Shattuck's Novotny commits to Denver

As Chris Heisenberg first reported, Shattuck St. Mary's forward Stepan Novotny has committed to the Denver Pioneers for the fall of 2008. Novotny is a native of the Czech Republic and has 29 points in 22 games so far this year for SSM, as the Western College Hockey blog points out. Novotny will join Joe Colborne (F - AJHL), Nate Dewhurst (F - USHL), and John Lee (D - USHL) as Pioneer freshmen next fall.

Tuesday @ The Rink: DU defenseman Chris Butler

Denver defenseman Chris Butler, a junior, participated in CSTV's "Tuesday @ The Rink" online chat. Click here to see what Butler had to say as the Pioneers head to Minnesota for a two-game set this weekend.

Shore commits to Pioneers

Forward Drew Shore has committed to Denver for the fall of 2009, according to the U.S. Hockey Report. The Denver native currently plays for the U.S. NTDP U-17 team. Both of his parents attended DU, so this was a logical choice for Shore. Wisconsin was the only other WCHA school in the mix for Shore, who joins fellow NTDP'ers William Wrenn (D) and Adam Murray (G) as DU recruits for 2009.

NTPD's Wren commits to Denver for 2009

William Wren, who currently plays on the U.S. Under-17 Team, has verbally commited to the Denver Pioneers for the fall of 2009, according to the U.S. Hockey Report. The 6’1”, 185 lb. defenseman joins teammate Adam Murray, a goalie, as being DU commits for '09 from the Under-17 team. Both hail from Anchorage, Alaska as well. The Pioneers were the only WCHA team in the hunt for Wren.

DU head coach George Gwozdecky is putting together a very talented freshman class for 2009. Wrenn and Murray join Paul Phillips (USHL - Cedar Rapids), Matt Donovan (USHL - Cedar Rapids), and Nate Dewhurst (USHL - Des Moines) as '09 Pioneer recruits. If Denver can manage to keep a fair amount of their current underclassmen on campus for a few seasons, they should really be set up nicely for 2009 and beyond.

Top AJHL goalie spurns WCHA schools, picks RPI

According to the U.S. Hockey Report, Camrose Kodiaks (AJHL) netminder Allen York has committed to RPI for the fall of 2008. Minnesota, Wisconsin, Denver, and Michigan Tech were among the schools that York was considering. The Gophers and Badgers reportedly wanted York for the fall of 2009. His final two choices, however, were RPI and Denver, and when US-NTDP goalie Adam Murray committed to Denver for 2009, that helped convince York to commit to RPI.

Denver adds NTDP's Murray for 2009

According to the U.S. Hockey Report, the Denver Pioneers have added U.S. National Team Development Program netminder Adam Murray to their 2009 recruiting class. The Anchorage-native reportedly chose DU over Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan and Colorado College. Murray will play for the NTDP's Under-17 team this season.

WCHA Roadtrip Town No. 2 – Denver

About two months ago, the WCHA Blog kicked off its list of which WCHA towns make for the best roadtrips. For my list, I’m basing this off five criteria (Access, Bars, City Experience, Hotels, and Ticket Cost / Availability). For a detailed list of what these five items mean to me, click here.

Here is a list of the cities the preview has previously covered up until today:

10. Houghton
9. Grand Forks
8. Mankato
7. St. Cloud
6. Madison
5. Anchorage
4. Minneapolis
3. Colorado Springs

This week, its city No. 2: Denver, Colo., which is home to the University of Denver Pioneers.

Access

Despite the fact that Denver is pretty far away from a vast majority of the other WCHA cities, it’s not too tough to get to. There are many daily flights from the Twin Cities International airport via carriers such as Northwest, United, and Frontier. You should never have to spend over $300 to fly from the Twin Cities to Denver, and often you can find flights for under $250, which isn’t too bad.

The schedule is also very flexible if you’re flying from the Twin Cities, as there are flights starting from about 7 a.m. each day all the way through the night. I’ve noticed that, over time, it seems like there are a limited number of flights leaving between 3 and 5 p.m., which is an ideal time for some people because it allows them to work a full day on a Thursday (for example) and still get out to Denver a day early.

Most flights from Grand Forks to Denver connect through Minneapolis, while flights from the Madison area can often connect through Chicago or Milwaukee.

Bars

Unfortunately, there aren’t very many bars in the area of the DU campus or Magness Arena. But, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot of fun to be had in the city of Denver.

One of the best places to pregame near Magness Arena and the DU campus is Spanky's Roadhouse Bar and Grill. They have great burgers and because it’s one of the only places to pregame at, it’s always packed with hockey fans. It’s one of the better bars / restaurants to hit before a game in the WCHA.

Downtown Denver is maybe my favorite place in any WCHA city, as the city offers so many great bars and restaurants to choose from. The two main areas in downtown Denver – the 16th Street Mall and the LoDo area – connect to form a great stretch of establishments.

The area is laced with bars and restaurants on nearly every corner. Standbys such as an ESPN Zone, Hard Rock Café, and a Cheesecake Factory can be found on the 16th Street Mall. Once you get down to the LoDo area (which, by the way, is short for “lower downtown”), there are more bars than restaurants.

Braun's Bar & Grill, which is adjacent to the Pepsi Center (which is a little southwest of the LoDo area), is a great sports bar that was home to Minnesota’s fanbase during the 2006 NCAA West Regional.

My favorite restaurant that I’ve found in my travels to the Denver area is called The Delectable Egg, which is a great breakfast joint that features phenomenal food at very reasonable prices. The menu is very eclectic and the atmosphere is very cool. There are a handful of locations in the Denver area, including one just off the 16th Street Mall.

Another must-stop for our group in Denver is Woody’s Woodfire Pizza, which isn’t too far from the DU campus. They offer a lunch buffet for about $10 that features salad and pizza. Best of all, you can talk with the cooks about what type of pizza you’d like, and they have everything under the sun in terms of choices. Definitely worth a try.

City Experience

This is an area where a city like Denver really shines, as there are countless things to do aside from watching your team take on the Pioneers.

The 16th Street Mall makes for a great time-killer and is good for those who like to “people watch” as they say. The Pepsi Center – which is home to many events – is worth a visit as well, as the building (both inside and out) is pretty cool for a sports arena. If you’re lucky, you can catch an Avalanche game on the Thursday before or Sunday after your team’s games against DU.

Last spring, I took a tour of Coors Field and would highly recommend doing that if you need to pass some time. I’d image a tour of Invesco Field would be equally entertaining. The Coors Brewery isn’t really anything special, but the town of Golden is pretty cool to see. Plus, it’s only about 15 miles from the heart of downtown.

I also hear there’s some mountain range near the area, which of course makes for some great sight-seeing and picture-taking opportunities.

With a city this big, I’m sure there are many cool things I’m not even aware of, so feel free to visit the city of Denver’s official tourism guide.

Hotels

The city of Denver has many lodging options, as one would expect. There aren’t many hotels near Magness Arena, but with a city like Denver, it’s not as important to be staying near the campus / arena because there are so many more things to do in the city as opposed to a city like Madison, for example.

The Four Points by Sheraton Denver Southeast is a pretty close to campus and gets the seal of approval from the hardcore UMD fans who have made the trip to Denver. I’ve also stayed at this hotel and highly recommend it. The rates can get spendy, but you can also find times when you can pay less than $100 per night. The hotel has a solid bar in it and is right on the interstate, so it’s easy to get to and from.

Ticket Cost / Availability

The University of Denver uses TicketMaster, which means you can expect and additional $5 - 8 to be tacked onto your ticket price, which ranges from $18 to $25. It’s unfortunate, but there’s not much you can do about it.

Tickets are pretty easy to get for the games if you’re on top of things when single game tickets go on sale, which is usually early September. Tickets for the high-profile games (Colorado College, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin) tend to go quicker than others, so make you’re online or calling when the go on sale, but you shouldn’t’ have any issues.

Summary

The city of Denver is probably the one WCHA city that I’d go out of my to visit for a non-hockey based trip. There are so many fun things to do just in the downtown area, you could spend a weekend there and not feel like you missed out on anything. Throw in the picturesque scenery and some good hockey, and you’ve got all the makings of a great roadtrip.

Overall Grade: A

Pioneers add AJHL forward Colborne for 2008

The Denver coaching staff has been very busy this summer when it comes to recruiting players for this fall, but according to a report published by the U.S. Hockey Report, they have added Camrose Kodiaks (AJHL) forward Joe Colborne for the fall of 2008. In his first season for Camrose last year, Colborne had 20 goals and 28 assists in 53 games. According to the Kodiaks' website, he stands a 6'3", 175 lbs.

DU stays busy on the recruiting trail for '07

Denver has added two more recruits for this fall. Defenseman Joey Brehm, who was a senior last year at Edina High School, will join the Pioneers this fall, according to a press release from the DU athletic department. He was scheduled to play for the Sioux Falls Stampede in the USHL.

As the Western College Hockey Blog points out, goalie Lars Paulgaard, who was reportedly set to join the Pioneers this fall as well, is not listed in the release. Instead, goalie Eddie Guinn, who played in the Central States Hockey League last season, will join DU this fall as their third goalie behind senior Peter Mannino and fellow freshman Marc Cheverie.

WCHA Arena No. 6 – Magness Arena

About a month ago, the WCHA Blog kicked off its list of which WCHA arenas are the best. I'm basing my list off of three criteria (Arena, Atmosphere, and Crowd). For a detailed list of what these three items mean to me, click here and scroll down a bit.Here is a list of the arenas that I've already covered:

10. Sullivan Arena - Anchorage, AK
9. John MacInnes Student Ice Arena – Houghton, MI
8. Alltel Center – Mankato, MN
7. World Arena – Colorado Springs, CO

This week, its arena No. 6: Magness Arena, which is home to the Denver Pioneers.

Arena

Magness Arena is one of the newer rinks in the WCHA. It was built as a part of the Ritchie Center and opened in 1999. Its setup is similar to Michigan Tech’s John MacInnes student ice arena, which is a part of Tech’s Student Development Center.

The main entrance to the arena is inside the Ritchie Center, and is right near a fabulous gift shop. Like the gift shop found at the World Arena, as of the last time I was there, you were able to buy official WCHA game pucks at this shop, which are a personal must-get at any WCHA rink.

Once you’re inside the arena, you’ll find a very modern-looking and up-to-date rink. The arena is basically one big bowl, with both of the ends and one of the sides going up very high. The other side is home to the press box, so it doesn’t have the same amount of seats or incline. There is also a nice array of food and beverage inside the arena.

Keep in mind that the DU basketball team also plays in Magness Arena, so like the Kohl Center in Madison, there are some sightline issues because of the multi-purpose use of the facility. The lighting inside the arena is also a little dark, which is something that is more prevalent on TV than in person.

The DU campus is small and packed into a busy part of the city of Denver and not on the outskirts or anything like that, but fortunately, there is generally plenty of parking around the arena. There is a ramp just south of the arena that many fans make use of.

Atmosphere

This is one area where Magness is hurt when compared to most of the other arenas ahead of it. I’ve only been to games that saw the Pioneers play host to Minnesota, but the arena was far from rockin’ in any of the games.

Maybe not surprisingly, the atmosphere I could best compare Magness to is the World Arena, which is just a few miles down the road. Both arenas are generally much more full than empty, but they just don’t have the same feel as other arenas in the league that feature near capacity crowds on a nightly basis.

Crowd

For hockey games, Magness Arena holds just over 6,000 people, although in most cases, you’d think there was less than that in the house because of the lack of noise. The student section is louder and more into the game than the rest of the crowd would indicate, and that certainly helps things out.

Summary

Like the World Arena in Colorado Springs, Magness Arena falls victim to some of the nation’s best arenas besting ranked ahead of it on the list. The arena itself is as nice as or nicer than 99 percent of the arenas in the country. However, the soft-spoken nature of much of its guests is the major knock against it in my mind.

Overall Grade: B

DU adds a defenseman for this season

On the heels of sophomore defenseman Keith Seabrook signing with the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL, the Denver Pioneers have added a defensemen for this fall. According to Chris Heisenberg, John Ryder will join the Pioneers for this upcoming season. Ryder played this past season with the Ohio Junior Blue Jackets in the USHL. The Colorado Springs native played in 50 games, registering four goals and two assists to go along with a minus 22 rating. He is currently listed at 6'1", 190 lbs.

DU's Paukovich to sign with Oilers

The LetsGoDU Hockey Blog is reporting that senior-to-be Geoff Paukovich will forgo his final season of eligibility for the Pioneers and sign a pro deal with the Edmonton Oilers. Paukovich, who had 48 points over his first three years in the Mile High City, was a 2004 second round draft choice of the Oilers and would have been one of the Pioneers' top returning forwards.

He would be the third Pioneer to leave early this offseason. 2006-07 leading goal-scorer and fellow senior-to-be Ryan Dingle singed shortly after last season ended with the Anaheim Ducks, and sophomore-to-be Keith Seabrook left DU early last week to join the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL.

INCH A to Z: Denver's Chris Butler

Click here to read more about Denver's Chris Butler, who was featured today as a part of Inside College Hockey's annual A to Z list of various players throughout college hockey.

Previous WCHA players featured this summer:

Minnesota Duluth's Drew Akins
Minnesota State's Mick Berge

National Junior Evaluation Camp begins today

The 2007 USA Hockey National Junior Evaluation Camp started today in Lake Placid, N.Y. The camp runs from today through Saturday, Aug. 11. This camp helps USA Hockey choose which players will represent the U.S. at the 2008 IIHF World Junior Championship, Dec. 26, 2007-Jan. 5, 2008, in Pardubice and Liberec, Czech Republic.

Here is a list of all the players with WCHA ties that will be at the camp. Players with a * after their name were on last year's team.

Cade Fairchild - D (Minnesota)
David Fischer - D (Minnesota)
Jamie McBain* - D (Wisconsin)
Ryan McDonagh - D (Wisconsin)
Trent Palm - D (Minnesota Duluth)

Mike Carman* - F (Minnesota)
Ryan Flynn - F (Minnesota)
Blake Geoffrion* - F (Wisconsin)
Kyle Okposo* - F (Minnesota)
Rhett Rakhshani - F (Denver)
Tyler Ruegsegger - F (Denver)
Jordan Schroeder - F (Minnesota recruit)
Bill Sweatt* - F (Colorado College)
Patrick White - F (Minnesota)

Click here to view the entire camp roster.

DU defenseman Seabrook leaves team for WHL

Denver defenseman Keith Seabrook has left the Pioneers and signed with the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL, according to a story posted on USCHO.com. The rumors of Seabrook possibly leaving first started late last week. Seabrook played in 37 games as a freshman last season, registering two goals and 11 assists, and was a 2006 NHL second round draft pick of the Washington Capitals.

His brother Brent played part of five seasons in the WHL and has been a regular on the Chicago Blackhawks' blueline the last two seasons. Both are from Delta, British Columbia.

DU head coach George Gwozdecky had this to say in the USCHO.com article:

"Keith and his family felt the U.S. college hockey development model of practice and games combined with rigorous academics would not benefit his hockey career," Gwozdecky said. "Our development model has proven to be successful and rewarding, and we're looking forward to the 2007-08 season."

Seabrook is the second player to leave DU early this offseason. Senior-to-be Ryan Dingle, who had a team-high 22 goals last year for the Pios, signed a contract with the Anaheim Ducks shortly after last season ended.

Another late add for DU

After picking up another forward for the 2007-08 season, the Denver Pioneers have addded another netminder as well. Southern Minnesota Express (NAHL) goalie Lars Paulgaard has committed to play for the Pioneers, according to this report from the Owatonna People's Press. Paulgaard posted a 30-18-2-8 record last season, with a 2.54 GAA and a .916 save percentage.

He will likely serve as the Pios' third goalie this year, behind senior Peter Mannino and fellow freshman Marc Cheverie.

DU adds recruit for this season

Sioux City Musketeers' forward Anthony Maiani has committed to play for Denver this fall, according to Chris Heisenberg's recruiting website. Maiani, who stands at 5'9", 155 lbs. and is from Shelby Township, Mich., recently completed his second full season in the USHL. After a 24-point first year, he put up good numbers this past season, notching 16 goals and 32 assists for the Musketeers.

2007 U.S. Under-18 Select Team Named

On Monday, USA Hockey revealed the 21 players selected to compete in the Ivan Hlinka Memorial tournament, which will be held August 14-18 in Piestany, Slovakia and Hodonin, Czech Republic.

This team is selected based off performances at the recent 2007 USA Hockey Select 17 Player Development Camp, which was held last week in St. Cloud.

There were seven players who are currently committed to various WCHA schools elected to the team. Others, such as Holy Angels' forward Danny Mattson or St. Thomas Academy goaltender Aaron Crandall, may eventually end up verballing / playing for a WCHA school.

G - Brady Hjelle (International Falls) - Minnesota Duluth

D - Jake Gardiner (Minnetonka) - Wisconsin
D - Aaron Ness (Roseau) - Minnesota

F - Mike Cichy (Boston Junior Bruins - EJHL) - North Dakota
F - Nate Dewhurst (Des Moines - USHL) - Denver
F - Jordy Murray (Shattuck-St. Mary's) - Wisconsin
F - Jake Youso (International Falls) - Minnesota

Source: Under-18 Team Announced