FAIRBANKS, Alaska – This weekend, the Alaska hockey team will play its home series against Mercyhurst at the Patty Ice Arena, which used to be the home of the Nanooks until the Carlson Center opened in 1990.
In addition to playing a regular-season series on its former rink, Alaska will also don throwback jerseys, paying homage to the 1980-81 season, when it became an NCAA-affiliated program and played at the on-campus facility.
The jerseys, which are white with stripes of blue and gold, have Alaska on top of the old UAF logo with the walking bear.They were made by Gemini Athletic Wear out of Minneapolis, Minn.
"It speaks to our history with the elements of playing in the first NCAA game in the Patty Center with that jersey on," head coach
Dallas Ferguson said. "When going through the locker room renovation, we learned a lot about those jerseys and the program. We've seen a lot of emotional, hard-fought games in the Patty Center with those jerseys worn. Now, we get to wear the jerseys they wore over 30 years ago and represent that part of Nanook hockey."
"The replicas look awesome and are far better than our originals," hockey alumnus
Scott Roselius said. "It has the same styling, same color and they mimicked the exact look of the jersey. Of course the quality is much better than the ones we wore."
The Nanooks will wear them in both games this Friday and Saturday against the Lakers in a sold-out series and will wear them to end the regular season, March 7-8, for the Alaska Airlines Governor's Cup versus rival Alaska Anchorage.
Following the conclusion of the regular season, fans in the Nanook Nation can own a piece of history and tradition as all 27 jerseys will be auctioned off online by the alumni to raise money for the program.
"When we found out we'd be playing in the Patty Center, the thought was to bring something more to the weekend and tie in history," Ferguson said. "They did a great job replicating those jerseys. They'll be on showcase this weekend and again for the Governor's Cup and after that weekend, we'll auction them off. It's a great idea, we have a proud history and what the alumni does to support us is amazing."
"It's going to be sort of like déjà vu because those jerseys haven't been worn since the early 1980's," Roselius said. "A team hasn't really played here wearing those jerseys [in a long time] so there will be a lot of pride. I'm looking forward to it and I think everyone will enjoy seeing them.
For those who won't see the game in person, you can watch online through
Stretch Internet for $8 or listen online at
ESPN Radio 820 AM KCBF. The puck drops at 7:07 p.m. both nights.
