Colorado College travels north on I-25 this weekend for the quarterfinal round of the 2025 NCHC Playoffs. The Tigers, seeded sixth, will face No. 3-seed and 6th-ranked Denver in a best-of-three series at Magness Arena, beginning on Friday, March 14, at 7 p.m. (MT). Live streaming and live stats links for the game can be found at CCTigers.com.

How To Listen / Watch
All games will be broadcast live in the Colorado Springs area and Southern Colorado on KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 FM / 1240 AM with the 'Voice of the Tigers' Ken Landau and streamed on NCHC.tv.

Last Time Out
No. 20 Colorado College dropped a pair of games to No. 7 Denver last weekend ... On Friday, Eric Pohlkamp had a goal and three assists in a 4-1 victory at Magness Arena. The Pioneers struck first with a power-play goal just 2:57 into the contest, when Samu Salminen finished a give-and-go play with Pohlkamp. After the goal, CC goalie Kaidan Mbereko was outstanding the rest of the first period, making 12 saves, including one on a breakaway by James Reeder and another from Sam Harris within 20 seconds late in the frame. Bret Link evened the score at 1-1 with a power-play goal at the 4:30 mark of the third period. Link deflected a shot from Philippe Blais-Savoie past Matt Davis for his sixth tally of the season. The Pioneers regained the lead for good when Harris fired a wrist shot from the left circle that went over Mbereko's right shoulder for a 2-1 lead at 10:41 of the final frame, then Reeder, who assisted on Harris' goal, tipped in a shot from Eric Pohlkamp with 4:50 remaining in the third. Pohlkamp closed the scoring with an empty-net goal with 59.6 seconds remaining ... On Saturday, Zaccharya Wisdom collected a season-high three points with a goal and two assists and Mbereko finished with 31 saves, but DU captured a 4-3 win at Robson Arena. Denver's Jack Devine opened the scoring with a power-play goal at the 3:29 mark of the second period. The Tigers responded with a power-play goal of their when Gleb Veremyev knocked the puck out of the air past Davis. DU regained the lead when Boston Buckberger's shot from the left point snuck past a screened Mbereko at the 14:05 mark. The Pioneers made it 4-1 with goals from James Reeder at the 2:54 mark and Zeev Buium at 6:12 of the final period, but Wisdom cut the lead back to two with his eighth goal of the season at 7:31. Owen Beckner then closed the gap to one at the 9:27 mark of the third with a beautiful wraparound play that beat Davis for his seventh goal of the season.

The Coaches
Kris Mayotte is in his fourth season at the helm of the Tigers. He came to Colorado College after serving two years as an assistant coach at the University of Michigan, and was an assistant coach for Providence College when the Friars won the NCAA Division I title in 2015. Mayotte is the reigning NCHC Coach of the Year … David Carle is in his seventh season as head coach at Denver. He led the Pioneers to the NCAA Division I title in 2021-22 and 2023-24. Carle 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.

Previous Meetings
Colorado College and Denver have met 345 times, with the Pioneers holding a 200-124-21 advantage in the series, including a 115-52-11 record in Denver. The 345 games played between CC and DU are the second-most among two schools in college hockey history. Michigan and Michigan State have played 347 contests against each other.

NCHC Playoff Quarterfinal Matchups
Best-of-Three Series
(8) St. Cloud State at (1) Western Michigan
(7) Minnesota Duluth at (2) Arizona State
(6) Colorado College at (3) Denver
(5) North Dakota at (4) Omaha

Up Next
The winners of this weekend's four quarterfinal series will advance to the NCHC Frozen Faceoff in St. Paul, Minn., March 21-22.

Conference Postseason History
Colorado College is 65-93 all-time in conference postseason play. The Tigers were 41-51-2 during first-round series' in the WCHA (a two-game, total-goal series was played prior to the 1987-88 season, best-of three series from 1988-2013), and are 7-16 in the NCHC. The Tigers fell to Omaha in three games in last year's quarterfinal series at Robson Arena. CC has won two NCHC quarterfinal series, both against Western Michigan, in three games in 2019 and two games in 2023.

Conference Tournament History vs. Denver
Colorado College and Denver have played 28 games in the conference tournament, with the Pioneers owning a 16-12 record. The teams have played seven times in the NCHC Playoffs, including twice in the quarterfinal series, with DU holding a 5-2 advantage. They last met in the opening round in 2018, when Denver rallied from losing the first game to win the series, 2-1, at Magness Arena.

Back-to-Back Weekends vs. Denver
Colorado College and Denver are set to meet in the first round of the playoffs after playing the previous weekend for the first since 2004. DU won both regular-season contests in that home-and-home series before CC swept the WCHA first-round series. The teams were scheduled to play four games in a row to close out the COVID-shortened 2020-21 campaign, but the final two outings that year on March 4-6 were cancelled. The Tigers last faced a team in back-to-back weeks in 2011-12, when they swept Michigan Tech to close the regular season, then lost to the Huskies, 2-0, in the best-of-three first round of the WCHA playoffs.

Balanced Scoring
Thirteen (13) Tigers have at least 10 points this season, led by Owen Beckner (7g,19a) with 26, followed by Max Burkhokder (6g,19a) with 25 and Ty Gallagher (6g,17a) and Noah Laba (8g,15a) with 23. Zaccharya Wisdom (8g,11a) has 19, while Klavs Veinbergs (9g,9a), Drew Montgomery (10g,8a) and Bret Link (6g,12a) each have 18. Gleb Veremyev (9g,7a) has 16 and Philippe Blais-Savoie (4g,10a) 14, followed by Stanley Cooley (6g,6a) with 12, and Gavin Lindberg (5g,5a) and Chase McLane (5g,5a) with 10. Montgomery leads the team with 10 goals, while Beckner and Burkholder top the squad with 19 assists apiece.

Career-Highs in '24-25
Four Tigers have recorded a career-high number of points this season. Max Burkholder (25 points), Klavs Veinbergs, Drew Montgomery and Bret Link, all with 18, have each surpassed his total as a freshman last season, while Ty Gallagher (23) tops his career-high from '22-23.   

Tiger Tales
Colorado College is No. 2 in the country in faceoff percentage (54.9%) after winning 58.4% (73-125) last weekend against Denver ... Klavs Veinbergs is tied for second in the NCHC in faceoff percentage (60.2%) ... The Tigers are second in the NCHC and sixth in the country in penalty killing (85.6%) ... Ty Gallagher is eighth in the NCHC with 52 blocked shots and 12th with 99 shots ... Kaidan Mbereko is seventh in program history with 44 career victories ... Owen Beckner leads the team with 26 points, tying Bryan Yoon (2018-19) for the most by a freshman in a season (24) Scott Swanson had 48 in 1995-96 ... Beckner and Max Burkholder are tied for 15th in the NCHC with 19 assists, the most by a Tigers in a season since Yoon had 23 in '18-19.

Burkholder Named Second-Team All-NCHC
Sophomore Max Burkholder was named to the All-NCHC Second Team by league coaches and media. Burkholder, who is tied for the team lead with 19 assists and is second on the squad with 25 points, collected 44 of a possible 85 points. He is the first Colorado College defenseman to earn All-NCHC honors since current Carolina Hurricane blue-liner Jaccob Slavin was a first-team selection in 2014-15.

2024-2025 First-Team All-NCHC
F: Alex Bump, Western Michigan, So. – 85 points (17 first-team votes) unanimous
F: Jack Devine, Denver, Sr. – 81 points (15)
F: Artem Shlaine, Arizona State, Gr., - 66 points (12)
D: Zeev Buium, Denver, So. – 85 points (17) unanimous
D: Jake Livanavage, North Dakota, So. – 63 points (8)
G: Simon Latkoczy, Omaha, Jr. – 62 points (10)

2024-2025 Second-Team All-NCHC
F: Aidan Thompson, Denver, Jr. – 55 points (6 first-team votes)
F: Lukas Sillinger, Arizona State, Gr. – 31 points (1)
F: Sam Stange, Omaha, Gr. – 29 points
D: Max Burkholder, Colorado College, So. – 44 points (5)
D: Noah Beck, Arizona State, Gr. – 42 points (2)
G: Hampton Slukynsky, Western Michigan, Fr. – 39 points (5)

2024-2025 Third-Team All-NCHC
F: Ryan Kirwan, Arizona State, Sr. – 27 points
F: Sam Harris, Denver, So. – 17 points (2 first-team votes)
F: Carter King, Denver, Sr. – 15 points
D: Joona Väisänen, Western Michigan, Fr. – 24 points (1)
D: Eric Pohlkamp, Denver, So. – 22 points (2)
G: Cameron Rowe, Western Michigan, Gr. – 36 points (2)
 
Laba, Mbereko and Gallagher Named Hobey Baker Nominees
Juniors Noah Laba and Kaidan Mbereko and graduate student Ty Gallagher are among 95 student-athletes nominated for the 2025 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. Consideration is given for scholastic achievement and sportsmanship. Colorado College has had two winners since the first Hobey Baker was awarded in 1981, Peter Sejna (2003) and Marty Sertich (2005).

Tied for First in Nation in OT Wins
Colorado College is tied for first in the country with Michigan with six overtime wins, which ties the 2023-24 and 1979-80 teams for the most in one season.

Five Goals in a Period
CC's five goals in the third period at Arizona State on Jan. 25 marked the first time the Tigers scored five goals in a period since Oct. 13, 2023, a 7-3 victory over Union (2nd period), and the first time with five in the third period since an 8-2 win over Western Michigan on Feb, 23, 2019.

Pair of Three-Goal Comebacks Very Rare
With the 5-4 victories over Denver (Dec. 13) and Arizona State (Jan. 25), the Tigers have collected two wins rallying from a three-goal deficit in a season for the first time in at least 25 years.
 
Most NHL Draft Picks on Roster in Two Decades
With six of the 12 newcomers (three transfers and three freshmen) joining Noah Laba, Klavs Veinbergs and Zaccharya Wisdom as National Hockey League draft picks, the 2024-25 roster has nine players that have been drafted by the NHL. That tied for the third-most on a roster in program history. The 2003-04 and '04-05 rosters each had 10 draft picks, while there were nine on the 2002-03 roster.