CHICAGO – They are the two feel-good stories of the 2017 Frozen Four.
One, the coaching matchup in Thursday’s Denver-Notre Dame semifinal.
Denver coach Jim Montgomery served as an assistant under ND’s Jeff Jackson, who won national titles at Lake Superior State in 1992 and 1994. The Lakers led, 4-2, into the third period of the 1993 final game against Maine en route to what would be three straight. Until Paul Kariya set up Montgomery for the pure hat trick in the first seven minutes in the 5-4 final.
The second the rarest of the rare en route to the top of NCAA play.