After escaping a close series with the Wisconsin Badgers last weekend, the Denver Pioneers are now set to begin the 2012 Red Baron WCHA Final Five in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Denver took game three from the Badgers with a 3-2 overtime victory last Sunday night on a Luke Salazar goal 1:40 into the overtime period.
Denver joins Minnesota, Minnesota Duluth, North Dakota, St. Cloud State, and Michigan Tech in the tournament that begins today at the Xcel Energy Center. At 1:07 p.m. the No. 3 seeded Pioneers take on No. 6 seeded Michigan Tech. Following that game No. 5 St. Cloud State faces off against No. 4 seed North Dakota at 6:07 p.m.
On Friday, the winner of the Denver - Michigan Tech match-up will take on No. 2 Minnesota Duluth at 1:07, while No. 1 Minnesota will face the winner of St. Cloud - North Dakota. The winners of those two games battle on Saturday in the fifth, and final, game of the WHCA season with a championship on the line.
In two road match-ups against the Huskies this season, the Pioneers lost 7-2 and tied 2-2.