Box Score Highlights

Colorado College freshman Alex Leclerc made 37 saves Friday night but it wasn't enough as the Tigers fell to No. 2 Denver, 2-1, at Magness Arena.
 
With the victory, Denver improved to 19-6-4 overall and 11-3-3-2 in the NCHC, while the Tigers are 7-18-2 and 3-12-2 in league play.

Leclerc, who has 120 saves in his last three games, allowed a goal just 1:17 into the contest when Adam Plant took a pass from Will Butcher and fired a one-timer from the point that got through traffic and found the back of the net.
 
Leclerc was solid the rest of the period and finished the first 20 minutes with seven saves. He was even better in the second period, making 17 in the middle frame.
 
Each team scored once in the second period. Jared Lukosevicius put the Pioneers ahead 2-0 with a power play goal at the 5:34 mark. He took a centering pass from Henrik Borgstrom and sent a wrister from the slot over Leclerc's right shoulder.
 
Senior Matt Hansen cut the Denver lead in half with 1:46 left in the second. Freshman Kristian Blumenschein gathered the puck behind his own net, took the puck the length of the ice and eased a pass to Hansen, who sent a wrister from the left circle past the stick side of Pioneer netminder Tanner Jaillet. Leclerc started the play by stopping the puck behind the net and collected the first point of his career.
 
Leclerc kept the game close in the third with 13 saves, including point-blank stops against Evan Janssen and Tariq Hammond midway through the frame.  The Pioneers outshot CC, 39-15, with Jaillet making 14 saves for Denver.

The two teams will battle for the final time in the regular season on Saturday at The Broadmoor World Arena, beginning at 6 p.m.