Denver played the defensive game it needed to play in the NCAA Frozen Four semifinals, limiting powerful Michigan's offense and holding off the Wolverines long enough to win in overtime and advance to the national title game.
A non-goal in the third period of the UMD men's game Saturday overshadowed all the great goals on and off the ice this weekend by the Bulldogs at Amsoil Arena.
Hermantown's Blake Biondi got UMD on the board late in the second and Casey Gilling, the former RedHawk, kept the momentum going with a goal early in the third.
Both coaches remain unsure how many players they'll have available, but they believe they'll have enough cleared from COVID-19 protocols for the NCHC and WCHA series scheduled for Friday and Saturday in Duluth.
After starting the season playing eight of their first 12 games against top 10 teams, the No. 6 Bulldogs will run the gauntlet again following their holiday break, starting with the top-ranked Mavericks.
Seniors Gabbie Hughes, Kobe Roth and Jesse Jacques put up big points in Bulldogs wins, however, both programs would have liked to go into the holiday break off sweeps against key league opponents.
The Bulldogs plan to have four players back from injury and illness, including junior starting goaltender Ryan Fanti, who was the NCHC and national goaltender of the month for November. He missed the first series of December due to COVID-19 protocols.
