DENVER–(UND Athletics) Second-ranked North Dakota had its six-game win streak snapped at the hands of host No. 18 Denver, 4-1, Sunday night at Magness Arena. UND remains just one point shy of St. Cloud State in the NCHC race with two games in hand on the Huskies.
A rested Denver (5-7-1) team, which hadn’t played since Jan. 2, used an efficient penalty kill (UND was 0-for-6 on the power play) and an opportunistic offensive push to tally the win. The Pioneers potted two in each of the first two periods to gain control and send the Fighting Hawks to their first loss in over a month (Dec. 12 vs. St. Cloud State in Omaha).
Late in the first, Denver scored a pair just under three minutes apart from each other to take a 2-0 lead heading into the intermission. Midway through the middle frame, Denver got two more even-strength goals to jump out to 4-0 edge through two periods of play.
With just 1:11 to play, Tyler Kleven finally broke through with a goal to spoil the shutout. Harrison Blaisdell was tied up with two DU defenders in the corner and Louis Jamernik skated it out of there and passed to Kleven at the point. The freshman walked his way to the slot and fired a shot through traffic that made its way past Magnus Chrona at 18:49 for the Hawks’ lone goal. It marked the first point of Jamernik’s collegiate career and the first point for Blaisdell this season.
Adam Scheel made 16 saves in the opening two periods before Peter Thome stopped all 10 shots he faced in the third period for North Dakota.
The teams will play again Monday evening with puck drop at 8:06 p.m. Central on CBS Sports Network and the Home of Ecomony Fighting Hawks Radio Network.
NOTES
*UND had won 6 consecutive games and hadn’t suffered a loss in 36 days.
*North Dakota remains one of just five Divison I teams (Arizona State, Long Island, Maine, Sacred Heart) that have yet to play a home game this season (51 teams playing this year).
*The Fighting Hawks trailed by four goals for the first time since Nov. 30, 2018 in a 5-0 setback at Minnesota-Duluth (UND won the following night, 2-1.
Comments