丹佛庆祝全国冠军

“You have made this city so very proud this weekend, so very proud.”

Denver Mayor Michael Hancock delivering that message to the University of Denver hockey team on Tuesday night as the community came together to celebrate a national championship. 大约3,000 fans came out to Magness Arena to congratulate the Pioneers for defeating Minnesota-Duluth 3-2 on Saturday night.

“Thank you very much for the pride that you showed this entire city 和 the entire state of Colorado,汉考克说. “Thank you for showing us what champions look like.”

Denver’s mayor energized the crowd 和 when he was done he took his customary ‘selfie’ with the team 和 championship trophy.

Also there to celebrate with the fans 和 student-athletes was Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper. He told everyone how he felt during the final 20 minutes of the championship game.

“I might have intestinal problems that follow me for the rest of my life from that third period. 但是突然, 还有三分钟, 我在冰上找到了耶稣,” Hickenlooper said referring to DU goalie Tanner Jaillet 和 the beard he has grown. “There was suddenly no doubt that you guys were going to win.”

The governor highlighted the winning tradition at the University of Denver. Over the last four years the Pioneers have had one sport win a national championship each year. Governor Hickenlooper finished his remarks by proclaiming 2017年4月11日 as “University of Denver Hockey National Champions Day.”

DU Chancellor Rebecca Chopp talked about how impressed she was with the team’s hard work this season 和 the adversity they overcame, especially when junior defenseman Tariq Hammond was taken off the ice on a stretcher with a broken ankle.

“我们为你的工作感到骄傲, 你的纪律, 你的奉献精神, 你的韧性和必胜精神,肖普说。. “What you have done for us 和 this University is so impressive.”

The evening ended with the fans hearing from senior captain Will Butcher 和 Coach Jim Montgomery. Butcher 和 his teammates have barely let the championship trophy out of their sights since Saturday night.

“I’ve seen it every day; I’ve held it every day; I’ve walked around with it every day,” Butcher said. “We’ve been sharing it among our team, taking it where ever we go. 我为此感到非常自豪.”

Butcher thanked the fans for supporting the team this season, sentiments shared by Montgomery. However, Montgomery got emotional at the end when he shared a message with his student-athletes.

“I asked 和 dem和ed, 和 our staff asked 和 dem和ed, a ton from you. 你不仅付出了努力, 执行, 情感与能量, but you dem和ed it from each other 和 you wouldn’t stop pushing until you achieved your goal,蒙哥马利说. “I could see it in your eyes from the time we got to Cincinnati, I thought we were going to win. It was awesome to watch you guys do it for each other 和 it was awesome to be a part of this.”