Pioneers finish the Huskies in regulation, 3-1

The Denver Pioneers looked to get one back against the St. Cloud State Huskies and split the weekend Saturday night. Denver head coach Craig Montgomery conceded that the Huskies were the better team Friday night, claiming they possessed the puck 75% of the time, and hoped to apply more puck pressure tonight to control the game. They succeeded.

Like last night, the Huskies got the first power play of the night with Emil Romig sitting two for boarding. Unlike last night, however, St. Cloud was unable to convert, and the Pioneers returned to even strength without breaking much of a sweat on the penalty kill. Another aspect of tonight’s game that was significantly different from last night was the pace. Halfway into the first period, there were only seven shots total on net for the two teams, DU leading in that category four shots to three.

Just as the clock ticked into the second half of the first period, Jake Wahlin sneaked the puck past Denver goaltender Tanner Jaillet from the side of the net to give the Huskies a 1-0 lead. The goal sparked the Pioneers’ offensive pressure, and the ice tilted in Denver’s favor with numerous players getting solid shots on net. However, St. Cloud’s Jeff Smith was as sharp as ever in net to preserve his team’s one-goal lead. That would remain the score as the period came to a close with shots on net coming at 16-12 in favor of Denver.

The second period started with the Pioneers working the puck hard in an attempt to even up the scoreboard, showing off the speed and offensive transition game for which they’re known. Each time the Huskies would clear the puck out of the zone, Denver would force a turnover and put the Huskies back on the defensive.

In one instance, Will Butcher made a couple of good plays to keep the puck in at the blueline, and the puck worked its way behind the St. Cloud net. Evan Janssen jumped on it, took a quick peak over his shoulder, and slipped a pass behind him to Dylan Gambrell, who had parked himself in front of Smith. With a one-time tip, Gambrell sent the puck into the back of the net and tied the game at one.

Two minutes later, Jarid Lukosevicius crashed the net and picked up a rebound right in front of Smith. Getting his tenth goal of the season, the sophomore shoved the puck behind Smith to give the Pioneers the team’s first lead of the night at 2-1. The two goals seemed to remind Denver who they are as a team, and they began to swarm St. Cloud with aggressive offense and shots on net.

The Huskies sprang back to life with about sseven minutes left in the period, pushing the Pioneers back on their heels for a solid five minutes. When the Pioneers were finally able to regroup and get the puck back out into center ice, they were able to generate a final few shots on net with Butcher getting the best chance after a coast-to-coast bid up the left boards. However, the buzzer sounded, and the teams went to the locker rooms with Denver holding on to the 2-1 lead.

Early into the third, Ben Storm of St. Cloud (and Avalanche prospect) went to the box for two minutes, giving the Pioneers its first power play of the game. Denver made good on the man advantage, converting with just ten seconds left on the penalty. Michael Davies sniped one past Smith while Adam Plant and Liam Finlay both earned assists on the play.

With just under ten minutes left in the game, Gambrell took a well-timed holding penalty, certainly preventing St. Cloud from netting a goal to inch closer to tying the game. On the subsequent power play, the Huskies threw everything they had at the Pioneers, but Jaillet and the Denver defense stood tall to preserve the two-goal lead. At the 1:20 mark, Smith headed to the bench to give St. Cloud the extra skater. However, the Huskies were unable to solve Jaillet, and the Pioneers took the second game of the weekend 3-1.