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Box Score]
FAIRBANKS, AK - When head coach
Dallas Ferguson comes alone into the postgame media conference in the Pioneer Room of the Carlson Center, it tends to be a sign of a bad night for the Alaska Nanooks.
Saturday's 5-0 loss to No. 2-ranked Miami was another sign.
Ferguson usually brings two or more players to the Pioneer Room. On Saturday, the players stayed in the locker room to reflect on Alaska's second scoreless game in its last four Central Collegiate Hockey Association games.
Saturday's defeat sent the Nanooks (7-8-5-4 CCHA, 10-8-6 overall) back into fifth place after they shared fourth place Friday with Lake Superior State. The conference-leading RedHawks of Oxford, Ohio (13-1-4-2, 16-4-6) and the Nanooks tied 1-1 Friday in overtime and Miami later won 1-0 in a shootout.
“They outcompeted us in pretty much every facet of the game — along the walls, in the net, puck possession ... whatever it was,” Ferguson said.
His players agreed.
“We need to compete a lot harder,” freshman right wing
Andy Taranto said while he stood among the arena's empty seats after the game. “We lost a lot of battles tonight, pretty much in every zone, and as a result, we got outworked all over the ice.”
The Nanooks were shut out 6-0 at Michigan on Jan. 15, and responded the next night with a 3-3 tie and 1-0 shootout win. History didn't repeat itself Saturday against Miami, which led 3-0 in the first period and denied 10 power plays during the physical contest. The teams combined for 33 penalties totalling 54 minutes, with most in the third period (14 for 36 minutes).
The Nanooks lost sophomore defenseman
Joe Sova to a misconduct at 8:58 of the third, and it came among a plethora of penalties by the teams in the third. On two occasions, the penalty boxes were filled with three players each.
Neither Ferguson nor Miami head coach Enrico Blasi were happy about the penalties. Ferguson was particularly disappointed because Alaska entered the series as the least-penalized team in the nation (averaging 9.3 penalty minutes).
“I understand that there can be a sense of frustration,” Ferguson said, “but I told the guys if you've got that type of emotion and intensity, and you use it in the right way, we might not be sitting here feeling the way we do.”
Miami sophomore goaltender Connor Knapp added to Alaska's misery by shutting out the Nanooks by a 5-0 score for the second straight season. The other outcome occurred on Nov. 1, 2008 in Oxford.
“I actually completely forgot about last year that I shut them out,” said Knapp, who stopped 19 shots. “I just worked hard all week and focused on playing well this weekend. I'm just happy that the hard work paid off this week, and it just happened to be against the Nanooks.”
Knapp was supported by a defense that often forced the Nanooks wide on shots, and he was aided by an offense that seized a 3-0 lead in the first period. Miami's offensive outburst also led to Nanooks starting goaltender
Scott Greenham getting replaced by freshman
Steve Thompson for the second time this season.
“The third goal,” Ferguson said of the first period against Miami, “ I thought Scott was a little deep in the net, but it wasn't his fault, there were three guys standing around him. (The switch) was something to try to get something going.”
Greenham was replaced after RedHawks senior right wing Jarod Palmer scored on a wrist shot from the slot at 14:50.
Freshman right wing Reilly Smith scored the game's first goal at 6:42 on a delayed penalty and Knapp out for an extra attacker. Right wing Tommy Wingels unloaded a shot from the top of the slot that skipped through traffic in front of the crease and was redirected in by Smith.
Miami center Matt Tomassoni made it 2-0 at 12:11 of the first with a shot from the right circle that Greenham deflected but had bounce over him and into the net.
Thompson withstood seven RedHawks shots in a scoreless second period, but he saw Wingels tap in a loose puck at the right post during a 4-on-4 situation at 5:21 of the third period.
RedHawks right wing Brandon Smith capped the win with a wrist shot past Thompson's glove hand at 17:03.
