Denver wins the 2026 Frozen Four championship

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 ‼️

📺: ESPN

— Denver Hockey (@DU_Hockey)

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.

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.

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 👀

📺 ESPN x

— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey)

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.

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.

Championship experience: Eight Denver players in the lineup have national championship experience, winning in 2024:

1. LW Rieger Lorenz
2. LW Sam Harris
3. C Kieran Cebrian
4. LD Boston Buckberger
5. RD Kent Anderson
6. LD Cale Ashcroft
7. RD Garrett Brown
8. 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)

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 krikya89.com throughout the game.

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

KENT ANDERSON SENDS THE PIONEERS TO THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

— Carter Lowe🦡🏒 (@BadgerVideo7)

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 krikya89.com.