Tournament Takes Day 4: Michigan, Denver head to Frozen Four with explosive starts

ALBANY, New York — The last two spots in this year's Frozen Four weren't up for grabs for long.

Denver and Michigan, the two teams that cruised through their national quarterfinals on Sunday, spent a combined 5:05 of game time tied with their opponents, and neither trailed at any point in their games, blustering past Western Michigan and squeaking by Minnesota-Duluth, respectively.

The results of the weekend set up a titanic clash two Thursdays from now, a pair of NCHC vs. Big Ten matchups. Denver/Michigan and North Dakota/Wisconsin. Wisconsin is the only team left in the mix that isn't a top-5 seed.

Let's break down what happened, and what it all means, with another beautiful offering of Tournament Takes:

Denver 6, Western Michigan 2

To be the man, you gotta beat the man, and against the reign