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DENVER - Pundits probably didn't give a struggling Miami hockey team much of a chance heading into its showdown at top-ranked Denver on Friday night, but that didn't faze the RedHawks as they grinded out a 1-1 tie with the Pioneers.

A win in the shootout after 70 minutes of play left the score still tied gave the Pioneers (7-2-2, 3-0-2-1 National Collegiate Hockey) two points while the RedHawks (3-6-3, 0-4-1-0 NCHC) earned a point of their own with the result.

"I thought we battled hard and played more determined tonight," head coach Enrico Blasi said. "We have another opportunity to grow tomorrow."

Anthony Louis' dogged puck pursuit got the Red and White off on the right foot when he forced a turnover and fed Grant Hutton at the blue line. The sophomore blue liner had a lot of space and ripped a slap shot that picked the top corner past Tanner Jaillet's stick to give Miami a 1-0 lead just 1:59 in.

The RedHawks went a long stretch without a shot after Hutton's third goal of the year, but Kiefer Sherwood had a good opportunity to make it 2-0 about 12 minutes in when Gordie Green dropped the puck to him in the slot for a heavy wrist shot that Jaillet stopped. That was about the extent of MU's offense in the opening 20 minutes of play as DU held a 15-3 advantage in shots on goal. The most dangerous opportunity came with about three and a half to play until intermission as Jarid Lukosevicius weaved across the goal mouth and tried to out wait Ryan Larkin, but the freshman goaltender stretched out while down to prevent a goal and keep Miami on top 1-0 after the first.

Miami went on a pair of power plays in the second period, but could not create much. The Pioneers put 13 more shots on goal in the middle stanza while the RedHawks posted 11 shots on goal of their own. DU ended up with the lone tally as Troy Terry picked off a D-to-D pass and tied it up on a breakaway goal 3:58 into the second period to leave the score even at 1-1 after 40 minutes.

Things tightened up on both ends in the third period as chances became few and far between for each team. A Miami penalty 2:27 into the final regulation frame gave Denver its lone power play of the night, but Larkin made two more stops to keep the Pioneers at bay. Things bogged down a bit when the situation returned to 5-on-5 and although DU was buzzing around the net at the end, the contest wore on into overtime.

A bad bounce for a Miami defender left the puck on Terry's stick just in front of the net, but his attempt hit the post to keep the game going. The RedHawks had their best opportunity of the extra session with about a minute left when Jaillet couldn't glove a Jared Brandt one-timer, but they could not cash in on the rebound as the game went into the 3-on-3 overtime officially recorded as a tie. The Pioneers had some good opportunities that Larkin held out of the net in the extra five minute session, but Henrik Borgstrom scored in his shootout attempt while the RedHawks did not convert on their shootout attempt to give DU two points in the league standings.

The Pioneers ended up outshooting the RedHawks 39-21 through the 65 official minutes. Only three total penalties were called on the evening with neither power play (Miami 0-for-2; Denver 0-for-1) converting any of its chances. Larkin made a season-high 38 saves while Jaillet turned away 20 shots in the opposite crease.

Miami and Denver conclude their weekend series on Saturday night. Puck drops at 9 p.m. ET.