DU goaltender Johnny Hicks is so hot he could stand the entire NCAA hockey tournament on its head, eh?

Denver needed every one of Hicks’ 41 saves on Saturday night to beat Minnesota Duluth 4-3 in double overtime to hoist the NCHC Frozen Faceoff trophy and head into the national tournament on a lucky 13-game winning streak.

“He’s a rock back there,” DU defenseman Kent Anderson said.

Hicks saved the Pioneers’ bacon against the Bulldogs. But what else is new? With nary a hiccup, the freshman goalie from Kamloops, B.C., has saved DU’s season.

“I haven’t seen his demeanor change much,” DU coach David Carle said. “He’s calm.”

Hicks calmly grabbed the wheel after the Pioneers came into the new year crashing and burning. They got swept on home ice by Western Michigan during the second weekend of January, by the embarrassing cumulative score of 10-3. At that point, DU looked more like a hockey team that could miss the NCAA tourney than a serious national title contender.

It was obvious that talent hopped in waves over the boards of Magness Arena. The problem, Carle told me as he searched for answers, was “between our ears. It’s a maturity thing.”

But on the night of Jan. 24, the Pioneers began to grow up. And, in truth, it was an accident. Early in a rout of St. Cloud State, ballyhooed goalie Quentin Miller went down with an injury. Enter freshman Johnny Hicks, so slight of build that he looks more like somebody’s kid brother along for the ride to Tim Hortons than a brick house between the pipes.

Hicks was the hero who came to the rescue of this team. For 12 consecutive games, no shooter could beat Hicks, whose 1.03 goals-against average and .961 save percentage were the stuff of dreams come true.

With Hicks between the pipes, no team has stopped the epic roll of the Pioneers, who have gone undefeated for two months.

“You wouldn’t have thought it at the beginning of this 10-game (home) winning streak,” said Carle, letting his memory rewind to the darkest days of January. “We had a losing record at home.”

On conference championship night at Magness, the party got started early for DU. Or so it seemed.

The Pioneers beat Minnesota Duluth goaltender Adam Gajan twice in the opening 6 minutes, 37 seconds, with shots he had absolutely no chance to stop. A turnover forced by Samu Salminen behind the Bulldogs net was cashed on a point-blank shot by Rieger Lorenz. And Clarke Caswell scored the second DU goal when the puck ricocheted off not one, but two pairs of skates before lighting the lamp.

The Pioneers squandered their good fortune. They came out to start the second period with a 3-1 lead with the mistaken impression their work was done and Minnesota Duluth was warming up the bus. Bad mistake. The Bulldogs bit them, outshooting DU 16-4 and scoring twice on the power play to even the score heading into the final frame of regulation. 

And then it was save after save after save. No score in 20 minutes of the third period and 20 minutes of overtime.

It took a sweet goal by freshman Kristian Epperson at 1:54 into the second overtime to end the tension and claim the Frozen Faceoff title.

The most outstanding player of the tournament? Do you really have to ask?

Johnny “No Hiccups” Hicks. Of course.

“You need that guy this time of year,” Minnesota Duluth coach Scott Sandelin said.

There’s no doubt DU will hear its name called on Sunday afternoon during the selection show for the NCAA tourney. It figures to be a No. 2 seed, with the sweet advantage of hosting a regional in its backyard at Blue Arena in Loveland.

The Pioneers won the national championship in 2022. They took home their 10th trophy in 2024.

Notice a pattern?