulted the Pioneers (20-13-2, 17-8-2 WCHA) from a tie for 14th to 11th in the PairWise Rankings, which simulates how the NCAA Tournament selection committee seeds its 16-team field.
The Tigers (23-13-1, 15-11-1), who must tie or beat DU in tonight’s series and regular-season finale at Magness Arena to clinch home ice for next week’s WCHA first-round playoffs, remain sixth in the PairWise.
“We want to win (tonight) for two reasons: to clinch the second spot (in the WCHA) and beat CC four times in a (regular) season, because it hasn’t happened since (1988-89),” Stastny said.
Stastny’s winner came off a diagonal circle-to-circle fast-break feed from J.D. Corbin. Ryan Dingle made a similar pass that led to Stastny’s tap-in goal 2:40 into the game.
“Those guys are so fast,” Stastny said when asked to explain how the similar tap-ins developed. “Someone has to drive the net, and those guys make it easy to get put in that situation.”
Stastny’s heroics overshadowed a similar stellar game by CC senior wing Brett Sterling, who had two goals and three points before leaving midway through the second period with an undisclosed injury. Sterling hadn’t scored in his past seven games against DU, and hadn’t recorded a point against his team’s biggest rival in 14 of his 15 career games.
Sterling’s goals, plus two soft ones scored by Trevor Frischmon and Derek Patrosso, appeared to be enough for CC, which chased DU goalie Glenn Fisher in the second period.
Peter Mannino took over for Fisher, who stopped just 15 of 19 shots, and made eight saves in the third period and two in OT.
“We scored some poor goals, they made the change, and I thought Mannino came in and gave them good stability,” CC coach Scott Owens said. “I also thought the game changed a little bit when Brett went out.”
Denver, 6-0-8 in its last 14 OT games, could have won it long before it did. The Pioneers scored three power-play goals but failed to convert on a 5-on-3 advantage for 1:25 late in regulation and with the scored tied at 4.
Adrian Veideman’s second power-play goal of the night 10:47 into the third period tied it.
“We got stronger as the third period (went on),” said DU coach George Gwozdecky, whose team scored five third-period goals in its previous game, a win over North Dakota.
DENVER POST THREE STARS
1. Paul Stastny – DU sophomore scored twice, including the winner in OT.
2. Adrian Veideman – DU defenseman had two power-play goals.
3. Brett Sterling – CC senior wing had two goals and three points before leaving the game in the second period with an undisclosed injury.
WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED
Sterling’s goals gave him 105 for his career, third most in program history and seven shy of the school record set by Ron Hartwell in 1952.
UP NEXT
Tonight, at Magness Arena in the regular-season finale for both teams.
Denver 2 1 1 1 – 5
Colorado College 2 2 0 0 – 4
First period – 1, Denver, Stastny 14 (Dingle), 2:40. 2, Colorado College, Frischmon 7 (Brunkhorst, Crabb), 5:17. 3, Colorado College, Sterling 27 (Rau, Salcido), 9:35 (pp). 4, Denver, Dingle 24 (Mullen, Gauthier), 16:44 (pp). Penalties – James, DU (diving), 7:38; Carle, DU (high sticking), 8:36; Sterling, CC (slashing), 11:24; Brunkhorst, CC (holding), 15:34.
Second period – 5, Denver, Veideman 5 (Fast, Corbin), 3:13 (pp). 6, Colorado College, Sterling 28 (Sertich, Sweatt), 3:28. 7, Colorado College, Patrosso 7 (Salcido, Sterling), 8:01. Penalties – Sweatt, CC (interference), 1:50; Fisher, DU (slashing), 5:35; Brunkhorst, CC (hooking), 12:56; Salcido, CC (interference), 18:45.
Third period – 8, Denver, Veideman 5 (May, Mannino), 10:47 (pp). Penalties – Cook, DU (hooking), 4:12; Sweatt, CC (hooking), 8:50; Brannigan, CC (cross checking), 11:22; CC bench (too many men), 11:57.
Overtime – 9, Denver, Stastny 15 (Corbin). Penalties – None.
Shots on goal – DU 8-12-7-2-29. CC 10-11-8-2-31. Power-play opportunities – DU 3 of 8. CC 1 of 4. Goalies – DU, Fisher 19 shots-15 saves (31:17), Mannino (W, 11-7), 12-12 (32:16. CC, Zaba (19-11-1) 29-24. Attendance – 7,732.
Staff writer Mike Chambers can be reached at 303-820-5453 or mchambers@denverpost.com.
