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04/10 00:39 CDT Kent Anderson's 2-OT winner lifts Denver past Michigan 4-3 in
Frozen Four thriller
Kent Anderson's 2-OT winner lifts Denver past Michigan 4-3 in Frozen Four
thriller
By MARK ANDERSON
AP Sports Writer
LAS VEGAS (AP) --- Kent Anderson scored from the slot at 7:25 of the second
overtime to back up Johnny Hicks' 49 saves and lift Denver to a 4-3 victory
over Michigan on Thursday night in a Frozen Four semifinal and keep alive the
Pioneers' hoping of winning their third national title in five years.
The Pioneers (28-11-3), a No. 2 regional seed, play Wisconsin (24-12-2) in
Saturday's championship. They will try to extend their record to 11 titles.
"I don't score many goals, so this is ranking up top so far," Anderson said.
"That means everything to play in this national championship game."
Michigan (31-8-1) had hoped to make its first championship appearance since
2011 and win its first championship since 1998. The Wolverines --- who outshot
the Pioneers 52-26 --- also were trying to tie Denver for most overall
championships.
They had hoped to take the next step this weekend, having reached the Frozen
Four for the fourth time in five years.
"It's hard to have it be over," Michigan coach Brandon Naurato said. "What
these seniors have done for this program, it's really special. You can tell a
little bit from the outside, but if you're in that room and all the
conversations we had with these guys, they changed the program."
Denver's Clarke Caswell sent the game into overtime with a goal and also had an
assist. Kyle Chyzowski and Cale Ashcroft also scored, and Hicks --- a freshman
--- set a personal high in saves.
Hicks, who entered this game leading the nation with a 1.12 goals-against
average and .958 save percentage, stayed in the game after taking a nasty hit
early in the third period when teammate Eric Jamieson made contact with
Michigan's Malcolm Spence on a rush to the net.
"He's a battler, he's unfazed --- he was our best player tonight," Pioneers
coach David Carle said.
Josh Eernisse, Jayden Perron and T.J. Hughes each scored for Michigan, with
Hughes' goal giving the Hobey Baker finalist 179 career points, tops among
active players. Jack Ivankovic saved 22 shots.
The Wolverines were on the verge of advancing to the final when Perron scored
from the right point with 8:58 left in regulation. That goal came on the power
play, the nation's top-ranked unit that entered the game by converting 31.6% of
its chances.
Denver, however, kept alive its season when Caswell redirected a shot from
Garrett Brown from the goal line with 2:46 remaining in regulation.
Neither team scored in the first overtime, though Pioneers winger Rieger Lorenz
hit the crossbar. Teammate Boston Buckberger later had his left hand badly
bloodied when it was stepped on, but he played through it.
Michigan outplayed Denver through the extra sessions, outshoooting the Pioneers
21-8, including 13-3 in the second OT.
"We stuck with it throughout the whole game," Anderson said. "Our belief didn't
change when we were down one in the third."
___
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
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