Denver wins the 2026 Frozen Four championship
🏆 Denver wins the 2026 Frozen Four championship
The Denver Pioneers are the 2026 national champions, defeating Wisconsin, 2-1, in a third-period comeback in the Frozen Four championship game. It's Denver's 11th title in program history and fourth in 10 seasons, extending the Pioneers' lead as the winningest team in DI men's hockey history.
DENVER IS TAKING HOME THEIR 11TH NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP! 🏆 x 🎥 ESPN /
— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey)
Denver struggled to get any offense going for most of the game, only mustering nine shots through 47 minutes. But the Pios' first real extended offensive zone shift saw Rieger Lorenz break the ice for the Pios as he picked up a rebound in the crease and slid it past Wisconsin goalie Daniel Hauser.
That goal woke up the bench, and six minutes later, another extended o-zone shift saw a flurry of shots on Hauser before Kyle Chyzowksi got his stick on a point shot to tip it in and take the lead.
MAKE SURE TO TIP 🫰💵
— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey)
Kyle Chyzowski tips in a shot from Boston Buckberger to take the lead! x 🎥 ESPN /
Denver freshman goaltender Johnny Hicks finished with 29 saves on 30 shots and concluded his season with an undefeated 16-0-1 record. He had 78 saves in his first Frozen Four appearance. Denver's 15 shots on goal are tied for the fourth-fewest by a team in a Frozen Four game.
🫨 DENVER TAKES THE LEAD — 3rd: 5:52 | DU 2, UW 1
The Denver Pioneers are alive and well, and they have taken the lead with under six minutes to go in the national championship game.
Kyle Chyzowski gets his second goal of the Frozen Four, tipping a point shot from Buckberger that found its way past a stickless Daniel Hauser.
MAKE SURE TO TIP 🫰💵
— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey)
Kyle Chyzowski tips in a shot from Boston Buckberger to take the lead! x 🎥 ESPN /
🚨 Denver on the board — 2nd: 12:29 | DU 1, UW 1
Here come the Pios.
Denver just had its best shift of the night, finally establishing some extended zone time and firing a flurry of shots on Hauser before Rieger Lorenz cleaned up a rebound in front of Hauser for his 17th goal of the season.
Buckle up. We've got a game folks.
Reiger Lorenz with the equalizer and the Goal of the Game ‼️
— Denver Hockey (@DU_Hockey)
📺: ESPN
Right after the Denver goal, Wisconsin responded with a strong shift and a few good chances to retake the lead, but Johnny Hicks made an incredible stop, pushing across to get in front of a rebound off the end boards.
🦡 Badger alumni in the building
Wisconsin football alumni Melvin Gordon, Darius Feaster and Kenzel Doe are all in the house at T-Mobile Arena, supporting their Badgers in the chase for a national title. Badger hockey legend, U.S. Hockey Hall of Famer and 2006 national champion Joe Pavelski is also in the building.
Former Badgers in the building supporting 👐
— Wisconsin Football (@BadgerFootball)
👋 , , Darius Feaster
End of 2nd: Wisconsin 1, Denver 0
The Badgers remain in front after 40 minutes, still holding a slim 1-0 lead through two periods. But the scoreboard doesn't reflect just how much better Wisconsin looks right now, so let's break it down some more.
This season, Denver has averaged over 22 shots through the first two periods. Wisconsin has held the Pios to just five today. Denver averages over two goals in the first 40 minutes of games this season, but is scoreless so far today. Denver typically holds opponents to less than 19 shots through the first two periods, but Wisconsin has outpaced that at 21 so far today.
Denver has only found itself trailing at the second intermission nine times this season and has a 1-7-1 record in those games. Wisconsin has been great at putting games away, going 18-2-0 when leading after 40.
Daniel Hauser hasn't had much work to do in the crease for Wisconsin.Will the Pioneers' offense wake up in the third, or will he keep the goose egg on the scoreboard and bring the title back to Madison?
Third period, up next.
🔒 Wisconsin's defense stifling Denver — 2nd: 9:00
The Badgers are buzzing in the second. They continue to outpace Denver in shots, leading 6-2 just over halfway through the second period, and 16-4 overall.
Denver hasn't been able to get any clean zone entries this period — Wisconsin's defense has kept the Pios outside the dots on the rush, not allowing anything through the middle of the ice.
The Badgers' forwards have been the opposite: pushing pace through center ice and making aggressive passes to the slot to find a streaking forward. The Denver defense has struggled to keep the Badgers' forecheckers away from the front of the net, getting outmuscled for loose pucks.
Thankfully for the Pios, Hicks has been solid since allowing the first goal, so they remain in striking distance if they can get some more offense going.
End of 1st: Wisconsin 1, Denver 0
How about THAT start for Wisconsin?
The Badgers dominated the first period, outshooting Denver 10-2. They had a few dangerous scoring chances early in the period, but were shut down by Johnny Hicks. A Denver powerplay looked like it might turn the momentum to the Pios' side, but the Badgers continued their hot penalty kill streak, holding Denver to zero shots on the man advantage.
Vasily Zelenov broke the ice late in the period, wiring one past Hicks with a wicked top-shelf wrister.
Vasily Zelenov with the first goal of the Natty 👀
— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey)
📺 ESPN x
How the numbers stack up
Wisconsin loves to get out to a quick start, with 18 out of its 24 wins on the season coming when the Badgers score first. Denver, meanwhile, struggles when giving up the first goal, going 8-8-3 on the season when its opponent scores first.
🚨 Badgers strike first — 1st: 6:24 | UW 1, DU 0
Have a rip, Vasily Zelenov.
The freshman scores his sixth of the season, speeding down the left wing before firing a wrister top shelf past the blocker of Hicks for the game's first goal.
"RUSSIAN ROCKET" 🚀
— Wisconsin Hockey (@BadgerMHockey)
VAS OPENS THE SCORING IN THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!
🍎: Weston Knox & Adam Pietila
💨 Wisconsin controlling pace early — 1st: 7:24
The Badgers came out of the locker room hot, controlling the first half of the opening period. Wisconsin is outshooting Denver, 5-1, and had an early chance with a bouncing that just skittered wide of an open net.
Wisconsin's penalty kill held Denver shotless on its first powerplay, and goaltender Daniel Hauser made a great save on Denver's first shot of the game, making a sound pad stop on a point-blank chance in the slot.
Daniel Hauser gets his first big save of the game, which gets some applause from the fans
— Carter Lowe🦡🏒 (@BadgerVideo7)
The Badgers threatened with X shots and a handful of scoring chances on their first powerplay, but Johnny Hicks stood tall in net for the Pios to keep this one scoreless.
🎬 Game on: Denver vs. Wisconsin
The puck has dropped on the national championship game. Denver wins the opening draw and we are go in Vegas.
💪 Lineups for Denver vs. Wisconsin
Championship experience: Eight Denver players in the lineup have national championship experience, winning in 2024:
- LW Rieger Lorenz
- LW Sam Harris
- C Kieran Cebrian
- LD Boston Buckberger
- RD Kent Anderson
- LD Cale Ashcroft
- RD Garrett Brown
- G Paxton Geisel
Here's a look at the lineups for today.
Lineups for Wisconsin vs. Denver in the championship:
— Torin Smith (@TorinSmith15)
Nineteen NHL prospects are in the lineups between Denver and Wisconsin in the Frozen Four championship: 13 for Denver and six for Wisconsin. The LA Kings have the most prospects in action with three RWs playing for Denver. The Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres each have two prospects:
- LA Kings: Denver RW James Reeder (27) , Denver RW Kristian Epperson (8), Denver RW Brendan McMorrow (22)
- Buffalo Sabres: Wisconsin C Vasily Zelenov (94), Wisconsin D Luke Osburn (2)
- Montreal Canadiens: Denver LW Sam Harris (12), Denver G Quentin Miller (29)
📍 Checking in from T-Mobile Arena
DU on site 📍 x
— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey)
We are getting closer to puckdrop here in Las Vegas between Denver and Wisconsin. The Frozen Four championship will be decided shortly.
The crowd in the plaza looks like a good split between Pioneers and Badgers, but the consensus in the hotel elevator and coffee line was that Denver is taking home the trophy this afternoon. We'll see what Wisconsin has to say about that.
Wisconsin is looking to complete the sweep of both the men's and women's hockey championships, something that has only been done once before....20 years ago...by Wisconsin.
🏆 Wisconsin beats Ohio State for its second-straight women's hockey title
Meanwhile, Denver is looking for its 11th national championship and fourth in the last 10 years. Denver is the only school with 10 or more championships, and a win this year would put it ahead of Michigan by two.
Some other fun notes...
- This is the second national championship in a row featuring two freshmen goaltenders, Daniel Hauser (Wisconsin) and Johnny Hicks (Denver). Last year Hampton Slukynksy bested Mikhail Yegorov as Western Michigan beat Boston U.
- National championships featuring Wisconsin tend to be barnburners: the scores from each of the Badgers' six titles are 4-2, 6-5, 6-3, 6-2, 7-3, 2-1.
- Denver has also seen a lot of scoring in its 10 national championships: 6-2, 5-3, 12-2, 4-0, 4-3, 1-0, 4-1, 3-2, 5-1, 2-0.
- Wisconsin has worn its red uniforms all tournament, and it has also beaten three teams wearing white and green: Dartmouth, Michigan State and North Dakota. Wisconsin will wear red today, and Denver will wear white.
- Wisconsin holds the head-to-head advantage all-time with a 76-66-13 record, though Denver has beaten the Badgers in six straight meetings, most recently on Oct. 24 and 25, 2024.
👉 Championship preview: Denver vs. Wisconsin — 5:30 p.m. ET
Good morning, hockey fans.
Well, it's still morning out here in Las Vegas. For those on the east coast, good afternoon, and welcome to the Frozen Four.
It all comes down to this. Seven months of the college hockey season has come down to two teams still fighting for the national championship: Denver and Wisconsin.
How Wisconsin got here
There weren't many people that would have picked Wisconsin to be in the Frozen Four championship just a few months ago. A six game losing streak in January dropped the Badgers into at-large territory for the NCAA tournament, and fast forward to the Big Ten tournament: a stunning 7-1 loss to Ohio State put Wisconsin's playoff hopes out of their hands.
But other conference results went Wisconsin's way, and the Badgers snuck in as a regional three seed. They handled business from there, dominating Dartmouth, 5-1, and stunning Michigan State, 4-3, in OT to win the Worcester Regional. They proved they can hang with the big dogs, and they did it again on Thursday against North Dakota.
A masterclass in defense, special teams and goaltending held North Dakota scoreless for 58:52 of the semifinal game before the Hawks finally got on the board with their goalie pulled. But G Daniel Hauser and the Badger defense locked it down and held onto the one-goal lead to advance to the final.
The Badgers aren't playing with house money. They belong here. And they're one more win away from a championship.
How Denver got here
Denver head coach David Carle has proven again and again that he knows how to build a playoff team. In what seemed like a down year for the Pios back in January — relative to their dominance the rest of the decade — they are once again playing their best hockey in March and April.
Freshman goaltender Johnny Hicks — who started the season as the third-string goalie — took over the starting job in late January after an uncharacteristic 1-7-0 stretch for Denver. In 16 starts, he hasn't lost a game.
Hicks had his best performance of the season when Denver needed it most. Against the No. 1 offense in the country in Michigan, Hicks stopped 49/52 shots (.942 SV%) in a double-overtime marathon to propel the Pioneers back to the championship game. Does he have one more win in him today?
The championship game is set for 5:30 p.m. ET. We'll be on-site at T-Mobile Arena giving you the highlights, insight and live updates on krikyalotto.com throughout the game.
Checking in from the Hobey Baker Award ceremony
Before tomorrow's championship game, we headed down to the Hobey Baker Award ceremony to see which player would be given the most prestigious individual award in DI men's hockey.
It was a packed house at the Park MGM hotel, full of UMD, Denver and Michigan fans watching to see if Max Plante, T.J. Hughes or Eric Pohlkamp would take home the Hobey.
We also saw a handful of other awards announced, most notably the All-American First Team and the Mike Richter Award.
Hobey Baker Award
Max Plante is the 2026 recipient of the Hobey Baker Memorial Award as the top player in DI men's hockey. Plante's 25 goals tied for second in the nation, and his 52 points were the third most in Division I.
Though his team fell short in the NCAA tournament regionals, Plante still proved himself as the player with the highest strength of character, skill, integrity and scholastic achievement in Division I hockey, according to the award criteria.
👉 See the full history of the Hobey Baker Award
Plante is the seventh UMD Bulldog to win the Hobey Baker and the second in six years, joining Scott Perunovich (2020).
Mike Richter Award
Michigan State's Trey Augustine is the recipient of the Mike Richter Award as the top goaltender in DI hockey. His 24-9-1 record included a 10-2-0 record against Top-5 teams, and his .929 SV% ranked sixth in the country.
Augustine is the 12th recipient of the Richter Award since it was introduced in 2013-14, when UMass Lowell's Connor Hellebuyck won the inaugural award.All-American First Team - West
- T.J. Hughes, Michigan
- Porter Martone, Michigan State
- Max Plante, Minnesota Duluth
- Jake Livanavage, North Dakota
- Eric Pohlkamp, Denver
- Trey Augustine, Michigan State
All-American First Team - East
- James Hagens, Boston College
- Hayden Stavroff, Dartmouth
- Ethan Wyttenbach, Quinnipiac
- Brandon Holt, Maine
- Cole Hutson, Boston University
- Michael Hrabal, UMass
We'll be back tomorrow for the Frozen Four championship game between Denver and Wisconsin at 5:30 p.m. ET. Be sure to follow along on krikyalotto.com for on-site updates, highlights and scores throughout the day.
DENVER MOVES ON! — FINAL: Denver 4, Michigan 3 (2OT)
The Denver Pioneers are moving on to the national championship game, defeating Michigan in a 92-minute and 35-second double-overtime marathon.
Senior defenseman Kent Anderson was the overtime hero, scoring just his second goal of the season and his sixth in his four-year career. He found himself open in the slot after sneaking down from the point, catching a pass from Kristian Epperson and rifling a wrister under the glove of Ivankovic.
DENVER WINS
— Carter Lowe🦡🏒 (@BadgerVideo7)
KENT ANDERSON SENDS THE PIONEERS TO THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Denver freshman goaltender Johnny Hicks keeps his undefeated streak alive, winning his 15th start with 49 saves on 52 shots from the nation's most lethal offense. Clocking in at 92:35, this was the eighth-longest game in NCAA tournament history.
The Pios move on to face Wisconsin in the title game Saturday at 5:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. We'll be back on site at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Be sure to follow along here all weekend for updates from the 2026 Men's Frozen Four on krikyalotto.com.