{"id":146838,"date":"2024-03-30T20:01:11","date_gmt":"2024-03-31T01:01:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uscho.com\/?p=146838"},"modified":"2024-03-31T12:21:15","modified_gmt":"2024-03-31T17:21:15","slug":"denver-gets-back-to-frozen-four-with-2-1-win-over-cornell-to-claim-springfield-regional-championship","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uscho.com\/2024\/03\/30\/denver-gets-back-to-frozen-four-with-2-1-win-over-cornell-to-claim-springfield-regional-championship\/","title":{"rendered":"Denver plays ‘whatever we need to play,’ earns Frozen Four berth, Springfield regional championship with 2-1 win over Cornell"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Denver edged Cornell 2-1 in Springfield, Mass., and the Pioneers are returning to the Frozen Four (photo: Denver Athletics).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. \u2014<\/strong> The highest scoring team in the nation didn’t need much of it to get back to the Frozen Four.<\/p>\n

Denver, a team known for often posting victories by wide margins, posted its second-straight 2-1 victory in the NCAA tournament on Saturday. Two late-period goals were all the Pioneers needed for a thrilling win over Cornell in the NCAA regional final before a crowd of 4,407 at the MassMutual Center.<\/p>\n

“We’ll play whatever we need to play,” said Denver coach David Carle, whose team went into the afternoon averaging 4.78 goals per game. “You look at our team, we’re comfortable playing any type of game now. We have a lot of confidence regardless of the style of play. Just really proud of our team for being able to execute in these types of hockey games.”<\/p>\n

Denver goalie Matt Davis made 24 saves, none bigger than when he stopped Cornell’s Ryan Walsh with his right pad on a point-blank opportunity with less than 10 seconds remaining in the game.<\/p>\n

“I thought the guys did a heck of a job there just shutting them down,” said Davis, the tournament MVP who deflects praise as well as he does pucks. “(Cornell’s) a hard, heavy team, and they look to create chaos at the net front. The guys were awesome in front of me there.”<\/p>\n

NCHC champion Denver (30-9-3) will now head to the Frozen Four for the 19th time in program history, and first since 2022, when it won its ninth NCAA championship with a 5-1 win over Minnesota State in the final. ECAC Hockey champion Cornell, looking for its first trip to the Frozen Four since 2003, saw its season end at 22-7-6.<\/p>\n

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Four seconds left in the period? a PERFECT time for a Harris power play goal<\/p>\n

\ud83c\udfa5@ESPNU<\/a> \/\/ @ESPNPlus<\/a> #GoPios<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/6ofSFeDqNp<\/a><\/p>\n

— Denver Hockey (@DU_Hockey) March 30, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n