FRIDAY RECAP: Alaska drops top-ranked Denver; No. 2 Quinnipiac blanks Dartmouth; New Hampshire shuts out No. 11 Providence; No. 6 Boston University, No. 16 Michigan Tech win at Desert Hockey Classic

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Denver’s Shai Buium and Alaska’s Matt Koethe battle for position in Friday night’s game at Magness Arena (photo: Adri Meyer).

No. 1 Denver returned to home ice at Magness Arena Friday night only to be defeated 3-1 by Alaska in what can be considered a major upset.

Jonny Sorenson and Brady Risk each had a power-play goal and an assist for the Nanooks, while TJ Lloyd posted a pair of assists and Garrett Pyke getting an empty-net goal in the win, Alaska’s first all-time at Denver.

In goal, Matt Radomsky made 19 saves, only allowing a Massimo Rizzo goal on a power play with 3:07 to play in the third period.

“They made it really hard, and we struggled to adapt to how we need to play,” said DU coach David Carle. “Our fourth line was pretty good at being able to advance pucks up the ice. We actually got pucks below the goal line and were able to generate some chances, but it was definitely way too inconsistent with our other three lines unfortunately.”

Friday’s game marked DU’s first outing in nearly three weeks, as the team last played on Dec. 17 against Lindenwood.

Magnus Chrona finished with 30 saves for the Pioneers, who lost for the first time since a 3-0 setback Nov. 25 at home to Omaha, winning seven straight since then.

The Nanooks have now won six of their last seven games.

No. 2 Quinnipiac 3, Dartmouth 0

Behind a pair of goals form Ethan de Jong, Quinnipiac won its sixth game in a row by blanking Dartmouth 3-0 on Friday night at M&T Bank Arena.

de Jong added his second multi-goal game of the year and fourth of his career as he notched the first and last tallies of the night en route to the shutout victory.

CJ McGee scored 17 seconds after de Jong’s first of the night, quickly giving Quinnipiac a 2-0 advantage at the 6:01 mark of the opening frame.

Yaniv Perets made 14 shutouts for career shutout No. 15 and the fourth of the 2022-23 campaign.

The Bobcats’ unbeaten streak is now 15 games, the nation’s longest active stretch in the country. They also have won seven in a row at home, also the longest active streak nationally. Quinnipiac is also 24-1-2 in its last 27 home contests.

Cooper Black made 40 saves in goal for Dartmouth.

New Hampshire 2, No. 11 Providence 0

Goalie David Fessenden recorded his first shutout of the season with 35 saves as New Hampshire defeated No. 11 Providence 2-0 on Friday night at Schneider Arena.

Cy LeClerc and senior captain Chase Stevenson each scored for UNH.

Philip Svedebäck stopped 21 shots in goal for the Friars.

No. 6 Boston University 5, Air Force 1 (Desert Hockey Classic)

Wilmer Skoog scored two goals and Jeremy Wilmer recorded three assists as No. 6 Boston University defeated Air Force 5-1 in the first game of the Desert Hockey Classic at Arizona State’s Mullett Arena.

Jamie Armstrong scored 22 seconds into the game and the Terriers never looked back, with Skoog scoring twice in the first period to give BU a 3-0 lead.

Brian Carrabes collected two points with a goal and an assist while senior Sam Stevens added an empty-netter. Devin Kaplan secured two assists and goaltender Drew Commesso turned aside 29 of the 30 shots he faced to notch the win.

Clayton Cosentino scored for the Falcons and junior Maiszon Balboa, making his first career start, made 32 saves in the game.

“We got off to a horrendous start, but I am proud of our guys for battling back,” Air Force coach Frank Serratore said. “BU played at a speed limit that we haven’t seen in a while. After we got down 3-0, we basically played them even the rest of the game. They are a very, very talented team. But the way our guys battled, I think we earned some respect. Our success this weekend will be determined tomorrow. The question is, can we play the way we played in the second and third period and carry that over to tomorrow?”

No. 16 Michigan Tech 4, Arizona State 2 (Desert Hockey Classic)

Four different players – Evan Orr, Tristan Ashbrook, Jack Works, and Ryland Mosley – scored for the Huskies and Blake Pietila stopped 24 shots for the win in goal at Mullett Arena.

MTU led 1-0 after one period and 2-1 through 40 minutes.

For the host Sun Devils, Robert Mastrosimone scored twice, Jack Judson assisted on both, and goaltender TJ Semptimphelter kicked out 23 shots.

“The guys found a way to win against a good team in their rink,” Michigan Tech coach Joe Shawhan said. “I thought our defensive unit played really well, and Blake saved our bacon on a lot of instances. We’re going to have to be a lot better tomorrow if we want to have a chance against a really good BU team.”

“[Michigan Tech] is a good team,” said ASU coach Greg Powers. “They’re a top-20 team and they’re ranked for a reason. They’ve won a lot of games and have been tough to beat. They’re tough to gain speed through on neutral ice, especially in the third period. I thought they were a nidge more opportunistic tonight than us. I thought it was a pretty even game. I thought we controlled the last two periods for the most part. Their goalie made some huge saves. It was a game that just went their way, it’s that simple.

“It wasn’t like the ice was really tilted either way. They were more opportunistic and we scored two goals. You’re not going to win a lot of games scoring two goals.”

BU and MTU will play Saturday for the tournament title, while the Sun Devils and Air Force square off in the consolation game.

No. 12 Ohio State 3, No. 14 Michigan State 1

With a goal in each period, No. 12 Ohio State toppled No. 14 Michigan State 3-1 Friday at the Schottenstein Center.

Tate Singleton opened the scoring less than two minutes into the game and Stephen Halliday’s second-period power-play goal pushed the Buckeye lead to 2-0 through 40 minutes.

The Spartans made it a one-goal game midway through the third on a goal by Jesse Tucker before Joe Dunlap sealed the win with an empty-net goal in the final minute.

Jakub Dobes made 27 saves in the Buckeyes net and Mason Lohrei had two assists.

Ohio State has now won its last four games.

Spartans goalie Dylan St. Cyr finished with 34 saves.

Minnesota Duluth 1, Bemidji State 1 (UMD wins shootout 1-0)

Early in the third period, Bemidji State’s Kaden Pickering netted the first goal of the night at the Sanford Center

In a late effort to tie the game up, UMD pulled goalie Zach Stejskal with just 2:26 left. Thirty seconds later, a BSU player tried to clear the zone, but Wyatt Kaiser stopped the puck at the blue line and sent a rocket past Mattias Sholl to tie the game.

In overtime, UMD led in shots 6-3, but nothing was settled.

During the shootout, Dominic James scored the lone goal for UMD and Stejskal stopped all three shots he faced.

Sholl made 33 saves for the Beavers.

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