Men's Ice Hockey | January 11, 2017

THIS WEEK
Western Michigan finally returns to Lawson Ice Arena to kick off the second half of the 2016-17 by hosting No. 1 Denver on Friday and Saturday. Friday's game carries an earlier start time of 6:30 p.m. and Saturday returns to the regular 7 p.m. puck drop.

LAST TIME OUT
Between a long winter break the Broncos were in action at the 2016 Great Lakes Invitational. WMU defeated Michigan State, 4-1, and then beat Michigan Tech, 1-0, in overtime to claim the final MacInnes Cup to be handed out at Joe Louis Arena. 

Western Michigan had four different players score on the power play against the Spartans, while Ben Blacker made 29 saves. Jade McMullen and Sheldon Dries sent the team to the locker room after the first period with a 2-0 lead. Griffen Molino put the Broncos up 3-0 midway through the second period. The Spartans pulled one back to cut the lead to 3-1 but Matheson Iacopelli put the game away at the end of the second with his 14th goal of the season.

The GLI Championship game was a defensive battle. Michigan Tech and WMU clamped down on the opposing offense by blocking shots and smothering possession. After a scoreless regulation the game went into overtime and 11:55 in the extra period Colt Conrad punched in the game-winner from just right of the crease to defeat the Huskies.  Conrad was named GLI MVP, while Iacopelli, Blacker and Corey Schuenman were named to the GLI All-Tournament team. 

AT A GLANCE: DENVER /// 14-4-4, 6-1-3-2
• THE SERIES: The Pioneers hold the all-time series lead at 13-4-1. Western Michigan's last win against DU at Lawson Ice Arena came on March 1, 2014. 

• LAST TIME AROUND: WMU opened NCHC play at Denver back on Oct. 28 and 29, dropping both games to the Pioneers. Both games in the series were tight contests, with the Broncos falling on the opening night 3-1 and then the next night 4-2. All three of Western Michigan's goals in the series came on the power play. 

• SCOUTING THE PIONEERS: After getting off to an 0-2-0 start, Denver has only lost twice in its last 20 games, falling against Minnesota-Duluth and at Providence. Last weekend the Pioneers hosted Arizona State, sweeping the Sun Devils after wins of 5-1 and 6-1. After being previously ranked No. 1 in the nation, Denver is back on top of both the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine and the US College Hockey Online polls that came out on Monday. 

Denver's offense ranks 31st in the nation, at 2.91 goals per game. Freshman Henrik Borgstrom and sophomore Troy Terry are tied for the team lead with 22 points. Borgstrom has racked up his total in only 16 games this season and first round selection of Florida Panthers leads the team with 12 goals. Terry, who just won a gold medal with Team USA in at the World Junior Championships, has 11 goals and 11 assists. Sophomore forward Dylan Gambrell and senior defenseman Will Butcher are tied for the team lead with 15 assists, while Butcher also has four goals for a team-best 19 points amongst blue-liners. 

Denver's defense is one of the best in the country, ranking tied for third at 2.00 goals allowed per game. Junior netminder Tanner Jaillet has started in 19 of the team's 22 games, posting a 12-3-4 record, a 2.00 goals against average and a .924 save percentage. Senior Evan Cowley has made three starts with a 1.31 goals against average, a .942 save percentage and a 2-1-0 record. 

The DU power play ranks tied for 31st in the nation at 17.6 percent (19-for-108). Terry and Gambrell are tied for the lead with four power play goals, while Jarid Lukosevicius and Evan Janssen each have three. Denver's penalty kill ranks towards the bottom in the country in 43rd at 80.7 percent (71-for-88), but the Pioneers are the fifth-least penalized team in the nation at 10.4 minutes per game. 

AGAINST THE NATION'S BEST
Western Michigan is 4-6-1 against the nation's top team under head coach Andy Murray. The four wins came against Ferris State in 2013, a sweep of Omaha last season, and earlier this year in a split at Minnesota-Duluth.  

RACKING UP THE AWARDS
Through the first half of the season the Broncos have earned 10 NCHC awards. WMU has won Offensive Player of the Week three times, Rookie of the Week three times, Goalie of the Week twice, and Rookie of the Month and Player of the Month each once. 

Freshman goalie Ben Blacker is the most decorated Bronco so far this season with four awards. He has twice been named Rookie of the Week (10/10, 1/2), earned Goalie of the Week (12/12) and was recently named Rookie of the Month for December. Matheson Iacopelli sits just behind him three after twice earning Offensive Player of the Week and earning Player of the Month for November.

PICK 6
After this weekend the Broncos have eight of their remaining 14 games at Lawson Ice Arena. Fans can take advantage with the "Pick 6" plan by getting a ticket to six games for $108. For more information call 1-888-4-WMUTIX or visit wmubroncos.com/tickets.