Showing signs of a team-wide illness that hit nine players hard during the week, the University of Denver on Friday allowed the game’s first three goals against Western Michigan before getting healthy behind seniors Ty Loney and Joey LaLeggia.
The big-hitting and transition-fueled Pioneers overcame a horrid start to score four consecutive goals and get a fifth one with 1:52 remaining in beating the Broncos 5-4 at Magness Arena.
“It’s a great win — a win we don’t get last year,” DU coach Jim Montgomery said. “It just shows that this team has the ability to win a lot of games in a lot of different ways.”
Loney and LaLeggia each scored twice to begin the two-game National Collegiate Hockey Association series, and sophomore Emil Romig broke a 4-4 tie with a sneaky wrist shot from the outside hash marks to complete Denver’s comeback.
The last time DU rallied to win from a three-goal deficit was in 2008 against Wisconsin. The Badgers led 4-1 at Magness Arena before losing 6-5.
“It’s good to know that we can turn around like that and get back into a game that quick,” said LaLeggia, who had four shots and was plus-2 in front of scouts of the Edmonton Oilers, who hold his draft rights. “Everybody was ready to play tonight, as close to 100 percent as we were going to get. There’s never any excuse, but having (sickness) in the back of our minds makes this win that much more sweet.”
Denver (5-2, 2-1 NCHC) took over midway through the first period and scored twice within 53 seconds to make it a 3-2 game. LaLeggia’s shot from the point came after sophomore wing Trevor Moore circled in the corner and spotted LaLeggia up high. The goal came at 15:17. Loney made it 3-2 at 16:10 with a poor-angle rebound off Matt VanVoorhis’ slap shot from the point.
The Broncos were on their heels, and they took all three penalties in the second period. Loney made them pay on the second infraction, redirecting in Will Butcher’s blast from the point. At that point, it was all Denver, all the time, and with another pinpoint wrist shot LaLeggia gave the unfriendly hosts their first lead at 17:52 of the period.
Western Michigan (2-5, 0-3 NCHC) dominated early, forcing three defensive miscues that led to goals. Kenny Morrison’s slap shot power-play goal at 3:47 came after Nolan Zajac made a necessary hook in an attempt to save a goal. Sheldon Dries and Justin Kovacs schooled DU defenders en route to beating DU freshman goalie Tanner Jaillet, who made his second start to allow sophomore Evan Cowley to further recover from an illness.
Chris Dienes knotted it at 4-4 late in the third period before Romig put a shot under the pads of junior goalie Lukas Hafner.
Western Michigan produced 10 of the game’s first 12 shots in building its big lead.
“We were getting beat to the net and giving up shots from in the house, which typically hasn’t happened this year,” Montgomery said. “With us only having 1½ days of team practice this week I was worried about us, especially our checking skills. We didn’t have a battle day, and Tuesday is our defensive day, where we hone in, and we had eight players out that day.”
Mike Chambers: mchambers@denverpost.com or
