April 24, 2008
FAIRBANKS, AK - Alaska Nanooks interim head coach Dallas Ferguson announced the signing of three hockey recruits to National Letters of Intent Thursday. The student-athletes are as follows:
Carlo Finucci (fin-NEW-chee) is a 5-foot-10, 190-pound, left-handed center from Burnaby, British Columbia. Finucci captured the British Columbia Hockey League's Brett Hull Award (as did former Nanook left wing Kyle Greentree) after posting a league-high 102 points in 60 games this season with the Burnaby Express. The 21-year-old's stats this year included 33 goals and 69 assists. Eleven of his markers came on the power play, while eight tallies proved to be game winners. Finucci also led the Express in playoff scoring, notching 11 points (five goals and six assists) in five postseason contests against the Victoria Grizzlies.
Additionally, he was named the BCHL Coastal Conference Most Valuable Player after an astounding 65-point jump from his 37-point output of one season ago. In the 2005-2006 season, Finucci managed 27 points in 52 games.
"He will bring an element of maturity and presence to our program," said Ferguson. "He led a very good junior hockey league in scoring and we look for him to carry that into college hockey. We are excited to be adding a player of his caliber to our program."
Finucci is working to complete some business courses at Douglas College before beginning his collegiate career in September at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, where he will pursue a degree in business.
A truly dynamic student-athlete, Finucci has previously been named top scorer and MVP in soccer and a Burnaby baseball All-Star. He is also trilingual, speaking English, Italian and Spanish fluently.
Adam Cardwell is a 5-foot-8, 160-pound right-handed center from Long Beach, California. The 20-year old forward completed his third season with the Wichita Falls Wildcats, with the best season a Wildcats forward has ever had, leading the North American Hockey League (conference for Fairbanks' own Junior A Ice Dogs) with 91 points in 56 games and a plus 29 rating. Twelve of Cardwell's 32 goals this season were game-winners: tops in the conference.
He was named the NAHL Showcase's Sherwood/Most Valuable Player and to the All-Tournament Team after he led all Showcase scorers with three goals for 10 points as the Wildcats skated to a 3-0-1 record. Cardwell was recently named to the NAHL's All-South Division Team and is one of just four finalists for the Dave Tyler Junior Player of the Year award.
Prior to joining Wichita Falls, Cardwell played one season for the Indiana Ice of the United States Hockey League, where he had five points in 27 games.
"Adam is a very intelligent player that makes plays and creates offense because of his hockey IQ," said Ferguson. "Adam is very comfortable on the power play and will make players around him better because of his intelligence on the ice. He puts up points and he proved that this year by leading his league all year in scoring"
He will enroll at UAF, where he plans to study business, this fall with four years of NCAA eligibility remaining.
Cody Butcher is a 6-foot-1, 195-pound right-handed defenseman from Anchorage, Alaska. A four-year veteran of junior hockey, who celebrated his 21st birthday Wednesday, Butcher was the second highest scoring defenseman for the Sioux City Musketeers of the United States Hockey League.
Butcher spent the previous two seasons playing for the British Columbia Hockey League's Merritt Centennials, amassing a career-best 41 points (eight goals and 33 assists) in 58 games and earning a spot on the Interior Conference team at the BCHL All-Star Showcase. Butcher began the 2005-2006 season with the Vernon Vipers before getting traded to Merritt and prior to crossing the border, he spent his rookie season with the Billings Bulls of the North American Hockey League in 2004-2005.
As a senior at Robert Service High School, Butcher earned Cooke Inlet All-Conference honors and honorable mention to the All-State Team in 2004, after helping his team to the state title and a 25-1 record.
"Cody is a puck-moving defensemen," said Ferguson. "He contributes to a team's offense because of his ability to make good decisions with the puck on the breakout and in transition. We are proud that Cody made the decision to come home to Alaska to pursue his academic and athletic goals."
An Alaska-grown skater, Butcher's connection to the Nanooks runs deep, as two of his friends and neighbors now become teammates with the Blue and Gold. Butcher's family lives in the same Anchorage neighborhood as current Nanook defensemen Dustin Molle and Bryant Molle. He will study business at UAF.
Alaska's three latest recruits join the Nanooks previous signees, who include forwards Ron Meyers (Prince Albert, Saskatchewan), Jarret Granberg (Foremost, Alberta), Jordan VanGilder (Lino Lakes, Minnesota), and Erik Slemp (Red Deer, Alberta) and defensemen Scott Enders (Edmonton, Alberta) and Kaare Odegard (Red Deer, Alberta) and in the recruiting class of 2008.
