LAS VEGAS – The University of Denver hockey team scored twice in the third period to rally past Wisconsin and defeat the third-seeded and No. 12/4 Badgers, 2-1, to capture the 2026 NCAA Division I Men’s Hockey National Championship Saturday in the Frozen Four final at T-Mobile Arena.

With the victory, the second-seeded and No. 4/3 ranked Pioneers earn the program’s 11th National Championship, two more than any other men’s college hockey program (Michigan at 9). Denver is also the eighth National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) team to win the National Championship in the last 10 NCAA Tournaments (since 2016), with the Pioneers winning four of those (2017, 2022, 2024). DU has now won two of the last three and three of the last five NCAA national titles, while the NCHC has won three straight National Championships after Western Michigan won its first last year.

It didn’t look good for Denver through the first 40 minutes, as the Pioneers trailed 1-0 on the scoreboard and 21-5 in shots on goal. But DU found its game in the third period and got goals from senior forward Rieger Lorenz and freshman forward Kyle Chyzowski to power the Pioneers to another national title.

“I couldn’t be prouder of our team for sticking with it,” said Denver head coach David Carle. “We could’ve thrown in the towel a long time ago, and the guys didn’t. They committed to each other and that’s what champions are made of.”

Denver freshman goaltender Johnny Hicks was stellar in net again, stopping 29 of 30 shots faced to earn Most Outstanding Player of the Men’s Frozen Four. He kept the Pioneers in the game with nine first period saves and 11 more in the second, while DU struggled to generate offense. Hicks, who was also named MOP of the 2026 NCHC Frozen Faceoff and NCAA Loveland Regional, finishes the season undefeated with a 16-0-1 record, including a 13-game winning streak to end the year after taking over the net in late January.

Hicks made a career-high 49 saves in the Frozen Four Semifinal double overtime win over Michigan on Thursday, totaling 78 saves and a .951 save percentage on the weekend.

Along with Hicks, junior defenseman Boston Buckberger, Lorenz and Chyzowski were named to the Frozen Four All-Tournament Team.

Wisconsin opened the scoring with 6:24 left in the first period when freshman Vasily Zelenov fired a wrister from the left circle that beat Hicks stick-side. The Badgers took their 1-0 lead into the locker room after outshooting the Pioneers, 10-2, in the opening 20 minutes.

Denver was held at bay in the second stanza as well, as the score remained 1-0 with limited scoring chances for either team. The Badgers outshot DU, 11-3, in the middle period.

The Pioneers finally broke through 7:31 into the third period. Junior defenseman Garrett Brown fired a shot that was saved, but Lorenz was camped in front of the crease and knocked in the rebound to knot the game at 1-1. It was his 17th goal of the season, which finished second on the team.

The game-winning goal came with 5:52 remaining in the contest when Chyzowski scored his 13th tally of the year. The freshman redirected a long shot from Buckberger at the top of the crease, which snuck past Wisconsin freshman goalie Daniel Hauser.

With less than five minutes to play the Badgers hit the crossbar, but would not find the back of the net. Hicks locked things down and even facing 1:26 of a Wisconsin extra attacker, the Pioneers defense held strong to secure a record 11th National Championship.

“We saved our best period for last and we found a way to make one more play,” said Carle, who won his third national title as DU’s head coach.

Wisconsin doubled up Denver on shots on goal, 30-15, but DU held a 10-9 edge in the final frame. The Pioneers blocked 31 shots on the night, led by five from Hobey Hat Trick Finalist and defenseman Eric Pohlkamp. Brown finished the night with four blocked shots and two assists for DU. The teams went a combined 0-for-3 on the power play in the game.

Denver finishes the season with a 29-11-3 record, including ending on a 17-game unbeaten streak (16-0-1) and 13-game winning streak.

2026 Frozen Four All-Tournament Team
G – Johnny Hicks, Denver (MOP)
D – Ben Dexheimer, Wisconsin
D – Boston Buckberger, Denver
F – Vasily Zelenov, Wisconsin  
F – Rieger Lorenz, Denver
F – Kyle Chyzowski, Denver

POSTGAME NOTES:

• Denver captured its 11th national title in program history, the most of any men’s college hockey team. DU is now two ahead of Michigan, who is second at nine, while North Dakota has eight. The National Championship also gives the Pioneers two of the last three titles, three of the last five (2022, 2024, 2026) and four in the last nine NCAA Tournaments (also 2017). Denver also improved to 11-3 in National Championship Games all-time.
• With Denver’s title, the NCHC is now home to eight of the last 10 NCAA Men’s Hockey National Champions, including each of the last three. Denver won in 2026 and 2024, while Western Michigan won in between. The other NCHC national champions include North Dakota in 2016, Denver in 2017 and Minnesota Duluth in 2018 and 2019. The WCHA won seven titles in 10 years from 1997-2006, but not since the WCHA in the late 1970s and early 1980s has a conference had such a dominant run.
• Denver ends the season on a 17-game unbeaten streak (16-0-1) and 13-game winning streak.
• Denver freshman goaltender Johnny Hicks, the MOP of the 2026 Frozen Four, finishes the season with a 16-0-1 record, a .957 save percentage and a 1.19 goals-against average, the latter two of which finish first nationally in the NCAA this season. The .957 save percentage is also an NCHC single-season record. Hicks was also named MOP of the 2026 NCHC Frozen Faceoff and the Loveland Regional, all three postseason tournaments in which he played.
• Denver’s 15 shots on goal in Saturday’s title game were the fewest ever by a winning team in the National Championship Game.

Photo/Jim Rosvold/USCHO.com

— NCHC Staff

(April 11, 2026)