The University of Denver hockey team did much more than survive its first 10 games, a stretch that saw the Pioneers play on the road eight times – including six at difficult Western Collegiate Hockey Association venues.
DU came out of it 6-4, 4-2 in the WCHA, and now begins a 16-game stretch that features 13 home games, and 14 in Colorado. The Pioneers, who have four freshmen, a sophomore and a junior skating on their top two forward lines, have dramatically improved since their 5-2, season-opening loss at Miami (Ohio), and that trend likely will continue in the next two months in front of supportive fans.
“We’re excited to finally be at home for a while,” DU captain Adrian Veideman said. “It’s definitely tough living on the road, with classwork and other responsibilities. But we can’t take all the games at home lightly. We have to bury teams.”
The Pioneers are ranked No. 11 nationally in both media polls after producing their first two- game series sweep of the season last weekend. They upset defending NCAA champion Wisconsin 2-0 and 4-3 (overtime) at the Kohl Center.
Denver, which previously split two-game sets at St. Cloud State and Minnesota-Duluth, takes a three-game winning streak into this weekend’s series against visiting Michigan Tech. After that, the Pioneers host Air Force and Robert Morris for a nonleague weekend Nov. 24-25, and then face Colorado College in a home-and- home series Dec. 1-2.
“Our fans are going to see the next step this team has taken, and I know our guys are looking forward to it,” DU coach George Gwozdecky said. “There is no question that we have become a road-tough team, and some teams could easily have gotten buried. We have preserved and gotten better.”
Ding, ding
Ryan Dingle has answered the bell. The junior forward from Steamboat Springs led DU with 27 goals last season, but nobody expected him to match or top that number this season.
Last season he was the beneficiary of the passing skills of former All-Americans Gabe Gauthier, Matt Carle and Paul Stastny.
This season he switched from wing to center and is playing on a line with freshmen Rhett Rakhshani and Brian Gifford. But after 10 games, Dingle has a team-leading eight goals, including two in Saturday’s OT win.
“My goal is to help the team succeed, no matter what role I need to play,” Dingle said. “Last year it was scoring goals. This year it might be blocking shots on the penalty kill, in addition to scoring goals.”
Dingle scored one of the biggest goals in the Wisconsin series. He produced a short-handed breakaway tally to give DU a 2-0 lead Saturday, beating All- America goalie Brian Elliott with a doorstep backhand after faking a wrist shot from between the circles.
Mike Chambers can be reached at 303-954-1357 or mchambers@denverpost.com.
