Third-year University of Denver hockey coach Jim Montgomery had a mulligan available. He could have dubbed this a rebuilding year. The Pioneers lost seven key players to graduation in June after a promising run toward the NCAA Frozen Four fell a game short last spring. The returning players and six freshmen didn’t seem capable of doing anything special anytime soon.
But Montgomery doesn’t work for next season. He works for the next game. And this season he worked wonders on a DU team that has lost only once in its past 18 games and takes a nine-game winning streak into a postseason that has championship-or-bust aspirations.
“Monty just knows how to win big games, how to win championships,” said DU captain Grant Arnold.
Before replacing George Gwozdecky at DU in 2013, Montgomery led Dubuque to the United States (junior) Hockey League championship twice in his first three season as a head coach at any level.
As a player, Montgomery led Maine to the 1993 NCAA championship and reached the postseason 10 times as a professional.
“He’s done it as a player and a coach,” Arnold said. “The thing that Monty does best is focuses on us, and our process, and how to be better each day. It’s not always about the other team. It’s about us, how we can improve and make adjustments.”
The sixth-ranked Pioneers (21-8-5) are college hockey’s hottest team entering conference playoffs. They host Nebraska Omaha (18-15-1) in a three-game National Collegiate Hockey Conference playoff series Friday, Saturday and Sunday (if necessary) at Magness Arena.
Regardless of what happens in the NCHC Tournament, DU is a lock to make the NCAA Tournament for the ninth consecutive year.
Montgomery’s first two DU teams also played their best hockey late in the season. The first one captured the inaugural NCHC Tournament championship in 2014 as the sixth seed before losing to Johnny Gaudreau and the Boston College Eagles at the NCAA Tournament.
A year ago, DU ousted BC from the national tournament before getting upset by eventual NCAA champion Providence in a regional championship game at Providence, R.I. The Pioneers, who are 14-1-3 since Jan. 1, stood 3-3 after close losses at Boston College and Boston University in October.
“I don’t focus on results early. I let players fail early, to see what we have, so I use different people in different situations,” Montgomery said. “I want to find out ‘my guys’ — the guys who are going to apply how we need to play to close out games. I think that’s why we’re always better at the end. I do think we have the right people in the right spots at the end of the year.”
Arnold is the ideal captain. Approaching his 25th birthday, the Centennial native and depth forward indirectly runs the team.
“You need to have players holding players accountable. That’s happening at such a high level now, and it’s being done in such a positive fashion,” Montgomery said. “Our bench is incredible right now and it’s fun to watch as a coach.”
Arnold also used “incredible” in describing DU’s success.
“At the start of the year we were frustrated. We weren’t happy. But we sat down and talked about it, me and the rest of the leaders. We can communicate with him,” Arnold said of Montgomery. “We can say if we have a problem, and we can ask to do it behind closed doors in front of the team. That’s been a huge plus with Monty. His communication is incredible.”
Mike Chambers: mchambers@denverpost.com or @mikechambers
