The Durango ice hockey team has a winning record for the first time this season after it went 3-0 on the road this past weekend, building some positive momentum before the Demons seniors take the ice for senior night on Thursday.
This past weekend, Durango traveled to play Rampart and beat the Rams 8-1. The Demons then topped Kent Denver 5-1 on Friday and wrapped up their road trip with a 5-0 win at Mullen.
The Demons are now 7-5 this season.
“We had a tough schedule at the beginning of the year and we were losing close games,” Durango coach Brian Ensign said. “Then we played the home series against Liberty and Colorado Academy that are very quality teams. To come out with two wins, we just have a lot of momentum. The kids are riding the success. They're sticking with its structure and game plan. In the Mullen game, it was 0-0, it was close going into the third period, we just kept the foot on the pedal and eventually good things happen when you do that.”
Against Rampart, the Demons raced off to a 3-0 lead after the first period and never looked back. Durango was 2 of 4 on power play conversions. Senior Brady Holbrook had three goals. Seniors Louden Doemland, Zealand Eaton, Lucas Betz and Henry Howe each had a goal. Sophomore Wynn Daniels had a goal.
Junior goalkeeper Evan Brock had five saves on the night.
Against Kent Denver, the Demons scored a goal in the first two periods to take a 2-0 lead into the third period before putting three goals in the back of the net in the third period.
Howe and Betz put two goals in the back of the net and junior Bryson Quimby had a goal as well. Sophomore Leyton Holbrook had three assists and junior goalkeeper Luka Remec had 20 saves in the victory.
“We have two good goaltenders rotating through those spots,” Ensign said. “That always helps us they're always going to keep us in the game. So defensively, we have a young core but we have a couple of guys really coming along. They're getting game time and they're getting used to, a varsity pace of game. They're developing and we're getting better defensively.”
A five-goal outburst in the third period put the Demons over the top against Mullen.
Ensign said the depth of his squad has helped propel Durango to victory. He said most teams have one or two lines that get most of the playing time while the Demons have three or four lines that play consistently with great leadership.
Daniels had a goal as well as juniors Mason Rhodus and Jerry Sharpe. Brady Holbrook and Howe scored as well in the third period. Remec impressed again with 27 saves to preserve the shutout.
The Demons will honor their 12 seniors at Chapman Hill against Battle Mountain on Thursday night, starting at 6:30 p.m..
“You look at Battle Mountain’s record and you're thinking ok, that's a win but they just beat one of the top teams in the conference and the state,” Ensign said. “So every game besides a few of them could go either way on our schedule. We're going to have to come out and just play a really strong game and stay focused on senior night on Thursday. There's always a lot of extracurricular distractions. We have to keep the kids focused on what they're there for, celebrate the seniors and play our game and use that emotion, intensity and energy to battle.”
bkelly@durangoherald.com
