Not bad for a team that was outshot 21-5 through two periods, including not registering their first shot on net for more than eight minutes of the first period, and just two for the entire first 20 minutes.
The record for fewest shots in a National Championship game was 15, which was set by Minnesota in 2023. The Golden Gophers managed to force overtime against Quinnipiac, only to lose on the first shot of the extra period. The shots finished 31-15 in favor of the Badgers.
After taking over as the number-one goaltender, freshman Johnny Hicks went 15-0-1 in 22 games, starting 15 of them. His 1.20 goals allowed average was best in the nation by a country mile, and managed three shutouts. Hicks is a tad undersized at only 5-foot-10, but played like an All American the entire second half of the season, including when Denver needed him most.
Trailing 1-0 going into the third period, Denver seemed to instantly flip a switch after Hicks made an incredible save going post-to-post to glove a shot from the edge of his crease. It was in that instant that Denver went from sitting back, to the trailing aggressor. The passes were instantly sharper, the aggression was turned up, and pucks were thrown at the net from all angles. The change seemed to startle Wisconsin, who was looking for their first crown since 2006. The Badgers once stifling defense seemed to give way to more Pioneer scoring opportunities, and allowed shots from somewhere other than the point.
Rieger Lorenz, a senior from Calgary, tied the game at 7:31 of the third period, tipping home a shot from the point by Garrett Brown. Lorenz is likely headed to Iowa in the fall, as his player rights are controlled by the Minnesota Wild. Both of Minnesota’s minor league teams play in Iowa, between the AHL’s Iowa Wild (Des Moines), and the Iowa Heartlanders (Coralville) of the ECHL. Lorenz was a second-round pick by the Wild in 2022, playing his junior hockey with the Okotoks Oilers of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL).
Kyle Chyzowski broke the tie at 14:08 on a pass from Pioneer captain Boston Buckberger, which might be the best name in all of hockey right now.
The hallmark of Denver’s run to another title was their defense. The Pioneers blocked 31 shots, and Hicks stopped 29 of 30 Wisconsin shots to hoist the trophy. This was Denver’s third championship in the David Carle era, who is now 12-3 in the NCAA Tournament. In eight seasons, Denver has made the Frozen Four five times.
Hicks’ performance reminded a lot of hockey fans of the run that Jordan Binnington went on in 2019 as a rookie with the St. Louis Blues of the NHL. Binnington was a rookie called up midseason while the Blues were near the bottom of the NHL’s overall standings. He backstopped the Blues to the Stanley Cup Championship a few months later, and more recently a silver medal at this February’s Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics for Team Canada. Hicks finished this season with a .957 save percentage, which would make an NHL goaltender envious to have numbers that great for a 5-game stretch. He also made 49 saves in the Pioneers’ upset win over top-seeded Michigan in the semifinals on Friday night.
Johnny Hicks was also named Most Outstanding Player after a .955 save percentage in the tournament, capped off by a number of highlight-reel saves in the second and third periods on Saturday to steal a potential fourth National Championship away from a Big 10 school so far in 2026, and denied Michigan a chance to win their second National Championship of the week, after the Wolverines won the men’s basketball crown last Monday.
In 15 games of the NCAA Tournament, only six were decided by one goal. However, two of the regional finals, and every game in Las Vegas for the Frozen Four were among them. Denver outscored opponents 17-6 in their four game run to the 11th title.
The irony of Saturday also came in Denver winning a National Championship in Las Vegas, and the Vegas Golden Knights clinching a playoff spot in the NHL with an overtime win over the Colorado Avalanche in Denver a few hours later.
-JC24