Colorado College Tigers vs. Denver Pioneers

Game Notes: Colorado College | Denver
Date: Tuesday, Feb. 26
Time: 7:07 pm
Location: Colorado Springs, Colo.
Venue: Broadmoor World Arena (7,380)
Radio: KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 FM
TV: None
Live Streaming: NCHC.tv
Records: CC 12-15-4, 6-10-3-0 NCHC | DU 17-8-4, 9-8-2-2 NCHC
Series: Denver leads 178-118-20
First Game: 1/6/50, CC won 16-0
Last Game: 1/19/19, Tied 4-4
Streak: Tie - 1

Tuesday's Game
Colorado College continues its five-game homestand at the Broadmoor World Arena, Feb. 26, against the No. 6-ranked Denver Pioneers. The game, which was originally scheduled for Jan. 18, but postponed when the Pioneers were unable to make it to Colorado Springs due to adverse weather and travel conditions, will begin at 7:07 p.m. It will be broadcast in the Pikes Peak Region on KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 and 92.5 FM, and 1240 AM, KSBV 93.7 West of Pikes Peak and streamed live on NCHC.tv.
 
Last Time Out
The Tigers split a series last weekend against No. 8 Western Michigan ... On Friday, Hugh McGing scored 18 seconds into overtime to give the Broncos a 5-4 come-from-behind victory. McGing took a pass from Lawton Courtnall in front of the net and snuck a shot past CC goalie Alex Leclerc for the game winner. The Tigers took a 4-2 lead early in the third period when Ben Copeland scored just 1:46 into the frame, but McGing scored at the 4:24 mark and Austin Rueschhoff tied it up at 6:23. Chris Wilkie opened the scoring at the 9:49 mark of the first period. Zach Berzolla forced a turnover at the red line, giving the Tigers a 2-on-1. Trey Bradley found Wilkie, who blasted a one-timer from the left circle past Gorsuch. The Broncos evened things up just 1:03 later when Cam Lee placed a wrister from the slot past Leclerc at the 10:52 mark. Westin Michaud put the Tigers ahead 2-1 with 1:44 remaining in the frame. Bradley rolled down the left side and put a shot on net that was saved by Gorsuch, but Michaud was right in front for the rebound and his ninth goal of the season. Bradley made it 3-1 with 4:34 remaining in the second period with his team-leading 12th goal of the season and third point of the night. After his initial shot was saved, Bradley collected the puck, skated behind the net and put a shot off Gorsuch that went in. Ethen Frank answered with 1:15 left in the middle frame make it 3-2 after 40 minutes. Bradley and Wilkie each collected a goal and two assists Friday night, giving Wilkie a season-high three points while tying his career high with eight shots on net ... On Saturday, Copeland scored four goals and Trevor Gooch had four assists as the Tigers routed WMU, 8-2. Copeland opened the scoring as the Tigers took advantage of a five-minute checking from behind major and game misconduct call to WMU's Cam Lee at the 9:07 mark of the first period. Copeland scored at the 11:15 mark after putting in a rebound off a shot by Mason Bergh. After a hooking call to WMU at 12:02, Michaud took a pass from Bradley and beat Gorsuch for a 5-on-3 goal and a 2-0 lead at the 12:41 mark. The Broncos evened the score at 2-2 in the second, but Copeland notched the first multi-goal game of his career and put the Tigers ahead 3-2 with 5:17 remaining in the second. During a scrum in front of the net, Copeland and Michaud each had a shot saved by Gorsuch, but Copeland stuck with it and put it home. Grant Cruikshank scored twice in a span of 2:47 to give the Tigers a 5-2 advantage, then Copeland notched his third and fourth of the game at the 6:22 and 10:07 mark, respectively. Wilkie finished the scoring with his sixth goal of the season.

Five in a Period
Colorado College scored five goals in the third period Saturday, the first time since Nov. 6, 2010 (6 in the third period vs. Denver) with at least five goals in one period.

For The Record
Colorado College is 11-14-4 overall and 5-9-3-0 in the NCHC, good for sixth place in the conference ... Denver is 17-8-4 and 9-8-2-2 in conference play after splitting a series with Miami at home last weekend. The Pioneers are in fourth place in the NCHC.

The Gold Pan
This season marks the 26th anniversary of The Gold Pan. Established by former head coaches Don Lucia of Colorado College and Frank Serratore of Denver in 1993-94, the Gold Pan has been awarded every season since to the team that prevails in the regular-season series between CC and DU. In the event of an even split of the four games, the team currently in possession of the trophy keeps it. Denver has hoisted the trophy 13 times and Colorado College 12 in its 25 years of existence.

Previous Meetings
Colorado College and Denver have played 316 times, with the Pioneers holding a 178-118-20 advantage in the series. The teams skated to a 4-4 tie on Jan. 19 in Denver in the only matchup so far this season.

Second Most Played Rivalry in College Hockey
The 316 games played between Colorado College and Denver are the second most among two schools in college hockey history. Only Michigan and Michigan State have played each other more (324).

Up Next
The Tigers continue their five-game homestand this weekend, March 1-2, by hosting the North Dakota Fighting Hawks.  

Tiger Tales
Bradley leads the team in scoring with 27 points (12g,15a) this season, followed by Michaud with 23 (10g,13a) and Gooch (10g,10a) and Bergh (5g,15a) with 20 apiece. Leclerc has a 12-14-4 record, with a 2.79 GAA and .911 saves percentage. He is tied for second in the nation among goalies with two assists this season.  

Scouting the Pioneers
Liam Finlay leads the Pioneers and is tied for second in the NCHC with 31 points (12g,19a). Jarid Lukosevicius (15g,9a) and Emilio Pettersen (6g,18a) follow with 24 points apiece. Devin Cooley has played in 16 games this season and sports an 9-5-1 record, along with a 2.01 GAA and .930 saves percentage, while Filip Larsson has a 9-3-2 record in 14 appearances, along with a 2.37 GAA and .917 saves percentage.  

The Coaches
Mike Haviland (Elmira College, '90) is in his fifth season at the helm of the Tigers. He came to Colorado College after serving one year as head coach of the Hershey Bears (AHL). Haviland was an assistant coach for the Chicago Blackhawks from 2008-12, helping the team win the Stanley Cup in 2010 … David Carle (Denver, '12) is in his first season as head coach at Denver. He served as an assistant coach for the Pioneers the previous four and a half seasons following a season and a half as an assistant coach with the Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL. He is the youngest active head coach in Division I.

Very Defensive in 12 Wins
In their 12 victories this season, the Tigers have allowed 19 goals, and have given up 71 in the other 18 games.

Four Goals ...
Copeland became the first CC player to score four times in a game since Andrew Hamburg against Air Force on Oct. 19, 2012 and the first Tiger freshman with four goals since Jay McNeill against Air Force on Nov. 11, 1992. Copeland is the second Division I player in the country to score four goals in a game this season (Arizona State's Johnny Walker on Oct. 27 vs. Omaha) and the first DI freshman to score four goals in a game since New Hampshire's Patrick Grasso on Oct. 29, 2016 vs. Merrimack. He is also the second player to score four goals in an NCHC conference game in the history of the league. Joey Benik of St. Cloud State had four goals vs. WMU on Nov. 14, 2015.

Four Assists ...
Meanwhile, Gooch became the first CC player to collect four assists in a game since Jaden Schwartz at Michigan Tech on Dec. 3, 2010.

Century Club Watch
With his two assists Saturday night vs. Western Michigan, Bergh has 97 career points (41g,56a) and is tied for 79th on CC's career scoring list. The last Tiger to join the Century Club was Alexander Krushelnyski on Feb. 22, 2014.

Senior Class Scoring
Colorado College leads the NCHC and is fourth in the country with 111 points scored by a senior class. The Tigers' Class of 2019 has 42 goals this season, which also leads the league and is tied for fourth in the nation. Mercyhurst leads the nation with 130 points and 50 goals.

Lots of Extra Time
Friday night's game was CC's ninth overtime contest this season, equaling last year's total for the most in one season since playing 11 during the 2013-14 campaign. The  Tigers are 0-5-4 in overtime this season and last won in overtime since Jan. 20, 2018, a 6-5 victory at Western Michigan.

Tough Schedule Again This Season
After playing 21 of its 36 games against ranked teams last season, the Tigers are at it again this year. Four of Colorado College's 15 opponents this season played in the NCAA Division I Hockey Tournament last season and 20 of CC's 36 regular-season games are scheduled against teams that are ranked in this week's USCHO's Top 20 poll, with 12 against the last three national champions (Minn. Duluth, Denver and North Dakota), the most of any team in the country. Each of the last five games and four of CC's final six games this season are against teams currently ranked in the top 10 in the country.

Not a Lot of Whistles
Colorado College is one of the least penalized teams in college hockey. The Tigers rank second in the nation for fewest penalties called per game (3.45) and sixth in fewest      penalty minutes per game (8.48). CC was not called for a penalty against Vermont on Dec. 7, the first time the Tigers were not whistled since Dec. 14, 2013 at Wisconsin.

Nine Straight Road Games
With the postponement of the Jan. 18 home game against Denver, the Tigers played nine consecutive true road games between Dec. 8 and Feb. 1, marking the longest such streak in program history. CC has played eight in a row on the road several times and played 12 straight games away from home, which included four neutral site games,    during the 1965-66 season.

First Road Sweep Since 2012
With a couple of victories at Miami, Jan. 25-26, the Tigers completed their first regular-season weekend sweep on the road since Nov. 2-3, 2012 at Wisconsin. It also marked the first sweep against an NCHC opponent since Dec. 4-5, 2015 against Miami at home.

Happy 80th
This season marks the 80th year of varsity ice hockey at Colorado College and sixth season as a member of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference. CC was a charter member of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (1951-52) for 62 seasons before joining the NCHC with seven other schools prior to the 2013-14 campaign.

Michaud and Bradley Nominated for Hobey Baker Award
Michaud and Bradley are among 81 student-athletes nominated for the 2019 Hobey Baker Award. The Hobey Baker Award is presented annually to the collegiate hockey player who best demonstrates strength of character both on and off the ice, contributes to the integrity of his team and displays outstanding skills in all phases of the game. Colorado College has had two winners since the first Hobey Baker was awarded in 1981, Peter Sejna (2003) and Marty Sertich (2005).

On the Air
All CC games in 2018-19, home and away, will be broadcast live throughout Southern Colorado on KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 and 92.5 FM and 1240 AM, featuring Ken Landau with the play-by-play. Friday's pre-game shows start 60 minutes before faceoff, with a 30-minute pregame show on Saturday. The broadcasts also can be heard worldwide via the Internet ... Selected games, including Tuesday's, will also be available on KSBV 93.7 FM in Cripple Creek, Divide, Buena Vista, Monarch and Leadville.

New On-Campus Arena on the Horizon
Colorado College, in partnership with Colorado Springs' City for Champions initiative, has unveiled a proposal to build the Edward J. Robson Arena as an on-campus competition arena. The arena, with an estimated capacity of between 3,000 and 3,650 seats, would become the permanent home of CC Tiger Hockey and for the first time since the program began in 1938, the hockey team would play games on campus.

Pikes Peak Trophy Comes to CC
With the victory over Air Force on Oct. 13, Colorado College claimed the Pikes Peak Trophy for the first time. In 2013, Colorado College and Air Force established the Pikes Peak Trophy in memory of the former head coach of both schools, John Matchefts. Matchefts compiled a record of 54-88-3 in five seasons (1966-71) at the Colorado College helm before posting a ledger of 154-150-6 in 11 years (1974-85) with Air Force. The Tigers now own a 61-13-2 all-time record against Air Force.

Mason Bergh a Finalist for Senior CLASS Award
Bergh has been selected as one of 10 finalists for the 2018-19 Senior CLASS Award for hockey. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.