2020–21 Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey season
College ice hockey team season
The 2020–21 Denver Pioneers men's ice hockey season was the 72nd season of play for the program and the 8th in the NCHC conference. The Pioneers represented the University of Denver and were coached by David Carle , in his 3rd season.
Season
As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic the entire college ice hockey season was delayed. Because the NCAA had previously announced that all winter sports athletes would retain whatever eligibility they possessed through at least the following year, none of Denver's players would lose a season of play.[ 1] However, the NCAA also approved a change in its transfer regulations that would allow players to transfer and play immediately rather than having to sit out a season, as the rules previously required.[ 2]
Denver came into the season with high expectations. From the start, however, nothing seemed to go right for the Pioneers. After the season's start was delayed, Denver joined the rest of the NCHC in Omaha, Nebraska for a condensed slate of games in December. The team started slow but looked like they were rounding into form in mid-December. Unfortunately, a theme for the entire season proved to be inconsistency. For most of the year the Pioneers couldn't string together a series of wins, or even strong performances, and they watched as their ranking fell every week until they left the top-20 altogether. By the end of the season Denver sat in the middle of the standings but was 3 games below .500.
While there were some who still included the Pioneers as possible bubble teams, their losing record was a sizable impediment to the team playing in the NCAA Tournament .[ 3] Denver's only probably road to the tournament was to win the NCHC Championship and the team responded well in the quarterfinals, overcoming a 2-goal deficit to upset tournament-bound Omaha . In the semis they faced #2 North Dakota and took a lead into the third period. The Hawks outplayed Denver in the frame but, as time went along, it appeared that Magnus Chrona might be able to shut out UND. It took North Dakota pulling their goaltender to give them enough firepower to break through and tie the game. In the overtime session, Denver never found their footing and were outshot 9–1 in less than nine minutes. The final goal came from a UND stick and ended the game as well as any chance Denver had to extend their season. This was Denver's first losing season in 21 years.[ 4]
Departures
Recruiting
Player
Position
Nationality
Age
Notes
Michael Benning
Defenseman
Canada
18
St. Albert, AB ; selected 95th overall in 2020
Connor Caponi
Forward
United States
20
Brookfield, WI
Jack Caruso
Goaltender
United States
21
St. Louis, MO
Bo Hanson
Defenseman
United States
22
Boise, ID ; transfer from St. Lawrence
Reid Irwin
Forward/Defenseman
Canada
21
Victoria, BC
Steven Jandric
Forward
Canada
23
Prince George, BC ; transfer from Alaska
Corbin Kaczperski
Goaltender
United States
24
China Township, MI ; graduate transfer from Yale
Carter King
Forward
Canada
19
Calgary, AB
Carter Savoie
Forward
Canada
18
St. Albert, AB ; selected 100th overall in 2020
Antti Tuomisto
Defenseman
Finland
19
Pori, FIN ; selected 35th overall in 2019
McKade Webster
Forward
United States
20
St. Louis, MO ; selected 213th overall in 2019
Jack Works
Forward
Canada
19
Yellowknife, NT
Roster
As of March 1, 2021.[ 5] [ 6] [ 7]
No.
S/P/C
Player
Class
Pos
Height
Weight
DoB
Hometown
Previous team
NHL rights
3
Antti Tuomisto
Freshman
D
6' 5" (1.96 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
2001-01-20
Pori, Finland
Ässät U20 (Nuorten SM-liiga )
DET , 35th overall 2019
4
Griffin Mendel (A )
Senior
D
6' 4" (1.93 m)
220 lb (100 kg)
1999-02-18
Kelowna, British Columbia
Penticton (BCHL )
—
6
McKade Webster
Freshman
F
5' 10" (1.78 m)
170 lb (77 kg)
2000-07-28
St. Louis, Missouri
Green Bay (USHL )
TBL , 213 overall 2019
7
Brett Stapley
Junior
F
5' 10" (1.78 m)
177 lb (80 kg)
1999-02-23
Campbell River, British Columbia
Vernon (BCHL )
MTL , 190th overall 2018
8
Carter Savoie
Freshman
F
5' 9" (1.75 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
2002-01-23
St. Albert, Alberta
Sherwood Park (AJHL )
EDM , 100th overall 2020
10
Jaakko Heikkinen
Senior
F
6' 2" (1.88 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
1997-03-17
Helsinki, Finland
Jokerit U20 (Nuorten SM-liiga )
—
11
Steven Jandric
Senior
F
5' 10" (1.78 m)
203 lb (92 kg)
1997-08-18
Prince George, British Columbia
Alaska (WCHA )
—
12
Kohen Olischefski (C )
Senior
F
6' 1" (1.85 m)
187 lb (85 kg)
1998-02-01
Abbotsford, British Columbia
Chilliwack (BCHL )
—
14
Bo Hanson
Senior
D
6' 1" (1.85 m)
203 lb (92 kg)
1997-11-13
Boise, Idaho
St. Lawrence (ECAC )
—
15
Carter King
Freshman
F
5' 10" (1.78 m)
178 lb (81 kg)
2001-08-30
Calgary, Alberta
Surrey (BCHL )
—
16
Jake Durflinger
Senior
F
5' 8" (1.73 m)
170 lb (77 kg)
1997-10-06
Walnut Creek, California
Bloomington (USHL )
—
17
Slava Demin
Junior
D
6' 3" (1.91 m)
191 lb (87 kg)
2000-04-04
Cypress, California
Wenatchee (BCHL )
CHI , 99th overall 2018
18
Ryan Barrow (A )
Senior
F
6' 2" (1.88 m)
184 lb (83 kg)
1997-02-15
Banff, Alberta
Langley (BCHL )
—
19
Cole Guttman
Junior
F
5' 9" (1.75 m)
169 lb (77 kg)
1999-04-06
Los Angeles, California
Dubuque (USHL )
TBL , 180th overall 2017
20
Michael Benning
Freshman
D
5' 8" (1.73 m)
178 lb (81 kg)
2002-01-05
St. Albert, Alberta
Sherwood Park (AJHL )
FLA , 95th overall 2020
21
Reid Irwin
Freshman
D
6' 1" (1.85 m)
178 lb (81 kg)
1999-03-01
Victoria, British Columbia
Sherwood Park (AJHL )
—
22
Connor Caponi
Freshman
F
5' 9" (1.75 m)
186 lb (84 kg)
2000-03-20
Nashville, Tennessee
Waterloo (USHL )
—
23
Lane Krenzen
Sophomore
D
5' 9" (1.75 m)
183 lb (83 kg)
1998-02-21
Twig, Minnesota
Austin (NAHL )
—
24
Bobby Brink
Sophomore
F
5' 9" (1.75 m)
164 lb (74 kg)
2001-07-08
Minnetonka, Minnesota
Sioux City (USHL )
PHI , 34th overall 2019
25
Jack Works
Freshman
F
6' 0" (1.83 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
2001-05-23
Yellowknife, Northwest Territories
Okotoks (AJHL )
—
26
Jack Doremus
Senior
F
6' 1" (1.85 m)
178 lb (81 kg)
1997-04-15
Aspen, Colorado
Lincoln (USHL )
—
27
Kyle Mayhew
Junior
D
5' 7" (1.7 m)
156 lb (71 kg)
1997-12-25
Anaheim Hills, California
Fairbanks (NAHL )
—
28
Brett Edwards
Sophomore
F
5' 11" (1.8 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
1998-09-10
Grande Prairie, Alberta
Drumheller (AJHL )
—
30
Magnus Chrona
Sophomore
G
6' 5" (1.96 m)
207 lb (94 kg)
2000-08-28
Skellefteå, Sweden
Skellefteå J20 (J20 SuperElit )
SJS , 152nd overall 2018
31
Jack Caruso
Freshman
G
5' 9" (1.75 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
1999-06-07
St. Louis, Missouri
Fairbanks (NAHL )
—
32
Justin Lee
Sophomore
D
6' 0" (1.83 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
2000-03-14
Waskada, Manitoba
Fargo (USHL )
—
33
Corbin Kaczperski
Senior
G
6' 3" (1.91 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
1996-03-02
China Township, Michigan
Yale (ECAC )
—
37
Hank Crone
Junior
F
5' 9" (1.75 m)
151 lb (68 kg)
1998-02-19
Dallas, Texas
Fargo (USHL )
—
Standings
Conference record
Overall record
GP
W
L
T
OTW
OTL
3/SW
PTS
PT%
GF
GA
GP
W
L
T
GF
GA
#5 North Dakota †*
24
18
5
1
2
1
0
54
.750
94
47
29
22
6
1
114
57
#2 St. Cloud State
24
15
9
0
3
3
0
45
.625
78
64
31
20
11
0
101
84
#3 Minnesota Duluth
24
13
9
2
1
2
1
43
.597
72
54
28
15
11
2
84
66
#13 Omaha
24
14
9
1
4
0
1
40
.556
79
69
26
14
11
1
85
81
Denver
22
9
12
1
0
2
1
31
.470
61
60
24
11
13
1
67
66
Western Michigan
24
10
11
3
1
0
1
33
.458
73
84
25
10
12
3
77
89
Colorado College
22
4
16
2
0
2
2
18
.273
35
77
23
4
17
2
36
79
Miami
24
5
17
2
0
1
0
18
.250
46
83
25
5
18
2
48
89
Championship : March 16, 2021 † indicates conference regular season champion (Penrose Cup) * indicates conference tournament champion (Frozen Faceoff Championship Trophy) Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll
Schedule and Results
Date
Time
Opponent#
Rank#
Site
TV
Decision
Result
Attendance
Record
Regular Season
December 2
6:35 PM
vs. #3 Minnesota Duluth
#4
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Altitude
Chrona
L 1–2
0
0–1–0 (0–1–0)
December 4
6:35 PM
vs. #1 North Dakota
#4
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Altitude
Chrona
L 3–4 OT
0
0–2–0 (0–2–0)
December 5
7:05 PM
vs. St. Cloud State
#4
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Altitude
Chrona
L 3–4
0
0–3–0 (0–3–0)
December 8
2:35 PM
vs. #1 North Dakota
#9
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Altitude
Chrona
W 3–2
0
1–3–0 (1–3–0)
December 10
2:35 PM
vs. Miami
#9
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Altitude
Chrona
W 5–1
0
2–3–0 (2–3–0)
December 12
11:05 AM
vs. #3 Minnesota Duluth
#9
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Altitude
Chrona
L 1–4
0
2–4–0 (2–4–0)
December 15
2:35 PM
vs. Western Michigan
#8
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Altitude
Kaczperski
W 3–2
0
3–4–0 (3–4–0)
December 17
6:35 PM
vs. Miami
#8
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Altitude
Kaczperski
L 0–3
0
3–5–0 (3–5–0)
December 19
3:05 PM
vs. Western Michigan
#8
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Altitude
Kaczperski
T 3–3 SOW
0
3–5–1 (3–5–1)
December 20
3:05 PM
vs. #9 St. Cloud State
#8
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Altitude
Chrona
L 1–3
0
3–6–1 (3–6–1)
January 1
7:06 PM
at Colorado College
#16
Broadmoor World Arena • Colorado Springs , Colorado
CBSSN
Chrona
L 3–4
0
3–7–1 (3–7–1)
January 2
7:07 PM
vs. Colorado College
#16
Magness Arena • Denver , Colorado
Kaczperski
W 6–1
0
4–7–1 (4–7–1)
January 17
7:05 PM
vs. #2 North Dakota
#18
Magness Arena • Denver , Colorado
Chrona
W 4–1
0
5–7–1 (5–7–1)
January 18
7:05 PM
vs. #3 North Dakota
#19
Magness Arena • Denver , Colorado
CBSSN
Chrona
L 1–5
0
5–8–1 (5–8–1)
January 23
5:07 PM
at #11 Omaha
#19
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Kaczperski
W 4–1
1,322
6–8–1 (6–8–1)
January 24
5:00 PM
at #11 Omaha
#19
Baxter Arena • Omaha , Nebraska
Kaczperski
L 2–5
611
6–9–1 (6–9–1)
February 5
7:07 PM
vs. #9 Omaha
Magness Arena • Denver , Colorado
Chrona
W 3–1
0
7–9–1 (7–9–1)
February 6
6:07 PM
vs. #9 Omaha
Magness Arena • Denver , Colorado
CBSSN
Kaczperski
L 4–5 OT
0
7–10–1 (7–10–1)
February 12
6:37 PM
at #2 North Dakota
Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks , North Dakota
Chrona
L 0–3
2,286
7–11–1 (7–11–1)
February 13
5:07 PM
at #2 North Dakota
Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks , North Dakota
Chrona
L 2–5
2,466
7–12–1 (7–12–1)
February 25
7:07 PM
at Colorado College
Broadmoor World Arena • Colorado Springs , Colorado
Chrona
W 5–1
0
8–12–1 (8–12–1)
February 27
7:05 PM
vs. Colorado College
Magness Arena • Denver , Colorado
Chrona
W 4–0
0
9–12–1 (9–12–1)
NCHC Tournament
March 13
1:30 PM
vs. #11 Omaha
Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks , North Dakota (NCHC Quarterfinals)
Chrona
W 5–4
1,864
10–12–1
March 15
7:00 PM
at #2 North Dakota
Ralph Engelstad Arena • Grand Forks , North Dakota (NCHC Semifinals)
Chrona
L 1–2 OT
2,509
10–13–1
*Non-conference game. # Rankings from USCHO.com Poll . All times are in Mountain Time .
[ 8]
Scoring statistics
Name
Position
Games
Goals
Assists
Points
PIM
Cole Guttman
C
23
8
14
22
12
Carter Savoie
LW
24
13
7
20
23
Kohen Olischefski
RW
23
4
10
14
21
Michael Benning
D
21
3
8
11
8
Bobby Brink
RW
15
2
9
11
4
Antti Tuomisto
D
24
2
9
11
23
Hank Crone
LW
13
5
4
9
4
Ryan Barrow
F
24
4
5
9
10
McKade Webster
LW
22
3
6
9
16
Slava Demin
D
21
3
5
8
22
Jaakko Heikkinen
F
24
1
7
8
6
Brett Stapley
C
13
4
3
7
2
Justin Lee
D
24
4
2
6
6
Steven Jandric
LW
20
1
5
6
6
Brett Edwards
F
20
2
2
4
12
Jake Durflinger
RW
22
2
2
4
14
Connor Caponi
F
24
2
2
4
25
Bo Hanson
D
12
1
3
4
4
Kyle Mayhew
D
20
0
4
4
17
Reid Irwin
C /D
12
3
0
3
6
Jack Doremus
F
14
0
2
2
6
Magnus Chrona
G
18
0
2
2
0
Griffin Mendel
D
24
0
2
2
12
Lane Krenzen
D
3
0
1
1
4
Carter King
F
3
0
1
1
0
Jack Works
F
5
0
1
1
2
Corbin Kaczperski
G
9
0
1
1
0
Jack Caruso
G
1
0
0
0
0
Bench
-
-
-
-
-
8
Total
67
117
184
273
[ 9]
Goaltending statistics
Name
Games
Minutes
Wins
Losses
Ties
Goals Against
Saves
Shut Outs
SV %
GAA
Jack Caruso
1
3:05
0
0
0
0
1
0
1.000
0.00
Magnus Chrona
18
1043
7
11
0
43
421
1
.907
2.47
Corbin Kaczperski
9
392
3
2
1
17
112
0
.868
2.60
Empty Net
-
17
-
-
-
6
-
-
-
-
Total
24
1456
10
13
1
66
534
1
.890
2.72
Rankings
Poll
Week
Pre
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21 (Final)
USCHO.com
5
4
5
4
9
8
14
16
17
18
19
20
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
-
NR
USA Today
4
5
6
4
8
7
12
14
NR
NR
15
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
NR
USCHO did not release a poll in week 20. [ 10]
Awards and honors
Players drafted into the NHL
† incoming freshman
[ 12]
References
^ "NCAA approves blanket waiver for 2020 fall sports athletes to retain year of eligibility" . CBS Sports . August 21, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021 .
^ "DI Council grants waiver to allow transfer student-athletes to compete immediately" . NCAA . December 16, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021 .
^ "Bracketology: With Selection Sunday around the corner, taking one last stab at how the NCAA hockey tournament field will look" . USCHO . March 18, 2021. Retrieved March 29, 2021 .
^ "Denver Men's Hockey Team History" . USCHO . Retrieved April 15, 2021 .
^ "2019–20 Men's Ice Hockey Roster" . Denver University. Retrieved July 3, 2018 .
^ "Kohen Olischefski Named Captain for 2020-21 Season" . Denver University. Retrieved April 14, 2020 .
^ "Ian Mitchell Signs with Chicago Blackhawks" . Denver University. Retrieved April 14, 2020 .
^ "Denver Pioneers (Men) 2020-2021 Schedule and Results" . College Hockey Stats . Retrieved December 5, 2019 .
^ "Denver Univ. 2020-2021 Skater Stats" . Elite Prospects . Retrieved July 3, 2020 .
^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll" . USCHO.com . Retrieved November 26, 2019 .
^ "Five Teams Represented on 2020-21 NCHC All-Rookie Team" . nchchockey.com . March 8, 2021. Archived from the original on April 12, 2021. Retrieved April 5, 2021 .
^ "NCAA player rankings, selections in 2021 NHL Draft" . USCHO.com . Retrieved July 24, 2021 .