The chalk held firm all throughout the postseason and now we will see the two top seeds in college hockey square off on Saturday night. The Denver Pioneers were the overall No. 1 seed and have dominated opponents through the NCAA hockey tournament, but the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs keep finding ways to win and have beaten Denver before. These two teams split a two-game series in Denver back in December and now the rubber match will be for the championship.
Don’t miss the action on the ice from the United Center in Chicago at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, April 8, 2017. Catch every moment of the game live on ESPN. We will have NCAA hockey odds at BookMaker.eu available for the national championship game.
College Hockey Odds at BookMaker.eu
Denver has looked like a team possessed since the playoffs began, ripping opponents to shreds on a nightly basis. The Pioneers defeated Michigan Tech 5-2 and Penn State 6-3 to reach the Frozen Four, but saved its best performance for last night’s game against Notre Dame.
The Pioneers eviscerated the Fighting Irish last night, jumping on them from the start on their way to a 6-1 win. Denver outshot Notre Dame by a whopping margin of 42 to 17 as the Irish could neither get anything going offensively nor stop the Pioneers. The lone Notre Dame goal was on the power play when the team was already down 5-0, while Denver scored all of its goals at even strength.
As for Minnesota-Duluth, the Bulldogs almost played in their 13th overtime game of the season last night, but a goal from Alex Iafallo with less than 30 seconds remaining ended up sending the Bulldogs on to the national title game instead. It was a heart-breaking loss for Harvard, but this is what Minnesota-Duluth has done all season long on the back of Hunter Miska.
Miska stopped 39 of the 40 shots he faced against Harvard and has been one of the best goaltenders in college hockey this season. Despite being a freshman, he has not let the big stage bother him and now has this team on the cusp of a title.
Last Meetings
When these teams met earlier this season, both sides pulled out a victory in the way you would expect. Denver’s win came on the strength of a solid offensive performance, while UMD relied on defense to carry the day.
The Pioneers got the first win in the series by jumping on the Bulldogs in the second period. Denver notched three goals in the second, two within 22 seconds of each other, to erase a 1-0 deficit and carried that to a 4-3 victory. Minnesota-Duluth did notch a late goal to threaten overtime, but it was too little, too late.
In the second game, the Bulldogs broke the Pioneers 15 game unbeaten streak to start the season. Miska stopped 14 shots in the third period while the Bulldogs clung to a one-goal victory, but he held on and UMD finished Denver off with an empty-net goal.
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These teams are well-acquainted with each other and know each other’s weaknesses. Denver will want to play a fast-paced, up and down game and try to put as many pucks on the net as possible, while Minnesota-Duluth would prefer to limit scoring opportunities and rely on Miska to win them the game like it has done all season long.
In this showdown, look for Denver to pull through and claim its eighth national title. The Pioneers have looked dominant and can consistently put pressure on net through all of their line combinations. Miska will play well, but the Pioneers have too much talent and firepower for him to get it done. Denver will put the game away over the last 30 minutes of action.
College Hockey Odds: Denver 5, Minnesota-Duluth 3
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